Did You Know That Music Is Based On Natural “Laws”?

Did you know that music is based on natural “laws” — like gravity — and by learning to understand how those natural laws work we can actually understand what we are doing when we play — we don’t have to be at the mercy of what someone else has written on a piece of music.   How many of these facts do you know about music & piano playing? Test yourself and then check the answers at the bottom of the page:    

• Did you know that by learning just 3 chords you can play hundreds of songs?
• Did you know that there are only 12 major keys you can play in, but you only really have to master one key to play most popular songs?
• Did you know that it is possible to easily match any melody note (tune) to a chord, so you can harmonize any note?
• Did you know that Beethoven’s Fur Elise and the blues song “Summertime” uses the exact same chords for the theme of the song?
• Did you know that it is quite possible to predict what chord comes next in a song with accuracy approaching 85%?
• Did you know you can use the same chords to play boogie, blues, new age, gospel, pop, rock, jazz, country - anything except classical music? (And even some classics!)
• Did you know that guitar chords are the same as piano chords — the only thing different is the instrument and the resulting sound?
• Did you know that hundreds of songs use exactly the same form, so by learning that form you can know what’s coming next in a song?
• Did you know that by coming in through the backdoor of piano playing — chords — you can start making wonderful and satisfying sounds on the piano in just a few days instead of a few years — even if you don’t know Middle C from Tweedle Dee?

Answers to piano playing music questions:

     

• True. That’s because there are just 3 primary chords in any key — like family members: Mom, Dad, Child. Get to know those 3 and you’ve got it.
• True. It’s like languages. It’s great to be able to speak several, but you can get by with just one. I’d love to speak other languages, but I can get by with just English.
• True. Every note is part of several different chords. So it is easy to harmonize any song once you know the secret.
• True. Yep. They both use the A minor chord and the E7 chord in their themes.
• True. I know that’s hard to believe, but remember that music is based on math. Once you understand a thing called the “Circle of 4ths” it’s a piece of cake. In fact, I can tell you right now that 85% of the time the G chord comes directly after the D7 chord. So next time you run into the D7 chord, you have an educated guess of 85% that the next chord will be some form of the G chord. (G, G7 etc.) If you’re into amazing your friends, that’ll do it!
• True. Apply different rhythms to the same chords, and you have many styles of music! With the very same chords I can play boogie, jazz, rock, pop, gospel, new age, ragtime.
• True. Chords are chords. Once you know them, you can apply them to any instrument.
• True. Musical forms such as “AABA” and “ABA” are the basis of thousands and thousands of songs.
• True. Understanding chords and how them form the skeleton of music accelerates the learning curve exponentially.

The bottom line is this: music is based on natural law and is mathematical in nature. Understanding is the key to both rapid learning and getting more enjoyment out of the process.    

“I want to play music!” How many millions of people have either said or thought that? And why not? Music is the universal language that we all speak, and we all want to express ourselves and communicate our feelings to others. Music is the perfect vehicle for that. I have often thought that if during the presidential campaign the candidates were only allowed to sing their stories and oppions rather than pound the pulpit and preach them, we might just have a more civil campaign with a lot more mutual respect and understanding.

You can get started easily playing music by taking a music course online from one of several excellent choices, including Piano Lessons By Video, How To Read Music, How To Play Chord Piano, and many other courses. Music courses are a great way to learn about virtually any area of music; history, theory, instrument instruction — you name it and somewhere music courses specialize in it. Though generally found through colleges, universities or high school programs, music courses are also offered via one-on-one instruction with a private teacher or community-based workshops. Some churches even offer music courses as a complement to their choirs; the music courses may be offered to the general public, but they’re often geared toward the choir members and congregation. But if you want to learn fast and start playing music, go to your web browser right now and type in “play piano” or “learn music” or “play music”. A complete catalog of over 300 individual courses in music theory and piano playing can be found at Play Piano Catalog.

 

But whatever you do and however you do it, get started playing music! It’s tremendously rewarding to play music of any kind.

