PC-96 - Chord Prep Series 116 Pages 1406-21

8/12/2019 PC-96 - Chord Prep Series 116 Pages 1406-21

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Tab 3 is in front of this page.

PC - Core UnitsBasic Triad Chord Patterns - With ExercisesPC-06

Chord Prep ExercisesPC-10

Broken Chord ExercisesPC-12

Basic Patterns of Keyboard HarmonyPC-15Chord Chart Patterns with Intervals & ScalesPC-35

PC - Supplementary UnitKeyboard Rulers for Chords and ScalesPC-30

PC - Core UnitsMy First Song Collection - Part 2 2-Note ChordsPC-52

Favorite Spirituals 2-Note ChordsPC-56My First Song Collection - Part 2 Broken ChordsPC-62

PC - Supplementary UnitsTraditional Christmas Carols - Part 1 2-Note ChordsPC-54

Traditional Chris tmas Carols - Part 2PC-58

Traditional Christmas Carols - Part 1 Broken ChordsPC-64

Christmas Carols - Part 1 With Standard Chords OnlyPC-80

Tab 3 - Chord Prep (PC)

Instructions and Exercises

Collections of Pieces

Favorite Love It OK Pass

PSW Book 1 Organizer PSW-14 v8.4 1406-21

Al l Rights Reserved: Copyright 1998-2014 Mus ic Innovato rs Workwshop LLC


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PSW Book 1 Organizer PSW-14 v8.4 1406-21

Al l Rights Reserved: Copyright 1998-2014 Mus ic Innovato rs Workwshop LLC


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1405-04

32

Basic Triad

ChordPatterns

From the MIW PianoStudent's Workshop

PC-06

Colors for Chord SymbolsStandard AND mapped 3-note chord symbols are both shown

for each chord.

For the mapped chord symbols, the ROOT of each chord ishighlighted in color to indicate the kind of the chord, as shown

here. The other notes of the chord are white.

Major

Minor

Al l Others

With Exercises

AmB dim

CDmEm

F

F

G

G

Am

Basic Triad Chord Patterns With Exercises PC-06 v8.4 1

All r ight s reserved: Copyright 1998-2014 Mus ic Innovator's Workshop, LLC


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FACE GBD(FACE, Girls , Boys and Dads)

EC

C A

AF

FD

GEC AoBDF A

CEG

EGB

GBD

BDF

How many triads can you f ind?

EC

C A

AF

FD

GEC AoBDF A

CEG

EGB

GBD

BDF




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Inroduction About This Unit . Learning to play, with left hand chords and from chord symbols, is oneof the biggest steps that you can take when learning to p lay a keyboard. It opens up a verylarge area of keyboard playing that is closed to those who don't know how to play fromchord symbols.

This uni t i s designed to help you get started by focus ing on CHORD PATTERNS. Chords canget very compl icated, but learning these patterns wi ll help you make sense out of what youare learning, and the exercises wi ll help you learn to play the chords with some ease. Thisunit wi ll start you off wi th the simplest types of chords -- the TRIADS. The followinginformation about chords will help you understand how chords work and how they arenamed. The included EXERCISES WILL HELP YOU FORM FINGERING HABIT PATTERNS thatyou wil l need for playing chords wi th some ease.

About Triads and Chords. A single chord can be made up of many different sounds andcan become very complicated. When a chord has only 3 different sounds, it can be called aTRIAD (tri meaning three). A triad is just a 3-note chord. Triads are building blocks for thelarger chords that contain more notes. This unit focuses on triad chords .

Triad chords are made up of 3 notes in a very simple pattern. The 3 notes are taken from themusical alphabet in ALPHABETICAL ORDER, with the alphabet repeating itself every time itreaches G, like this: ABCEDFGABCDEFGABC and so on. Nearly all chords are created bystarting with any letter that you want, then by taking EVERY SECOND letter unti l you havethree letters . Examples: ACE, BDF, CEG. Each of these groups of letters makes a triadchord . The first part of the chord's name is the firs t letter of the littl e group of 3 letters. Thisnote is called the chord's ROOT. After you have identified these 3 notes, you can play themanywhere on the keyboard, IN ANY ORDER, and the chord will stil l be identified by the letter of i ts root. Of the three examples above, the firs t (ACE) is an A chord, the second (BDF) is aB chord , the third is a C chord .

There is a second part of a chord's name in addition to the letter naming the chord's root.This second part describes WHAT KIND of a chord you have. This part deals with a chord'sQUALITY, that is, how it sounds. There are 4 basic kinds of t riad chords, described as:MAJOR, MINOR, AUGMENTED and DIMINISHED. You will learn about these later. Right now,you need to get a good grasp of how you make a triad, how you name its root, and of course, how to play it.

To play a triad that you have spelled out as described above, is a simple thing. You just playall three of the notes at the same time, playing them in any order, anywhere on thekeyboard. If you play the root lower than the other two notes, you are playing the chord inROOT POSITION. If you p lay either of the other two notes lower than the root, we say thatthe chord is an INVERSION. It is an inverted chord. The triads on the next page are all in rootposit ion. You will find inverted triads on l ater pages. The exercises on these pages wil l helpyou learn to play these triads with appropriate hand and finger positions.




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32Root3213

15

35

Am

AmB dim

B dimC

C

Dm

Dm

Em

Em

F

F

G

G Am

ColorsFingering colors are

shown for all exercisesexcept the last, which

shows the standardcoloring for chord

roots - indicating kindof chord.

ExercisesThe exercises at the

LEFT will prepare youfor playing the triads atthe right . The triads areall named for their root

(lowest) note.

LH FingeringThe hand is in the

5-finger position . Alltriads on this page

have the samefingering: LH: 5, 3, and 1.

OrientationThe triads at the RIGHT

are all in ROOTposit ion. The root of

each tri ad is theLOWEST note, played

by Finger 5.

Root PositionTriads on White

KeysC

C

F

F

G

G

A

A

A

B

B

D

D

E

E

ChordSymbol

5 4 3 2 1

Fingering Colors




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Playing the Triad Chords . When playing chords one after theother, as on the right s ide of the previous (facing) page, you wi llneed to use exactly the same finger posi tions for each chord. Theonly way to play these chords in rapid succesion, is to avoidreorienting your fingers as you jump from one location on the

keyboard to another. Holding your finger positions as you moveyour hand is a challenge for most students. One of the mainobjectives of this unit is t o help you learn to do this.

The exercises have been designed to help you learn to do th is ineasy steps. In the exercises, you only need to hold your positionsfor two f ingers at a time. The three exercises gives you a chance topractice separately the finger combinations needed for playing thetriad with three fingers at a time. Practice the exercises unt il you areable to play the triads without having to reposition your fingerswhen moving from one chord to another.

About the Chord Symbols . The chord symbols shown at the leftof the triads on the previous page indicate the type of chord thatyou are playing as you play triads on successive white keys. Thechord type changes as you move from chord to chord because of the the way that the keyboard is constructed. This is caused by thedifferences in the intervals between the keys that you are playing asyou move from one posit ion to the next. You wil l learn how to readand understand these chord symbols in another unit of instruction.

About the Spacing of the Keys in the Triads. In theintroduction you were told that the NOTES for the triads aredetermined by skipping every SECOND letter of the musicalalphabet. Notice that thi s pattern carries through to the keyboardwhere you skip EVERY SECOND WHITE KEY to play the triads.(However, this neat matching only holds true on the keyboard whenwe are avoiding the use of sharps and flats.)

About the FACE GBD ... Sequence. Nearly all chords arespelled using this sequence of letters. You would be well advised tolearn this sequence so well that you could instantly respond wi th

the next 2 letters when presented with any of these letters as thefirs t letter in a chord symbol. When you see F, you respond with ac,and so on throughout the sequence. Here are all of thecombinations: Ace, Bdf, Ceg, Dfa, Egb, Fac, Gbd. Memorize thesequence. You'll be glad you did!




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32Root335

13

15

OrientationThe triads are all inFIRST INVERSION

position. The ROOT of the triad is the highest

note, played by thethumb, (Finger 1).

Fingering Al l of these triads havethe same fingering, LH:5, 3, and 1. Fingers 5 4 3

and 2 hold a 5-finger position but the thumb

skips one key to theright.

ExercisesThe exercises at the left

will prepare you for playing the triads at theright . The triads are all

named for their HIGHEST note.

First Inversion

Am

C

Dm

Dm

Em

Em

F

F

G

G

Am

CDm


shown for all exercisesexcept the last, which

shows the standardcoloring for chord


REPEATRepeat the exercises

until they become easyto play!

