Free online piano lessons for beginner

piano players
Hello and welcome to free online piano lessons. If you have always wanted to play
the piano but thought it was to hard or to complicated you have come to the right
place. Perhaps you were ready to learn to play but didn't have access to a teacher or
money to pay for piano lessons. Well, this site was developed for you. If you have the
desire to learn to play, I will help you to get started with these free online piano
lessons.

Hi, my name is John Rickman. After a "long lay-off", I decided to build this site. Music,
and playing the piano in particular has always been a source of great joy and
"release" for me. I decided to share what I have learned over the years with anyone
wanting to learn to play by offering these free online piano lessons to everyone.

Free online piano lessons is geared toward the beginner piano player who seeks to
learn about piano scales, piano chords, and piano chord progression. Our goal is to
help you understand how to form a scale or chord from any note on the piano. We
will also show you some of the more frequently used chord progressions that appear
in many of today's popular songs. You will also learn about scale tone chords, their
importance in chord progressions and how to play them on the piano.

You will also learn what a treble clef, bass clef, and grand staff are and how to
identify notes on each one. If you follow the lessons and practice, you will surprise
yourself with your newfound "skills". While I won't promise that you will be giving
concerts in 6 months, I will promise to provide you with the knowledge necessary to
learn to play the piano.

You will probably want to explore our free online piano lessons site and that is fine.
However, once you decide to begin your studies, it would be best to follow the order,
lesson 1-piano scales, lesson 2-piano chords, etc. By doing this you will gain the most
benefit from your free piano lessons.

I have some cool tools you will be able to refer to while learning to play the piano.
One is right here on site and is available when you need to see how a chord or scale
looks on the piano. The other is a very useful tool, which can be downloaded to your
computer for use in learning about note identification on the treble clef, bass clef,
and grand staff. So, have a look around and begin your free online piano lessons
whenever you are ready.

Contact Information

John Rickman
109 Lamar
Terrell, Texas 75160
Phone: 972-524-5340
Email: info@free-online-piano-lessons.com
How to construct major and minor piano scales
Rules for building major and minor piano scales from any note on the
piano keyboard.

How to form major and minor piano chords

Rules for constructing major, minor, and other 3 note (triad) and 4 note
(7th) piano chords

Scale tone chords for major and minor keys

Rules and note combinations for forming 3 note (triad) and 4 note (7th)
scale tone chords in both major and minor keys

Popular chord progressions

Chord progressions and scale tone chords for the piano

Piano chord inversions for major and minor chords

Learn what piano chord inversions are and how to form them at any point
on the piano

Identifying piano notes on the treble and bass clef

Learn how to identify piano notes on a treble clef, bass clef, or grand staff

Piano Chord and Piano Scale Finder

View piano scales and piano chords and see how they are formed on our
virtual piano keyboard

Lesson 1...How to build major and minor

piano scales
Piano scales are the building blocks so to speak on which piano chords are formed.
For our studies we will concentrate on diatonic scales for the piano. A diatonic scale
is composed of a series of five whole steps and two half-steps. A half-step consists
of immediately adjacent keys on a keyboard. A half-step is a semi-tone. A whole-
step consists of 2 half-steps (2 semi-tones) in the same direction. A whole-step is a
full-step. Both major scales and minor scales are diatonic. Below you will find a
picture of a piano keyboard with the notes identified.

Before you begin learning how to form major piano scales and the different minor
piano scales, it is important that you understand whole steps and half steps. If you
start with the note C and progress up the keyboard to the piano key immediately
adjacent to C you will be at C#/Db. This is a half step. Had you progressed up the
keyboard and played the white tone (note) next to C, which would have been a D you
would have taken a whole step.

If you were to begin on C#/Db and want to move a half step up the keyboard you
would move to the D tone (note). If you wanted to move a whole step up from C#/Db
you would play the D#/Eb tone (note). Now, you probably have noticed that there is
no black tone (note) between E and F or B and C. So, from E to the adjacent F is a
half step and from B to the adjacent C is a half step. A whole step up from E would be
a F#/Gb. A whole step up from B would be C#/Db.

