Learning PIano Chords - Part 1

Learning how to play piano chords is a multi-step process. What this blog is about today is some key introductory points, general piano tips to consider before you set out on your journey of learning piano chords.


I'm just going to list a couple of piano tips but these are critical issues in my view- ones that should not be overlooked.


First off, let's look at piano chord books or piano chord manuals. When I look at the books, and I continuously am always looking for the "latest and the greatest" ones, I am particulary amazed at the multitude of chord piano books that have a photo of a hand where the fingers are placed on the picture of the keyboard! We do not want that and here's why...


Here's the deal, piano is not guitar, obviously so. With guitar, it makes sense to have a picture showing the hand fingering the guitar chord as many times one finger plays two or more notes all at once, one finger may dampen a string, etc. The bottom line though on piano chords, please "Just tell me what notes should be played and keep the fingers out of the picture" so you're not blocking and obscuing the notes. You also very rarely play two keys with one finger for piano but only rarely so. When you learn the rules of fingerings like I present in my course "Play Piano Like a Pro" and you know "what buttons to push", i.e., what piano keys to play then you have all the information that you need to play that chord. In short, if you want to buy a chord book for piano, pick up one with only the piano keys highlighted but make sure there's no hands on the keyboard. My top recommendation is Creative Keyboard Publ. "Deluxe Encycopedia of Chords" by Bob Kroepel which is available online or in stores.


The next issue is on really, really learning the piano chord which then relates to how you memorize the chords. Remember this phrase "muscle memory" Yep, that factor if not "the" most important factor, certainly in the top two. After playing a chord many, many, many times, between your mind logging it into your memory or maybe the position your hands were in when they played the chord, gets "uploaded" into your memory. That's why we play the chord a million times when learning it. You can look at a picture forever, but until you physically commit that piano chord and play it with your hands, you'll never memorize it. Of course too, you want to play the chord with the "correct fingerings" or else you've committed to memory, the wrong fingering for that chord.


To get a more in depth look at how we learn piano chords, be sure to check out my course available at http://www.instantpropiano.com/.


Next time we'll look at additional piano tips that will help you and facilitate the learning of piano chords.