What is Polytonality in Piano Playing?

Polytonality indicates that two different tonal centers are being used at the same time. Sometimes this means playing in multiple keys at once, but in this example we are speaking of using more than one chord at the same time. Watch this short video:

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As you well know, songs are made out of various chords linked together in a series called chord progressions. The more you know about the techniques of getting from chord to chord smoothly, the better, and one good way is to use “walk-ups”. They almost always work when the chord you are moving to is a perfect 4th higher (a frequent progression), but they also work in other situations. Watch this short video and you’ll get the idea:

For a TON of techniques like this, click on “101 Ways To Make Your Piano Playing Fuller!”

Here’s a short video overview of the world of chords — what they are, how they are formed, and how they relate to one another.

After watching the video, click here: The Wide World of Chords — An Overview From Above

What is the Circle of Keys? Some people call it the “Circle of 5ths”, while others call it the “Circle of 4ths”. In reality, it is the same thing — it just depends on whether you move to the right or the left on the circle.

The Circle of Keys describes key relationships — which keys are most closely related, and which keys have very little relationship to one another. For example, the Key of C and the Key of G are very closely related, because they only have one difference — the F# which is in the Key of G. Otherwise, they use the same notes of the scale (but start on different points, of course).

But the Key of C and the Key of Gb have very little in common, since they have 6 differences — the six flats in the Key of Gb. (Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, and Cb).

Listen to this 10-minute podcast and you will understand:

Circle of Keys [ 9:32 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

For more information on the Circle of Keys click on The Circle of Keys

When you listen to a song on the radio, or a piece at a concert, are you sometimes overcome with the complexity of it all? I know I am. When I am at a symphony concert and the orchestra is playing Mozart or Shostakovich or Bach, I try to follow the many individual parts going on and feel like I’m drowning in music. And while it’s a great feeling, sometimes I have to bring myself back to reality and remind myself that in the final analysis, there are only three basic elements in music: the melody (but there can be many melodies at once at times), harmony (the tonal environment in which the melody lives), and rhythm (the “pulse” or “beat” of the piece — and again, there can be several going on at the same time). Watch this very short video (3 minutes or so) and be reminded again of the simplicity of music within all the complexity:

“Understanding & Mastering Music Theory Inside Out!”

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, major 7ths, 9ths, flatted 9ths, flatted 10ths, 11ths, 13ths, and combinations of all of these. Watch this short video that explains color tones:

To learn about a course on Color Tones, click here.

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 into a “cascading waterfall” of sound.
For a complete course in creating piano runs, please click here: Piano Runs Galore!

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 on slower tunes as well as uptempo songs, plus a rapid-fire way of breaking up a chord into a “run”.

For a complete course in runs and fills, please go to “Piano Runs & Fills Galore!”

Among the various ways to reharmonize a tune are three specific but easy methods. This is part one of a three part series, and deals with a simple question you can ask at any point in a song to come up with new and fresh chords: “Into What Other Chord Does This Note Fit?”

Watch this short video and you’ll understand:

Then come back here tomorrow and we’ll take up part two of the series.

There are scads of ways to add fillers to your songs, from counter-melodies to passing tones to unusual chord sequences to quartal voicings to…and on and on. Three of the easiest ways to take the chords of a song and make fillers out of them is to create open-voiced offset intervals called “straddles”, to break them up as 2-1 or 3-1 broken chords, and to rapidly “shake” the chord and then run it up the keyboard. Watch this short video to get the idea:

Keep learning! I hope you are always working on adding some new technique to your musical toolbox. For lots of ideas browse our online catalog of piano courses.

Why do I need to learn scales and chords and music theory? Well, if you have the talent of a Mozart or Bach or Erroll Garner or Oscar Peterson or Dave Brubeck, you probably don’t. But if you’re like the rest of us — and 99.9% of us are – the more you learn about music, the better. After all, chords are formed from scales, and scales are the building-blocks of melody. And of course there would be no rhythm without the juxtapostion of note values and chord lengths. If you are at all interested in increasing your knowledge of music in any of these areas, come on over to http://www.playpianocatalog.com and browse through our 300-plus courses.

