Today I’m sharing a piano lesson that I first published on YouTube in 2016, I think it was.
It’s extremely helpful to have both a visual and an aural mastery of the Major Scale, in each of the 12 keys, if you want to become “fluent” at reading sheet music.
My video lesson below (on YouTube) describes a SIMPLE, VISUAL MEANS of learning ALL MAJOR SCALES on piano or keyboard, based on just ONE FOUR-NOTE PATTERN from music theory, called the MAJOR TETRACHORD. Being able to SEE the notes of any given scale on the piano, in your mind’s eye, is very helpful for improvisation–and also when READING SHEET MUSIC, in ALL KEYS. When reading sheet music, this pattern-based IMAGE of the KEY (or SCALE) that you’re in (such as C Major, or Bb Major) will boost your reading speed and accuracy by leaps and bounds. Knowing the LOOK and FEEL of each of these TWELVE major scales “with your eyes shut,” is really critical to good sight reading, especially.
This video (below) is a very slowsheet music playback of the main section, or theme, of Für Elise by Ludwig v. Beethoven (not a human performance).
The graphic animation of the keyboard itself is at slow-motion speed, BUT, the pitch of the music is normal. This means all the notes you hear (and what you see highlighted) are the exact pitches, as notated in the sheet music.
This video can serve as a visual and audible reference tool, to help keep your bearings on the keyboard, and to make sure you’re reading the sheet music right, as regards matching the notes on the page to the keys on your piano.
Since this is a sheet music playback, and not a performance, you can hear all the notes (with slowed-down tempo) correctly, but there is no human expression. Therefore, I highly recommend using high-quality recordings of this piece, as your reference for all the artistic performance aspects.
This video can also be helpful for those who play piano entirely by ear. In this case, it is still not meant to be used as a model for performance, but more as a source for finding all the right notes, and for observing how things are timed (even though this version is played very slowly, it strictly observes all the rhythmic aspects of the original piece, as notated in the formal sheet music).
The TOP and BOTTOM KEYBOARDS – Why two?
The TOP keyboard graphic shows the RIGHT-HAND PART, and the bottom keyboard shows the LEFT-HAND part.
This is based on how the piece was notated, and how it is typically performed. With Für Elise in particular, I found this to be a good format for clarity and learning. The main sections of Für Elise have a very interesting relationship between the two hands–which is more apparent, I hope, when visually dividing the keyboard in this way. I welcome your opinion!
This is Kent Smith of ‘Read Piano Music Now’ and ‘Piano With Kent’ (R).
Today, I’m pleased to present a tutorial video that I hope will be a musically entertaining review/introduction to the basic “landscape” (or layout) of your piano keyboard, which includes a systematic approach to learning how to name and remember all the white keys on your piano, by using the black keys as landmarks (as they were designed to be, when it comes to navigating the keys).
In a subsequent lesson, we’ll look at how all the Black Keys are named, which is a pretty straightforward thing, as they are named in relation to their neighboring white keys.
Enjoy!
Please visit our SHEET MUSIC SHOP (custom piano sheet music with letters and notes together)!
VIDEO (YouTube) : “Piano Letters and Notes: How to Name (and Remember) the White Keys of Your Piano”
Today, I’m very pleased to announce the Complete ‘Clair de Lune‘ by Claude Debussy: Exclusive, professionally compiled and engraved sheet music for piano, with letter note-names provided for each note.
Today I’m happy to present an educational/reference video (at bottom) that features real-time playback of a popular piece of Sheet Music that I sell here : Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, Entire First Movement – Sheet Music with Letters & Notes together (PDF).
If you click on our Moonlight Sonata product image above (this takes you to our product page, on this website), you can see all the details about this professionally engraved sheet music for piano, and also purchase it, for immediate and/or later downloads.
In a nutshell, this sheet music is the complete First Movement of Ludwig v. Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 14 (famously known as ‘Moonlight’ Sonata, taken from a poetic description of this, the First Movement, by a music critic of Beethoven’s time).
Every note on this professionally engraved and annotated sheet music is accurately labeled with its musical letter-name, such as C, G, F#, Bb.
ABOUT THE VIDEO (below):
This video can be useful as a reference when making sure you have your bearings in the sheet music.
When you scroll through it, you can tell what page and measure is being highlighted and played at any spot, by looking in the little preview square (as you move the play head around). YOU CAN ALSO SLOW THIS VIDEO DOWN, using YouTube’s playback settings for the video – just click on the gear icon in the lower right of the player window.
There is also a Keyboard Video graphic, just below the sheet music view, that highlights and sounds every note being played from the highlighted sheet music, in sync with the sheet music audio, in real time.
Please see below this video for more interesting stuff about Moonlight Sonata!
Moonlight Sonata with Letters – Sheet music playback with piano
Today I’m very pleased to announce a brand new sheet music publication on ‘Read Piano Music Now!’ (this site). What we have for you today is Für Elise Sheet Music with Letters and Notes Together.
For details, simply click on the product image immediately below (this link takes you directly to the product itself – on this website).
The future of this blog section is rich! I am very excited about it! The focus is entirely about how to read sheet music for piano, and also for other instruments.
– How to understand the notes on both staves, as they related to your piano keyboard.
– The meanings of all those symbols on sheet music: Dynamics, phrasing lines, tied notes, pedal markings, tempo and “mood” instructions, repeat signs and descriptions, and much more!
– Key signatures.
– Accidentals (sharps, flats and “naturals”), as written inside any given measure, which temporarily override the key signature.
– Chord symbols.
– Basically, everything that has to do with reading sheet music, especially for piano, but also for any instrument!
Please bookmark this site, and keep coming back! This website is brand-spanking new, and growing fast!
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