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.

When studying the piano, a student encounters a myriad piano styles. To master the instrument, at least several of these styles must be learned, and all if at all possible. Knowledge of various playing styles enables a pianist to enjoy and play in any genre and to cross-polinate styles to create a fusion he or she can call their own.

Many modern piano styles are based on the blues. The blues involve an emphasis on the major and minor pentatonic scales, with an additional note included. The flatted fifth is added to the minor pentatonic to create the blues scale. Many blues songs are based on a simple chord progression, known as 12-bar blues. This uses the I, IV and V chords of a scale to create a foundation for melodies and solos.

For example, rock piano was born out of the blues and then took on a life of it’s own in the stylings of Jerry Lee Lewis, Michael McDonald, Elton John, Billy Joel, and many others.

Cocktail piano is a style generally connected with Liberace, Eddy Duchin, Roger Williams, and others who play popular tunes with lots of great technique — lots of notes, runs, flourishes, and so on. But I hate to catagorize and of these great pianists, as many of them play in other styles as well.

Boogie-woogie is a piano style based on the blues. It started as a solo piano style, but has expanded into other genres, such as county-western and gospel. It differs from the blues in that it is considered dance music, while blues music traditionally expresses sadness and frustration.

Rhythm and blues piano is based on blues, jazz, and gospel styles. As the name suggests, the emphasis is on the rhythm of the song. Most R&B has a particular swing to it, with a strong feel of syncopation in the rhythm. Syncopation involves placing the stress on a normally unstressed beat. This often results in an almost off-time feel to the untrained ear.

Ragtime piano also incorporates syncopation. Ragtime uses syncopation in its melodies by placing melodic notes between the stressed beats of the rhythm. Ragtime is often considered the first completely American genre, even predating jazz.

Jazz piano encompasses such a broad palate of styles that it is impossible to describe. Many piano styles incorporate ideas borrowed from jazz, such as improvisation. An emphasis on extended chord forms also stems from jazz piano.

New age piano often involves less chord changes than other styles, instead relying on simple two-chord progressions and polychords. A polychord occurs when two different chords are played at once. This technique is taken from earlier classical works by composers such as Stravinsky.

Gospel piano is often similar to the blues, jazz and R&B. It emphasizes certain extended chords, such as the 11th, and usually has the swinging feel associated with jazz and R&B. The apparent simplicity of gospel songs often hides the fact that they are, indeed, quite musically complex. Syncopation is highly stressed in gospel music, as it contributes to the overall spiritual feel of the music.

Country and western piano has similar roots as blues piano. Both styles stem from earlier folk styles, often developed by the less fortunate people of the era. Many early country songs stem from Appalachian folk songs. Country and western piano is highlighted by very bright playing, with simple chord progressions underneath the melody.

Traditional sacred piano styles involve the playing of liturgical songs and hymns. These can range from the harmonically and rhythmically complex to simple two and three chord songs. Many hymns stem from folk songs of centuries past. The variety of sacred piano styles is as numerous as the liturgical songs themselves. These piano styles often involve a strict reading of notation, with less of an emphasis on personal interpretation than other styles.

The classical piano style is probably the most varied of all the styles. Classical music is older than other styles, and is considered to the proper grounds for musical instruction. Many elements of other piano styles come from classical music, and nearly all forms of musical theory are used in classical music. Classical music usually requires intense training to master, though there many pieces designed with the novice player in mind.

Though classical is often considered the high point of music, this “ain’t necessarily so.” For instance, many players who are “classically trained” have trouble adapting to the feel and sincerity of the blues. For this reason, a well-rounded player should be adaptable and learn as much about each of these piano styles as possible. In this way, a pianist is ready for any musical challenge. And besides, who knows where the future of music lies?

Piano Styles Galore at PlayPianoCatalog.com

Building a piano arrangement of a song is very much like building a house. You have to have a foundation (music theory), the materials of the song (the melody, chords & rhythm), and you have to have a toolbox of techniques with which to “build the musical house”.

What this short video and you’ll quickly see what I mean:

What in the world is “naked music?”

You know it when you hear it, but the words that describe it sound strange, don’t they? We’ve all heard of popular music and rock music and gospel music and jazz music, but naked music?

Naked music is simply the notes on a piece of sheet music. It’s “naked” – not dressed up or arranged at all. No fills, no slurs, none of the ingredients that make a song come to life.

