By Mr. Ron
How To Construct Basic Chords on the Piano
The easiest way to start learning how to build chords is to practice their constructions in the key of C Major. You’re just playing all white keys.
All you have to do is play every other white key to create a 3-note chord. A 3-note chord is called a triad. A 4-note chord is called a 7th chord. And a 5-note chord is called a 9th chord.
Now you have the option of playing your chords in one hand or you may use both hands! It depends upon the sound you want to produce.
How to Improvise Melodies Read more »
By Kathy Unruh
Should you copyright your song? If you’re a songwriter, sooner or later you will probably have some questions about getting your material copyrighted. Since I’ve already been down this road before, you might be able to benefit from my experience. Though I am not an expert in the field, I do believe that I have some valuable information to share with you.
I’ve noticed that there seems to be a bit of confusion regarding the subject of copyrighting. A fairly common question among people who frequent songwriting forums is “How do I copyright my song?” which, of course, is quite understandable.
Just imagine what it would be like to have one of your songs stolen, only to find out later that it grossed several hundred thousand dollars for some band you never even heard of. You might think that you would be able to console yourself with the idea that this only proves you can write a good song, but I doubt it.
More than likely, you’d be pretty upset over the whole matter and want to take legal action. The sad thing is, most people never do prosecute because they don’t have the money to hire an attorney. Even if they did, it’s not likely to be an easy case to win without proof of copyright, and many would probably “lose their shirt,” so to speak, in the process.
Nowadays, however, due to the popularity of the internet, people are sharing their original material as never before. Have you ever wondered if this is a safe thing to do? How does a copyright protect your material anyway? Read more »
By Seth Lutnick
Congratulations! Your singing has become amazing, and it’s time the world knew. You’ve also written some songs that are just kick you-know-what. They need to be recorded, MP3ed and put on the net ASAP. But you’ve got two problems. First, you can’t afford a studio, let alone a band for all this stuff. Second, you don’t play all, or any, of the instruments.
Well there is good news. With a deft combination of the internet and today’s software, you can do wonders. While it’s never going to be the same as a true band in a real studio, which you had better hire for that big record company showcase, you can still create great backing tracks.
First, repeat after me. “I love MIDI.” Thank you.
MIDI, to refresh your memory, is like sheet music for a pianist. The paper itself makes no noises, but the pianist gets all the information he needs from it to let us hear Beethoven (especially if the music is also Beethoven!). In your computer set up, the MIDI file is the sheet music, the MIDI sequencer or playback program is the pianist, and your computer’s sound card and synthesizer are the piano. That’s all you need!
Before we get started, I’ll mention the ultimate cover song shortcut – the internet! There are tons of great MIDI files of almost every piece of popular music out there. All you have to do is find them. If you can’t, or you’ve got your own material, read on. Be legal, though! Read more »
By Edward Weiss
Have you ever been told that you were good at something but not good enough to make it a career or life ambition? Especially with music, if you’re passion is music you are hopelessly outnumbered right from the beginning.
“You better have a back-up job” or “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket” are common refrains heard from well meaning adults who inadvertently had their dreams crushed out of them.
The world has more than enough computer programmers and engineers and these professions are well paying ones. What are we musicians to do? Well, for one thing we can forget about needing “talent” to make it.
What is talent anyway but a person’s ability to connect with his or her audience. You might think that talent means technical proficiency. You couldn’t be more wrong. Read more »
By Edward Weiss
How would you like to spend 4 years in a University learning how to play other peoples music? If you think this is ridiculous, you’re right! Because that’s what thousands of piano music students do each day.
They sit in front of their piano or keyboard with sheet music of a dead composer in front of them. Then they are told to “play it right.”
Have you ever heard of such nonsense? Imagine a budding writer forced to copy another novelists work? In essence, this is what classical piano students do. They copy. Read more »
Composition, Improvising Music, Music Theory, Piano Chords | TipsForTheBand.com March 3, 2009 | 
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