In music there is a type of note which is never counted — it falls between the beats, and you never count it like you would count an 8th note or a 16th note.  When I was a kid I used to skip rocks on Lake Tahoe — you’re probably done it too. Grace notes are like that rock that bounces across the surface of the water. You don’t count it, but it sure adds a lot and its fun, too. Watch this 2-minute video and your understand easily: http://www.playpianocatalog.com

There are many songs which can be played with just a few different notes, and Jingle Bells is one of them.  A piano beginner can play it easily just with the 5 fingers of their right hand — 5 notes, 5 fingers. And since there are only 4 different chords in the song, it’s easy to put hands together for a two-handed arrangement. Pianists who are more advanced can, of course, use many more chords and many more notes, plus many other styles and arrangments. Watch the 2-minute video for a couple simple ideas: For more advanced concepts and ideas on arranging beautiful Christmas Carols, please go to “How To Play Spectacularly Beautiful Christmas Carols On The Piano — This Christmas!”

A single note played is termed a unison. Two notes played together (or close together) is termed an interval. Three or more notes in combination is called a chord. Chords can have any number of notes in them, but the most basic type of chord is termed a triad. There are four types of triads commonly used: Major triad — made up of the root, 3rd and 5th of the major scale for that key. Minor triads — made by lowering the 3rd 1/2 step. Diminished triads — made by lowering both the 3rd and 5th 1/2 step. Augmented triads — made by raising the 5th 1/2 step. Watch the short video: By learning the 4 basic triads in all 12 keys, you automatically know and can play 48 chords! Not bad for only learning 4 variations of a triad chord.

Every major scale has a kissin’-cousin — a relative minor scale. It is related to the major scale of the key, but begins on the 6th note of the major scale. For example, if I were to play the C major scale but instead of playing it from C to C I played it from A to A, that would be the A minor natural scale. What makes it related? It uses the same notes — just starts and ends at a different point. To complicate the picture, there are 3 varieties of each minor scale: the natural minor scale, the harmonic minor scale, and the melodic minor scale. Please refer to this page on the web for audio samples of each type of minor scale: 3 kinds of minor scales Then watch this short video on minor scales:

Beginning Piano: How To Get Started Maybe you’ve always wanted to learn to play the piano but never had the opportunity. Perhaps you’re a parent with a child who has expressed interest in the piano. The question is: where do you begin? How to start depends on your age and your goals. First, you need to find a program of study that is age appropriate. For children, formal lessons are usually recommended. It’s important for kids to take at least three or four years worth of formal lessons. It usually takes that long to get a good grasp on the basics of technique, sight reading, and chord theory. After that, children will have a good foundation in music. They may choose to continue on, branching out in piano studies and honing those basics.  Or, they can use that foundation and apply it to learning another instrument. Formal study with a piano teacher is usually recommended for children older than six. A wide variety of methods is directed at children.  Some have different emphases. Therefore, it’s important to research various methods to decide what type will be best for your child. Younger children (ages three to six) usually do not fare well with formal lessons. If you want to start your children off early in piano, enroll them in a program developed specifically for preschool children. These types of piano programs take into account the physical and mental development of young children. They are less overwhelming and more engaging for the younger learner. Often they are group-style sessions rather than one-on-one. Sometimes parent participation is encouraged or required. This helps to ensure that parents are able to reinforce the concepts that their children are taught. It also fosters the parent-child bond, strengthening it with a mutual appreciation for music. For adults who are beginning piano there are a few options. Adults may choose to take formal lessons one-on-one with an instructor. Be sure to find a teacher who specializes in teaching adults or has at least worked with adults before. Another option for adult beginners is group lessons. Music stores, community groups, educational institutions and even some private instructors may offer group lessons for adults. Students learn in a classroom-style setting with several other adults. Each person typically has his or her own keyboard on which to learn during class. Concepts are taught from the front by the instructor. Another option for adult learners is to take a correspondence course or self-paced study. These types of programs are available for a fee in music stores, from a college or music school and on the Internet. In fact, many of these programs have DVD or software components to help visually reinforce the concepts taught in the manuals. In some ways it’s like having your own private piano teacher. Some curriculums even have live-study components via the Web in real time with an instructor. If you are an adult beginner, set your goals. If you hope to pursue a higher level of study or want employment in the music business, then formal lessons are best. If you simply want to enrich your own personal life, correspondence studies or group lessons may be adequate. An added bonus with correspondence courses or self-directed study is that you are able to work at home at your own pace. This can be especially advantageous for the busy adult who can’t commit to regular, ongoing lessons. So if you are a parent seeking a piano teacher for your child, make sure that he or she teaches music theory and chords along with sight reading, technique, and all the other basics. For adults with limited time for in-person lessons, look for a good course you can take at your own speed such as the Crash Course In Exciting Piano Playing for adults only.