Not a single professional musician plays a song exactly as it appears on a piece of sheet music (except classical music, of course — that’s different). Instead, they use the written music as a map, or an outline, and then proceed to do their own thing with it. They twist it, bend it, add to it, subtract from it, put fills in it, change the key, change the words, change some of the melody notes, and on and on.

So when you hear your favorite artist perform a piece of music, if you look at the written sheet music while they are performing it, you will see it is MUCH different and MUCH better than the plain old “naked music!”

So how can the average musician dress up naked music? There are many ways, but here are seven of my favorites:

1. Change the chords slightly by adding color tones. What are color tones? Color tones are notes added to the basic chord, usually expressed as 6ths, 7ths, 9ths, etc. For example, instead of playing just a straight C chord as it is written – C, E, G – try adding a color tone to it, such as a 6th (A) or a 7th (Bb) or a major 7th (B) or a 9th (D). In fact, try adding a couple together, like a 6th and a 9th. So instead of being a plain vanilla chord made up of C, E, and G, you’ve made it a tasty variation adding A and D to the equation.

2. During the pause between phrases, add a counter melody. How? Take the given melody notes and turn them upside down or inside out, or change the rhythm slightly so the tune is still recognizable, but different.

3. Add chord substitutions. Instead of always using the chords that are written, ask yourself this question: “Into what other chord will this melody note fit?” For example, if the melody is G and the chord is C, what other chords contain the note G in them? There are several answers to that question. G is not only in the C chord, but it is also in the Em chord, the Eb major chord, the G chord, the Gm chord, etc. Try one of those alternate chords until you like the sound combination, then use it instead of the C chord. It will add an originality and freshness to your playing almost immediately.

4. Add fills and runs between phrases. How do you do that? Simply break up the chord that is in force at the moment, and run it up the keyboard as a broken chord – one note at a time. Or start at the top of the keyboard and come down. Or play with the chord a bit by playing 2 of the 3 notes instead of the entire 3 note chord.

5. Use melodic echos. After you have played the melody, echo it by playing it an octave higher, or two octaves higher, or an octave lower.

6. Use half-step slides. If the chord progression is from D7 to G7, instead of going to G7 directly, “slide into it” by playing the chord that is one-half step above – namely, Ab7, then quickly sliding off Ab7 to G7.

7. Use “blue notes.” Blue notes are created by sliding off a black key onto a white key quickly. For example, if the melody is E, slide off Eb to E quickly using the same finger.

This is just a tiny sampling of what you can do to dress up your music. There are literally hundreds of other techniques, from pseudo-modulations to inside blues moves to deceptive cadences to tremolos to twangs to crunches to straddles to 3-1 breakups to walk-downs and walk-ups and on and on.

     By simply adding a few of these techniques to your playing you can easily double and triple the excitement created by your piano playing as you “dress up naked music!”

Most people who play an instrument of any kind have trouble with

rhythm. It’s the number one problem people mention when they

talk about learning music.

But I know a secret: It’s NOT their fault!

I know, because I had major problems with rhythm too, and it

took me years before I figured out how rhythm worked and how

easy it is once you grasp the logic of it.

The fault is in the way music is taught. You learn about quarter

notes and half notes and eighth notes and dotted notes and so

on, but they are just “floating around” on the staff — some

measures are longer than others — some notes are crammed

tightly into a measure — and overall it’s a mess.

It’s like the pilot of an airplane who can’t ever see the ground

and has no instruments to guide him, so he has no idea where he

is. He has no reference point, so distances are relative to him.

He doesn’t know whether he is going East, West, up, down — and

his chances of crashing and burning are excellent.

I was just like that pilot. I crashed and burned in rhythm time

after time. Let me tell you a painful TRUE story about one of my

“rhythm crashes.”

Duane Crashes & Burns

When I was in my late teens, I w as playing for a youth

group sing. I loved chords, and I used to do pretty

well playing most songs. But when it came to the “spirited”

songs — the ones with lots of rhythm and life, I was lost. I

overheard one of our youth leaders say “Let’s get someone on the

piano with some rhythm!”

