Learning To Play Piano By Ear: Can Anyone Do It?

March 9th, 2010 by admin

The answer is: maybe. It all depends on two factors. Can you carry a tune? If you are musically inclined then singing will come naturally. Do you site read? Most people who play piano by ear never learned how to read music, and they cannot explain why. Perhaps it is because the ear naturally takes over. If one is tone deaf then the answer is definitely not.

The Concepts

Understanding how chord progression and scales are combined in a song will help you to understand the art of improvisation and how those who play piano by ear make it look so easy. Simply listening to a song over and over is one way to play, but this is memorization. Totally different than improv. Read on.

Definitions To The Musical Element

Scale- A basic scale will travel up the keyboard going from one note and ending on the same note one octave higher.

Chord- Three or more notes played simultaneously, often with the left hand or both to form a harmony.

Progression- variations of chords, often moving up and or down a given scale.

The Melody

These are the main notes in any given song, and are what we listen to when we sing along. The pitch we hear is either high or low, depending on where the song is going. To play piano by ear, listen to the melody. An easy song to learn by ear is row your boat. It begins with middle C and goes like this: CCCDE (row, row, row your boat) EDEFG (gently down the stream)CCCGGGEEECCC (down the scale) GFEDC  and so on. You get the idea.

Harmony

 

With your left hand come the chords which will make up the harmony. Since you are playing this song in the key of C, any chord which works off of this note will harmonize with the melody. CEG are the notes for a C chord. The only way to learn is by experimenting with the melody and chords. If they sound good together then they are acceptable.

Rhythm

Find yourself tapping your feet to your favorites songs? Chances are you’ve got the rhythm! This also comes naturally to those who play piano by ear. The rhythm is determined by the style of music being played, and can vary throughout the song.

 

Combine all of these music theories together and you have a basic idea of playing by ear. The only way you will know if you can do it is to try. Listening skills are the main thing.

 

copyright by Lauren Paltrow

 

 



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