tips & tricks for the rhythmically & harmonically-challenged
Posts tagged harmony
7 Ways to Become a Better Pop or Jazz Pianist
Nov 21st
“Practice!” That’s what piano teachers always tell their students, or “Practice makes perfect,” spout many. But practice what? Practice how? If practice makes perfect, then it is also true that imperfect practice makes imperfection! And we don’t want that. To become really good at our craft, i.e. piano-playing, it is important to know what and how to practice. Hence, to me, the saying should really be knowledgeable practice makes perfect.
Here are the seven important areas to cover and to diligently practice in order to become a better pop and/or jazz pianist.
- Scales - All contemporary piano players know that scales are the basic building blocks in music. The notes of a melody come from a scale, as are improvisational lines in jazz solos. Essential scales to master are: major (ionian mode), melodic and harmonic minor, modes (dorian, phrygian, lydian, mixolydian, aeolian [natural minor], locrian), major and minor pentatonic, major and minor blues, diminished and whole-tone.
- Chords – From scales, we build chords. It’s vital to memorize all the diatonic chords of the major and minor scales. Diatonic chords are chords that are built on every note of a scale and whose notes come from that very scale; there are seven altogether for each scale. Learn up its chord quality and function within the scale or key, regardless whether the chords are triads, sevenths, or 13th chords. Essential chord families to master are: major, minor and dominant.
- Rhythm - The best melody and harmony in the world will be quite boring without a hint of rhythm that goes with it. Rhythm gives life to music. Inherent with rhythm is feel, i.e. the interpretation of rhythmic units. Essential rhythmic feels to grasp are: straight and rolled 8ths, straight and rolled 16ths, swing and triplet. Additionally, it is also important to work on other rhythmic aspects such as syncopation and anticipation.
- Cycle of 5ths – Imagine the face of a clock and instead of the hourly numbers, replace these with the 12 notes in music, i.e. starting at the top at 12 with C, then moving clockwise down five steps to F, then Bb and continuing this until you end back at C. This is what you will get: C-F-Bb-Eb-Ab-Db(C#)-Gb(F#)-Cb(B)-E-A-D-G-C. Memorize this movement because a lot of chord progressions in songs move naturally in this way, either down in perfect 5ths or up in perfect 4ths. For example, the A section of “Fly Me to the Moon”: Ami7-Dmi7-G7-Cma7-Fma7-Bmi7(b5)- E7-Ami7. The roots of the chords move perfectly around the cycle, diatonic to the key of C major!
- Form – All the elements of music – melody, harmony and rhythm – will be pointless or meandering if not held together or structured in specific forms. Pop songs are known for their verse and chorus structures, or AB form. It is also common to find modern pop songs these days with the following form: intro-verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus-outro (ending). Blues music, of course, has its 12-bar structure, and its less common 16-bar form. And the 32-bar song form in jazz with its many variations, i.e., AABA, AABC, et cetera, are all important to note and remember.
- Styles - The beautiful thing about contemporary music is its many styles: pop, rock, R&B, reggae, gospel, bossa nova, swing, bebop, et cetera. Each and every style has its inherent melodic, harmonic and rhythmic characteristics. Break down every facet of a style and learn how to interpret it correctly. Master the styles and make your playing more colorful and multidimensional!
- Listen - Last but not least, because contemporary music comes in many genres, styles, shape and form, we need to develop a healthy listening habit. Every area from 1 to 6 above can be consolidated through a good listening session. As you listen to a piece of music, be it something from Coldplay, Sara Bareilles, Michael Buble, or Keith Jarrett, look out for and analyze all the elements – the melody/scale, chord/harmony, rhythm/feel, form and style. Music is an audible art. Hence, as a musician you need to build up your analytic listening skills!
Since there are 7 areas to work on altogether, these can be put to efficient practice, one for each day of the week! And remember only knowledgeable and perfect practice makes perfect. Have fun!
I have been teaching piano for more than 20 years. Although classically-trained, I have always loved contemporary music. I grew up in a household filled with all types of music, from classical to jazz, Pavarotti to Sinatra, Goldberg to Grusin, pop, rock, etc. Currently residing in Singapore, I conduct private piano lessons in pop and jazz music to students of all ages, ranging from music enthusiasts, piano teachers to professional musicians. I also write a blog especially for pianists who find themselves rhythmically and harmonically challenged, and also on other interesting music and piano-related stuff.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nicole_H._E._Lee
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Top 5 Pieces For a Beginner Jazz Pianist
Nov 12th
Learning how to play jazz piano for the first time is exciting yet very intimidating if one starts with the wrong songs. Selecting pieces that are melodically pleasing, rhythmically simple, harmonically easy (as in the chord changes) and all structured within a straightforward form is very important if a beginner jazz pianist is to gain any significant performance result.
Hence, the following pieces all comprise the elements just mentioned above and, in my opinion, are very suitable for any novice jazz player. Interestingly, these pieces will eventually have to be among the standard tunes in any true jazzer’s repertoire.
The five songs are: (listed in alphabetical order)
- 1. Autumn Leaves: Beautiful melody in simple rhythms; II-V-I chord changes in the key of G major and its relative E minor; 32-bar ABAC form. This is a “must know” jazz standard, often played in ballad and/or medium swing style. It is also common to find this song represented in G minor.
