{"id":23,"date":"2017-03-19T09:05:00","date_gmt":"2017-03-19T16:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/secrets-of-e-flat-minor\/"},"modified":"2024-03-06T14:54:58","modified_gmt":"2024-03-06T22:54:58","slug":"secrets-of-e-flat-minor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/secrets-of-e-flat-minor\/","title":{"rendered":"The Secrets of E-Flat Minor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Take your playing to the next level: www.Pianote.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Have you ever wanted to learn to improvise but didn\u2019t really know where to start? Well, here\u2019s a great starter key to play bluesy improvs in that might surprise you: E-flat minor.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It seems like a weird key to suggest to a beginner, but it really works. To get a better sense of why it works so well, take a look at the formula for the pentatonic scale. That formula is 1-m3-4-5-m7. If you apply that formula with Eb as your \u20181\u2019, you\u2019ll find out that you can play the entire pentatonic scale using only the black keys. So you can totally forget about the white ones!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eb minor is the ONE key at the piano that allows you to do this, so take advantage of this unique situation. Because you\u2019re only playing the black keys, it\u2019ll feel weird to play so keep those fingers rounded as you play.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you get acquainted with the E-flat pentatonic scale, you can try adding some other notes into your playing. Try adding in the 2nd, the bluenote (b5) and the major 6th. If you look at what notes those are on the keyboard, you\u2019ll find that they are the notes of the F major triad, F-A-C. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t\n\n