Second Year Piano Student Theory

Including theory as an integral part of piano instruction is vital.  The second year theory program might include:

1. Subdominant minor chords (inverted position)
2. Augmented chords
3. Diminished chords
4. Writing major scales

Subdominant Minor Chords

In the first year melodies are harmonized with major I, IV and V7 chords.  Minor melodies may also be harmonized with i, iv, and V7 chords.  Students should already have learned minor tonic chords and dominant seventh chords (the same for major and minor), so the only new chord in the progression is the iv chord in minor.  The purpose for learning this new chord is for functional usage in minor tonalities.  It is more practical for students to learn to play this chord in all minor keys than it is for them to learn to write the chord.  Students may first learn the progression i, iv, i in all minor keys.  Following this they can learn i, iv, i, V7, i.

Augmented Chords

An augmented triad is made of a major third and an augmented fifth.  The word augment means to make larger.  Raise the top note (5th) of a major triad 1/2 step to form an augmented chord.

Diminished Chords

A diminished triad is made of a minor third and a diminished fifth.  The word diminished means to make smaller.  Lower the top note (5th) of a minor triad 1/2 step to form a diminished chord.

Writing Major Scales

Sometime during the second year students may be taught the pattern of whole and half steps that make up the major scales.  They should memorize the pattern whole-whole-half, whole-whole-whole-half or WWH WWWH.  They aught to be shown how to assign degree numbers to the eight notes of the major scale and how to formulate the major scale numeric pattern of a half-step between degrees 3-4 and 7-8.

For more information about piano lessons in Basking Ridge, please contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

Scales for Beginning Pianists

In the first year of lessons scale playing is minimal for most, but not all, students.  Certainly there are those who are capable of grasping the feel and location of the keys very quickly.  Others may need to wait to play scales until the hand/eye coordination is more mature.  However, few, if any, scale passages are used in first year literature.  Most teachers would probably agree that learning some scale patterns will benefit first year students.  One or two octave scales can be taught.  Overall the problem of scales as a technique is more easily learned in the second year.  This is especially true of parallel scale playing that requires control and coordination.  Having said this, again there are students who naturally acclimate to the piano keyboard.

By second or third year students need to understand how to form major and minor scale patterns with whole and half-steps.

While scale study is great for evenness of fingers and finger control, it is only one aspect of technic.  Technical training should include practice for pianissimo, fortissimo, crescendo and diminuendo, variety of tone quality, and phrasing lifts.

The two problems to solve in scale playing are turning the thumb under or crossing over the thumb, and memorizing the fingering patterns used in parallel motion.  The correct scale fingering for reach scale should be learned from the beginning.  While some teaching methods introduce only partial scales up to five fingers at first, there is no reason not to teach the full one-octave scales immediately.

Scale fingering should be memorized.  A complete book of scales at the beginner level of one or two octaves should be provided to the student for reference.  Many teachers write scale fingering in the weekly assignment book.  However, it is good practice to compel the student to learn to refer to fingering in their book.  If the student is very young, then showing their parent how to help them to use the book is important until they are old enough to work independently.


For more information about Basking Ridge piano instruction, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

Minor Chords and Five Finger Positions

Minor finger positions and minor chords can be related to the major keys that the student has already learned. To create the five finger position for the minor or minor chord, begin with the major position and move the middle finger (degree 3) down the nearest key (one semi-tone/half-step). The nearest key can be either black or white.

Have the piano student practice parallel major and minor chords in various rhythms. When changing chords he should not look down at the keyboard. He should form a mental picture of the chord shape and arrange his fingers this way.

Optimally, each new class in theory should be accompanied by ear training drills. Use ear training games to distinguish between major and minor tonality. At first the student can sing the tones while the piano teacher plays minor positions or chords. Emphasize the minor third. Next have the student listen to a chord and tell if it is a major or minor. Lastly, play several chords in a row (major, minor, minor, major) all in the same key, and have the student ascertain what was played. Later, play the same pattern, but change the first tone of each chord (CM Am Gm EM).

The student can then create little tunes based on major and minor scale fragments and their chords.

For more information about piano instruction in Basking Ridge, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

Arm Drops

Teaching Arm Drops

Consider having the piano student use the large muscles first, then concentrate on the smaller motions used in coordinating finger action.