FG

A

D

E

C

AB

DCB

F

G

DE

ChordSymbol

B dim

B dim




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About Inverted Chords . As you have learned, we identify anddesign chords by us ing every second letter of the alphabet(facegbd). You have also learned that once the notes of a chord have

been identified, CEG, for example, they can be played anywhere onthe keyboard and IN ANY ORDER. The first triads that you studied inthis unit remained in the original order with the root as the lowestnote.

First Inversion Triads. The notes on the facing page, titled FirstInversion, are shown in a different order. The first inversion of a triadmoves the root from the lowest position in the triad to the highestposit ion. It "inverts" the triad, just as the word indicates. Be awarethat inverted chords are NOT unusual. They are a common andnormal part of piano music. The inverted C major tr iad now has thesequence of notes, EGC.

The normal left hand playing position for first inversion triads hasthe THUMB playing the root of the chord. When learning to playchords in the blue octave group, firs t inversion t riads are played withroots Ab, A, Bb, and B.

Second Inversion Triads. The next page shows chords in thesecond inversion. For the second inversion, the lowest note of thefirst inversion chord is moved to the highest position in the triad.

This results in the root moving to the middle of the triad. (This couldalso be described as moving the root of the root position t riad up tothe middle of the triad.) The second inversion C major triad now hasthe sequence of notes, GCE.

The normal left hand playing posi tion for the second inversiontriads has the index finger (finger 2) point ing at (touching) the keythat is the root of the chord. This is sometimes described as the"pointer position" because the finger normally used for point ing isaimed at the root of the chord. When learning to play chords in theblue octave group, second inversion t riads are played with roots F,

F#, and G.




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32Root3212

15

25

ExercisesThe exercises at the left

will prepare you for playing the triads at theright . The triads are all

named for their MIDDLE note.

OrientationThe triads are all in

SECOND INVERSION

position. The root of thetriad is the MIDDLE note,

played by Finger 2.

Second Inversion

DmEm

FG

Am

CDmEmF

G AmB dim

B dim

C

C

Fingering Al l of these triads have

the same fingering,LH: 5, 2, and 1. Fingers

5 4 3 and 2 are in LH5-finger position but

the thumb is stretchedone key to the right.

FG

C

FG

C


shown for all exercises

except the last, whichshows the standardcoloring for chord


DE

E

AB

BC

A

D

ChordSymbol




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Triads On White Keys - Root Posit ion

Finger Locations on KeyboardTriads KindsSymbols

GECGECMajor C

AFD AFDMinor DmBGEBGEMinor Em

C AFC AFMajor F

DBGDBGMajor G

EC AEC AMinor Am

FDBFDBDiminishedB dim

On this page and the next few pages is a series of charts intended to help you seetriads in a way entirely di fferent from the way that they are shown on the key maps onthe prevous pages. The previous pages focused on hand positions to be used for playing tri ads on white keys in root posit ion, and in first and second inversions. Thelocation of the root of the triad was emphasized. Learning these finger/hand posi tions,with the abili ty to play them easily is a basic skill t hat will help you master playing fromchord symbols.

This page and the next few pages will bui ld on what you have just learned by showingyou how we name and play triads that use both whit e keys and black keys. Theimpor tant thing for you to focus on is the common PATTERNS that you wil l see inthese charts. The chart on this page is more complicated than the charts that followbecause different KINDS of triads are mixed together on th is page, while charts onfolowing pages don't mix different kinds of tri ads together.

The Chart on This Page. This chart shows the 7 triads that can be played on thewhite keys. There are 3 major triads, 3 minor triads (m), and 1 diminished triad (dim).The "Finger Locations on Keyboard" part of chart is not a key map, but it is laid out ina simi lar way. Each ROW contains a single triad (7 rows, 7 triads). Each COLUMNstands for a key on the keyboard. Unlike the key map, the column stands for ANY key,not a specific key. It i s designed to show HOW FAR APART the keys of the triad are.These spaces are called INTERVALS. The keys that the columns stand for can beblack or whi te, depending on the location of the starting key.

SkipKey Intervals for Root Position Triads. Major (root is yellow): Skip 3, Skip 2.Minor (root is green): Skip 2, Skip 3. Diminished (root is pink): Skip 2, Skip 2. This isthe formula for ALL major, minor, and diminished triads in root position, no matter where they are played on the keyboard.

Skip 3

Skip 3

Skip 3

Skip 3Skip 3

Skip 3

Skip 2

Skip 2

Skip 2

Skip 2

Skip 2 Skip 2

Skip 2Skip 2




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About the 4 Kinds of Triad Chords

The 4 Triad Patterns in Root Posit ion

SkipKey Patterns on the KeyboardTriads KindsSymbols

GbEbCGbEbCDiminishedC dim

GEbCGEbCMinor Cm

GECGECMajor C

G#ECG#EC AugmentedC aug

Skip 3 Skip 2

Skip 2

Skip 2

Skip 2

Skip 3

Skip 3 Skip 3

Here are important facts about tr iad chords. Refer to the chartabove as you study them.

>> The chart is about chord PATTERNS, not specific note names. Look for patterns.

>> Though the chart shows the C triad, the patterns hold true for ALL note letter names;for tri ads with ANY root.

>> The triad chords on the chart show ALL of the 4 triad patterns. The patterns locatewhich keys make up the triad. The located keys can be played in any order andanywhere on the keyboard.

>> The triad KINDS are DEFINED, not by the letter names of the keys but by HOW FARthe other keys are from the ROOT. Skipping over the right number of keys from the root

is how you f ind the keys that you need to play. WHEN SKIPPING, you count white keys AND black keys.

>> Knowing how far the CHORD SYMBOL is t elling you to skip from the root i s how youKNOW which keys to play. Then, when you know which keys to play, you can play themin any octave groups you choose. Learning to READ chord symbol s is simi lar tolearning to read language. Eventually, with enough REPETITION you will be able to lookat a chord symbol and WITHOUT analyzing it, simply p lay the chord wherever you wantit on the keyboard. This will happen first with the chords that you use the most.

>> A yellow highlight indicates a MAJOR triad. Green indicates a MINOR triad. (A redroot indicates a 7th chord - not discussed here.) Pink indicates a diminished or augmented triad.

>> The KIND most commonly used is Major (Skip 3, Skip 2). A kind less common but thatgets a lot of use is Minor (Skip 2, Skip 3). A kind less often used is Diminished (Skip 2,Skip 2). The kind rarely used is Augmented (Skip 3, Skip 3).




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Major Triads in Root Position

SkipKey Patterns on the KeyboardTriadsSymbols

Major Triads With Roots on White Keys - From Root, UpSkip 3, Then 2

C AFC AFFEC# AEC# A A

GECGECC

BG#EBG#EE

DBGDBGG

F#D#BF#D#BB

AF#D AF#DD

Major Triads With Roots on Black Keys - From Root, UpSkip 3, Then 2Key

AbFDb AbFDbDb1

BbGEbBbGEbEb2

DbBbGbDbBbGbGb3

EbC AbEbC Ab Ab4

FDBbFDBbBb5

Typical LH Fingering

135

Skip 3 Skip 2




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Minor Triads in Root Position


Minor Triads With Roots on White Keys - UpSkip 2, Then 3

C AbFC AbFFm

EC AEC A Am

GEbCGEbCCm

BGEBGEEm

DBbGDBbGGm

F#DBFDBBm

AFD AFDDm

Minor Triads With Roots on Black Keys - UpSkip 2, Then 3Key

G#EC#G#EC#C#1

A#F#D# A#F#D#D#2

C# AF#C# AF#F#3

D#BG#D#BG#G#4

FDbBbFDbBbBb5


135

Skip 3Skip 2




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Major Triads in First Inversion


Major Triads With Roots on White Keys - DnSkip 4, Then 2FC AFC AF

AEC# AEC# A

CGECGEC

EBG#EBG#E

GDBGDBG

BF#D#BF#D#B

D AF#D AF#D

Major Triads With Roots on Black Keys - DnSkip 4, Then 2Key

Db AbFDb AbFDb1

EbBbGEbBbGEb2

GbDbBbGbDbBbGb3

AbEbC AbEbC Ab4

BbFDBbFDBb5


135

Skip 2 Skip 4




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Major Triads in Second Inversion


Major Triads With Roots on White Keys - DnSkip 4, and UpSkip 3 From Root

AFC AFCF

C# AEC# AE A

ECGECGC

G#EBG#EBE

BGDBGDG

D#BF#D#BF#B

F#D AF#D AD

Major Triads With Roots on Black Keys - DnSkip 4, and UpSkip 3 From Root

Key

FDb AbFDb AbDb1

GEbBbGEbBbEb2

BbGbDbBbGbDbGb3

C AbEbC AbEb Ab4

DBbFDBbFBb5


125

Skip 4 Skip 3




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Seven Major Triads in Root Position With Inversions

Root PositionC AF

EC# A

GEC

BG#E

DBG

F#D#B

AF#D

1st InversionFC A

AEC#

CGE

EBG#

GDB

BF#D#

D AF#

2nd Inversion

AFC

C# AE

ECG

G#EB

BGD

D#BF#

F#D A

Typical LH Major Triad FingeringRoot Position135

1st Inversion135

2nd Inversion

125

Skip 3 Skip 2

Skip 3

Skip 4

To play any of these triads, youcan simply choose a root andthen SKIP over the designated

numbers of keys to play thekeys that make up the triad. Theonly key that you need to name

is the root.

