Taken from: http://www.pacificnet.net/~sonia/music/play-piano.

html

How to play the piano using the harmonic

structures of chords
A brief tutorial (not to be used for profit; copyright 1997 Sonia Balcer)

This is a work in progress...many definitions and elements are missing and will be
added in the future, but it is hopefully enough to get one started... enjoy!
Introduction
why is music "mathematical"
constancy of structure (& proof)
Scales, Chords, and Keys
scales - major and minor
chords and inversions
keys (families of chords)

Example
applied to a familiar song
directions for practice
Tips for Playing and Composition
foundational hints
Tutorial Source (and Resources)
where this tutorial came from

Introduction
We often hear that "music is so mathematical", but we seldom know how to make this
fact work in our favor, especially when faced with the years of practice it takes most
people to become proficient enough playing an instrument that music can
spontaneously flow out of the heart and through the instrument. Dutiful reading of
individual notes on a page, while instructive in technique and the historical brilliance
of various composers, does not provide the kind of insight needed for such creativity.
This tutorial is intended for those like myself for whom sight-reading does not come
easily despite practice, but who have a relatively good "ear" for music--that is, the
ability to "hear" everything that is going on in a piece and feel the different harmonic
lines intuitively (even if in a vague and undeveloped sense).
Why is music mathematical? It seems related to the physiological
fact that what tends to sound musical to the human ear is the kind of
sound in which frequencies of the comprising tones are related to
one another by whole numbers or ratios of whole numbers. For
example, notes separated by one octave are related by doubling of
frequency (in the sense of acoustical vibration), and the "fifth
interval" (say, "C" and "G" played together) has a ratio of 3/2. It

turns out that the relationship between frequencies and musical steps is exponential,
since going up successive octaves from an initial note gives you 2x, 4x, 8x, 16x, 32x,
etc. the frequency of that initial note. And (as will be shown) this is precisely what
leads to a profound constancy of structure in music!

Constancy of Structure. To express this concept in another way, the step relationship
characteristic of any given chord structure holds true for that structure in any key, and
in any octave. For example, a major chord (the 1-3-5 notes of the familiar scale sung
"do-ray-me-fa-so-la-tee-do", or the "do"-"me"-"so" from that scale) has the same
structure no matter which key or octave it is played in. The "C" chord (c-e-g, obtained
1-3-5 intervals, or 0-4-7 half-steps in the 12-note chromatic scale) is shown below.
Note that the "D" chord (d-f#-a) is also obtained by counting 0-4-7 half-steps.
Proof. There is a simple mathematical proof, in which it is only necessary to show
that a pair of notes played at the note of frequency, (fo) separated by n half-steps (fn),
have the same frequency ratio (fn/fo) as any other pair (f' o and f'n) separated by n halfsteps. Using the exponential nature (and 12 half-steps per octave), the relationship is
f(s) = fo 2^(n/12) Writing the frequency ratios fn/fo and f'n/f'o, we get fn/fo = 2^(n/12) =
f'n/f'o ... which is a function of "n" alone! This means that the number of interval steps
(or chromatic half-steps) that characterize a musical interval in any octave or key is
the same, and because it has been proven for any pair of notes, it holds true for any
combination of (pairs of) notes. In fact, this constancy of structure holds true for
different scales--whether they vary in the number of notes per octave or in the sizes of
the intervals.

Scales, Chords, and Keys

The Scale. That is the starting point for playing music:
knowing that the harmonic structure transposes to any key or octave. In actuality, the
exponential relationship between frequencies and steps is only an approximation (but
an adequate one) because in real life the intervals have been adjusted so as to allow
better "circling", or getting back to the same note after ascending by a fixed integral
octave after octave until the original note is reached (the "even-tempered" scale). As
an aside, it should be noted that what makes a piano sound like a piano (and not a
violin) is the unique distribution of overtones (tonal components that are multiples of

the frequency of the fundamental tone of the note), and there are a number of
excellent articles, such as "The Coupled Motions of Piano Strings" published in the
January 1979 issue of Scientific American on how the piano works and why it sounds
as it does. But I digress.
As a simple exercise, start with middle "C" (the white key at middle of the piano
adjoining a pair of black keys), and play the scale in the key of "C" by ascending the
white keys:
Key of "C" (f=256 hertz) .. notes on the major scale
Note
C
D
E
F
G
A
B
C