Supporting a finger and dropping with arm weight will give the student a feeling of security at impact, and it will give him the correct concept for holding his fingers in a curved position later when the support is not used.

Later, when learning chords, tell the student to prepare the chord in the air and drop on the keys, keeping the fingers well-curved. Fifths, sixths, (octaves later) may also be played like this.

Legato Touch

The legato and staccato touches in are taught in the first year of learning keyboard technique. Legato touch requires the student to play a key, hold it, and release it when the next key is played. It requires some finger coordination and can take time to develop. This is the most basic task of teaching technique to the beginner.

Legato can be explained as a person walks, one foot comes down, the other comes up, and the process is repeated over and over. This is like walking on the keys when one key is played and held until the next key is played, then the first key is released.

Staccato Touch

Have the piano student separate the tones so that they sound short. Another explanation is having the student bounce his finger on the key when a dot appears over or under a note. Some students will need to differentiate between a staccato dot and a dotted note dot. A bounce is not unlike that of a bouncing ball when the upward bounce is the result of the downward movement. To produce this on the piano, the student must imitate the upward bounce consciously.

For more information about piano instruction Basking Ridge, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

Teaching Songs

It's always preferable to teach songs without using the piano except to get the right pitch. After the song has been learned the piano teacher may sometimes play an accompaniment as the student sings, but this should be done sparingly, postponing adding the harmonic element in the song until it occurs in the regular course of piano instruction.

Some children don't sing well, and occasionally one is met who can't carry a tune. This does not necessarily mean that this child is not musical. The non-singing child should be urged to listen nevertheless. He should be encouraged to sing alone as much as possible. Often he will be helped by singing beside another child who has a good voice. Someties he will imitate the voice of another child better than the voice of his piano teacher. Sometimes he can sing in a lower pitch than other children,and sometimes he can be encouraged to sing the song in a key within his own voice range. Every effort should be made to help him discover the light, high head voice which is the natural way for children to sing.

The song ca be presented a phrase at a time, first scanning the words of the phrase, then playing the melody, and lastly asking the student to sing the phrase. Thus it is possible to teach the song by rote, phrase by phrase.

Children should always be led to feel the spirit of thesong, as bright, lively, sad, quiet, etc., rather than arbitrarily directed to sing slow, fast, loud, or soft. Tone quality should be appropriate to the spirit and mood of the song. This helps young piano students develop an ear for expressing music.

For more information about piano classes NJ, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

Piano Technique: Drill and Teaching Pieces

Piano playing involves developing the ability to learn keyboard technique. In the past, this technique evolved only through mechanical drills and technical etudes. These classical exercises are designed to give control of the movements necessary to play, to increase facility in playing the various figurations found in piano music, to develop power and speed, and to establish foundational control for dynamic and rhythmic variety in piano performance.

However, the mere mechanics of playing, without spirit and expression, is not widely accepted as the way to musicianly performance. An extensive literature of teaching pieces has evolved, through which the student can acquire technique while at the same time he studies selections more or less interesting musically. Most teachers now depend largely upon this type of material for the technical development of the student, while others make use of the exercise and etude literature as an integral part of their teaching scheme.

Some teachers have come to feel that technical drill may be entirely abandoned in favor of a progressive list of more varied material. Their reasoning?

1. only a comparatively few teachers have acquired real skill in obtaining the essential technical elements from the pieces and organizing them into a well rounded system of development
2. the teacher is restricted musically in the selection of pieces if it is necessary to depend on this material alone for technical material
3. it is hard to find selections which contain all the necessary material for comprehensive technical training of the student
4. while this procedure has carried many students successfully through certain elementary stages of development, sooner or later there has come a time when progress stops, and the student, lacking training under a comprehensive plan, abandons his pianistic ambitions in the face of difficulty and demands involved in further pianistic advancement.

In the final analysis, though, practice of exacting technique cannot be avoided by a piano student or teacher. A good pianist must have training which includes all the different elements of a well rounded technique. Advanced pianism includes both artistry and expression, and the necessity of playing exacting technique which the pianist uses according to his artistic taste and judgment. It is common for teachers, even the most eminent, to exaggerate certain phases of musicology at the expense of others.

The superb control over technique that results from classical drilling is incomparable. Thus, both classical mechanical drilling and creativity must be included in the course of teaching piano for the student to become an accomplished pianist.

To find a piano teacher NJ, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.