The # (sharp) symbol following a tone (note) means you raise that tone (note) one
half step. So a C followed by a # (C#) means you have raised the C note one half
step to the Black tone (note) C#. If a b (flat) symbol follows a tone (note) this means
the note is lowered one half step. So a D followed by a b (Db) means you have
lowered the D note one half step to the black tone (note) Db. Which as you see can
also be correctly spelled C#.

On our piano graphic you will notice that all the black tones (notes) have two types of
spelling C#/Db, F#/Gb, A#/Bb, etc. While it is important when forming piano scales
that you know both spellings are correct, it is beyond the scope of these beginner
piano lessons to get into theory. Right now, I want you to know the location of these
tones (notes) so that if you see either spelling, you will know where they are on the
piano keyboard.

Now that you are familiar with whole steps and half steps its time to start using them
to form piano scales. So lets get started! Click on the links below to see how to form
Major, Natural Minor, Melodic Minor, and Harmonic Minor piano scales.

Piano Scales-Major and Natural Minor

Piano Scales-Melodic and Harmonic Minor

Lesson 2...Major and Minor Piano Chords

Piano chords, or any chord for that matter, are formed by combining two or more
scale tones (notes). You now know the tones (notes) that comprise all 12 major
scales and you can play these scales smoothly (not necessarily quickly…yet!). It is
now time to apply this knowledge and begin combining the scale tones to form
chords. You may also see this referred to as combining two or more intervals
(remember the definition from your study of major scales). We will begin our study
with the simplest and most common type of piano chords, the triad.

As the name implies a triad is composed of 3 notes from the major scale. We shall
begin with the major triad. A major triad consists of the 1st, 3rd, and 5th tones
(notes) of a major scale. You will also see this referred to as the root (1st), major third
(3rd), and perfect fifth (5th). So, based upon this C major chords would consist of the
notes C, E, and G of the C major scale. The symbols for a major triad are Major, M, or
Maj. Whenever you see these names or symbols following a piano note (C, D, Eb, F#,
etc.) you know it is referring to major triad chords. Or if you are just given the note
(C, D, etc.) it is inferred to be a major triad.

If you would like to see some major chords go to our piano chords finder tool. All you
have to do is select the chord name (C, Eb, F, Ab, F#, etc.) and then select "Major".
The chord will be highlighted for you on our "virtual piano keyboard". This will open
up a new window so when you are done simply close that page and you will be back
here. Take a look now and view some major chords then come on back.

Now, when you practice these major piano chords, I recommend you form them using
the 1st, 3rd, and 5th fingers of your right hand. Thumb (1st), middle finger (3rd), and
pinky (5th). Your left hand will form these chords using the 1st, 3rd, and 5th fingers
also, but the numbering is pinky (1st) middle finger (3rd) and thumb (5th).

Piano Chords-Minor Triads

You now know that combining the 1st, 3rd, and 5th tones (notes) of a major scale
form major triad piano chords. If you lower the 3rd tone one half step it becomes a
minor triad. So, minor triad chords are the 1st, b3rd, and 5th tones (notes) of a
major scale. The b3rd is the symbol for "flatted 3rd". As stated this means the 3rd
tone (note) of the major scale is lowered one halfstep. You will also see this referred
to as root (1st), minor third (b3rd), and perfect fifth (5th).

So, based upon this a C minor chord would consist of the notes C, Eb, and G. The
symbols for a minor triad are minor, m, min. or -. Whenever you see these names or
symbols following a piano note (C, D, Eb, F#, etc.) you know it is referring to minor
triad chords.

As with the major piano chords, you can go to our piano chord finder and check out
some minor piano chords. All you have to do is select the chord name (C, Eb, F, Ab,
F#, etc.) and then select "minor". The chord will be highlighted for you on our "virtual
piano keyboard". This will open up a new window so when you are done simply close
that page and you will be back here. Go now and view some minor chords then come
on back.