Ouch! That really hurt. I knew it was true, but it’s not

fun to hear if from someone else, especially

someone you respect. Right then and there I made a decision: no

matter how long it took, I was going to MASTER RHYTHM. I was

going to learn every possible beat combination, and how to use

those beats in each song, and what to do in the right hand to

compliment what the left hand was doing. My search took me to

private teachers, music schools, combos, books of all sorts,

libraries, and listening to THOUSANDS of records, tapes, and

liv! e performances. I copied dow! n various rhythm patterns on 3”

by 5” cards, and at night I would analyze them playing them over

and over again on the piano. It was HARD WORK for me. It didn’t

come easy, like chords had for me.

Chords were a snap, but not rhythm. It was difficult to read,

and hard to play. I found myself rushing, dragging, stumbling,

and generally fouling up. But as time went by, I got a little

better. I continued to make notes of rhythm patterns, and

started a collection of books and materials on rhythm.

By the time I got my Master’s Degree from Southern Oregon University, I

was starting to get the hang of it. I was beginning to

understand what rhythm was, and what made it tick. I began to

categorize rhythm patterns into different groups, such as rhythm

& blues, jazz, rock, dance patterns, marches, waltzes, fox

trots,! s! wing, boleros, discos, ballads, gospel, bossa-novas,

beguines, rumbas, cha chas, sambas, and so on. But it’s one

thing to know a rhythm, and another thing to EXECUTE it on the

piano. So I developed a system that is VISUAL — it allows you

to SEE a rhythm while you HEAR it played.

Once you SEE it on the baseline, it becomes obvious!

That is the problem with the way music is taught: rhythm has no

baseline! It’s like the pilot of an airplane who can’t ever see

the ground, so he has no idea where he is. Without a baseline,

how in the world can I expect to understand the rhythm of a song?

But with a baseline, it’s a snap.

I wish I could show you in this article how it works, but printed words alone

don’t quite convey the idea. Please go to the web page now to

get a better idea how it will help you solve all your rhythm

problems: How To Solve Your Rhythm Problems

For those who have been playing piano for several years, learning to play from a fake book can be a useful skill. In order to play from one, you need to have an understanding of chord theory. You should also be familiar with the names of chords. Once you know chords, a fake book provides the wherewithal for you to play just about any song without the entire musical score written out.

A fake book contains songs that are not written in their original, full score. Instead it is a series of pages also known as lead sheets. Each lead sheet contains the lyrics and melody line to a single song along with the chord symbols such as G7, Fm7, etc. Often, a fake book contains only the treble clef notes (melody line), although some include a rudimentary bass clef score. The accompanying chords are notated in the places they should be played, usually over the word in the lyrics that they go with.

I bought my first fake book when I was 16 or 17, and it cost $25. — a fortune back then for a teenager. They were illegal then too — but sold under the take by many music stores. Now of course they are entirely legal, and contain a thousand or more songs per book and cost about the same as I paid way back when.

Fake books are intended as guides so experienced musicians are able to play any song without the benefit of the full musical score. If you’ve ever seen jazz musicians at work, you may have witnessed this concept in action. Jazz relies heavily upon improvisation. A jazz band may use a fake book to ensure that each member is playing in the same key. The musicians can then improvise the rest of the song. In other words, they can fill in the spaces between chords with other notes.

It is likely that fake books originated as a convenient way for musicians to have access to lots of songs. Their use also sparked copyright debates, however unintentionally. Early versions, and many versions that are in print today, often deny royalties to the copyright holders of the original song(s). Fake books may contain hundreds of unauthorized versions of songs. There are so many on the market that it is a difficult area to police.

Another place that fake books are commonly found is in churches. Churches often have a large library of songs that they use during regular worship services. It can be a storage problem to keep sheet music for hundreds and hundreds of songs for each band member. Instead, some churches use fake books because they take up less space. Band members are then able to play the same song in the same key, while improvising between chords. Churches usually purchase a license that gives them the legal right to use all of the songs in public performance. This way, there is no need to worry about paying royalties to individual copyright holders, and there are no prohibitions against photocopying music.

As already mentioned, reading a fake book requires a good knowledge of chords. A musician who knows the name of all of the basic chords should be able to play any song off of a lead sheet. Even musicians who aren’t gifted at improvising can at least provide accompaniment to a song by using a lead sheet.

If you are interested in playing from a fake book, consider taking the course on “How To PLAY More Notes Without READING More Notes”

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could predict which chord would probably come next in a song?

I’ve got some good news for you.

It is possible. Not 100%, but somewhere on the order of 75% to 85% accurate.

