key-notes

This is a lecture by the eminent pianist Carlo Grante, which he gave as part of a lecture series "Music Explains Itself" for the Accademia Merano in Italy. Carlo is one of my musical mentors, and...

Musical interpretation is, in a word, storytelling. In a story, there are characters—in music, themes. In a story there is development—in music, variations on a theme, ornamentation,...

Music is a language. Like spoken language, music is rhetorical. The language of music has grammar and punctuation. It has phrases and sentences, loud and soft, fast and slow, accents and dramatic...

Why does a piano keyboard look the way it does? The answer has to do with music modes. The modes are types of scales. A scale is simply a specified sequence of intervals from one note to the same...

Piano scales are one of the biggest stumbling blocks for most piano students. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to build any major scale at the piano; starting from any note.

We’ll focus...

You may have heard pianists talk about “voicing.” If you’ve been confused it’s certainly understandable, since the term actually has several entirely different meanings in...

The simplest way to think of a seventh chord is three thirds stacked on top of each other.

The dominant seventh is the most important of the seventh chords and is fundamental to Western harmony. A...

With up to seven sharps or seven flats in a key signature, it can seem daunting to try to remember the order—yet there’s a simple shortcut that makes it easy.

You just need to remember...

This Key Signature Chart is designed to help you learn all the key signatures easily. It’s written with increasing sharps and flats.

It’s essential for all musicians to memorize the key...

Key signatures are designed to simplify music notation by indicating the key. Without them, composers would be forced to write accidentals (sharps and flats) every time they’re used, which...

Chord inversions are “spellings” of a chord with a note other than the fundamental in the bass. Let’s take a simple example:

The C major triad consists of the notes C, E and G, in...

The Circle of Fifths depicts all key signatures in order of increasing sharps and flats:

It’s a very easy way to learn the key signatures by depicting them graphically. With C major at the...

Question: How do I calculate Bach’s musical signature?

– Alfi M.

Albert’s reply: Bach often wrote his name in musical notation, sometimes hiding it in his works. In German, the...

Question: Great Web Site!

I am studying the Bach B Minor Invention BWV 786. In the Explication, the manner of execution of the trill is very clear, and yet one can find conflicting interpretations...

This lesson will introduce you to the most common chord progressions, so widely used that they can be found in virtually every piece of tonal music regardless of genre or era. Astonishingly, the...

Question: Hi Albert,

Would you be so kind as to help me get clear on the meaning of “motive”? Also can you differentiate a “motive” from a “phrase”? I want to...

Question: What are the two pitches in music called?

Albert’s reply: There aren’t just two pitches in music, there are as many pitches as there are colors.

Yet pitches aren’t the...

Question: How can I distinguish minor from major pitches?

Albert’s reply: Major and minor aren’t properties of single notes or pitches but rather of groups of notes. Major and minor...

Question: I’m starting to learn Bach’s Fugue in D major from Book 1 of the Well-Tempered Clavier. I’ve read your extremely useful article, How to Learn a Fugue, and I have...

Question: Albert,

I am very impressed with this website. It is sure to help many people as it has helped myself. I am going to be playing the “Moonlight” Sonata in 22 days at my high...

Question: I am currently working on naming the keys of melodies with accidentals, then re-writing them with key signatures. How can I go about doing this? I have forgotten the steps my teacher...

Question: How do I determine the difference between major and minor chords?

– Antonia (Charlotte, North Carolina, USA)

Albert’s reply: Major and minor chords are both triads. A triad...

Question: This may be very basic, but could give me a broad overview of major and minor keys and scales?

My real question is, for every major there is a minor in the same exact key, so...

Question: What is the definition of the following?

1. Tendency tone
2. Stable tone
3. Active tone

– Timothy (Ibadan, Oyo, Nigeria)

Albert’s reply: These are harmonic terms having...

Question: Hi Albert,

I’m finding it nearly impossible to memorize the keys. (Which key has 5 sharps, which key has 4 flats, etc.) It may not help that I’m 74 years old, but I would...