Skip 2

Skip 4

Remember, to pl ay triadsstarting on BLACK KEYS,you use the same skippingpatterns as shown here for

triads starting on whitekeys.




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FACE GBD

EC

C A

AF

FD

GEC AoBDF A

CEG

EGB

GBD

BDF

EC

C A

AF

FD

GEC AoBDF A

CEG

EGB

GBD

BDF




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1308-27


Chord PrepExercises

PC-10

With Introduction to Chordsand Chord Symbols

Using the Mapped ChordSymbols (LH)

Traditional and mapped chord symbols are bothshown for each chord.

For the mapped chor d sym bols, the ROOT of eachchord is color coded to ind icate the mode of the

chord, as shown below.

Minor Major Dominant 7th

Al l Ot hers

Chord Prep Exercis es - PC-10 v7.4 1

All Rights Reserved: Copyrigh t 1998-2012 Mus ic Innov ators Worksh op LLC


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.Examples43Chord

NameTriads

C

FG

Larger cho rdsC

D7

GEDB AFC

" A" triad and "C" triad A

C Longer names

CmD7

Em7

FGA

F-A

A-C

F

What are chords and triads?

Chords are three or more notes soun ded at the same time.In this unit y ou will learn mainly about three-note chords,called TRIADS for t heir 3 notes, and will l earn how to playthem on the keyboard. The notes of chords (in root posit ion)are spaced as th irds (skips). See the examples at the left:CEG, FAC, GBD. They use every second letter of the mus icalalphabet.

About t he Names/Symbols of Chords. Chords havenames/symbols so that we can identif y them. (Chord" names" and their "symbo ls" are used interchangably.)Chords have the same names as the keys on t he keyboard --from A thru G. A chord that is built up in 3rds from an A is an" A" chord; one built up in 3rds from C is a " C" chord, and soon. The sound (or note) that the chord is built up from iscalled its "Root" .

There are many kinds o f chor ds. Some chords simply havethe letter name as their whole name . For other chords , theletter name is just the start of the name, and other letters andnumbers are added after the fir st letter to complete the name(Cm, or D7, or Em7). The full name is a code that lets youknow exactly what keys to play to make the sound of thechord. This means that the name of the chord is more than

just a name. The name code ac tu ally t ells y ou how t he chordis to be played!

A t riad chord is buil t by st acking 2 in tervals cal ledthirds, with one interval musically higher than theother. An " inter val" is th e dist ance between tw o notes o r sounds. A " third" is an interval made by notes three letter names apart (counting the first, middle, and last notes).Example: FGA - The interval of a third is F-A, and th e root isF. The root is the note that the chord is built up from andgives the chord it s letter name. ( On key maps, the roots o f chords are often shown wi th bold borders.) When we stacktwo of these " third" intervals, one on top of the other, we geta 3-note chord .

The third no te (C) of a 3-note F chord is an interval of a thirdabove the second no te (A). This note (C) is the third letter of the mus ical alphabet above the second note (A). Example:The first int erval of the F chord is F-A. The second in terval of the F chord, A-C, is st acked above the firs t interval, creatingthe F chord, which is made up of th e interval F-A plus A-C,and the chord i s spelled FAC.




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.

Examples43Name

Major thirdC

Minor thirdCm

RootC

123Major Third

RootCm12Minor Third

CF#Bb

CmF#m

Bbm

Two Kinds of Third - Major and Minor

On the keyboard, any two keys that play major th irds areseparated by 3 other keys. Similarly, minor th irds areseparated by 2 only keys. The resulti ng prof ounddifferences in sound l ie at the heart o f mus ical art.

These differences in sound can also be described in termsof tr aditional music notation. The notes of major thirds are 4half-steps apart, and the notes of minor th irds are 3half-steps apart. As defined on the keyboard, a half-step isthe distance in sound between any two adjacent keys(ignoring color).

Because 2 half-steps equal 1 whole step, major and minor intervals can also be defined as follows. The notes of major thir ds are 2 whole steps apart, and the notes of min or thi rds

are 1 1/2 steps apart. Observation: The distance betweenthe sounds of a minor third is one half-step less than thedistance between the sounds of a major th ird.

Simply s tated, for a m ajor thi rd, there are 3 keys betweenthe two keys that you play. For a minor th ird, there are only2 keys between the two keys that you play. This is the onlyrule you need to kn ow to be able to play and identify allmajor and minor thi rds on the keyboard. When countin g thekeys between the two th at you play, you count all keysregardless of color: you count white keys and black keys .

Two Kinds of Chord - Major and Minor Modes

As no ted on the pr evious page, we get a 3-note c hord whenwe stack one "third" interval on top of another "thir d"interval. We build a major chord by stacking a minor th ird ontop of a major third. And when we do the reverse, and stacka major third above a minor third, we get a minor chor d.(Other ways of stacking t hirds w ill be left for more advanceddiscussions later.)

Chord symbols identify and distinguis h between major andminor c hords. The symbol for a 3-note major chor d issimply the letter name of the root . Examples: C, F#, Bb.

The symb ol for a minor 3-note chord is also t he letter nameof the root, but this letter is followed by the letter "m" .Examples: Cm, F#m, Bbm.




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.

Dominant 7th Chords43Name

C7

D7

Eb7

F7

G7

Ab7

B7

C7

Another Kind of Chord - The Dominant 7thChord

The major and minor c hords that you learned about onthe previous page are the most commo n chords that youwill find in music. You might say that they are workhorses of the chords. Other chords, more com plicatedbut much less used, act as the spices to make the musicmore interesting. But you can get along very nicelywithout them until yo u develop your skil ls with the morecommon (and easier) chords.

There is one other chord, though, that is so commo n anduseful that you won 't be able to get along without it . It'sthe dominant 7th chord. Here's what you need to knowabout it.

The dominant 7th chord is t he 3-note major chord thatyou learned about on the previous page - with another minor 3rd in terval stacked on top of i t. One way to play itis to play the major chord, skip over 2 keys above the topnote of the chord, and play the next key after that.Example: for a C major chord, CEG, skip the next 2 keys

(G# and A) and play the next key, Bb. This gives you achord spelled CEGBb. To summ arize, you play a major chord adding th e 3rd key above the top key (G) of thechord (Bb).

The symbol f or the dominant 7th chord is the symbol for a major chord wit h the number 7 added to it, like this: C7(or F7, or Bb7). Why is the extra note called a 7th? It is a7th because it is 7 letter names above the root . Example:For a C7, you spell C-D-E-F-G-A-B. The B is 7 lettersabove the root (C). Why is the B f lat? Because the keyyou play must be a minor 3rd (skip 2 keys) above the G.

Why is the chord called DOMINANT 7th? There is atechnical explanation t hat you don't need to bo ther withright now. Jus t remember that it is DOMINANT because isso very important to music.




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.Chords in Root PositionChords in the Blue Octave Group

343NameCC

DmDm

EmEm

FF

GG

Am Am

B dimB dim

CC

Playing the Chords in Root Position or in the Blue Octave Group

The easiest way to learn how cho rds work is to s tudy them in t he root position -- withthe root as the lowest note. All of t he examples in thi s unit u p to now have shown thechords in root position.

However, once you use the root positio n to determine which not es make up the chord,you can m ove the notes to anywhere on the keyboard without changing the name of the chord . A C chord is sti ll a C chord no matter where you play its notes. When youplay a chord with any of its keys other than the root as the lowest key, we say that thechord is inv erted , or that it is an inversion.