Enharmonic notes are simply notes that have more than one name. Just as you might be known by not only your given name, but also by your nickname, so notes can have more than one name. The same is true for enharmonic chords — they can be known by multiple names as well. For example, the Db major chord sounds exactly the same as the C# major chord, but looks different on printed music, and has two different names: C# major and Db major.

Quite often we don’t take the time to analyze the music we play, but if we did we would often find it much easier to understand than we would otherwise think in terms of chord progressions and musical form. Take a familiar tune such as Greensleeves and break it down to its basic components and we find a simple chord progression that repeats in four measure increments, then a contrasting section of four measures, followed by 4 measures that kind of combines the first section with the release – a very logical musical form. Watch this short piano lesson video then apply it to other songs!

The walking bass style imitates a bass player in a combo, except in this case your left hand does the walking. Your right hand will not only need to play the melody, but will also need to play the chords under the melody, since your left hand will be busy playing the bass line only. Use this style sparingly, but it can be effective at times as a contrast to other styles. Watch this short video and you’ll understand.

Do you know the incredible benefits that come to you by
learning chording techniques on the piano?

There are many — way more than just 5. But due to space
limitations, I’ll just list 5 out of hundreds:

1. By learning chording techniques, you are at least
quadrupling your chances of creating exciting new sounds
on the piano — sounds that most other piano players have no
idea how to create. That’s because arranging using chord
techniques is open-ended — there’s no end to the styles
and applications you can eventually learn and apply.

2. Learning chording techniques in NO WAY interferes with
your ability to sight-read music. Some ill-informed people
think it does, but not so! Ask any great jazz musician
from Dave Brubeck to Andre Previn to Oscar Peterson to Chuck
Corea to…. They ALL read music prolifically, yet choose
to apply chording techniques to song after song, creating
many of the great classic tunes we all know, like “Take
Five”, etc, etc.

Knowing chords and being able to apply techniques to those
chords actually HELPS YOU TO SIGHT-READ FASTER, because
instead of just seeing groups of random notes on the sheet
music, you can see chord patterns forming and dissolving
into yet another chord, another chord progression!

3. Knowing chords and applying chording techniques allows
you to become a first-rate accompanist for singers and
other musicians, should you want to do that. You will be
able to “wrap the chords” around the singer to support
them, rather than be in competition by playing the melody
from the sheet music. You’ll be able to create fills and
counter-melodies and a host of other devices that can make
you the most desired accompanist in your area.

4. By knowing chords and chording patterns you will
automatically open the door to opportunities to play at
places you never could if you only “play music as
written”. When people hear you play, they will immediately sense
that “this person knows what they are doing”, which can very
well bring invitations to play in fraternal clubs,
churches, community centers, and even weddings and
funerals. I have had students of retirement age who have
fulfilled their lifelong dream to play in public, even if
in a small venue. I recall a CPA in Washington State who
took lessons from me by cassette for a couple years and
got good enough to play at a local restaurant-pub on weekends.
He didn’t need the money, but just LOVED the opportunity
to play for folks and have them sing along.

5. Being able to apply chords to song after song means you
NEVER HAVE TO PLAY A SONG THE SAME WAY TWICE! When people
see me play, they often ask me to play the song again –
but are often surprised when I play it again, since I
create new chord progressions and fills and improvisations
each time — so it never sounds the same.

There’s a classic story about Erroll Garner, the great
pianist and composer of the classic song “Misty”. A lady
came up to him after a concert and raved about how he
played “Misty”, and asked him to play it again the same
way. His reply was “I can’t remember how I played it last
time — but I’ll play it again anyway”, which greatly
surprised the lady.

You can create motion in your songs by adding passing tones to your repertoire of piano techniques. Look for opportunities to add a 2nd or a 6th or a 7th under the right hand melody — non-harmonic tones that “pass through” the chords you are playing in the right hand.

