Section7 Complete
Section7 Complete
THEPIANOFORALL INSTANTTRANSPOSER
At some stage in your playing, you will want to change a song to a different key
so that it fits your vocal range.
There is an easy way to do this (but its not quite so easy to explain on paper so
bear with me).
Lets say you were playing a blues in the key of C and your chords were C, F, G
But you wanted to start with the chord of E instead of C because you could sing
more easily over the E chord.
The easy way to do it is to move ALL the chords the EXACT same number of
KEYS up or down. You can use the ROOT note of each chord to do this
5 notes up from F is A
5 notes up from G is B
You simply count how far away your FIRST chord is and then you will know which
column all the OTHER chords are going to be in because they all have to be that
exact number of keys away from the original chords (which will be in the white
column).
When you try it a few times you will see how simple it is.
7-2
INSTANTTRANSPOSER
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
C Db D Eb E F F# G Ab A Bb B
Db D Eb E F F# G Ab A Bb B C
D Eb E F F# G Ab A Bb B C Db
Eb E F F# G Ab A Bb B C Db D
E F F# G Ab A Bb B C Db D Eb
F F# G Ab A Bb B C Db D Eb E
F# G Ab A Bb B C Db D Eb E F
G Ab A Bb B C Db D Eb E F F#
Ab A Bb B C Db D Eb E F F# G
A Bb B C Db D Eb E F F# G Ab
Bb B C Db D Eb E F F# G Ab A
B C Db D Eb E F F# G Ab A Bb
ie. If the original chord is G diminished and you are transposing to column 8
Your new chord would be Eb diminished
7-3
ADVANCED BLUES
7-4
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
A RECAPONBOOK2
1. TRIAD BLUES
C C
C E G E C E G E
C E G A Bb A G E
C5 C5 C6 C6 C5 C5 C6 C6
1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3
C E G C E G
7-5
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
EXTENDINGTHERIGHTHANDCHORDS
Dont be thinking that your RIGHTHAND has to be playing complicated riffs all
the time. Blues is very rhythmic and because it is very often accompanying a
song it needs to be rhythmic at times
You learned to add in a Right hand chord at the start of each bar in book 2
Now its time to make Right Hand chords a bit more interesting.
First of all instead of just playing plain old basic triad chords in the right hand
lets introduce some sevenths and some inversions
Find these three RIGHTHAND chords for the next practice tune
F7 No F (root note)
G Backwards Inversion
The first beat is as if you are taking your hand quickly OFF the keys (you snap at
the chord quickly) The second beat is as if you are placing the chord back ON
the piano - and it is held for longer.
Notice that I have alternated where the FIRST Right Hand beat of each bar
comes in so that you can practice both.
7-6
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
OFF-ON BLUES
TRIADBLUES (Left Hand)
OFF ON
F7 (Middle)
C G (Backwards)
F7 (Middle) C
7-7
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
OFF-ON BOOGIE
STRAIGHTEIGHTBOOGIE (Left Hand)
OFF ON
F7 (Middle)
C G (Backwards)
F7 (Middle) C
7-8
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
OFF-ON SHUFFLE
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
OFF ON
F7 (Middle)
C G (Backwards)
F7 (Middle) C
7-9
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
THEDOUBLESHUFFLE
Try the DOUBLESHUFFLE on the next page. This is a great rhythm that drives
the beat forward like a train.
It LOOKS hard but once you get it you wont forget it!
Listen carefully to the sound clip
Observe WHERE the RIGHTHAND chords fit into the LEFTHAND rhythm.
RIGHTHANDC CHORD
LEFTHAND12/8 SHUFFLERHYTHM
7-10
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
DOUBLE SHUFFLE
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
F7 MIDDLE
C C7 G BACKWARDS
F7 MIDDLE C
7-11
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
TRIPLETS SHUFFLE
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
C
G Throughout
count 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3 etc
C G
F C G
7-12
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
TRIPLETS&DOUBLESHUFFLE MIX
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
C C7 G
F C G
7-13
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
THE POPULARI-IV RIFF
One of the most common occurrences in ALL types of music is the movement of
one chord to another chord that is four steps above (using a major scale)
For instance
C to F D to G E to A F to Bb G to C A to D B to E
I know this will sound very confusing - but this movement is known as the
CYCLE OFFIFTHS.
The reason for this is that the movement is often in a DOWNWARDS direction
ie from C DOWN to F which is FIVE steps if you count it backwards on the scale
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
C D E F G A B C
8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
All you need to know for now is the movement to a chord FOUR steps above
ie C to F F to Bb G to C
because you can make great use of this movement in your BLUES and GOSPEL
playing.