Our population is aging. People are living longer lives, and they are constantly looking for brain food to keep their mental prowess in peak condition. One of the best ways to keep those hamsters running might be sitting in the corner of your living room gathering dust. That old piano of grandma’s has more than its share of brain teasers. If you’re looking for a perfect way to keep your mind sharp, piano playing is the solution. It exercises several different parts of the mind and body, while providing you with years of musical enjoyment. Whether you play piano currently or are thinking about starting, playing piano is great brain food. In order to play piano, your hands must develop independent coordination. This is one of the basic ways to keep your mind sharp. Each hand must often perform entirely different movements, and the brain must tell each hand what to do. By learning separate hand coordination, you stimulate several different areas of the brain. Practice each hand separately, and then combine the movements of each hand. Not everyone is born with perfect pitch, but many people can develop it. When you play piano, you train your ear to hear pitches and tones in relation to one another. This makes perfect pitch possible. Intervals stimulate your mind in slightly different ways. A perfect fifth will cause one reaction in your brain, while a seventh will cause an entirely separate reaction. This trains the mind to recognize pitches and intervals. Sight reading offers the brain another workout, as the eyes must follow the music while the hands play it. The ability to sight read is similar to knowing a foreign language, yet also requires extreme hand-eye coordination. The eye muscles are also strengthened as they move up and down the staff across the page. Analyze musical passages and learning the theory involved is another mental exercise when you play piano. It’s brain food at its finest. Chords, melodies, and changes are all rooted in complex musical theory. It pays dividends to learn and understand how music is put together. When you play piano in the presence of others, you are participating in a valuable social exercise. History is filled with participants and spectators in the world of music. You have the ability to make others’ time more enjoyable. You also meet other musicians who can share knowledge with you, expanding your understanding of the piano. Proper piano playing, whether done for leisure or profession, keeps the fingers nimble. It strengthens all the muscles of the hands, which helps in other lines of work. A maintenance man with strong hands is more valuable than one with weak digits. Besides all this, piano playing is great fun. It lets you create your own tune for the day. The piano has provided society with over a hundred years of enjoyment and will do so for hundreds more. It’s not only an instrument; it’s a social communication tool and a brain exercise, as well. Play piano for your brain. It’s lot more fun than Sudoku, and it’s great at parties.

Pseudo-modulation is a little known technique that any pianist can use to brighten up a song. The idea is to apparently modulate to a new key, but really end up in the same key. Most non-musicians will never notice it consciously, but they will “feel” the lift it gives to the song. And musicians will likely say “How did you do that?” Watch this minute-and-a-half video and you’ll get the picture: Pseudo-Modulation — False Modulation from chordman on Vimeo.

When I was about 14 years old I bought my first fake book. They were illegal back then, but most professional musicians had them. I paid $50. for mine — under the counter from a music store owner. $50. then was something like $500. now, so for a teenager, it was a huge purchase. The one I purchased had 300 songs in it in lead sheet format. Now fake books often have 1000 or more songs in them. But it paid for itself many times over as I used it for years learning song after song, and allowed me to play in a little combo that played for dances and parties and such. I would usually earn $15. or $20. per gig, so I got my $50. back quickly. Later I bought many, many fake books — some for jazz tunes, others for standards, still others for Latin, others for gospel, and so on. The songs in a fake book are in lead sheet format — meaning just the melody with the chord symbols written above the melody. Watch this short video on fake books, lead sheets, and chord symbols. You can buy a fake book at most any music store and most large bookstores. For a course on playing more notes without reading more notes using a fake book, click here.

