LearnHub

Learning the Piano

Look at all these keys - 88 beautiful, shiny keys just waited to be played on.
You know you want to play them. But you don't know where to start.

Here are the notes in one octave:

C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C

7 notes = 1 octave
7 and 1/4 octaves = 1 standard piano board (88 keys)

This key is known as C major. If you start on A, you'll need different keys to get the same sound - A, B, C#, D, E, F#, G#, A. That's A major.

What's the difference between the black keys and white keys?

It helps you visually divide up the keys. After all, if they were all white, you probably would get very confused as to which key is which.

Sharps and Flats
If you look at the image above, you'll see the keys have been named. The black keys have two possible names - for example, C# can also be D flat.

This is because of semitones. A semitone down from D is D flat. A semitone up from C is C#. C# and D flat are the same black key. It's just different names for the same thing.

Try playing every single key in order - C, C#, D, D#, E, F, etc. From C to C, this is known as the chromatic scale.
Now if you play just the whole tones - C, D, E, F, G, etc. This is a regular diatonic scale.

Majors and Minors
Musical theory can get pretty complicated, but usually the rule of thumb is that major chords sound more upbeat, where as minor scales sound more depressing. Who knew musical scales could have disorders?

Chords
Chords are one of the building blocks of creating music. Chords give notes their harmony and make music sound less like screeching cats. Using the image of the keys above, play C, E and G at the same time. This is C major chord. It is the 1st, 3rd and 5th notes of the C major scale.

Now play the A major chord - A, C#, and E at the same time. These are the 1st, 3rd and 5th notes of the A major scale. You should use your 1st (thumb), 3rd and 5th finger accordingly.

Next steps
Find a chart of piano chords so you know exactly which notes to play for each type of chord. You can find these sort of charts online, or you can find a website that will show you.

Piano World is one of the best websites I've seen that shows you, on a virtual keyboard, the correct notes to play for any type of chord. You simply input the type of chord you want and click the "Display" button.

Find a website like Ultimate Guitar which provides chords for popular songs. Find the right chords for the song using the virtual keyboard and learn to play it on your real keyboard. You'll be surprised at how great it will sound!

Here are some piano songs to inspire you as you learn. And keep practicing - that's the secret to being good at anything.

• Chopin - "Fantasie" Impromptu
• Corpse Bride - Piano Duet

Image Credits:
Wikipedia
Mahalo
GeekRoad Mark Stivers