HOW TO...Learn the Keys on the Piano
When beginning piano lessons, the first thing to understand is the layout of the piano and the placement of notes. Looking at a long keyboard can be a bit overwhelming, but the good news is that once you learn the pattern and do a little practicing, you'll have them down super fast!
Learning the musical alphabet starting with the letter C instead of A is very common because the C-scale, (which you can learn about in another video) is the primary beginning scale, so practice reciting the musical alphabet beginning with C-it will help you drastically.
The strongest identifiers for finding the notes you're looking for are the black keys-groups of two and groups of three. The black keys are just as important as the white keys and you'll use them in the future, but in beginner lessons, we start by learning the white keys first.
Practice Recommendation
Say the musical alphabet forward and backward from C. Especially get comfortable saying it backwards. Test yourself or have a friend quiz you on the key names on the piano until you can identify them quickly and accurately.
When beginning piano lessons, the first thing to understand is the layout of the piano and the placement of notes. Looking at a long keyboard can be a bit overwhelming, but the good news is that once you learn the pattern and do a little practicing, you'll have them down super fast!
Learning the musical alphabet starting with the letter C instead of A is very common because the C-scale, (which you can learn about in another video) is the primary beginning scale, so practice reciting the musical alphabet beginning with C-it will help you drastically.
The strongest identifiers for finding the notes you're looking for are the black keys-groups of two and groups of three. The black keys are just as important as the white keys and you'll use them in the future, but in beginner lessons, we start by learning the white keys first.
Practice Recommendation
Say the musical alphabet forward and backward from C. Especially get comfortable saying it backwards. Test yourself or have a friend quiz you on the key names on the piano until you can identify them quickly and accurately.
HOW TO...Find Middle C
A common misconception is that Middle C is named such because its placement on the piano is in the middle of the keyboard. While that's generally true-Middle C is pretty close to the center -the 40th key out of 88-the real reason for its name has to do with the Grand Staff. The Grand Staff is what is used to notate music. It is comprised of five lines of treble clef and five lines of bass clef. The 11th line that falls between the bass and treble clef is the middle, henceforth Middle C. It's a fundamental note to know because it helps a musician to read both the bass and treble clef notes.
Practice Recommendation
Look for the sets of two black keys. When you find the one closest to the center of the piano, identify the white key to the left directly underneath the 1st black key. It's Middle C. You can also remember that the set of two black keys has a shape similar to chopsticks. The word chopsticks begins with the letter C, so you can remember that the letter C comes immediately before the set of two black keys.
A common misconception is that Middle C is named such because its placement on the piano is in the middle of the keyboard. While that's generally true-Middle C is pretty close to the center -the 40th key out of 88-the real reason for its name has to do with the Grand Staff. The Grand Staff is what is used to notate music. It is comprised of five lines of treble clef and five lines of bass clef. The 11th line that falls between the bass and treble clef is the middle, henceforth Middle C. It's a fundamental note to know because it helps a musician to read both the bass and treble clef notes.
Practice Recommendation
Look for the sets of two black keys. When you find the one closest to the center of the piano, identify the white key to the left directly underneath the 1st black key. It's Middle C. You can also remember that the set of two black keys has a shape similar to chopsticks. The word chopsticks begins with the letter C, so you can remember that the letter C comes immediately before the set of two black keys.
HOW TO...Count Music
Being able to count music is pretty essential for a musician. This video gives a brief overview on the basic note values. The quarter note, half note, dotted half note, whole note and eighth notes are the primary beats in most music. Notes, like money, are ascribed values.
Eighth note < quarter note < half note < dotted half note
< whole note.
See if you can start recognizing them in your music! These note values, along with others, can be used in all kinds of different arrangements. The key to counting music properly is keeping your beats even. Keep a steady beat/rhythm when you play these on the piano. Rhythm is a strong, regular repeated pattern of sound.
Practice Recommendation
Find a piece of music that has some basic music in it. Clap or tap each beat steadily while counting out its value (1, 1-2, 1-2-3-4, 1 & 1 &, etc)
Being able to count music is pretty essential for a musician. This video gives a brief overview on the basic note values. The quarter note, half note, dotted half note, whole note and eighth notes are the primary beats in most music. Notes, like money, are ascribed values.
Eighth note < quarter note < half note < dotted half note
< whole note.
See if you can start recognizing them in your music! These note values, along with others, can be used in all kinds of different arrangements. The key to counting music properly is keeping your beats even. Keep a steady beat/rhythm when you play these on the piano. Rhythm is a strong, regular repeated pattern of sound.
Practice Recommendation
Find a piece of music that has some basic music in it. Clap or tap each beat steadily while counting out its value (1, 1-2, 1-2-3-4, 1 & 1 &, etc)
Objectives:
- Learn the musical alphabet.
- Learn how to identify notes on the piano.
- Learn to number your fingers to quickly identify where to place them on the piano.
Objectives:
- Learn about steps, skips & repeated notes and how to play them on the piano.
- Learn about Middle C, the C Position, C Scale, and how to place your right hand using finger numbers.
- Learn how to play Mary Had a Little Lamb.