One note played alone is termed a“unison.” Two notes played simultaneously (or adjacent to one another) are termed an “interval.” Intervals are named by the distance between them, so there can be intervals of 2nds, 3rds, 4ths, 5^th, etc.  Chords are three or more notes (or pitch classes; strictly speaking, notes are the written form of pitches) played together. But these notes don’t necessarily have to be played simultaneously. Broken chords, or arpeggios, are three or more notes that aren’t played at the same time but closely enough to be heard as a group or whole. Sometimes in rock music the term “power chord” is used, meaning that the 3^rd is left out of a 3 note chord leaving just the root and 5^th.

Chords are most often named based on their number of notes or the type of intervals involved. Chords classified by note number are given names such as trichord (three notes), tetrachord (five notes), and hexachord (six notes). Chords classified by interval are given names such as tertian (third chords), secundal (second chords), and quartal (fourth chords). Sometimes chords are named based on both qualities. Tertian trichords, for example, are chords with three notes, each a third above each other. These type of chords are actually the most common in western music, found frequently in rock and pop.

These chords aren’t the only chords possible, however. There are several specialized chord types that seem to defy strict categorization. Inverted chords are created by turning any root position chord upside down. Seventh chords can be made by adding a fourth note to a triad — a third above the chord’s fifth — which makes the highest note a seventh from the root. Extended chords are those with notes that extend above a seventh, such as a ninth or an eleventh. But it’s important to mention that no extended chord can go above a thirteenth. By that point, the notes included will have already been played somewhere in the chord, taking it back down to an eleventh or thirteenth.

 A “slash chord” is a chord where the root of the chord is not the lowest note, which would include inversions, but also might include non-chordal notes. An example might be C/B.

 A “sus chord” – short for “suspension” – is a chord where the 3^rd of the chord is replaced by the 4^th.

 Watch this short little video and you will understand immediately:

 

The Nomenclature of Music: Unisons, Intervals, Chords from chordman on Vimeo.

Gospel music is full of history and soul. It comes from a rich tradition of folk songs and church hymns. Gospel stays alive by remaining relevant, taking various aspects of the musical culture of the day and bringing those aspects into the spiritual fold. In modern gospel, jazz has been introduced into traditional songs. This has sparked the musical term “gospel chords.” Gospel chords are extended chords, such as the 9th, 11th and 13th. Maybe you’re not familiar with these chords. If you’re not sure how to form these chords, here’s a brief lesson. Start with a dominant seventh chord. This is a basic triad with a flatted seventh added. For example, in the key of C, the basic triad is C-E-G. This is a C major chord. In the C major scale, the seventh is a B, so the flatted seventh is a Bb. To get a dominant seventh, we’ll add the Bb to the basic triad. This chord can be played in many different ways. You can use the left hand for the root and leave the other three notes for the right hand. You can play all of the notes on one hand. You can switch them around to your heart’s content. When you switch the notes of a chord around like these, you are using inversions. To get the 9th, 11th, and 13th you’ll have to add more notes to the chord. Since the notes of the octave are number 1-7, you must continue past one octave with numbering. The 9th tone is an octave above the 2nd; the 11th is an octave above the 4th, and the 13th is an octave above the 6th. This is where using different hands for different chord tones really comes in handy. A well-played gospel chord shouldn’t sound cluttered. Now that you have studied all those extended gospel chords, when are you going to use them? Now that you have studied all those extended gospel chords, where are you going to use them? To start with, any gospel number can be spiced up with some jazz gospel chords. Try them out and see what works for you. Take a standard like The Old Rugged Cross. In the key of A, the progression is A, A7, D, B7, E, E7, A. To give it some flavor, substitute any of the dominant seventh chords with 9th, 11th or 13th chords. Experiment with them to see what suits your taste. Change the tonalities of the chords. Take the B7 and make it a Bm7. When they are worked into a simple progression, extended gospel chords make things a bit more musical. They give the song more depth and color, creating a rich sonic picture. Gospel music is always evolving, taking different aspects of modern styles and incorporating them into a whole. Practice bringing some extended chords into old arrangements and see what sounds good to you. With a little practice and experimentation, you’ll find yourself livening up any traditional praise song with a series of well-placed gospel chords.

