This podcast is part one of a two-part series on the blues scale — what it is, how it is used, and how it is formed. Listen how to include a minor 3rd, diminished 5th, and minor 7th to add … Continue reading →
In addition to the normal notes of a chord, you can add notes called “color tones”. They are called that because they add color and interest to a song. Some of the color tones you can add are 6ths, 7ths, … Continue reading →
Everyone who has ever taken a piano lesson knows what a scale is and has probably had to practice them endlessly. The most common type of music scale is a major scale, but every major scale has a relative minor … Continue reading →
Everything has intervals. Runners measure their success by the interval between their start and finish time. In math, an interval is the distance between two numbers (integers for you math wizzes). Although music is often seen as artsy and not … Continue reading →
How To Turn a Chord Into a “Cascading Waterfall Run” It’s pretty easy to take most any chord (4 note chords are easier than 3 note chords, generally, simply because of the way your hand is constructed) and turn it … Continue reading →
Before we talk about musical form, we have to talk about symmetry. If we were to describe symmetry in one word, we would probably pick balance. Our bodies, for example, have symmetry. We have two eyes, both of which are … Continue reading →
There are literally TONS of things you can do to make your piano songs come to life and be far more interesting. In this short video I demonstate just three of those many ways, including a filler you can use … Continue reading →
This video is the 3rd in a series about how to create your own unique chord substitutions for most any song. By creating a chord sub, you automatically put your own spin on a tune, as your listeners are used … Continue reading →
The “Walk On Up Blues/Gospel Chord Progression” is an obvious but useful technique in the toolbox of the pianist. After all, the I to IV progression is used all the time in music, so there are multiple times in most … Continue reading →
Beethoven was never much for rules so why obey them for one of his most famous pieces? Even the title of the piece popularly known as the Moonlight Sonata bears reference to Beethoven’s love of not doing things the way … Continue reading →