Now, when you practice these minor piano chords, I want you to form them using the
1st, 3rd, and 5th fingers of your right hand. Thumb (1st), middle finger (3rd), and
pinky (5th). Your left hand will form these chords using the 1st, 3rd, and 5th fingers
also, but the numbering is pinky (1st) middle finger (3rd) and thumb (5th).

Piano Chords-Other Triad chords

Two other 3 tone (note) piano chords we will discuss are the augmented and
suspended 4th. An augmented chord is formed by combining the 1st, 3rd, and #5th
tones (notes) of a major scale. #5th (sharped 5th) means you raise the 5th tone
(note) of the scale by one half step. Based upon this combination of tones, C
augmented chords would consist of C, E, and G#. The symbols for an augmented
chord are aug., (#5), and +5. Whenever you see these names or symbols following a
piano note (C, D, Eb, F#, etc.) you know it is referring to augmented piano chords.

A suspended 4th chord is formed by combining the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones (notes) of
a major scale. Based upon this combination of tones a C suspended 4th piano chord
would consist of C, F, and G. The symbol for a suspended 4th chord is (sus4).
Whenever you see this name or symbol following a piano note (C, D, Eb, F#, etc.) you
know it is referring to suspended 4th piano chords.

Examples of both the augmented and suspended 4th piano chords can be found by
viewing our piano chord finder. Use the same procedure as with locating and viewing
major and minor piano chords. Simply highlight the note (C, D#/Eb, F, etc.) and then
select either "augmented" or "suspended 4th". When you are done close the window
and you will be taken back to this page.

Now, when you practice these piano chords, I recommend you form them using the
1st, 3rd, and 5th fingers of your right hand. Thumb (1st), middle finger (3rd), and
pinky (5th). Your left hand will form these chords using the 1st, 3rd, and 5th fingers
also, but the numbering is pinky (1st) middle finger (3rd) and thumb (5th).

It is now time to move on to seventh (7th) piano chords. These chords are
constructed using 4 scale tones (notes) and have a richer sound than the triads. We
shall learn how to form Major 7th, Minor 7th, Dominant 7th, and Half Diminished 7th
piano chords. So continue practicing triad chords and when you are ready click on
the links below to continue your studies on piano chords.

Major and Minor 7th Piano Chords

Dominant and Half Diminished 7th Piano Chords

Lesson 3...scale tone chords

Scale tone chords, as the name implies, are piano chords which are comprised
(formed) from the tones (notes) of a particular scale (C,D,F#,etc.). They are present
in both major and minor keys. The three note major triad scale tone chords will
always follow these rules.

The first chord will always be major, the second chord will always be minor, the third
chord will always be minor, the fourth chord will always be major, the fifth chord will
always be major, the sixth chord will always be minor and the seventh chord will
always be diminished. A diminished chord is formed by combining the 1st (first),
b3rd (flatted third), and b5th (flatted fifth) tones (notes) of a major scale.

Based upon these rules, the scale tone chords in the key of C Major would be: C
Major, D minor, E minor, F Major, G Major, A minor, and B diminished. As you can see,
these chords are all comprised of the white tones (note) just like the C Major scale.
You now know what scale tone chords are, and the rule for forming them for any
Major key.

But, I also told you that there are scale tone chords for minor keys also. To find the
three note minor triad chords use this rule. The first chord will always be minor, the
second chord will always be diminished, the third chord will always be major, the
fourth chord will always be minor, the fifth chord will always be minor, the sixth chord
will always be major, and the seventh chord will always be major.

So, based upon this the scale tone chords for A minor, which happens to be the
related or relative minor key to C Major, would be: A minor, B diminished, C
Major, D minor, E minor, F Major, and G Major. As with C Major, all the scale tone
chords in A minor are comprised of white notes.
I have used the terms "key" and "scale" throughout this lesson. It is important for you
to know that scale tone chords are chords which belong to a particular "key", C Major,
A minor, F# Major, etc. These chords are formed by combining the different intervals
(tones or notes) of a major scale. We have already covered the rules for making
major and minor chords in lesson #2. And in this lesson you learned the interval
combinations for diminished chords.