Keith Jarrett was born in Allentown in Pennsylvania on the 8th of May, 1945. A prodigy at a very young age, he had his first public appearance when he was six years old. He had lots of support to the extent that he was offered a chance to study and learn composition with Nadia Boulanger, the revered French piano teacher, in Paris. He admitted once that what ticked on his interest in the jazz was a Dave Brubeck performance that he attended. He took to jazz when he was a teenager and soon started becoming good at it. As he played more of jazz, he had the strong urge to join the local jazz scene. After he graduated from school, he shifted base to Boston, Massachusetts. It was here that he did a stint at the Berklee College of Music. He also had a gig playing cocktail piano while studying at Berklee. Upon finishing his tour, he went to New York and where he had a regular gig in a club - Village Vanguard. What followed was his association with many groups. One of the first groups on that list is The Jazz Messengers. He met his future long time collaborator Jack DeJohnette while playing for another group Charles Lloyd Quartet. The group recorded one of the most important jazz recordings of the 60’s – their 1966 album Forest Flower. He was leader in a trio with Paul Motian and Charlie Haden and He made his debut recording as leader the following year Life Between The Exit Signs which was followed by another in 68’ – Restoration Ruin. It was one of the most impressive in the list of works that he is known for. Restoration Ruin was unique mainly because he did everything except play the piano – including playing every single other instrument and the vocals – in the album which was anything but jazz. It was by any definition folk rock hence different from most of the work that he has recorded so far. The trio had one last release – a live album titles Somewhere Before. The next stint that Keith had was with Miles Davis playing with the legend in the Miles Davis group. After Miles saw Keith play, he was so impressed that he invited him to play along with the group. When he joined the group, the playing of the Contempo electric organ and Rhodes electric piano was shared by him and band mate Chick Corea. After Chick Corea left the band, he handled both the instruments at times playing both at the same time. Playing an electric instrument was not an option that he preferred to exercise. Despite this, he stuck with the band out of a stronger wish to play with Miles Davis and also with Jack DeJohnette who was a part of the group at the time. His long time association with Miles Davis resulted in him playing with the genius on five of his releases including The Cellar Door sessions recorded live at the Washington DC nightclub, Miles Davis at Fillmore: Live at the Fillmore East, The Cellar Door and Live-Evil which consisted of edited recording of live performances at The Cellar Door. More extensive recording from live performances there were put together as The Complete Cellar Door Sessions. Another similar series of compositions had Miles and Keith sharing company – The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions – which was recorded for a documentary on boxing champ Jack Johnson. The Haden – Motain – Jarrett continued to play for six years from 1971 to 1976. They had Dewey Redman on the saxophone after which they became the American Quartet. They had sidemen play with them at times on guitar and percussion. One common feature of the original trio members was that they were multi – instrumentalists. You’d hear each one playing different instruments on their recordings and live shows. Jarrett’s versatility went as far as the saxophone and percussion in addition to the piano, Redman as far as a Chinese double reed instrument – musette and the remaining two members on various forms of percussion. They group experimented with their sound a lot. Hayden devised a way to play the acoustic bass producing from it new percussive and plucked sounds. He played it through a wah-wah pedal on the track Mortgage On My Soul. Jarrett achieved a lot more with groups like the European Quartet and his solo piano outings. His solo piano concerts had him leaving the audience at suspense. The extreme point of this habit was when he didn’t play for minutes while the audience got restless. Then someone shouted “D Flat” after which he immediately hit an improvisation in D Flat.

