This is very common, and I’ve explained in previous posts why your piano may not be tunable, but I’ve not touched on what happens after the technician leaves. You hired a technician to come and tune and maybe repair your beloved piano, and after only a few minutes, they tell you it’s not possible. The intro to Dexys Midnight Runners’ hit “Come on Eileen,” while very different stylistically, also features a prominent glissando on the keys.This is the worst news you could have ever received.

The Beatles’ cover of “Rock and Roll Music'' by Chuck Berry contains a prime example of a classic rock piano glissando. A properly placed glissando can keep the energy up and surprise the listener. The glissando is primarily used in upbeat music and is a prominent feature of many older rock and roll songs. Often on the keyboard, this is a big distance - many times a glissando will span the entirety of the white keys on the keyboard.

GlissandosĪ glissando in music is a continuous slide upward or downward between two notes. The solo sections in “What’d I Say” by Ray Charles feature grace notes that add substance to the melodic lines. These notes are played incredibly quickly to give the listener the impression of one note “sliding” into the next. A grace note is a note that acts as an embellishment (or addition) to the melody. The use of grace notes is another relatively simple technique that is often used to energize keyboard solos, especially in blues and similar styles of music. Because of the layout of the piano, the instrument has a lot of potential to create rich harmonic textures and chord voicings that can be difficult to achieve on other instruments. Once you have started to get the hang of triads in their root position (playing them starting from the “root” or primary note), you will want to start exploring inversions (playing the same notes for each chord, but rearranging the notes so that they are stacked in a different order). “Let It Be” by The Beatles features a strong, fairly repetitive chord progression made up of mostly triads which serves as an anchor for the song. Starting to learn chords on the piano can be overwhelming, but the most commonly used chords are only made up of three notes each these chords are called triads. Every song has a chord progression, and often the role of the piano is to outline those chords very clearly. In Led Zeppelin’s “Fool in the Rain,” the right-hand piano part plays through quick chord changes as well as melodic parts that complement the vocal line.Ī song may have a different chord progression for each section (verse, chorus, etc.) while some songs maintain the same few chords the entire time. Proper finger technique is vital for not getting your fingers tangled up in knots - this especially applies to the right hand as it is often doing much of the heavy lifting with chords, arpeggios (notes of a chord played one after the other), and melodies. The left hand often acts as an accompaniment, or secondary part, supporting the right hand. Because of the layout of the piano, the right hand is generally going to be playing on the higher side, bringing out the treble sounds through chords (multiple notes played at once) or melodies.

You will typically be using them both together, but each hand has its own role to play in what it can bring to the music. When playing piano, much of your technique should be similar regardless of whether you are using your right hand or your left hand. The techniques outlined in this article will provide insight to anyone who is interested in sharpening their rock piano skills and gaining a better understanding of one of the underappreciated stars of rock and roll music. Because the piano is such a versatile instrument, it can be difficult to know where to begin. Electronic keyboards and synthesizers can open doors to even more sonic possibilities while still functioning as the same basic instrument. However, when utilized properly, the piano is good for more than just Bach and Beethoven and can liven up any rock sound with its percussive and melodic qualities. Considering that many successful rock bands have no keyboard player at all, it can seem almost non-essential. When most people think about the genre, the piano is likely not the first instrument that comes to mind. It can be easy to understate the piano’s contributions to rock and roll.

Piano tuning little rock