It is important that you know that the order of the keys from bo ttom to t op of the

chord does not h ave anything to do wi th the name of the chord. You can play the keysin any order that you want .

The notes in the examples at the right are all confined to the blue octave to make themeasier to play . They reduce the dist ance your hand has to move when going fro m onechord t o another. Most of the left hand chords not ated on key maps are shown in theblue octave for this reason.

5

5

5

2

2

1

1

5




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Primary (Triad) Chords of the Eight Most Common KeysDominant 7thMinor Major

333 A7 Am A

Bb

B7B

C7C

D7DmD

E7EmE

F7F

G7GmG

Primary Chords of All Major and Minor KeysDominant 7thMinor Major

333 Ab7 Abm Ab

A7 Am A

Bb7BbmBb

B7BmB

C7CmC

Db7C#mDb

D7DmD

Eb7D#m/EbmEb

E7EmE

F7FmF

F#7/Gb7F#mF#/Gb

G7GmG




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Suggested Fingering Left Hand Triad Chords in All Keys

Dominant 7thMinor Major 333

Ab7 Abm Ab

A7 Am A

Bb7BbmBb

B7BmB

C7CmC

Db7C#mDb

D7DmD

Eb7D#m/EbmEb

E7EmE

F7FmF

F#7/Gb7F#mF#/Gb

G7GmG

5 4 3 2 1

LH Fingering Colors

It is suggested that you pay specialattention to t he PATTERNS formed by

the above groups. Also, try playing thechords on the previous page with the

fingering suggested above.




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Exercise 1 - Primary Chords, Key of C Major

Brightly #/b: 0

3333C 5555

3

1122

FGFC2223

1111

G3

G7

C 5

ABOUT PRIMARY CHORDS

The three PRIMARY chords in each key

are the chords built with their roots onthe 1st, 4th, and 5th no tes of the key'sscale. Taken together, these th ree

chords inc lude all eight notes of thescale to which they belong.




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Exercise 3 - Primary Chords, Key of A Minor

Brightly #: 0

3333 5 Am555

2

5DmEDm Am333

E

E7

Am




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Exercise 4 - Primary Chords, Key of A Minor #: 0

654352 Am

135

321

321

5

5Dm

135

321

321

5

5E

135

321

321

5

5 Am

135

321

321

5

FINGERING ONTHIS PAGE

Contrary to t henormal placement

of fingeringbeside notes,

fingering on thispage is placed

ABOVE it s n ote.

Notice that thispage follows t hesame fingering

patterns that wereextablished in

Exercise 2.

Continue withthese patterns in

the followingexercises.

Chord Prep Exerc ises - PC-10 v7.4 11



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Exercise 5 - Primary Chords, Key of G Major

Brightly #: 1

33335G55

2

C 5DCG3332

D

D7

2G 5




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Exercise 6 - Primary Chords, Key of G Major #: 1

65432G

C

D

G




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Exercise 7 - Primary Chords, Key of E Minor

Brightly #: 1

3333 5Em5553

5 Am5B AmEm3333

B

B7

Em




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Exercise 8 - Primary Chords, Key of E Minor #: 1

65432Em

Am

B

Em




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Exercise 9 - Primary Chords, Key of F Major

Brightly b: 1

3333 F555

BbCBbF3332

C

C7

F




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Exercise 10 - Primary Chords, Key of F Major b: 1

65432F

Bb

C

F




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Exercise 11 - Primary Chords, Key of D Minor

Brightly b: 1

3333 55Dm5#5533

Gm# AGmDm2323

# A#

A7

Dm#




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Exercise 12 - Primary Chords, Key of D Minor b: 1

65432Dm

Gm

A

Dm




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Common Triad Chords: A, Bb, C, D With 7ths

The numbers show suggested LEFT HAND fingerings for the chord roots.

DCBb AMajor

D7C7Bb7 A7Dominant7th

DmCmBbm AmMinor

Dm7Cm7Bbm7 Am7Minor 7th

D dimC dimBb dim A dimDiminished

Common Triad Chords: Eb, E, F, G With 7ths

GFEEbMajor

G7F7E7Eb7Dominant7th

GmFmEmEbmMinor

Gm7Fm7Em7Ebm7Minor 7th

G dimF dimE dimEb dimDiminished

1

1

1

1

1

1

11

1

1

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

5

55

5

5 5

5

5

3

33

2

2

2 2

2

2

2

Minor Major Dominant 7th

Al l Ot hers




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1308-27

Broken-ChordPatternExercises


Learning Rhythm Patterns

for Broken Chords

PC-12

Note Colors

Al l notes ar e White except for the chord roo ts.

Colors for Chord Roots

The ROOT of each chord is h ighlightedin color to indicate the mode of the

chord, as shown below.

Major Dom 7th

Broken-Chord Pattern Exercises PC-12 v7.4 1

Al l Rights Reserved: Copyright 1998-2013 Mus ic Innovators Workshop LLC


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Easy Practice Patterns for Triads Duple Pulse D Chord

BOTH HANDSD13RHD7LHD1434343

D14D8D2

D15D9D3

``

D16D10D4

D17D11D5

D18D12D6




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Easy Practice Patterns for Triads Triple Pulse D Chord

BOTH HANDST11BOTH HANDST6LHT1434343

RHT12RHT7RHT2

BOTH HANDST13BOTH HANDST8BOTH HANDST3

T9T4

T10T5 Each measure provides a

single repeating pattern --except for the last 2measures which together form a single repeatingpattern.




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Chord Practice Patterns Key of C Major Dom.GTonicCSubdom.F

Moderately #/b: 0

33C55C25C

2

F52

3F2

3GF22

G2G7

5C4G5G72

1

1FC2

G7

G22

G74




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Chord Practice Patterns Key of G Major Dom.DTonicGSubdom.C

22G2G22G2

1

35C5

55C

5D5C

23

5DD7

5

2G5DD72

3

5CG

1D7

45D

D71




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Modeled Chord Patterns With Melodic Variations Key of C Major

Melody 3 Melody 2 Melody 1 Accomp 3 Accomp 2 Accomp 1

311CCC

5

3FFF

3

21CCC

GGG

1

3G7G7G7

1

1CCC

2 3

2

FFF

3

G7G7G7

22

1

CCC2

14

1

Just for fun -- Any of the 3 accompaniment patterns can be played with any of the 3melodies at the same time, making 9 combination s. Can you do it?




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Chord Shown LH Major-Triad Finger-PatternsChord Root

C ChordC, Db, D, Eb, ERoot Position

12345LH Fingering

F ChordF, Gb, G2nd Inversion

12345LH Fingering

Bb Chord Ab, A, Bb , B

1st Inversion2345LH Fingering

Chord Shown RH Major-Triad Finger-PatternsChord Root

C ChordC, Db, D, Eb, ERoot Position

54321RH Fingering

F ChordF, Gb, G

2nd Inversion54321RH Fingering

Bb Chord Ab, A, Bb , B1st Inversion

4321RH Fingering

Chartfor LeftHand

These are the mostcommonly usedfingering patterns for the major triads in

root position and in1st and 2ndinversions played inthe blue oc tave.

The firs t chart showsthe LEFT HAND rootposition and inversionpatterns that will keepall of your triads in theblue octave group.

The second chartshows the RIGHT

HAND rootposition andinversionfingering patternscommonly usedwhen playingmajor triads withthe right hand -played in anyoctave group.

Chartfor RightHand

5

5

5

5

5

5

3

3

3

3

1

1

1

1

1

1

2

2




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Blank Page




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1205-13

NameThe Smaller Intervalsminor 2nd

Ma or 2nd

minor 3rd

Major 3rd

Perfect 4th

Diminished 5th Au mented 4th

Perfect 5th

Basic Patterns

of KeyboardHarmony

Intervals, Scales, and Chords

PC-15


Keyboard Harmon y PC-15 v7.0-IC 1


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Introduction

This Unit on basic music theory is about pitches, intervals, scales, and chords, butmostly, it is about chords . Pitches and intervals are the raw materials from whichwe make scales, and chords. Scales provide basic patterns from which chords arederived. Finally, scales and chords are the basic materials from which we create

melodies and harmony.

Why would you study music theory? Actually, for the same reason you wouldstudy any theory of how things work . It is to develop your understanding of whatyou hear when you listen, and your understanding of what you are doing , whenyou make music -- either by playing, singing, arranging or composing. As with thestudy of most practical theories, this understanding will help you perform moreintelligently, with better skill , and with more assurance. It will help you createthings that you could not create without this understanding!