I have built a page which will show you the scale tone chords in all 12 major and all
12 minor keys. For ease of use, I will place the relative minor key in a column to the
right of the Major key. You can go to scale tone chords now and view all the chords,
in both major and minor keys. Practice all 12 keys, both major and minor.

Lesson 4...Chord progressions for the

piano
Chord progressions are simply movement from one chord to another in a
harmonic framework. Translated in language you will understand if you are a
beginner piano or music student this means you will be playing chords which, when
combined, sound "right" or pleasant to the ear when played and are "harmonically"
correct.

You know how to form a major scale from any point (note) on the piano. You have
also learned how to construct chords by combining various scale tones (notes)
together. It is now time to put this knowledge to use by learning some chord
progressions. Now, there are many, many different ways to combine chords to form a
piece of music. We will focus on some of the more "popular" chord progressions so
you can get the "feel" of what we are talking about.

When I say, "combine chords" you need to understand I am speaking of moving from
one chord to another in this harmonic framework I spoke of earlier. All the chord
progressions we will be learning are based upon major scales and the scale tone
chords. This means that the the 1st, 4th, and 5th tones (notes) will always be Major
chords, the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th tones (notes) will always be minor chords and the 7th
tone (note) will always be a diminished chord. These will be our 3-note or triad
chord progression chords.

A diminished chord is composed of a 1st, b3rd (flatted third), and b5th (flatted fifth)
tones (notes) of a major scale. This means the 3rd and 5th tones (notes) are lowered
one half step. Using the key of "C" as an example the B diminished chord (triad)
would contain the tones (notes) B, D, and F.

For our 7th chord progression chords, the 1st and 4th tones (notes) will always be
Major 7th chords, the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th tones (notes) will always be minor 7th chords,
the 5th tone (note) will always be a dominant 7th chord and the 7th tone (note) will
always be a half diminished 7th chord.

A dominant 7th chord is formed by combining the 1st, 3rd, 5th, and b7th (flatted
seventh) tones (notes) of a major scale. This means you would lower the 7th tone
(note) one half step. A half diminished 7th chord is formed by combining the 1st,
b3rd (flatted 3rd), b5th (flatted fifth), and b7th (flatted seventh) tones (notes) of a
major scale. This means you would lower the 3rd, 5th, and 7th tones (notes) one half
step.
Using the key of "C" as an example a G dominant 7th chord would contain the tones
(notes) G,B,D, and F and a B half diminished 7th chord would have the tones (notes)
B,D,F, and A. Click on the links below to get a description of the different chord
progressions and a chart showing the corresponding chords.

Chord progressions-I-IV-V

Chord progressons-II-V-I

Chord progresssions-III-VI-II-V-I

Lesson 5...piano chord inversions

Piano chord inversions are the "rearranging" of the intervals or tones (notes) of a
chord into a different order. Throughout these lessons we have worked with 3 note
(triad) chords in their root positions. This means we have formed the chord with the
root in the bottom or lowest (starting) position. C major has been formed C,E,G..F
minor is F,Ab,C..A major is A,C#,E...you get the idea.

Now, to add some "color" to your playing we will now study piano chord inversions.
Using the same chords lets start with the third as the bottom or lowest (starting) tone
(note). C major would be E,G,C...F minor would be Ab,C,F...and A major would be
C#,E,A. This is known as a 1st (first) inversion.

So, you have probably guessed that a piano chord inversion that begins with the fifth
as the bottom or lowest (starting) tone (note) is called a...2nd (second) inversion.
Again using our same three chords, C major would be G,C,E...F minor would be
C,F,Ab...and A major would be E,A,C#.

Working with 3 note (triads) the most piano chord inversions you can have is two.
Obviously as chords become more complex; sevenths, ninths, thirteens, etc. the
greater the number of piano chord inversions. You should practice the different
inversions for all the major and minor triad chords you have learned.

You will find that the different arrangements of tones (notes) within the chords gives
"new" sounds to your playing...even thought they are the same chords. Practice
those piano chord inversions with both hands until you can play them smoothly and
easily.