To play in any given key, such as the key of A or the key of Db or any key, you really need to be able to think in that key. When I was in college I spent one semester in Mexico City while attending Mexico City College and lived with a Mexican family. I had taken 4 year of Spanish in high school, but I certainly wasn’t great at speaking Spanish. But before the semester was up, I began to actually think in Spanish to some extent — certainly not very much, but some. And as a result, I could begin to converse more comfortably when I spoke to the locals. And I could see that if I had spent a couple years there instead of just 3 months, I would be a lot further down the road in thinking in Spanish. It’s the same with you when it comes to music. You can probably think in the key of C — most piano players can, because that’s the key they almost always start in. And that’s fine. But if you had started in the key of Bb or E, you would be just as comfortable as you are in the key of C. But there are 2 HUGE advantages in music over languages when it comes to thinking: 1. There are hundreds (probably thousands,if you count dialects) of languages. There are only 12 major keys. 2. Those languages have different alphabets in many cases. All keys in music use the same alphabet - A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. That’s it. 3. Language alphabets have many letters — English has 26, Greek has 24, Hebrew I believe has 27, and so on. And of course, the letters are not the same as in English. So learning to think in all 12 major keys is not that hard compared to learning languages (in fact it is super easy compared to languages!). And since there are 12 months in the year, why not devote one month to learning the key of D, one month learning the key of Eb, and so on throughout the year? At the end of the year you’ll have a pretty good grasp of all 12 keys, and you’ll begin to think in those keys instead of fighting with the sharps and flats as perhaps you used to. If you would like some help, go over to How To Think In All 12 Keys.

- Many, many adults today learned to play the piano when they were young, but gave it up at some point. Although some of these people don’t miss it, there are others that secretly desire to play piano again. Some have no interest, but many have a hidden goal to someday start playing the piano again. And when they do start taking up lessons again, they’d prefer it to be with a modern teacher who knows the difference between Bach and the Beatles. Also, it’s difficult to add regular lessons to their schedules which are already full. How do you do this, then? There are two linked circumstances present in today’s world that give adults a new chance to learn to play piano in a way that was never possible before. Today, we have the Internet, a continually growing treasure trove of information. Until around year 2000, aspiring pianists usually took lessons from teachers who were of practical distance from their residences. That’s no longer the case. Many piano teachers even give online lessons using the cyber world. There are also DVDs and CDs that have been produced to assist the learner during all stages of piano playing, from the beginner to the advanced. Also, they are simple to find. Searching for such phrases as “piano lessons for adults” or “piano playing for adults” on a site such as Google will bring forth many possibilities for those looking to learn. (Give it a try and find out for yourself) The other step has always been around, but often hasn’t been described well enough for people to understand. To put it simply, there are three ways to learn how to play the piano, and adults may choose to use one, two, or all three in any combination, and will learn far better than if they used only one method. The three ways are: First) Reading music from the score which is printed. The majority of piano lessons require the ability to read sheet music and make your fingers do what your mind tells them to do. The customary way to teach piano was with repeated technical exercises and drills, and reading music pieces starting from the very simplest piece engaging only the thumbs, gradually working one’s way up to complex classical works like the “Moonlight Sonata” by Beethoven or the challenging “Prelude in C# minor” by Rachmaninoff. You can find an online instructor to teach you how to read musical scores. Some search terms you can try to find these people include “learn to read music” and “classical piano lessons online.” Second) Playing something by only hearing it first. Not many people could play the piano entirely through auditory perception and these people no longer need piano lessons because they can play any piece of any style they want. Playing by ear can be taught to some extent, but anyone who thinks they can end up playing like Ray Charles is kidding himself or herself. But in reality, most people can acquire the skills of recognizing a tune by ear, and by adding a couple of chords to the melody, can have a lot of fun entertaining their family and friends. Third) Using chord symbols to play with. “Fake books” are popular with professional pianists, especially those who specialize in jazz. Fake books are song collections in a format known as “lead sheet”, meaning that the melody is written in addition to the chord symbols needed to harmonize with the melody. This method requires merely learning some simple chords found in the songs you intend to learn; and reading the melody in the treble clef, which is considerably easier than learning to read dense clusters of musical notes in both clefs. Most people have no idea that this kind of playing exists, or if they do, they mistakenly believe it is only for the professionals. Not true. The process is simple and will produce results fairly quickly. You might be amazing your friends in weeks instead of years with these quick results. Any of these ways will work and are available online. Incorporating aspects of all three methods brings the best results; the combination of reading sheet music, playing by ear, and learning chords and their proper progression can help a person learn the most efficiently. It doesn’t matter which method you pick, just pick one and start. You’ll find its great fun and boosts your self confidence.