At the beginning, we should draw the dist inct ion between music theory andacoustics . Acoust ics is the science of sound. It is about how sound is produced,transmit ted, amplified and attenuated, It is about the different qualities andcharacterist ics of sound, and the like.

Music theory, on the other hand, is about pitches and patterns of sound. It is veryimpor tant that you understand that we will be focus ing and concentrating onpatterns. If you miss this point, you will miss out on understanding what this Unit isabout. As you go through this Unit, make a point to concentrate on finding and

seeing patterns in everything that is being discussed. Focus on the patterns!

Scales are patterns, intervals are patterns, and chords are patterns!

Throughout , we will be using the keyboard as the physical object that represents thmusical sound patterns that we are theorizing about. Our system of musical soundpatterns and the keyboard are in prefect synchronization . So, in essence, thekeyboard is a graphic representation of our musical sounds. Remember, when wemake a point about the patterns that we find on the keyboard, we are actually

making a point about our subject, music theory.

To get the most benefit from this Unit, you should play and listen to the sounds of the illustrations on a keyboard. You don't have to be a skil led pianist to do this.Just put your fingers on the keyboard in the places shown by the markers in theillustrations. Enjoy!

Keyboard Harmony PC-15 v7.0-IC 2


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Table of Basic Piano SoundsPitchGroup

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

B A# AG#GF#FED#DC#CBb AbGbEbDb

Notice that the table is p laced over adiagram of a section of the keyboard inthe background (with the upper partstretched to make room for all of themarkers). Each of the rainbow colored

rows stands for a different octave groupon the keyboard -- starting with the lowestsounds and progressing to the highest.(See an earlier Unit for a discussion of octave groups.) These groups can beidentified by the numbers 0 thru 8 shownin the column at the far left of thediagram.

All of the sounds (musically called

"pitches") in each column have the samemusical name. They all have the samename because they are all physicallyrelated to each other -- the number of vibrations making each sound i s an exactmultiple of the lowest sound in thecolumn. This physical relationship givesthese pitches a similarity of sound thathas to be heard to be understood andappreciated. This relationship is called an"octave" relationship.

The common names of these pitches areshown at the bottom of each column.Notice that 5 of the columns show twonames. Each of the pitches in each of these 5 columns is known by the twocommon names shown. The # sign ispronounced, " sharp." The b sign ispronounced, "flat."

This is an important starting point for music theory. The sounds represented inthis t able are the basic elements of pit chfrom which mus ic is made.

Lowest Sounds

Highest Sounds

The "Table of Basic Piano Sounds" belowshows all of the sounds of the 88 keypiano keyboard. Each of the ci rcular markers stands for one of the keys on thepiano and, thus, for one of these musical

sounds.



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TraditionalThe Smaller IntervalsInterval

minor 2ndS0(half-step)(semitone)

Ma or 2ndS1(whole-step)whole tone

minor 3rdS2

Ma or 3rdS3

Perfect 4thS4

Diminished 5thS5(Augmented 4th)

Perfect 5thS6

The first important p atterns that we will look at are the interval patternThe interval patterns we will fo cus o n in t his Unit are those used inthe formation of the scales and chord s. Thus, we will be looking o nlyat the s maller intervals. For simplic ty, all intervals are illustrated asbeginning on t he key named C. A table of these intervals is shownbelow:

A Simpli fied Terminology

The traditional termino logy for describing small intervals and cho rdsis shown at the left under theheading,"Traditional." Especiallyunwieldy is t he expression of thesmallest interval as a f raction, that is,as a half-step, as 1/2 step, or as asemitone.

The explanations in thi s Unit usesimplified terminolo gy that expressesthe intervals in terms of wholenumbers -- the number of keysskipped over in making the interval.

This interval code is si mple anddirect. You simply count the number of keys skip ped to get the size of theinterval. The code will not replacethe terminology of traditional musictheory, but it is a more practicalmeans of learning to play theintervals and chords.

Symbols and Color Codes Used Above:

>> Interval Code -- The " S" at the beginning of the code stands for the word " skip." It stands for -- Skip over aThe number followi ng the "S" how many keys to skip ov er to play the interval. This means that between the 2 kthat you p lay to make the interval, there are zero or more keys s kipped over -- keys that you d o NOT play. Thus(Skip zero) means play th e next key; you d on't sk ip over any k eys -- in traditional terminology the interval is a2nd. Likewise, S2 means skip over 2 keys; a minor 3rd. S3 means skip over 3 keys; a major 3rd.

>> Yellow Marker -- key note of a scale; root of an interval or chord . (A root i s the note that gives its name to achord. A key note is the note that gives its name to a scale.)

>> Colored Marker -- marks a key to be played. Each color , except yellow, is cod ed to indic ate the size of theinterval that it makes from th e colored marker to its left -- green is for an S2 interval; orange is for an S3 intervaFor all of the interval color codes, see the chart above.

>> Small Oval Marker -- a spacer. It marks keys th at are not played . It separates the keys to be played andprovides a means of reading the skip size of the interval. The skip size of the interval simply i s the number of spacers in the interval. Colored markers are NOT counted when determining t he size of an interval.

Play these intervals on akeyboard to g et a sense of what they sound like.

The lower part of the keyboard, colored red here, does NOT represent theinterval distances that we are discussing -- and it is colored red to remind youof this. Interval distances are ALWAYS "read" at the "up per part of thekeyboard, where the white and black k eys mingle together.



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Orange S3 intervalGreen S2 interval

When we combine two basic sounds , as inplaying two keys on the keyboard at the sametime, we get an interval. This is like creating acompound out of two chemicals. The twosounds played together gives a listeningexperience entirely dif ferent from hearing thetwo sounds played separately. We have createa simple musical "compound " by playing the twsounds at the same time.

Here's the process. We combine two sounds toget intervals; but this is just an intermediatestep. What we really want are chords andmelodies. We get the chords by combining theintervals, which are really the building blocksthat we use to make the chords. We get chordsby playing the sounds of the intervals at thesame time . We get the melodies by playing thesounds of the intervals one after the othe r.Then we play the chords and the melodies atthe same time -- and we have MUSIC!

It's really a very simple, natural, orderlyprocess when you stop to think about it.

You will want to remember that the size of an interval is color coded into thecolored markers. The most important of these codes to remember are the greenmarkers for S2 intervals and the orange markers for S3 intervals. These are by far the most common intervals for chords.

Most chords are MADE UP ENTIRELY OF THESE TWO INTERVALS stacked on topof one another in various patterns! Other intervals in chords are rare.



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The Three Most Frequently Used Scales

ChromaticScale

C Ma or Scale

C

HarmonicMinor Scale

Scales are fundamental basic sound patterns used in the creation of music. They are mosclosely associated with melodies, but they also provide the fundamental basis on whichchords are const ructed. So they are extremely impor tant in music theory!

A scale pattern is normally thought of as a row of closely spaced notes, from low to high,extending for a distance of an octave. The root word that "scale" comes from means" ladder." It is a ladder in sound . You can play it beyond the octave, but this is simply

considered a repetition of the pattern, not a new pattern. You can go down the pattern,and it is stil l the same scale (except for the melodic minor scale, which changes a bit onthe way down).

Melodies are created from a combination of scale patterns, interval patterns and chordpatterns, with the sounds played one after the other. Scales are made up of fixed patternsof S0 and S1 intervals -- with an occational S2 pattern thrown in for good measure.

Actually, there is one S2 pattern in the harmonic minor scale. A pattern is what defines ascale. If you don't fol low the pattern; you don't have the scale, you have something else.

Scale patterns have not been fixed scienti fically, but aesthetically. They have beendeveloped for us over thousands of years of human history. People have sung andplayed instruments since before our writt en histories began. These scales have beendeveloped by those of our ancestors who were active in making music in one way or theother. They reflect our human history.

Many dif ferent scale patterns exist; but 3 of them stand out

as being used most frequently. These are the chromaticscale, the major scale, and the harmonic minor scale shownbelow.

We always spell thesuccession of intervals that arescales and chordsfrom the lowest tothe highest sound .On the diagrams,that's from LEFT toRIGHT! Of course,you can play them ineither direction.



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Let's look at the C Chromatic Scale firs t because it is the simplest one. As youcan see above and on the Important Scales diagram, it is j ust a succession of S0 (zero) intervals. An octave span of this scale (as illust rated) contains 12intervals. It is played simply by playing every key after the starting key untilyou have played it plus the next 12 keys (in either direction). Be sure to play

each scale on a keyboard so that you can get a sense of how i t sounds.