Lesson 6...Identifying piano notes

In this lesson on piano notes identification we will take the mystery out of
knowing what tones (notes) are represented by those "black dots" on and between
the lines on a Treble Clef and Bass Clef. Have you ever looked at a piece of sheet
music and wondered how the person playing knows what keys (piano notes) to play
on the piano?

Before we begin, you need to know that a "full size" piano keyboard is comprised of
88 piano notes or keys. It (the keyboard) contains 7 octaves beginning with an A tone
(note) on the lower end and ending with a C tone (note) on the high end. The seven
octaves therefore begin on this lower A tone (note) and proceed to the next A tone
(note) up the piano keyboard. This pattern is repeated 7 times. Actually, if you want
to be "technical", the piano keyboard is 7 octaves plus the notes Bb, B, and C on the
high end.

Now before we begin our piano notes identification on the treble clef, bass clef, and
grand staff we will need to identify where "middle C" is on the piano keyboard. As the
name implies middle C "splits" the keyboard down the middle. To find it begin on the
lower A tone (note) we discussed earlier and count up 40 tones (notes), black and
white piano notes. The 40th tone (note) is middle C.

The picture below is what is known as a Grand Staff.

The top part of the Grand Staff is called the Treble Clef (or Treble Staff) and the
bottom portion is known as the Bass Clef (or Bass Staff). The two together form the
Grand Staff. The graphic below shows the tones (notes) as they appear on a Treble
Clef and Bass Clef.
By viewing this graphic you can see why I took the time to explain about middle C on
the piano. If the piano notes are located on a Treble Clef, they will be played above
middle C. If the piano notes are located on the Bass Clef, they will be played below
middle C. While it looks like there should be more tones (notes) between the B
located just above the last line on the Bass Clef and Middle C located just below the D
tone (note) below the Treble Clef, these two tones (notes) are side by side on the
piano keyboard.

In addition to learning how to identify piano notes, you also need to know what key
signatures are. A key signature is all those sharps (#) and flats (b) you see following
the treble clef and bass clef symbols either on or between the line(s). The number of
sharps or flats tell you what "key" a piece of music is in.

For example, if there are no sharps or flats on the treble or bass clefs, the music
piece is in the key of "C". You will remember from your study of piano scales that a C
major scale is all white keys, no sharps or flats. On the graphic identifying our piano
notes above, let's say that there was a sharp symbol (#) where the F & C notes are
located. This would mean the music piece was in the key of "D". Again, refresh your
memory on piano scales, the D major scale is composed of D, E, F#, G, A, B, C#, D
(octave).

Do not let the information provided here overwhelm you. There is a neat tool you can
download which will provide you a means to learn note identification on the treble
clef, bass clef, and grand staff. In addition to learning how to identify piano notes,
you will also see the key signatures on the treble clef and bass clef while you are
learning piano notes identification. Click piano notes to download this application to
your computer. This will open a new window. When you are finished you close the
window and come back here.

You now possess the knowledge to form a scale from any point on the piano. You can
use this knowledge of scales to form major, minor, 7th, and other types of piano
chords. You have a working knowledge of some of the more popular chord
progressions and how to form the required scale tone chords. And with this lesson on
piano notes identification and the cool piano notes ID application, you will be able to
identify notes on a treble clef or bass clef.

It is my sincere wish (and hope) that these lessons have been of benefit to you in
your endeavor to learn to play the piano and to learn the basics of music education. I
will add more lessons in the near future. If you have any questions on anything we
have covered...email me at the address on our home page. Now...get back to
practice!!

The piano keyboard shows the notes of the musical scale, which are written on staffs of five
lines. Each line and each space between lines represents a different note, or pitch, that
corresponds to a white key on the piano. Some notes can be written above or below the staff,
by adding short lines (shown from c1 to e1 on the bass staff and from g to c1 on the treble
staff). An octave is a span of eight notes, as measured by the piano's white keys. Two
complete octaves in the key of C (that is, starting with the note c) are shown here. The first
octave runs from the note called low c (c on the bass staff) to middle c (c1 on the bass and
treble staffs). The second octave runs from middle c to high c (c2 on the treble staff).