2. Blue Bossa: Descending melody line with lightly syncopated latin rhythms; II-V-I in C minor and Db major; 16-bar AB form. This piece is great in two ways: it is a great introduction to bossa nova style and also chord changes in minor key.
3. Fly Me to the Moon: Another beautiful descending melodic line with a rhythm that can be interpreted in swing or latin; mainly diatonic and related chords from C major; another 32-bar ABAC form. An old Sinatra favorite and, of course, repopularized by Michael Buble, this song not only has a catchy melody, but the chord progression also moves beautifully in the cycle of fifths.
4. So What: Simple modal melody in the bass in flowing 8th rhythms; D Dorian modal chords; classic 32-bar AABA, starting with 16 bars of D Dorian, moving up a half step to 8 bars of Eb Dorian and back to the last 8 bars of D Dorian again. Miles Davis’ popular piece is an excellent thesis in modal studies. The beginner will learn the concept of “less is more.”
5. Summertime: A classic Gershwin blues melody in simple rhythms; mainly diatonic and related chords of D minor; 16-bar AB form. Another great minor piece and also a “must know,” with a bluesy tinge. There is an opportunity to learn about line clichés and applying them to chords Imi and IVmi.
For each song, learn the melody and play through its chord progression. Pay attention to the form and structure of the song. If possible, commit all these to memory. It will be well worth the effort and time and you will appreciate knowing the song inside out, especially once you start the improvisational aspect of jazz piano-playing!
I have been teaching piano for more than 20 years. Although classically-trained, I have always loved contemporary music. I grew up in a household filled with all types of music, from classical to jazz, Pavarotti to Sinatra, Goldberg to Grusin, pop, rock, etc. Currently residing in Singapore, I conduct private piano lessons in pop and jazz music to students of all ages, ranging from music enthusiasts, piano teachers to professional musicians. I also write a blog especially for pianists who find themselves rhythmically and harmonically challenged, and also on other interesting music and piano-related stuff.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nicole_H._E._Lee
http://EzineArticles.com/?Top-5-Pieces-For-a-Beginner-Jazz-Pianist&id=3225638
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7 Important Chords Every Musician Should Know
Nov 5th
And these are the Seven Diatonic Chords of a Key!
What are diatonic chords?
I am always struck by how many musicians are still completely confused or clueless about the importance of diatonic chords and how chords are related to each other within a key.
Simply put, diatonic chords are chords that belong and come from the same scale. Most classically-trained pianists know how to play their major and minor scales very well. But some may not understand the significance of the chords that are associated with the scale.
Let’s take a look at a C Major Scale:
If we stack another two notes a third apart (skip a key each on the keyboard) above each scale note, we immediately form the seven (7) diatonic triads of the C Major scale or key.
If we give a number to each chord of the scale (we usually use Roman numerals to represent chords, e.g. I, II, III, etc.; Arabic numerals to represent scale notes, e.g. 1, 2, 3, etc.), we will have the following chords from this C Major scale:
| Chord No. | Chord | Chord No. | Chord |
| I | C | V | F |
| II | Dmi | VI | Ami |
| III | Emi | VII | Bdim |
| IV | F |
Notice that the I, IV and V chords, i.e. C, F and G are all major quality chords. The chord symbol is just represented by a capital letter.
The II, III and VI chords, i.e. Dmi, Emi and Ami are minor quality chords. The chord symbol may be represented as a capital letter along with mi, min or – (minus sign.)
Lastly, the VII chord, i.e. Bdim is a diminished quality chord. The chord symbol may be represented as a capital letter along with dim or a degree sign.
Once you understand this concept in one key, it will apply to all keys. Hence, if you take the key of G major, you will find these seven diatonic triads:
Notice they all have the same chord quality sound and chord symbols according to the position in the major scale!
Why are these diatonic chords important?
Every melody note comes from a scale that forms the key of the song. Hence, it is only logical that the chords that go well with the melody will also come from the same scale!
Let’s take the old favorite “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.”
The melody uses the first six notes of the C Major scale. Hence, we can safely say that this melody is in the Key of C.
Now, in order to put chords to (or harmonize) this melody, we simply start by looking at the seven C Major diatonic chords. If we do it systematically you will find the following:
| Melody note | Available chords | Melody note | Available chords |
| C | C, F, Ami | F | F, Dmi, Bdim |
| D | G, Dmi, Bdim | G | C, G, Emi |
| E | C, Emi, Ami | A | F, Dmi, Ami |
Notice each melody note has at least three chords that contain that note.
Notice also that both major and minor chord qualities are available for each note. Melody notes D and F can also be harmonized with a diminished quality chord.
Interestingly, you will observe that the C, F and G major chords, i.e. I, IV, V seem to feature prominently in the choices. That is because major chord qualities are considered strong chords or primary chords in harmonization, i.e. they get first priority, followed by the minor chords which are considered secondary chords. The major and minor chords are always considered the strong choices — major being the strongest of the two.
Hence, the best and simplest harmonization for this song is as follows:
Primary triads of I, IV and V also contain all the seven notes of a major scale. In other words, the seven notes of a major scale can easily be found in any of the three chords.
So it’s worthwhile mastering this fundamental harmonic concept of diatonic triads. Learn and play them in all keys!
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