{"id":37,"date":"2017-05-30T10:17:00","date_gmt":"2017-05-30T17:17:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2023-01-10T09:07:51","modified_gmt":"2023-01-10T17:07:51","slug":"piano-chord-hacks-intro","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/piano-chord-hacks-intro\/","title":{"rendered":"Chord Hacks #1: Intro To Chording"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

No piano player is gonna get very far without learning about chords.  Luckily, chords are pretty simple and <\/span>highly <\/span><\/em>addictive to learn, so it shouldn\u2019t be too hard for you to get started.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first question you might be asking is…what <\/span>is <\/span><\/em>a chord?  You can think of a chord as a collection of notes sounding in unison of each other.  <\/span>Technically<\/span><\/em> you can make a chord out of any combo of three or more notes, but since you\u2019re just starting out you should stick to creating simple chords called <\/span>triads.  <\/span><\/em>They\u2019re really easy to make.  The first chord you can make is called the C major triad.  This chord is formed of three notes:  a root note, a third, and a fifth note.  So what does that look like applied to the key of C major?  It looks like the notes C – E – G.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Making a single major triad is one thing, but what makes chords really shine is when you play multiple chords together. \u00a0This is called a <\/span>chord progression.<\/span><\/em> \u00a0The easiest way to make chord progressions is to base them off of the key that you\u2019re playing in. \u00a0There are a few chords in every key that go great together, so let\u2019s have a look at those. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every major scale has seven notes, plus an eighth note (the octave) on top.  You can make chords off of every note in this scale.  The next logical note to make a chord off of is the fifth note of the scale.  In the case of C major, that note will be G.  The G chord looks a lot like the C chord, except the notes are now G – B – D.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next chord after that is going to sound quite a bit different.  Take the notes that make up the G chord, and move each note up one white key to the right.  Now you\u2019ve got the A minor triad, and it\u2019s made up of     A – C – E.  Even though it looks\/feels like a similar chord to your C and G chords, it <\/span>sounds <\/span><\/em>way different.  We\u2019ll save why that is for a later lesson.  For now just listen to the difference between the C major chord and the A minor chord.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The final chord to look at is the F major chord.  To make this chord, base it off of the fourth note in the C major scale.  The notes are F – A – C.  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, now you\u2019ve learned how to make a simple triad and apply that chord shape to several points in the C major scale, creating different chords.  You learned the C major triad, along with G, A minor and F major.  Countless songs have been written using these four chords alone!  Go ahead and try em out in any combination you like.   <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n