Let's look at the C Major Scale next. The major scale is by f ar and away themost used and most important scale in the Western World. It is a successionof S0 and S1 intervals in the fixed pattern shown above and in the diagram.

The pattern of intervals expressed as units (from left to right ) is S110 1 110.The spacing in thi s expression is designed to help you see the patterns.Here's the description in words: The major scale consists of two S110patterns separated by one S1 interval. This simi larity of the two S110patterns is shown graphically below:

You can see that the first half and the second half of the scale pattern haveidentical interval spacing . This fact can help you remember the fixed patternof a major scale. But be sure to remember the spacer at the beginning of the2nd pattern because the two parts must be separated by a whole step.

Here's a point worth noting. Notice that the illustrations on this page don't show thekeyboard in the background. So how do you know what keys to play?

The REALLY IMPORTANT FACT IS that every pattern that we are showing in this Unit canbe played ANYWHERE on the keyboard! We are illus trating the patterns as though theyall begin with the C key, to keep it simple. But the fact is that the patterns can all beginon any key, yes, even on any of the black keys!



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0201101Skip>>

The third important scale pattern is the Harmonic Minor scale shown above. It is anunusual scale because it contains the S2 interval; most scales are made up only of S0(zero) and S1 intervals. Its interval pattern can be expressed as S101 1 020. Notice the

repetition in the first and last group: the number 1 starts and ends the first group; thenumber 0 starts and ends the last group. There is an S1 interval between the groups , justas there is for the major scale.

We are now ready to look at chords. Chords are combinations of int ervals, just as are

scales. But there are some differences. One difference is that all the sounds of a chordcan all occur at the same time, whereas all the sounds of scales do not. The intervalsbetween adjacent scale sounds are so small that several adjacent scale sounds playedtogether can be unpleasant to hear.

The sounds of chords can occur at the same time or one after the other. When thesounds occur one after the other, the chords are often referred to as "broken chords."This doesn't mean that there is something wrong with them; it jus t means that they arebroken apart to make the sounds occur in sequence.

The main di fference between chords and scales is in the size of the intervals used tocreate them. Scales are made up of S0 and S1 intervals, and an occasional S2 interval.Chords are made up mainly of S2 and S3 intervals. All of the most commonly usedchords are entirely made up of the S2 and S3 intervals. Other intervals occur onlyoccasionally -- as you will see when we look at the many different chord patterns.



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E Major Chord in Root Posit ion and InversionsSymbol

E32

Root Positions and Inversions

Chords and scales are named for the sounds that their patterns begin with . We haveviewed the patterns forming scales and we will soon look at the patterns forming chords.Each of these patterns has a starting point for the sequence of intervals that defines itscharacter.

For example, if the starting sound of a chord pattern is an E, the chord will be an E chordThe type of chord will determine exactly what other sounds will be a part of that chord. Iwe are building an E Major chord, the other sounds will have to be G# and B, based onthe major chord pattern -- an S3 interval followed by an S2 interval. The E chord is saidto be in root posi tion when we build it this way. The E is called the root . This isillus trated by the firs t chord shown at the top of the page.

We will be looking at the rules for forming chords . These rules are absolute -- but onlyfor the purpose of defining the pattern for each indiv idual chord that you want. Once yohave used the rules to find exact sounds for the chord, you are free to move any of thesesounds to any other octave group on the keyboard and sti ll have an E Major chord --even though the intervals have changed -- as shown by the second and thi rd chordsabove. These chords (illustrated) are called "inversions" of the E Major chord. They usethe same sounds -- thus they still form an E Major chord.

We do not intend to discuss inversions further at this point . The reason for mentioningthem up now is to help you understand the nature of the chord in root position by

seeing it contrasted with its inversions. Root position is for defining the chord , that is,for finding the sounds that make up the chord.

A chord is in root posi tion as long as the root remains the lowest sound (farthest to theleft) in the chord -- even though the sounds may have been moved to other octaves. Aswe continue our discussion of chords, remember that the illustrations are for rootposition chords -- but know that the inversions also exist and provide great flexibilityfor creating the variety of sounds that you may wish to create.

Root Position

First Inversion

Second Inversion



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You need to be aware of one more basic fact before you study the actualchords. As stated before, the examples will be for C chords , that is, the rootwill be C in each of the chords presented . You will learn about the patterns of sounds (or notes) that make up the various kinds of C chords . So as wediscuss the chords, we will be presenting the patterns of the various chordsthat have C as their root.

Obviously , chords can be built on other sounds besides C. Here is the basicfact that you need to be aware of: Al l of the INTERVAL PATTERNS of C chordsyou study and learn wil l apply equally and unchanged to all of the other roots .(This statement also applys to the interval patterns of the scales.) Learningthe interval patterns of the C chords and scales is, in effect, the same aslearning the interval patterns of all of the other chords and scales -- becauseall of the patterns of intervals making up each type of chord and scale are thesame, no matter which roots you build the chords on.

How many roots are there? Each one of the keys (sounds) in the span of an

octave on the keyboard can be a root. Beyond the octave, the keys just startover -- all of the keys in one octave group are the same as in any other octavegroup. There are just 12 keys in an octave group, including C -- count them.This means that whatever you learn about C chords will apply unchanged toall eleven of the other keys (of the keyboard) that can act as roots for chords.

The first chords that you'l l study, shown in the table on the next page, could be

considered to be the fundamental building blocks of the entire chord structure .We're going to call them the "Basic Chord Patterns" , and you' ll see why in amoment.

These 4 basic chord patterns are used as the basis for most of the chord typesin existence. (Notice, not the C chords themselves, but the patterns of intervals from which they are formed.) These 4 patterns form the basis of theharmony for most of the music that we hear and play -- both c lassical andpopular. Most songs can be harmonized reasonably well using only these 4patterns.

The other chords that you will learn about next are built from these chords. Inother words, additional sounds (intervals made by higher sounds) are added tothe right ends of these patterns to form the additional chords that can beformed. These additional chords add sound colors that make the music morevaried and interesting. We wouldn 't want to do without them, even though wecan harmonize without them.



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TraditionalThe 4 Basic Chord Patterns (Triads)Symbol

C Diminished oC22Cdim

C Minor or C23Cmin

C Ma or or C32C

C Au mented or C33C+

The 4 chords above are often referred to as " triads." As you know, " tri" often stands for the number 3. These chords are referred to as tr iads because each is made up of 3sounds . We'll often refer to 3-note chords as triads. Just remember, when you see theterm, "tr iad," we are referring to a 3-note chord. By the way, this i s the full set of triadpatterns. These are the only triad patterns that you will need to learn, because theyrepresent virtually all of the triads in common use.

Be sure to play these triads on a keyboard to become familiar with how they sound. Playthem with other roots as well. It's easy to do -- even if you don 't play the keyboard or read music yet. Try it!

Here's more about our chord naming system. You can see that the 4 chord patterns abovare identif ied by the symbols C22, C23, C32, and C33. You are already famil iar with intervnaming; for example, an interval that skips 2 keys would be S2, for " skip 2 keys." You cansee that the chords above are all made by combining 2 intervals -- thus the 2 numbers in

each symbol.

Take the second chord above, for example. It's called, C23. You probably have figuredout that the 2 stands for the S2 interval and the 3 stands for the S3 interval jus t to theright of it. Just as we build our chords up from left to right, we do the same with chordsymbols. C23, then, means "play a skip 2 interval, and then to the right of it, using justone more key, play a skip 3 interval."

Just one further thing to explain. The root of the chord is C (the name of the key on thekeyboard). All of t he chords in the chart above have C as their root , so they all are "C"

chords; and, thus, the letter C in their symbol s. Therefore, the symbol C23 does not jus trepresent a minor triad, it represents a C minor triad. Likewise, Eb23 (E flat 23) identifys aminor t riad with the root, Eb.

When we identify " any" minor t riad, we will use the symbol, S23 -- for "skip 2 and skip 3."This pattern is good for any minor triad on the keyboard -- it just doesn't specify anyparticular one. In practical terms, you can play the triad S23 anywhere on the keyboardand you will hear a minor tr iad every time.



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TraditionalThe 5 Most Popular Chord PatternsSymbol


C Diminished 7 or C22-2Cdim7

C Minor o r C23Cmin or Cm

C Major or C32C

C Domin ant 7 or C32-2 C7

Here's a look at the 5 most important chord patterns. The chords on the above chart areprobably the most frequently used of all chords. You can harmonize nearly any piece of music adequately with these five patterns -- though not with all of the sound color youmight like to have. If you learn these 5 patterns, you will be well on your way towardmastery of the keyboard.