Interval
1
1/1
2
9/8
3
5/4
4
4/3
5
3/2
6
8/5
7maj
15/8
8
2/1

Steps

Scale Name

Frequency
do

Ratio (approx.)
1.00 f

ray

1.12 f

me

1.26 f

fa

1.33 f

so

1.50 f

la

1.59 f

11

tee

1.89 f

12

do

2.00 f

Notes not on the major scale but "minor" and/or musically interesting
Eb
3m
3
n/a
1.19 f
6/5
F#
4+
6
n/a
1.41 f
7/5
Bb
7
10
n/a
1.78 f
16/9

The minor scale differs from the major scale only in that the 3rd and 7th intervals are
one half-step lower. That is, the notes in the key of E are e-f#-g#-a-b-c#-d#-e, and the
notes in the key of Em are e-f#-g-a#-b-c#-d-e. Note (an insight helpful in studying
musical patterns) that the notes in the key of G are the same: g-a#-b-c#-d-e-f#-g as the
notes for the key of Em; only the starting position in the "circle" (of notes on the
scale) is different.
Chords. Using the "theorem" (about the constancy of structure) and the understanding
of the intervals that go into an 8-note scale, one can construct any chord desired. A
basic (unless otherwise specified, "major") chord is constructed by playing the root

note ("do") plus the 3rd interval ("me") plus the 5th interval ("so"); in the 12-note
chromatic system, that is, the root note plus four "half-steps" up, plus another three
half-steps. (See the examples, like D is d-f#-a)). A minor chord has the root note plus
three "half-steps" up, plus another four half-steps (Dm is d-f-a). The very first step in
learning how to play is teaching yourself these chords and their inversions,
becoming familiar not only with playing them, but with transitioning between them.
(Good chords to start out with include D, C, F, G, A, B, E, Em, F#m, Am, Bm. These
are common in a lot of chord sheets made for guitar, and can be played by any
instrument.)

Families of Chords, and Keys. The chords that go with the key of C (chords whose
components are part of or compatible with that scale) include "C", "F", "G", "Am",
"Dm" (the comprising notes being c-e-g, f-a-c, g-b-d, a-c-e, d-f-a). For notation,
capital letters will be names of chords and small letters the names of individual notes.
For the names of chords, plain letters ("C", "D", etc.) denote major chords (normal 13-5 interval), "m" denotes minor ("Dm", "Em", etc.), and numbers denote extra notes
added in to give the chord more fullness. For example, C2 is the regular C-chord with
the 2nd-interval note ("d") simultaneously added in. C4 is the regular C-chord with
the 4th-interval note ("f") simultaneously added in, Cmaj7 is the regular C-chord with
the major-7th-interval note ("b") simultaneously added in, C7 is the regular C-chord
with the minor-7th-interval note ("b-flat") simultaneously added in, and "Csus" is the
replacement of the 3rd with the 4th interval, ie c-f-g.
The understanding of "musically compatible" groups of
chords (e.g. whose components are notes on the scale of the "key" in which the music
is written) is crucial for understanding the structure of various musical pieces--the
shape of how chords sequentially build upon and transition between one another. For
example, in a piece written in the key of G with chords, G, D, Bm, C, Am, G, the
chords are based upon the 1st, 5th, 3rd, 4th, 2nd, and 1st intervals in the "G" scale.
The 5th intervals of each chord are based upon the 5th, 2nd, 7th, 1st, 6th, and 5th
intervals in the scale, and all are compatible with the scale.

