|
The First of the
Extended Chords Group
Hello
again, and welcome to the next lesson. I hope you are enjoying
learning about all the chords in the world -- and we're
going to cover them ALL before we're done --
you'll know more about chords than 99% of the people in
the world -- believe it or not, it's true.
If you recall, in the first class we learned about the three
chords you absolutely, positively CAN'T do without; we took
an airplane ride over Chordland just to get the lay of the
land -- the overview of the world of chords. We
showed you how easy it is to learn ALL the major
chords (there are 12 of them) and be able to play them in
second.. Y
ou learned how to easily turn major chords into minor
chords just by moving one key one-half step -- by lowering
the 3rd of the major chord. Then we learned diminished
triads -- just by lowering the 3rd and the 5th of a major
chord 1/2 step. Then we learned inversions
-- how to stand chords on their head. And,
finally, we took up augmented triads -- formed by simply
raising the 5th of a major triad. If you need a review any
of these chord lessons, click on the Chords 101 button at
the top of this page; it will take you to all the earlier
lessons.
Now, we move on to more complex chords in Chords 102.
Today we are going to learn major 6th chords. They
are 4-note chords -- the root, 3rd, 5th -- just like a major
chord, but you also add the 6th degree of the scale to the
major triad. The 6th is ALWAYS one whole step above the
5th -- never a half step -- so they are real easy
to find.
So
here is the formula:
|
A Major 6th Chord = Root
- 3rd - 5th - 6th
|
Here's
what Major 6th chords look like on the staff:
(Remember
that accidentals carry over in each measure!)
|
CHORD
SYMBOL DEFINITION
Major
sixth chords
appears
in lead sheets as any of the following chord symbols:
|
And here's what they look like when played in root position:
(They appear in the same order as the notation above --
besides, you should be able to form them by now, since all
there is to it is to add the 6th note of the scale to the
major chord!)
Now it's up to you.
Play each augmented triad in root position, then 1st inversion,
then 2nd inversion. Play each chord up and down the keyboard
for at least 2 octaves -- maybe 3 octaves. Play
them with your left hand, then play them with your right
hand. Then play them hands together.
Go
through all 12 major chords, inverting every one. Then go
through all the 12 minor chords, inverting each one up and
down the keyboard -- hands alone, then hands together. Then
go through all 12 diminished chords, inverting each one
up and down the keyboard -- each hand alone, then together.
Then play the 12 augmented chords, up and down the keyboard.
Then skip around from major to minor to diminished to augmented,
etc.
Now
add 6th chords to your repetoire of chords. They are shown
in root position above, but you know that you can turn them
upside down 'till the cows come home -- invert them -- so
go to it!
When
you can do that you ought to feel really, really,
really, really optimistic about learning chords,
because you're on your way! After all, you have gone from
|
12
major chords
to
12 minor chords
to
12 diminished chords
to
12 augmented chords
and
12 major 6th chords
and
inversions of each
which means you can now play
192
chords!
Good for you!
|
Next week we will add 12 more
chords to our growing list of chords we can play by adding
minor 6th chords to our stash. (Actually 48 more chords,
since each 4-note chord such as a minor 6th can be inverted
4 ways -- root position, 1st inversion, 2nd inversion, and
3rd inversion.
If
you're more advanced and are ready to get serious about
your piano playing, then you really need to know about:
Pro
Secrets: The 36 Techniques Used By The Pro
Each
month for three years you will spend the entire month getting
really good at just one technique.
When you have that technique down, we go on to the next
technique for a solid month, and so on. Warning: Do not
take this course unless you are prepared to rehearse a solid
hour a day on just one technical skill! These are
serious drill tapes for serious
students!
|