That’s because music has FORM — like the skeleton that holds your flesh, muscles, and skin up. If you had no bones — no skeleton — your flesh and all the other parts of you would fall in a heap on the floor. Not a pretty picture. But because you DO have a skeleton, you are able to walk around and pretty accurately predict which way your next step will take you.

It’s the same in music. Music has FORM — a skeleton to hold it up, hold it together. And that skeleton is made out of chords — harmony — the tonal center of the song or piece.

Please go to the web page now:

How To Predict Which Chord Comes Next In a Song

It was a piano chord chart that got me started in piano playing when I was about 14 years old, and over the years I probably have purchased a couple dozen more chord charts of all kinds, from simple to complex.

In this short video you’ll see a chart that shows the most-used chords in the key of C — known as the primary chords — as well as the secondary chords as well. I think you’ll find it facinating.

Here are links to the two courses mentioned in the video: Chord Piano Crash Course

I used the tri-tone substitution for years before I knew the name of it, and perhaps you do also. It makes sense, because it allows you to “slide in” to the target chord for a smoother transition. In fact, I always refered to it as a half-step slide from above when moving from a V7 chord to a I chord.

A tri-tone substitution is the use in a chord progression of a 7th chord that is three whole steps (in other words, a tri-tone) away from the original 7th chord. For example, if you were moving from G7 to C, you would substitute a Db7 for the G7 chord before you land on the target chord C.

The reason these chords may be substituted for each other is that they have two notes in common — and the two notes are always a tri-tone (3 whole steps) away from each other. In a G7 chord, the third is B and the seventh is F. In the Db7 chord, the third is an F and the seventh is Cb (same sound as B, but written enharmonically).
Watch the short video, and I think you will understand.

Click here to go to the Play Piano Catalog of piano courses.

Would you go to a doctor who couldn’t tell your liver from your heart?

I don’t think so.

So why do millions of people take piano lessons from teachers who are great at sight-reading, technique, and all the other areas of piano playing that we all need to learn, but don’t have a clue about chords and progressions?

Oh, many of them “know chords” in an intellectual way, but do they know why chords are used when, and why they progress the way they do, and what to do with them and how to improvise and create piano styles out of them?

There are a few, but not many.

Just make sure when you select a piano teacher that he or she is strong on music theory, musical form, and chord progressions. Then all the traditional stuff that piano teachers teach makes sense.

(This is NOT an argument against sight-reading or technique or memorizing — all those are important elements of piano playing. Just make sure that the other elements mentioned above are included too.)

Weekly piano lessons by DVD in your home.

Students sometimes become confused by the language of music — I know I was confused sometimes as I was learning music in the early days. Language is like that: it sometimes complicates reality. It’s not that the thing itself is so complicated, but the words that are used to describe it are either not well defined, or have somewhat different meanings for different people.

“Harmony” is one of those words. Some view harmony as just another word for “chords”, but chords are really a sub-set of the subject of harmony. For example, a 2-part Bach Invention contains no “chords” as such, but as the two independent melodies interface, they create a harmonic sound, however brief.

For a more complete explanation of harmony, please go to my article on the subject by clicking on the word HARMONY.

Another method of breaking up chords into patterns is the 3-1 breakup pattern where you play 3 notes of a chord and then 1, 3 and then 1, and so on. Watch the short video and you will understand immediately. But it takes a bit of practice to get the feel of it. Very useful for fills during the “empty spaces” in music.

Chords can be broken up in many ways, as you no doubt know, and the 2-1 breakup is one of the easiest ways to do it. You simply take 2 piano notes and juxtapose them against 1 note in a teeter-totter pattern. Watch the video and you’ll understand immediately:

There are 3 exciting ways to create fresh chord sounds
for your songs. Once you learn these 3 ways you’ll never be
at a loss to know how to create great chord substitutions,
and for the rest of your life you can come up with original
arrangements of your songs.

These 3 basic methods are:

1. A simple question you ask yourself: “Into what other
chord will this note fit?” I will demonstrate this easy
technique many times on the DVD so you can SEE how easy it
is to come up with fresh chord sounds.

2. The “Half-Step Slide”. This technique creates all kinds
of new chords that you can use over and over again on song
after song.

3. The “Exchange a Minor 7th Chord For Any Dominant 7th
Chord” technique. This makes your playing sound more mellow
and gives it more variety.

