How to Play the Piano ( Part 2 : Basic Techniques and Theory )
1. Learn about the keyboard. The keyboard of a piano
repeats its notes from top to bottom across several octaves. This means
that the notes change from low (left side) to high (right side), but
don't vary in pitch. There are twelve notes a piano can produce: seven
white key notes (C, D, E, F, G, A, B) and five black key notes (C-sharp,
D-sharp, F-sharp, A-flat, and B-flat). Playing the white key notes from
C through B and back to C creates a regular eight tone octave scale in C
major; playing the black key notes from C-sharp (next to the white C
key) through B-flat creates a pentatonic (five tone) scale. You can play
every key (both black and white) from C to C in order to create a chromatic or twelve-tone scale.
- The piano is tuned for C major, since it's a very common key. However, other keys can be played by mixing black and white keys to get the proper sharps and flats for each note. Any of the keys normally seen in sheet music can be played on a piano, making it a very versatile instrument.
- It's easy to double-check a piano's tuning by playing pairs of the same note at different octaves. The notes should sound identical; if they don't, one or both of them is sharp or flat and needs to be re-tuned.
2. Play some notes.
Starting with middle C, gently but firmly push down on a key to produce
a note. Take some time and try pushing slower and faster, softer and
harder, until you have an idea of the kind of control you can exert over
the sound of the piano. Without moving your hands, play all ten notes
under your fingers. Note that some (such as the pinky) are more
difficult to play loudly, while others (like the thumb) take practice to
play softly.
- Play black keys as well. Generally speaking, black keys are played by moving the appropriate finger up and to the right. From the middle C position, your pointer finger can move left and right to play C-sharp and D-sharp, respectively.
3. Play scales.
Try playing notes starting with the pinky C of your left hand, all the
way up to the thumb C of your right hand. Play each white key in order.
Once you reach your left thumb, play the next note (A) with your middle
finger. Then the next (B), with your pointer finger and lastly the thumb
to middle C to finish the scale. Practice this until it begins to get
easier – stretching your fingers is just as important as moving your
hands, as your skills begin to improve.
- Try playing a different scale. Start on one of the other fingers of your left hand, and play notes up the keyboard until you reach the same note on your right hand. Adjust sour notes by using black keys where necessary.
- In addition to learning scales from a teacher or book, it's important to keep experimenting with them on your own so that you begin to get a head for them as quickly as possible.
4. Learn about harmony.
Although it doesn't take a lot of practice to be able to bang out “Hot
Cross Buns” on a piano keyboard, unlocking all of your instrument's
potential requires learning to play multiple notes at once on it, using
all your fingers and both your hands. To achieve a nice sound with
multiple notes, you have to understand how harmonies work. This is a
very in-depth topic that can't be covered in full here, but you can use
these notes to help guide your practice.
- Playing more than one note at the same time is called harmonizing. The theories behind harmony can be very difficult to learn, but a good rule to start out with is to avoid playing many keys that are right next to each other.
- The space between a harmony's notes is called its “interval.” The most common intervals in piano music are fifths, fourths, and thirds. To hear examples of these, play C and G, C and F, or C and E, respectively.
- Harmony intervals go all the way up to the fourteenth interval, which is considered a compound interval since it crosses more than one octave. Harmonies can also be altered by introducing flat or sharp notes, adding support notes, and so on. However, you shouldn't have to worry too much about these more advanced styles for a while yet.
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