You will see these patterns over and over again in the music that you play. They couldbe elected the most popular chords of the last few centuries. They're used in all types of music: from classical to folk to pop to hymns -- and so on.

Let's compare these chords with the ones on the previous list, the 4 triads. First, notice that the list abovecontains 3 of the 4 triads on th e previous list . The augmented chord, C33, has been removed because it is

just no t very popular .

Two very important chords have been added: the C22-2 and the C32-2. These are called 7th chords, andthey add a great deal of sound colo r to our mus ic. Notice how they are constructed. The C22-2 is the C22with an S2 added on top of it . Similarly , the C32-2 is a C32 with an S2 also added on top of it. Notice howsimply these patterns can be built up. It is really an amazing thin g, how readily our music al vocabulary canbe built up from v ery simple parts. The dash in the symbol is included to provide a visual separationbetween the triad and the upper part of the chord and to emphasize which tri ad the chord is built o n.

On the next few pages you will see examples of n early all of the chord patterns that are used to makemusic. They have been arranged into group s to help you see how their patterns are put together.Interestingly enough, the chord symbols themselves, when placed in numerical ord er (treating them asdecimal numbers), arrange the chords into gro ups based on the 4 triads. The 6 chord patterns that youhave just learned will b e included with them, in their prop er places.

Notice, as was stated earlier, nearly all of these chords are built up on top of one of the 4 triads th at are thefoundation for our entire harmonic structure.



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TraditionalPatterns on the S22 (Diminish ed) TriadSymbol


C Diminished 7 or C22-2Cdim7

C Minor 7b5 or C22-3Cm7b5

(b5 = flat 5)

TraditionalComparison of the C23-2 with the C22-3Symbol

C minor 7C23-2Cm7

C minor 7b5 or C22-3Cm7b5

You may not ice that the first two chord patterns, C22 and C22-2, appeared on the list of popular chords on the previous page.

The C22-3 chord may need some explanation. In music , anything can happen -- becausemusic is an artist ic thing, and people like to vary their art. Often the standard chord patternsare varied in one way or another to make new and different sounds. Sometimes notes areleft out of standard chord patterns, often standard chord patterns are inverted -- asmentioned earlier. Sometimes an extra note is thrown in to a standard pattern to make adifferent sound or one of the sounds of a chord is lowered or raised.

In the case of the C22-3 chord, a note from a standard pattern, the C23-2 (C minor 7) chord islowered a semitone (half-step). The note G of the C23-2 is lowered a semitone to the nextnote to the left, which is Gb. This changes the interval spacing to that shown by the symbol

C22-3. In the traditional chord symbol, this alters the Cm7 to Cm7b5, with the b5 indicatingthe lowered 5th note of the C scale, which is G. The altered chord is included here becauseit is commonly used in this form.



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TraditionalChord Patterns Built on the S23 (Minor) TriadSymbolC minor or C23Cm

C minor 6 or C23-1 Cm6

C minor 69C23-14 Cm69

C minor 7 or C23-2Cm7



11=elevenC minor 13 or C23-236Cm1313=thirteen

13121110987654321

AGFEDCB AGFEDC

This chart shows chord patterns up to the largest ones in us e -- the 13th cho rd -- as you can see above.From this visual arrangement you can see exactly how th e largest and most c omplicated chords areconstru cted. Actually, they may seem a lot less complic ated when you can see them in this way.

Notice the patterns. These chords are all built on top of th e first chord, the C23 (minor) triad. Notice thatthese chords are built from o nly two intervals -- the S2 and the S3 -- with just three exceptions. This ishow ordered and simple chord cons truction is -- when you focus on measuring the number of keysskipped.

You may be wondering about the numbers in the traditional chord names and symbols given in th e right hcolumn. Here's a brief explanation. Notice the numbers and letters on the keyboard above. The letters, aknow, are the names of t he white keys, and they are fixed, that is, the names can't be put on some other kthey apply only to the ones that they are shown o n.

On the other hand the numbers shown above are not fixed. They are here only for coun ting the number of from C for this example. If, for example, we were illustrating D chor ds, the numbers would b egin on D, no-- and so on .

The point is thi s. The numb ers in the traditional symbo ls sho wn above, 6,7,9,11, and 13 repsent the highesound in each of those chords. The numbers are for the number of key names from the root to th e highessound in the chord. For example, consider the minor 6 chord above. You will find the highest sound in a6 chord by c ounting the key names (representing th e white keys) from the root (including th e root, C) up skeys (including th e 6th key, A). Notice on the keyboard above that the blue marker shows the highest so uand this is o n the A key right above the 6 on the keyboard. The other intervals are all count ed in this sam

There is more meaning to the symbol than just f inding th e first and last keys, though. You also have to finkeys between -- actually a formidable task for some chords. Just use our simple code. It will work fine foyou.



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TraditionalChord Patterns Buil t on the S32 (Major) TriadSymbolC ma or or C32C

C6C32-1

C69C32-14

C7C32-2

C9C32-23

C11C32-23211=eleven

C13C32-236(13=thirteen)

Cmaj7C32-3

Cmaj9C32-32

Cmaj11C32-322(11=eleven)

Cmaj13C32-326(13=thirteen)

13121110987654321

AGFEDCB AGFEDC

Let's look fi rst at the first 7 chord patterns shown above (down to the dou ble line). These patterns have aclose similarity with the 7 S23 patterns shown on the last page. One way to describe the similarity is to notethat the first 7 patterns on thi s page are all nearly identical to the S23 patterns. The only d ifference insound is that in each chord, the Eb (E flat) has been replaced by an E.

Another way to express thi s s imilari ty is to say that the tr iad that each chord was bu il t upon was changedfrom a C23 to a C32. Either way you d escribe it, the similarity is remarkable. And, of cours e, this sim ilaritywill be a great help in memorizing these patterns -- for that is what you will need to do if they are to be of any use to you.

But in spite of all of this -- what a wonderful difference in sound between the two sets of patterns. Theslight change in the lowest in terval from S2 to S3 completely changes the ch aracter of each of th ese chords-- from being Minor chords to being Major chor ds -- a very great difference indeed!

Be sure to play these examples to hear the differences!



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TraditionalRemaining Chord PatternsSymbol

C Aug or C33 C+

C sus ension or C41 Csus

C7 sus ension or C412 C7sus

Now, looking at the last 4 C32 chord patterns on the previous page, we find another remarkable and memorable simi larity. This is the simi larity of these 4 patterns relative tothe group of 4 patterns immediately above them on the diagram. The patterns areidentical except that in each case the Bb has been changed to a B.

Again, this simi larity is remarkable, but the sound dif ference is also qui te notable. Thechange alters the underlying 7th chord (S322) from having the character of a dominant7th to that of a major 7th (S323)-- quite a difference in sound. Be sure to listen to thedifferences (and similarities) between the matching chords in each group.

Finally, we come to the last of the chords in our li ttle catalog of chord patterns. The firs tchord pattern above (C33) is the 4th of our original 4 basic triads. Typically it exists byitself -- without having other chords built on top of it.

The last two don't f it any of the foregoing patterns. They are not buil t on one of the basictriads as are all of the other chord patterns in our catalog. Maybe, they aren't evenchords -- but are anticipations of the C32 or the C32-2 chords, respectively. Listen to allthree of them. They're interesting and colorful. You'll want to use them some day.

A couple of final thoughts on the chord patterns. Remember, although all of theexamples are based on C chords, the patterns apply anywhere on the keyboard. You can

put the root of any pattern on any key of the keyboard, then build the chord you wantusing the interval numbers in our chord symbols to skip over the keys you don't play.

Also keep in mind that these chords all exist in all of their inversions. The patterns thatare shown in our catalog are for finding the sounds of the chords on the keyboard.

After you f ind the correct keys, you can play them anywhere on the keyboard -- withoutaltering the name or basic character of the chord.

The chords that we have shownyou cover most of the territory.You will still find chords that wehaven't shown. Musicians area creative lot. They will alwayscome up with n ew and different

chord arrangements.Sometimes they'll us e a chordwe've shown -- but l eave out anote, or alter a note. Thecreative process is acontinuing one.