These 3 chord substitution techniques will keep you busy for a lifetime coming up with your own fresh arrangments of songs.

For a musically minded person who is interested in testing the waters of piano lessons, but who is not quite sure if her commitment is all there, free online beginner keyboard lessons are a great way to quickly find out whether the piano is the right instrument to learn. After all, some people just don’t have the type of brain and fingers that are necessary to play the piano. It requires incredible hand eye coordination, plus a level of hand and finger agility that is rarely required in other areas of life.

I’ve known people who seem to be literally are incapable of playing notes on the piano. They try to play the most simple melody, and something odd happens — their fingers just can’t seem to do it. It’s no fault of theirs; it’s just an unfortunate result of the way they are wired. In most cases, these people are incredibly proficient in other ways. For example, my brother can’t play a lick of any musical instrument, but he can build a house from scratch. Me, I can play some of the most difficult piano pieces ever written, but I can’t hammer a nail straight.

To find out if the piano is right for you, try doing a Web search for free online beginner keyboard lessons, and find a website that offers a few introductory lessons, or articles about how to get started on the piano. Naturally, there is a wide range of these types of lessons; some are very poor quality, while others are as good as pay instruction. The key is to find the right one.

Of course, what you can expect to learn from these is relatively simple, and I can basically sum it up for you here. First, you’ll learn about which notes on the piano are which. The notes range from A through G, and the white keys symbolize the pure forms of the lettered notes, while the black keys represent sharps and flats.

You’ll learn the C major scale, and how to play it. Basically, the key of C major is where all piano students start, because it includes all of the white notes and none of the black notes, making it the easiest key to play in.

To play the C Major scale with your right hand, place your thumb on middle C (which is usually below the first letter of your piano maker’s name), and start by playing the first three notes. Then, cross your thumb under to play the fourth note, and continue with the rest of the fingers in your hand. If you practice this a few times, and the scale begins to sound more fluid and musical, then you know you are doing well. If you can’t play this scale at all, no matter how hard you try, then you may want to look into carpentry.

After learning how to play the C Major scale with your right hand, most free online beginner keyboard lessons will instruct you how to do the same thing with your left hand, which is just as easy.

After that, you’ll begin to learn chords, and soon, you’ll progress to playing in other keys, probably starting out with G Major and F Major. After that, you’ll learn minor keys, beginning with A minor, which, in its standard form, includes all of the same notes as C Major, except it goes from A to A instead of C to C.

Soon, you’ll learn music notation, how to read the staff, and about the various types of symbols that are used in reading music. This is where piano playing really becomes fun, as you begin to progress into more complex pieces of music. Of course, thanks to free online beginner keyboard lessons, you should know by this point whether you want to continue with more serious lessons. If you feel that you have a proficiency for the instrument, then you may want to look into serious, pay lessons. After all, this is the best way to receive in-depth instruction.

Meanwhile, sign up for a few keyboard lessons online, such as Duane’s Piano Chords & Chord Progressions Newsletter. You’ll soon know if you have the interest and desire to pursue the keyboard or piano.

(This is a guest article - opinions not necessarily mine)

Chord substitutions is precisely what the name implies: the substitution of one chord for another during a chord progression. It’s a technique often found in jazz music (but other genres, as well) used to add a little extra pizzazz to a piece of music. Chord substitutions contribute to the element of surprise; it keeps the progressions from becoming predictable, without compromising the overall tone of the piece. Instead of playing a constant, consistent G chord, for instance, musicians will sometimes use chord substitutions to replace that G with a G6 or Gmaj7, depending on the song and the effect desired. Chord substitutions are a great way to add a kick to an otherwise monotonous progression.

There are many things to consider when working with chord substitutions. First of all, chord substitutions will be especially easy when the two chords share a number of common notes. C major, for example, can be easily substituted with A minor because both of these chords contain a C and E. But it isn’t just enough to share common notes; the common notes in chord substitutions are best received when they drive the chord. The first two notes of a chord (including the root) are what give a chord its defining characteristics. If chord substitutions contain these notes in an insignificant place, the substituted chord won’t be as interchangeable. Let’s consider C major and A minor again. These chord substitutions works because the two common notes, C and E, are the two most important notes within the C major chord. The root note, C, shifts in these chord substitutions, but it is still present enough to keep the chord’s essential quality. But it’s important to mention here that, rules and regulations aside, chord substitutions are really in the eye of the beholder; if you think it works and like the sound the chord substitutions have created, feel free to explore it. There’s no rule in chord substitutions (or music, for that matter) that can’t be broken.