An Example

Now for an example: the familiar melody from "What Child is This". It will be done
in the key of Em (E-minor), which is a related key to G-major (g-a-b-c-d-e-f#-g)
because it has the same notes in the scale. But for reasons which will become clear, it
is advantageous to think of it in the key of E-minor. The beginning of melody, "What
Child is..." is an Em (the first note itself being an f-sharp, 2nd interval on the Em
chord), progressing to the major version (G) in "this, who...". The next chord, in
"laid..." is D, progressing to a minor version, Bm in "to rest...". Then, the progression
continues to a C and Am in "...on Mary's lap is..." at which point the key changes from
minor (Em) to major (E) at "...sleeping" and the chord is E. The cycle repeats (with
different words), and then again in a major-chord variation (G D C B) that eventually
returns to Em.
First, practice this piece (and other pieces) by playing
the chords, filling in the melody by voice and/or with the uppermost note being
played. Over a period of weeks, as you become more and more comfortable with
playing (and transitioning between) chords, you will become able to add flourishes
and interpretations all your own. An example of an incredibly intricate and passionate
rendition of this piece can be found Liz Story's arrangement of "Greensleeves" (same
melody) on the Windham Hill album, "Winter".
For ongoing practice, there are thousands of pieces
notated for guitar, meaning that the chord names are written above the lyrics, such as
the "What Child Is This" example below:

Tips for playing and composition

1. Roots. The bottom-most note is the "foundation"; it sets the tone for the chord (i.e.
what's being played by the little finger of the left hand will generally provide
the "root" tone of the underlying chord)

2. Melody. The top-most note (i.e. what's being played by the little finger of the right
hand) is the "melody"; it is the most easily identifiable lyrical line and can be heard
even when there is a lot going on in the chords. Alternatively, one can play
a "counter-melody" lyrical line that is harmonically related to the melody.
3. Inversions (chords played with root note not necessarily at the bottom) provide
interesting variation, particularly when elements of a piece are repeated. With
practice, one can learn to play different inversions with the left and right hands, thus
covering more of the keyboard.

4. Modifiers to chords provide musical interest, means of transitions between chords,

or means of scale changes (modulations). For example,

The 2nd interval often adds warmth and fulness to a chord

The 4th interval often adds a different kind of interest to a chord
The 6th interval often adds a curious, open flavor to major and
warmth to a minor chord
The major-7th interval often adds a beautiful pensiveness
The regular (minor)-7th often adds a kind of anticipation
The suspended chord lives up to its name of suspenseful holding
5. Arpeggios (playing of the tones of a chord in rapid succession rather than
simultaneously) provide beauty and intricacy; with experimentation, one can find
various ways of interweaving the the notes between the left and right hands. Passing
notes (temporary configurations outside of the strict chord structure but sensible in the
larger context, e.g., notes within the key of the piece) can add wonderful
expressiveness.
6. Transitions between chords can be made interesting with the use of additional
notes played prior to the actual transition which bear some relationship to each chord.
For example, one lyrical movement from Em to D can make use of f#, which is 2nd
interval for Em and 3rd interval for D; or alternately (depending upon the effect
desired) A, which is 4th interval for Em and 5th for D.

7. Augmented Fourths are not in the major or minor scales (they are in between a
fourth and a fifth), but they do provide a fascinating musical quality (acoustically
based in a 7/5 frequency ratio) and therefore can be added into arpeggios at times to
give them a pensively warm touch.

Tutorial "Source"
How did this tutorial come about? Well, in 1992, I was asked to start a support group
at my church, and without a music leader, I was concerned because I felt that worship
(and the refreshing quiet it fosters) was the most important, healing ingredient. One
day as I was in prayer, thoughts began coming to mind about chord structures,
including the insight about the constancy described above, which led to
experimentations on a keyboard. Within a month, I was playing simple worship
arrangements for my group, and now play as well on a music team for Sunday
services. It is my hope that in sharing this, more people can experience the joy of
playing and creating music, particularly music which touches the heart of the Artist
Himself.
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See also: the Sight-Singers Resource (Marc Rubin's very fine tutorial for sightreading for piano and singing, which fills in aspects of the subject which I don't
address in much detail)
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN ARTICLE REFERENCES
"The Coupled Motions of Piano Strings: The Acoustics and Physics of the
Piano" - January 1979
"Paradoxes of Musical Pitch" - August 1992
"The Acoustics of the Singing Voice" - March 1977
"The Physics of Violins" - November 1962
"The Acoustics of Violin Plates" October 1981

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