Musical consonance and dissonance are the exact opposite of each other, like day and night. Though both refer to the type of sound achieved by playing a chord or interval, they produce radically different tonal types. Musical consonance is typically thought of as a pleasing or resolved sound; it is achieved by two notes that clearly complement each other and produce a comfortable chord or interval. Musical consonance is at the very heart of composition. Most songs consistently contain some level of musical consonance, whether perfect or imperfect (a classification coined during the common practice period); perfect musical consonance is found in perfect fourths and fifths, octaves or unisons, and imperfect musical consonance is found in major or minor thirds or sixths. Musical dissonance, on the other hand, is a chord or interval that seems restless or uncomfortable. It can be achieved by playing a chord that doesn’t resolve the song, or two notes that very audibly clash with each other, such as minor seconds or major sevenths (usually notes that lie only a half-step away from each other). The concept of musical dissonance isn’t necessarily universal, however; what one era considered to be a musical dissonance is sometimes considered to be a musical consonance in modern times (for example, perfect fourths were at one time seen as dissonant). And in some eras, musical dissonance was even forbidden, all songs had to be resolved; this was an era in which perfect fourths and fifths were some of the only acceptable chords. In modern music composition, however, musical dissonance is not only allowed, it’s often encouraged. Rock musicians use dissonant chords like minor seconds and tritones to great effect and even classical composers employ musical dissonance to create a dark, specific mood. In a sense, all music can be viewed as a contest between dissonance and consonance. If a piece of music was all consonance, it would be boring. If it were all dissonance, it wouldn’t be listenable at all. So every piece of music is crafted in a unique way to move back and forth between those two extremes to create both interest and pleasure.

Bill Evans was born on the 6th of August, 1929 in Plainfield, New Jersey. He started learning to play the piano when he was six years old. In 7 years, he added two more instruments to his repertoire. His first gig was when his brother Harry had to be substituted for Buddy Valentino’s band. He was familiar with the music it was the same kind of music that he was practicing at home. He continued playing boogie-woogie there on in clubs in and around New York City. He was awarded a scholarship to Southeastern Louisiana University where he played to an audience Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto in a recital in 1950. He left the institute with a degree in piano performance and teaching. While in college, he founded the Delta Omega Chapter of the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia – a fraternity for people with an interest in music. After graduation, he served in US Army after which he returned to New York and continued to gig. He set himself up as a sideman for bands playing Third Stream jazz - an innovative mixture of classical music and jazz. While building up his reputation, he was a part of many studio recordings. He worked with George Russell to come up with work like Concerto for Billy the Kid and All About Rosie. He also was on albums by Tony Scott, Oliver Nelson, Art Farmer and Charles Mingus with whom he recorded during this period of time. His first recording of his own material was with his 1956 album New Jazz Conceptions. He got make his debut with album after being referred by Mundell Lowe to producer Orrin Keepnews. In 58’, he was invited to play with Miles Davis and the Miles Davis Sextet. The short stint that he had with the sextet was iconic as the sound of the sextet thereafter took a new direction. Miles Davis describes in his that Bill Evans style of playing in his autobiography. “Bill had this quiet fire that I loved on piano. The way he approached it, the sound he got was like crystal notes or sparkling water cascading down from some clear waterfall.” He left the band after running into trouble with drugs and also in search of new ground to conquer. He recorded Everybody Digs Bill Evans which had a new style that he had been working on at the time. After a short recording stint recording the iconic 1959 album Kind of Blue, he went back solo and formed his own trio with bassist Scott LaFaro and Paul Motian on the drums. The trio stuck to jazz standards and original composition involving a lot of improvisation. They had four albums between 1959 and 1961 – Portrait In Jazz, Explorations, Sunday At The Village Vanguard and Waltz For Debby. All these four album barring Portrait In jazz were released in 1961. Waltz I jazz was released in 59’. Sunday At The Village Vanguard and Waltz For Debby are regarded as one of the greatest jazz recordings. Evans experimented with interplay with a little more freedom with his trio. He used slow ballad like tempos for the songs and used quiet volume levels which was the first that it was ever done in jazz piano. His chords had a classical touch to it becoming more and more impressionistic. His left hand playing and right hand playing were so complimentary that you could see a Bud Powell influence. Pushing the lid further, Evans was the pioneer of avoiding bebop and other jazz forms in favor a new style – modal jazz. His bassist collaborator Scott LaFaro passed away young at 25 which made Evans take some time off to come to terms with his death. Breaking more ground in 1962, he recorded an album that is considered a classic jazz piano and guitar duet album. He got bassist Chuck Israel to take the place of LaFaro in the trio. The new group continued recording winning a Grammy for their 1963 release Conversations With Myself. It was not all rosy a period for the trio with their music not selling well. Their manager Helen Keane brought the band back on track. The entry of bassist Eddie Gomes into the band make things look up a bit creatively for the band. The 1968 live recording Bill Evans at the Montreux Jazz Festival is considered the pianist’s best because of the interplay and the energy that the band displayed throughout the show. Bill Evans passed away on the 15th of September, 1980 due to a bleeding ulcer, cirrhosis and bronchial pneumonia.