There are 3 types of chord substitutions that will keep you busy creating your own exciting chord progressions for a lifetime. Click on Chord Substitutions

I took piano lessons from the time I was 6 until about 13, but didn’t really get into music until I had a chance to play piano in the school combo my freshman year in high school. The piano player in the group was a senior and had just graduated, and there was no one else good enough to play in the 4-piece dance band.

I wasn’t good enough either, but I was the best of the bunch, so despite the fact that I didn’t know chords and didn’t know how to improvise at all, they took a chance on me and told me I could play if I would learn enough chords to get by in a few basic songs. The idea of getting to be the piano player in a group of older guys was exciting, and so I immediately tried to find out how to learn some simple chords. I sent for a $2. chord chart that was advertised in a magazine, and the day it arrived I learned 2 chords — Cmaj7 and Dm7. That was enough to play “Frankie and Johnny”, and I was hooked on chords!

From then on it was a lifetime pursuit to learn more and more chords and then learn how to apply them in songs. And in that quest I have accumulated many, many chord charts, and even published some of my own.

But up to now, there has not been a chord chart that “talks” — plays the chords so you can hear them and explains the logic of how they are formed. So I thought “Why not? Since MP3 files can now be embedded in PDF ebooks, I’ll make a chord chart that talks and walks the listener through all the basic chords — 96 of them, to be exact.”

To learn more about it, click here: The Talking Piano Chord Chart

Figured bass is a type of notation that uses numbers to denote certain intervals or chords. It can be viewed as a sort of musical shorthand; only the bass note is shown on the staff, and the numbers written underneath indicate the general idea of what should be played in terms of inversions. Figured bass is very similar to Baroque era’s basso continuo, a type of minimal notation given to accompanists. The accompanists working with the basso continuo or figured bass knew the basic structure of the song but had to rely on improvisation to complete the entire piece. Improvisation is important here because figured bass only indicates the song’s harmony; the rest is decided by each musician, depending on the style and tone of the music and the other instruments involved.

The figured bass notation is based solely on the bass line. The bass note is shown on the staff, as usual, but underneath are a series of numbers. These numbers in figured bass notation denote the inversions with which the chord is to be played; any accidentals are written next to the numbers. For instance, if an F is shown on the staff with a four and six underneath it, the figured bass notation is telling the musician to play an F chord with notes a fourth and sixth above the F. And if that four, for example, is shown with a flat sign, the figured bass is telling the musician to play the fourth a half step down.

If the chord contains a third or a fifth, however, these numbers are often omitted from the figured bass. A third and fifth with any bass note creates a triad; the sheer commonality of triads led those using figured bass to get rid of the numbers and simply assume their presence. Likewise, if only one number is present underneath the bass note, figured bass assumes the missing note to be a third.

Even the bass notes themselves are sometimes left out of the figured bass notation to keep the shorthand truly short. If a bass note repeats itself for several bars, only the first instance of the note will be shown in the figured bass; after that, the only thing to denote the chord will be the series of numbers. Until it changes, the bass note here is completely assumed.

Click here for more information on music theory.

I’m sure that you have had the experience sometime in your piano-playing life when someone asks you to play a song — but in a different key than in which it is written. It might be a singer wanting you to lower the song a step so he/she doesn’t screech. It might be a song leader wanting you to play a song in a more comfortable keys for a congregation or group. It might be a trumpet player looking over your shoulder and wanting to play along with you — but when he/she plays the same note you are playing, it sure doesn’t sound the same!

So….it’s your job, as pianist, to get that song moved to a different key — changing key on the piano. That’s transposition — playing or writing a song in a different key than in which it was originally written.

Modulation is similar but different — modulation means the process of getting from the old key to the new key. In other words, if I’m playing in the key of C, and then want to play in the key of Eb, I have to learn to modulate — move smoothly from one key to another without being too abrupt and jarring.

There are basically 3 ways to transpose:

1. by intervals

2. by scale degrees

3. by solfege — the moveable “do” system.

