Half-diminished 7th chords are formed by combining a diminished triad with a lowered 7th of the major scale.

For more information, please go to Half-diminished 7th chords.

Minor chords with a major 7th added are not used a great deal, but musicians really need to know all possible chords and combinations. These are created using a minor triad with the 7th degree of the major scale added.

Minor 7th chords are composed of a minor triad combined with the lowered 7th of the major scale of that particular key.

For more complete information about minor 7th chords, please go to minor 7th chords.

Major 7th chords are formed by adding the 7th note of the major scale to a major triad. Watch the video, then go to maj7 chords for more information.

7th chords are 4 note chords composed of a major triad and a lowered 7th degree of the scale. They are often refered to as “dominant 7th chords”. Watch the short video below:

For more complete information, please go to: http://www.playpiano.com/101-tips/10-7th-chords.htm

MInor 6th chords are formed from a major triad by lowering the 3rd and adding the 6th note of the major scale. For more complete information please go to: http://www.playpiano.com/101-tips/9-minor-6-chords.htm

6th chords are 4-note chords consisting of the root, 3rd, 5th, and 6th notes of a major scale. So just by adding the 6th degree of the scale to any major chord results in a major 6th chord. Watch this short video:

For more information, please go to http://www.playpiano.com/101-tips/8-major-6-chords.htm

A diminished triad is formed by lowering both the 3rd and the 5th of a major triad. For more complete information, please go to:

http://www.playpiano.com/101-tips/6-diminished.htm after you watch this short video.

Augmented triads (3 note chords) are formed by raising the 5th of a major chord 1/2 step. For more complete information, please go to:
http://www.playpiano.com/101-tips/7-augmented.htm

As a piano teacher myself, I have always argued that having a flesh & blood teacher sitting by you is the very best way to learn to play piano. They can correct you when you err as well as give you valuable tips from their own experience as a piano player. But private lessons are not always possible, so the adult who wants to take up piano can consider other ways of learning. (I never recommend that children learn online — they need a teacher sitting by them.)

Are you looking to learn piano playing without engaging in years of piano lessons? Do you want this method of playing your favorite tunes without learning volumes of music theory? If you answered yes to these questions, then learning to play piano online is for you.

Online piano education sites can teach you to play the piano in a variety of ways. One way is to learn to play by ear. Websites and teaching methods exist whereby the reading of music notes is not a requirement. Learning by ear involves recognizing sound patterns, the sound of chords and the sound of individual notes. This in no way diminishes the value of learning to read music. Learning by ear is an alternative to music reading and can complement music reading.

When you learn piano online by ear, you will also watch music played on a keyboard. With repeated exposure to a tune, you will learn to recognize melody and the accompanying harmony that supports the melody. By watching an online instructor play, you will develop recognition of hand positions on the keyboard. Watching and hearing a cluster of notes hit simultaneously will deepen your knowledge of chord building.

You will also learn to recognize which keys hit in succession form the melody of a song. Then you can sit at a piano and try to emulate the same hand and fingering positions. A picture is worth a thousand words. Online visuals of piano players playing can help you recognize the most popular keyboard patterns. Once learned, you can proceed to formulate variations of these patterns to lend uniqueness to your songs. In addition, you can pause and repeat sequences until you have them down pat.

You can learn to play piano online without years of piano lessons by learning easy to play written music. This type of music has simpler melodies and simpler chord constructions and progressions. This is music stripped down to its basics. After mastering this, a player can then add more elements to the music as their skill level increases. Many online sites employ easy play music systems.

Often, traditional piano teaching methods focus on more complex music theory and sophisticated arrangements of songs. For those who want to learn to play their favorite tunes quickly, this is not always the best method. Those who prefer the traditional classical music route via conservatory methods find this teaching suitable. Those who want to learn simple versions of their favorites for their own enjoyment often prefer the easy play method. It’s faster and less formal and demanding.

Online teaching methods offer much for piano students of all ages. A person can learn according to a schedule that suits their lifestyle. Are you a nighthawk? Then you can choose to study online at 3 a.m. if that works for you. Do you prefer a leisurely self-taught lesson spread out over a couple of hours or more? You can do this online easily. With personal in-home or studio instruction, the time limit is typically a half hour to an hour.

Learning to play the piano online allows you the convenience of all that technology offers. You can listen to notes as you click them on an online keyboard. While you play these notes, you can watch as they script onto an online musical staff. In this way, you immediately learn music notation as you play. You learn to see, for example, where a middle C note on the keyboard sits on the music staff. For those who want to learn music notation, this is very helpful.

Learning piano online can also give you access to a broad piano community. Many online sites enable students to engage in forum discussions with others learning the piano. With traditional music studio teaching, a person may encounter a handful of students. Online a music aficionado can have discourse with potentially thousands of people who share their interest. This allows for a great free flow of ideas and experiences.

If you wish to learn piano from home, at your own pace, check online piano teaching websites. They offer fun and quick methods for learning piano without the burden of travel and studio instructor costs. Learning to play piano online can save you time and money.

You can learn all 12 major chords quickly by grouping them in 3’s: 3 major chords are all white keys, 3 major chords have a black key for a 3rd: 3 major chords are like Oreo cookies; 3 major chords are left over — Gb, B, and Bb.

Major chords are formed by combining the root, 3rd, and 5th of a major scale. In the key of C, that would be C, E, and G. In the key of B the major chord would be B, D#, and F#. So it is imperative that musicians know how to from major scales because major chords are formed from each individual scale.

There are many different kinds of scales, the most-used being major scales followed by minor scales. Many contemporary musicians use the modal scales too, such as Dorian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, etc.

Most piano students think of scales as boring drills they had to play over and over, but there is much more to them than just finger exercises. Scales are the “playing field” for songs based on a particular key. For example,
the F major scale is: F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E, F, while the D major scale is D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#, D.

Each scale contains primary chords for each key. For example, the primary chords (the most used chords) in the key of Eb are Eb, Ab, and Bb — the I, IV, and V chords of the Bb scale.

Every song is based on some key, and therefore some scale, which is why you need to know scales to figure out the most used notes and the most used chords in that particular key.

For more information, please go to:
playpiano.com/101-tips/Scales-Major-Relative-Minor-Special.htm

Cadences are chord progressions that give a feeling of finality at the end of a phrase or section or song.

“Slash chords” are chords that use a different low note instead of the usual lowest note of the chord.

In addition to the basic types of chords — major, minor, diminished, augmented — and in addition to 4 and 5 note chords such as 6ths, 7ths, 9ths, etc.

Seventh chords are some of the most useful and interesting chords one can play on the piano. Watch this short video and see the difference between a 7th chord, a maj7th chord, a min7th chord, etc.

Since the sharps always occur in the same order in a key signature, it is easy to tell the key of a song simply by finding the last sharp to the right in the key signature and going up 1/2 step. So if the last sharp in the key signature is G#, the key is A major (or F# minor).

Since the flats always occur in the same order in a key signature (BEADGCF), it’s easy to figure out what key a song is in by finding the 2nd to the last flat.