For a complete course in using passing tones please go to Passing Tones To Add Motion & Interest To Your Songs

Learn to play Diminished 7th Chords – Doorways To Everywhere

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What different kinds of chords are there?
There are a number of different chords, some having complicated names. As a starting point, think of a chord in it’s simplest form — a major chord. A major chord is built on the first, third, and fifth notes of its scale. In other words, a C Major scale contains the notes C, E, G. All chord names (with a few exceptions) are derived from the notes of it’s scale. For example, A C7 chord consists of the notes of C, E, G, and Bb (with Bb being the lowered seventh note of the C scale). Here are the versions of a C Major chord and the notes that appear in that chord:
C Major — C, E, G
C 7 — C, E, G, Bb
C Minor — C, Eb, G
C Minor 7 — C, Eb, G, Bb
C Sixth — C, E, G, A (A being the sixth note of a C scale)
Here are some other chord symbols (again using C as an example) with the notes in each:
C diminished – C, Eb, Gb
C augmented – C, E, and G#
C ninth – C, E, G, Bb, D
C major 7 – this chord contains the notes C, E, G and B (with B as the major 7th of the scale)
When chords are “inverted,” it means that the notes are rearranged in different combination. Whereas the notes C, E, and G are a major chord (C major), the notes can be inverted to E, G and C. For example, on the piano, the first key played would be an E, followed by the G and C. This particular inversion on guitar, would mean that the note E would be the first note (string) strummed. Inversions are used liberally and appear in almost every piece of music.
Knowing the notes of a particular chord allows the musician to play the same chord in a number of different “places” on an instrument. For example, a G chord can be played in various places “up and down” a piano, or at different places on the neck of a guitar. This is done by using inversions of the same chord (as explained above).
Chords are chosen for their effectiveness. In other words, a minor chord is sometimes used (even temporarily) to reflect the emotion of seriousness, somberness, or sadness, whereas a major chord reflects a “normal” feel. Diminished chords create tension, while major seventh chords are used when a sense of calm and beauty is needed.
Chord progressions are series of chords in a particular order. It can be said that virtually every piece of music contains a chord progression. In fact, a simple song of only two chords technically has a chord progression (between the two chords). Chord progressions provide the structure of a piece of music and have great influence on how the melody “feels” to the listener. For example, playing the same melody with (over) an A minor chord can give a differently feeling entirely than if played with a D chord. Again, in this case, chords are being used to create particular emotions within the music.

Proper piano instruction is an element extremely vital to learning the instrument well. Though it’s very possible to be a self-taught piano player, piano lessons can really increase the speed and efficiency with which one learns the instrument. That’s not to say that great piano instruction makes great piano players overnight; even the most naturally talented pianists still play for years before they consider themselves advanced. But proper piano lesson instructions will maximize those years to the fullest and ensure that the student is learning the correct techniques.

Though teaching styles always vary from instructor to instructor, piano instruction generally covers the same basic areas: fingering, , music reading, scales, technique, and sight reading. The early lessons will cover fingering and posture, making sure the student knows how to hold his or her hands and where to put them on the keys; series of scales practiced repeatedly will be the basis of this area. Piano instruction will then move on to notation essentials, starting with the basics of notes and key signatures and time signatures and then moving forward to more advanced concepts in rhythm, tempo and dynamics.

Many of these concepts are introduced into the piano instruction while the student is learning to read music, a practice that runs through the entire course of the piano instruction. Teachers will assign short, easy pieces to kick start the student’s music reading knowledge and eventually move forward to more advanced pieces. Sight reading, the ability to play a piece of music without ever having seen it, is sometimes placed sporadically throughout the piano instruction, after a student is fairly well-versed in reading music.

One crucial element of piano playing that is often left out of traditional piano lessons is the study and practice of chords and music theory. To learn to read music without understanding the theory behind the music and the chords and chord progressions that form the music is almost like teaching a surgeon to cut without understanding the human anatomy and it’s interrelated parts. The student will be able to play the piano from a piece of sheet music, but take that music away or have it blow off the piano and he or she is immediately in big trouble.

There is a famous story about a lady who was a concert pianist and could impress people with her playing, yet when asked to play “Happy Birthday” at a party had to decline with great embarrassment because she didn’t have sheet music for the song handy. To be tied to the written music is a shame, when learning chords and music theory adds so much to the value of piano instruction.

Given a healthy dose of music theory and chord instruction mixed in, all of the other elements of piano instruction eventually begin to work hand in hand. Piano instruction then becomes an intricate web of gaining bits of detailed knowledge little by little and understanding the music that’s being played without fully realizing that it’s being gained.

Then playing the piano becomes more fun and a joyful event that can be shared with full understanding of the theory and form that lies behind each song.

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.

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