Understanding the Arrangement of the Piano Keyboard

June 26th, 2010 by admin

If you have started learning piano then there are a few basic things about the instrument and Music Theory that you must first learn. To play any instrument, it is first necessary that you understand it well. There are total 88 keys in a piano, among which 36 are black and 52 are the white keys.

When you press these keys, they hammer inside the instrument causing the piano strings to produce music. The white keys of piano are known as the natural notes while the black ones are used for the notes, which are either sharp or flat. The first key is the note A located on the far left of the keyboard. The last key is note C, located on the right side.

The piano keys are usually arranged in the half steps and they are in the chromatic scale order. The black and the white keys are mostly placed alternately, with just the exception that there are no black keys between notes B and C, or E and F.

Many people have the misconceptions that the piano is mostly based on the C scale. You can actually play on any scale, on the piano just by choosing the right starting point. If you play from the left to right, then it creates the ascending notes. If you wish to create the effect of descending notes then play from right to left.

The keyboard can also be studies from the standpoint of octaves. This is the interval that is casually considered of as 8 scale notes, above or below the reference note.

You will find more information if you look up some good Music Theory Books or Music Theory Worksheets.

 



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