Here is a short video where I “fly over” the 12-bar blues to get an overall picture of what comprises the blues: For information on the blues, click here.

Gospel music is full of history and soul. It comes from a rich tradition of folk songs and church hymns. Gospel stays alive by remaining relevant, taking various aspects of the musical culture of the day and bringing those aspects into the spiritual fold. In modern gospel, jazz has been introduced into traditional songs. This has sparked the musical term “gospel chords.” Gospel chords are extended chords, such as the 9th, 11th and 13th. Maybe you’re not familiar with these chords. If you’re not sure how to form these chords, here’s a brief lesson. Start with a dominant seventh chord. This is a basic triad with a flatted seventh added. For example, in the key of C, the basic triad is C-E-G. This is a C major chord. In the C major scale, the seventh is a B, so the flatted seventh is a Bb. To get a dominant seventh, we’ll add the Bb to the basic triad. This chord can be played in many different ways. You can use the left hand for the root and leave the other three notes for the right hand. You can play all of the notes on one hand. You can switch them around to your heart’s content. When you switch the notes of a chord around like these, you are using inversions. To get the 9th, 11th, and 13th you’ll have to add more notes to the chord. Since the notes of the octave are number 1-7, you must continue past one octave with numbering. The 9th tone is an octave above the 2nd; the 11th is an octave above the 4th, and the 13th is an octave above the 6th. This is where using different hands for different chord tones really comes in handy. A well-played gospel chord shouldn’t sound cluttered. Now that you have studied all those extended gospel chords, when are you going to use them? Now that you have studied all those extended gospel chords, where are you going to use them? To start with, any gospel number can be spiced up with some jazz gospel chords. Try them out and see what works for you. Take a standard like The Old Rugged Cross. In the key of A, the progression is A, A7, D, B7, E, E7, A. To give it some flavor, substitute any of the dominant seventh chords with 9th, 11th or 13th chords. Experiment with them to see what suits your taste. Change the tonalities of the chords. Take the B7 and make it a Bm7. When they are worked into a simple progression, extended gospel chords make things a bit more musical. They give the song more depth and color, creating a rich sonic picture. Gospel music is always evolving, taking different aspects of modern styles and incorporating them into a whole. Practice bringing some extended chords into old arrangements and see what sounds good to you. With a little practice and experimentation, you’ll find yourself livening up any traditional praise song with a series of well-placed gospel chords.

It seems like a long time until Christmas, but it has a way of sneaking up on us gradually until suddenly it’s upon us. If you want to be ready to play some Christmas carols, get out your carol books and start reviewing, and then come up with some new arrangements for an old carol to make it sound more interesting. Here is a short video that illustrates one way you can do that: Learn to arrange Christmas Carols!