But since solfege applies mostly to singers, we will ignore that possibility and just take up the first two:

1. Transposing using intervals: If the new key is an interval of a minor 3rd above the old key, then all notes in the song will also be an interval of a minor 3rd higher. In other words, if you are transposing from the key of C to the key of Eb, which is a minor 3rd higher (or major 6th lower — whichever way you want to look at it), then all melody notes will also be a minor 3rd higher:

“G” in the key of C would become “Bb” in the key of Eb.
“E” in the key of C would become “:G” in the new key of Eb.
“A” would become “C”, “B” would become “D”, and so on.
All chords would also move a minor 3rd higher.
The “C chord” would become the “Eb chord”, the “F chord” would become the “Ab chord”, and so on.

2. Transposing using scale degrees: Each key you play in has it’s own scale degrees. In the key of C the scale degrees are: C=1, D=2, E=3, F=4, G=5, A=6, B=7, C=8. In the key of Eb, however, Eb=1, F=2, G=3, Ab=4, Bb=5, C=6, D=7, Eb=8. So if I want to transpose Silent Night, for example, from the key of C to the key of Eb, I need to notice what scale degrees I am using in the key of C, and then use those same scale degrees in the key of Eb.

For example, Silent Night starts on the 5th degree of the scale, goes up to the 6th, back to the 5th, then down to the 3rd. In the key of C that is: G-A-G-E. But in the key of Eb it is Bb-C-Bb-G. Why? Because the scale degrees 5-6-5-3 are constant — we just need to apply them in each key. What about chords? Same idea. If the chord progression on Silent Night is the I chord followed by the V chord, followed by the I chord, followed by the IV chord, etc. — then in the key of C that means C-G-C-F-etc., but in the key of Eb it means Eb-Bb-Eb-Ab-etc.

Modulation means getting between keys, so let’s say you are playing in the key of C, but you want to get to the key of Eb smoothly, without jarring the nerves of the listeners. There are lots of ways to do it, but the main point is that you have to get to the V7 chord of the new key. So from the key of C to the key of Eb, that means getting to Bb7. How do we do that smoothly? We look for chords with common notes. Since the V of the V of the new key would be Fm7, we have C as a common note. So we hold the C in the C chord, and move the rest of the C chord to Fm7, then Bb7, then Eb, and presto — we are there! I realize that may be a bit hard to follow with just printed words to follow, but if you saw it happen (like on a video) you would understand it instantly, I think.

Hope this has helped you understand both the process and the difference between transposing and modulating but words alone can be confusing, so if you want to SEE it done and clearly see HOW it is done, check out “How To Transpose & Modulate” Then it will become crystal clear for you.

Several people have asked me if guitar chords are the same as piano chords.

The answer is yes and no.

No — because they are fingered entirely different, and of course the tone color of the sound is different.

Yes — because the notes that both instruments use to form the chords are exactly the same: the G7 chord, for example, is ALWAYS G, B, D, and F, no matter what instrument plays it.

Guitar chords, chords played specifically on a guitar, differ only from other types of chords by virtue of instrument; they’re simply a series of three or more notes played together. These notes don’t necessarily have to be played simultaneously, however. Broken chords (also referred to as arpeggios) are three or more notes that aren’t played at the same time but closely enough to still be heard as a group or whole. And even the three-note rule is open to the occasional exception; some guitar chords consist of only two notes, but they still function as chords because they work diatonically in the same way that a major or minor chord would.

Guitar chords might very well be the most important element of guitar playing; after all, they’re the basis of what makes a song. Most people picking up a guitar for the first time figure out a few guitar chords before even going for their first lesson, and still more teach themselves guitar chords without any help from an instructor. Self-taught guitarists learn guitar chords in a number of ways. Some learn by listening to their favorite songs and slowly picking out the notes, a common yet often frustrating process. Others figure out guitar chords by learning to read guitar tab, a type of sheet music intended for fretted instruments that uses a graph-like chart to show where on the frets the fingers are placed. Both techniques are common among those learning guitar chords, though the number of self-taught guitarists who never learned to read tab is fairly high.

Just like any other instrument, the sheer number of possible guitar chords can often be overwhelming for a new guitarist. And even the frequently taught guitar chords are beginning to fall by the wayside, making room for a variety of guitar chords created by tuning the strings in almost innumerous ways. Though power chords (guitar chords using a base note, an octave note and the fifth) are still the most common type of guitar chords, new bands are increasingly experimenting with alternate tunings to create new sounds; alternative bands such as Sonic Youth have been toying with this way of playing interesting guitar chords for decades.

To understand chords better, click here.