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Db, Ab, Eb, Bb, F, C, G,
D, A, E, B, F#
If
you recall, last week we took an airplane ride over Chordland
just to get the lay of the land -- the overview of the world
of chords. Today,
we are going to show you how easy it is to learn ALL
the major chords (there are 12 of them) and be able to play
them in seconds -- not hours or days or weeks
or months or years. Some people go through their entire
lives not being sure about what such and such a major chord
is -- and it's all so unnecessary, because you can memorize
them in just a few minutes, and learn to play them in 12
seconds or less - one second per chord. I have had many
private students over the years who could play them all
in as little as 5 seconds -- one little gal (she was about
12 at the time) had particularly fast hands, and could play
them in - believe it or not - 3 seconds! I have slow
hands with fat fingers, and yet I can play them in something
like 5 or 6 seconds.
So if I can do it with little
fat hands and chubby short fingers, you can too.
First,
here's what they look like on the staff:
And
here's what they look like when played on the piano with
your left hand:
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C Major
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F Major
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G Major
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D Major
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E Major
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A Major
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Db Major
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Eb Major
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Ab Major
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Gb Major
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B Major
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Bb Major
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I
hope you noticed that 3 of the major chords were made of
all white keys:
C
F
G
And
I hope you noticed that 3 of the major chords were made
of white
keys on the outside, with a black key in the middle:
D
E
A
And
did you notice that 3 of the major chords were like an Oreo
cookie? Black
on the outside, white on the inside?
Db
Eb Ab
That
only leaves 3 major chords, one of which is all
black, and one of which is
white, black, black,
and the other the reverse -- black,
white, white.
Gb
(all black) B
(white, black, black)
Bb
(black, white, white)
And that's
it.
Practice
playing the first 3 chords over and over until you can move
between them smoothly and quickly. Then practice the next
3 chords -- then the next 3 -- then the last 3. After
you can play them by 3's, practice playing the first 6 without
stopping. Then practice the first 9 without stopping. Then
finally practice playing all 12 without stopping.
There's no particular virtue, of course, in playing them
quickly, except for the fact that it makes you confident
you can find them in a hurry when you need them in a song.
But you'll find that as your confidence grows, your enjoyment
and competence in piano playing with grow commensurately.
That's
it for this week. By next week you ought to be a pro at
all the major chords -- every single one.
Next week we'll learn how to stand 'em on their heads, and,
therefore, triple the number of chords we can play quickly!
Meanwhile, if you haven't
already gone to
http://www.chordpiano.com/CanIReallyLearn.htm
and taken the little test I give to see if you are capable
of playing "chord piano," titled "Can
I Really Learn To Play Chord Piano,"
be sure to go there right now!
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