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0106-1

Skip-Key Chord ChartFor Reading and Playing Sheet Music and Lead Sheet Chord Symbols

Suspensions AugmentedMajor Minor DiminishedBasic Triad >41sus33aug32Major 23m22dimTriads

32-1623-1m6Sixths

32-146923-14m69 DominantSevenths41-27sus32-3maj732-2723-2m722-2dim7

22-3m7b532-32maj932-23923-23m9Ninths32-322maj1132-2321123-232m11Elevenths32-326maj1332-2361323-236m13Thirteenths

The above chart provides a summary of the information presented in this unit . It alsoprovides a way of making practical use of this information. If you have read this Unit, abrief review of the chart will make its use clear to you.

It is designed to help you int erpret the chord symbols that you find in sheet music and inlead sheets used by bands. Each of the major columns of the chart is separated into twoparts. At the left side of each of these columns you will fi nd the standard chord symbolsused in sheet music -- minus the identifier of the root of the chord, that is, minus the letter name of the chord .

At the right s ide of each of these major columns, you wil l f ind the Symbol that tells youwhich keys to skip when playing the chord. To use the chart, you look at the chordsymbol on the sheet music and then find i ts equivalent on the chart; then read the Symbol

telling you which keys to skip when playing the chart. Naturally, the root of the chord isthe one designated by the chord symbol on the sheet music.

Most of the chords that you will be playing are, obviously, the most common ones. The 5most common chords are designated in yellow in the body of the chart to make themeasiest to find.

You will notice that one of the entrys marked in yellow reads, "Major." This is the onlyentry in the body of the chart that is not part of a standard chord symbol. The reason isprobably obvious to you. For major chords, there is no symbol other than the letter name

of the chord. Since we have omitted the letter names of the chords from the chart becausethe entrys on the chart are for ANY chord name, this leaves us with no entry at all for thisitem. Rather than leave that item blank on the chart, we decided to put the word, " Major"in that spot.



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0106-17

Skip-Key Chord Chart

SymbolsFor Reading and Playing Sheet Music and Lead Sheet Chord

Other Major Minor Diminished

SkipSkip 32Skip 23Skip 2233aug+noneMajor +nonem+nonedim

+16+1m6

41sus+1469+14m69

Dominant

41-27sus+3maj7+27+2m7+2dim7+3m7b5

+32maj9+239+23m9

+322maj11+23211+232m11

+326maj13+23613+236m13

This chart is a condensed version of the chart shown on the previous page. It showsless detail and is set in larger type. Once you have reviewed the other chart andunderstand how it works, you may prefer to work wi th this chart, even though it showsless detail. Use whichever one you like best.



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Summary of all Chord Patterns Shown in th is UnitSkipTriadsdim7dim

S22S22-2Diminished

min7b5S22-3

m69m6mS23S23-1Minor S23-14

m11m9m7S23-2S23-23

m13S23-232S23-236

696Major

S32S32-1Ma or

1197S32-14S32-2S32-23

13S32-232S32-236

Maj11Maj9Maj7S32-3S32-32

Maj13S32-322S32-326

AuS33

Other 7sussus

S41S41-2

1312111098765432RootInterval From Root

AGFEDCB AGFEDCName of Key

Triads inc luded in larger chords are not shownseparately.

The most-common cho rdsare highlig hted in yellow.



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Page is Blank



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1305-11

Chord ChartPatterns onKey Maps

With Interval and Scale Charts


PC-35

Note ColorsIC (Interval Colors) Version

First Note of Interval (Root) - Yellow) >>

Second Note (Makes the Interval):

Minor 2nd (key next to root - Indigo) >>

Major 2nd (skip 1 key - Lt Blue) >>

Minor 3rd (skip 2 keys - Green) >>

Major 3rd (skip 3 keys - Orange) >>

Perfect 4th (skip 4 keys - Red) >>

See the Introductionfor more informationabout the several notecolor codes used inthis unit.

Chord Chart Patterns PC-35 v7.4 1

All Righ ts Reserved: Copyrigh t 1998-2013 Music Innovato rs Workshop LLC


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.INTRODUCTION - Color Coding of the Notes in this Unit

Several different color co des are used in the notes of this un it. Each dif ferent color co de hasbeen designed to highlight a certain type of inf ormation. These codes are used on th e followingpages:

>> Interval Color Code -- Pages 2 thr u 7>> Fingering Color Code -- Pages 8, 9>> Sharp/Flat Color Code -- Pages 10-16

The Interval Color Code -- Pages 2-7. The purpos e of the interval color code is to help thestudent s ee the patterns o f the sp aces between th e notes. These patterns represent theessential logic of how the harmonic system works .

In any progression of notes, whether in an interval, chord, or scale, the color co de marks thedistance in half-steps from the previous no te in its immediate group. Every grou p of no tes has astarting point, which is usually the lowest note in the group. This note is colored yellow. It is thelowest note of an interval, the root of a chord, and the ton ic note of a scale. The note after theyellow note is color coded for its distance from the yellow note . The 3rd note is colored codedfor its d istance from the 2nd note -- and so on.

Here are the color c odes, which express the musical d istance in h alf-steps between the twonotes in question:

>> 0 - Yellow -- starting point, no interval>> 1 - Indig o -- 1 half-step>> 2 - Blue -- 2 half-steps>> 3 - Green -- 3 half-steps (a minor third )>> 4 - Orange -- 4 half-steps (a major thi rd)>> 5 - Red -- 5 half-steps (a perfect fourth)

Be sure to keep in mind the order of the notes. The distance expressed by the colored note isthe distance to it from the LOWER note!

The Fingering Color Code -- Pages 8 and 9. On these pages, fingering is shown for the rootof the cho rd, played by the left hand. This is the familiar color code already stu died:

>> 1 - Red -- Thum b>> 2 - Yellow -- Index Finger >> 3 - Green -- Middle Finger >> 4 - Blue -- Ring Finger >> 5 - Violet -- Little Fing er

The Sharp/Flat Color Code -- Pages 10-16. This c ode col ors the sharps and flats :

>> # and x - Sharp and Doubl e Sharp - Yellow

>> b and bb - Flat and Double Flat - Green

Illustrated on the Cover

5 4 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 5




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Basic Intervals Used for Building Scale Patterns -- All Major and Minor Keys

Whole Step Half Step Major 2ndMinor 2nd




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Major and Minor Scales in All KeysMelodic Minor ScalesHarmonic Minor ScalesMajor Scales

C

D

E

F

G

A

B

C

In thedescending

melodic minor

scale, the 6thand 7th scaledegrees are 1/2

step lower than in theascending

scale.




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Basic Intervals for Building Chord Patterns -- All Major and Minor Keys

(Skip 4)(Skip 3)(Skip 2)Perfect 4thMajor 3rdMinor 3rd

C

D

E

F

G

A

B

C

The interval of aperfect 4th

appears when achord isinverted.




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Root Position Triads in all KeysDiminished Triads (dim)Minor Triads (m)Major Triads

C

D

E

F

G

A

B

C




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Frequently Used Chord Symbols With Notes for Roots , 3rds and 7ths

Note colors show suggested fingerings for LH chord roots.

DCBb AMajor


DmCm AmMinor

Dm7Cm7 Am7Minor 7th

GFEEbMajor

G7F7E7Dominant7th

GmFmEm

Minor

Gm7Minor 7th

5 4 3 2 1




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Frequent ly Used Triads: A, Bb, C, D With 7ths

Note colors show suggested fingerings fo r LH chord roots.

DCBb AMajor


DmCmBbm AmMinor

Dm7Cm7Bbm7 Am7Minor 7th

D dimC dimBb dim A d imDiminished

Frequently Used Triads: Eb, E, F, G With 7ths

GFEEbMajor

G7F7E7Eb7Dominant7th

GmFmEmEbmMinor

Gm7Fm7Em7Ebm7Minor 7th

G dimF dimE dimEb dimDiminished

5 4 3 2 1




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Chords Built on Major Triads(#)DDb(b)C(#)BBb(#) A

Major Major Major Major Major

e

66666

(dom)7(dom)7(dom)7(dom)7(dom)7

maj7maj7maj7maj7maj7

Chords Built on Minor Triads(#)DDb(b)C(#)BBb(#) A

mmmmm

m6m6m6m6m6

m7m7m7m7m7

Chords Built on Diminished and Augmented Triads(#)D(C#)Db(b)C(#)B(A#)Bb(#) A

dimdimdimdimdim

dim7dim7dim7dim7dim7

+++++

#b

Colors for Flats, Natural Notes, and Sharps


All Righ ts Reserved: Copyrigh t 1998-2013 Music Innovato rs Workshop L

PC-96 - Chord Prep Series 116 Pages 1406-21

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Transcript of PC-96 - Chord Prep Series 116 Pages 1406-21