7-14
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
THE POPULARI-IV RIFF
I CHORDS IV CHORDS
C TO F Middle
1 3 5 1 3 5
F TO Bb Middle
G TO C Middle
I IV I IV I IV I I IV I IV etc
C F C F C F C C F C F
C F C F Bb F Bb F Bb F
C F C F C F C G C G C
F Bb F Bb C F C F C F C
7-15
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
I-IV SHUFFLEBLUES
I IV I IV I IV I I IV I IV
I IV I I IV I IV I IV I
I IV I IV I IV I I IV I
C G
I IV I I IV I IV I IV I
F C
7-16
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
I-IV SHUFFLEBLUES No.2
This version splits each chord up and alternates
between thumb and 3rd & 5th fingers
I IV I IV I IV I I IV I IV
I IV I I IV I IV I IV I
I IV I IV I IV I I IV I
C G
I IV I I IV I IV I IV I
F C
7-17
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
I-IV SLIDE
This is when you quickly bounce off one note onto another
For instance if you bounce off Eb onto E
It almost sounds as if you are bending the note as you would on a Guitar.
Try the following riff. I call it the Bonnie & Clyde Riff.
C Eb E G E C
1 33 5 3 1
SLIDE on to E from Eb
SLIDE SLIDE
SLIDE SLIDE
Now try the I-IV SHUFFLEBLUES No 2 on the next page and use this
SLIDE. Transpose it to the other two chords F and G.
7-18
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
I-IV SLIDE SHUFFLE
I didnt do the SLIDE in music notation because it would have been too fiddly
C G
F C
7-19
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
SOMECOOLNEWRIGHTHANDCHORDS
We can extend the Right Hand chords even further and create some really
Bluesy sounds.
Find these three chords and try the ON - OFF rhythm again with the various
left hand rhythms
C6 Middle Inversion
added 6th (A)
1 2 3 5
7-20
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
OFF-ON RHYTHM
TRIADBLUES (Left Hand)
OFF ON OFF ON
C6
F7
C6 G
F7 C6
7-21
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
OFF-ON BOOGIE
STRAIGHTEIGHTBOOGIE (Left Hand)
OFF ON OFF ON
C6
F7
C6 G
F7 C6
7-22
RIGHTHANDCHORDRIFFS
OFF-ON SHUFFLE
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
OFF ON OFF ON
C6
F7
C6 G
F7 C6
7-23
RIGHTHANDRIFFSANDLICKS
In book 6 you learned some Right Hand licks and patterns that you played over
static left hand seventh chords.
C7 F7 C7 C7
F7 F7 C7 C7
G7 F7 C7 G7
C BLUESSCALE
C BLUESSCALE - PATTERNSANDLICKS
C Eb E G E C
7- 24.3
1 22 3 2 1
5 E F F# G Gb F E
3 C D D# E Eb D C
ETC
7-24
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
Putting it all together
Now its time to try some RIGHTHAND patterns WITH the LEFTHAND Rhythms.
Experiment with all the patterns and licks. Start with the LEFTHAND and once
you get into the rhythm add in the RIGHTHAND.
The THREENOTEJUMP
Its called a 3 1 2 pattern because your third finger plays the first note then your
first finger (thumb) then your second finger. (3 1 2)
7-25
THREENOTEJUMP
RIGHTHANDONLY
E C D Eb C D E C D Eb C D D# E
C
A Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D
G
C6 F7
C
D# E A B G A Bb G
G
C C6 G
A F G Ab F G C
F C G
7-26
THREENOTEJUMP
TRIADBLUES (Left Hand)
E C D Eb C D E C D Eb C D D# E
C
A Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D
G
C6 F
C
D# E A B G A Bb G
G
C G
A F G Ab F G C
F C C6
7-27
THREENOTEJUMP SHUFFLE
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
E C D Eb C D E C D Eb C D D# E
C
A Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D
G
C6 F
C
D# E A B G A Bb G
G
C G
A F G Ab F G C
F C C6
7-28
THREENOTEJUMP BOOGIE
STRAIGHTEIGHTBOOGIE (Left Hand)
E C D Eb C D E C D Eb C D D# E
G A Bb A G
E E
C etc
C
A Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D
G
C6 F7
C
A B G A Bb G
D# E
G
C G
G B D E
A F G Ab F G C
F C C6
F A C D
7-29
THREENOTEJUMP TWIST
TWIST (Left Hand)
E C D Eb C D E C D Eb C D D# E
G
E
C
C
A Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D Eb C D
G
C6 F7
A C
F
C
A B G A Bb G
D# E G
C G
E G
G B D
C
A F G Ab F G C
F C C6
F A C
7-30
EXPERIMENTWITH VARIOUSRIFFS
You can see from the previous examples how to practice a riff or pattern.
F# G C F# G C F# G C
2 2 5 etc
F# G C REPEAT
Go through the entire 12 bar chord sequence so that you get used to playing a
riff while you change chords.
Then try them again with each of the other Left Hand rhythms -
the Straight 8 Boogie
the Beginners Blues
and the Twist rhythm
7-31
VARIOUSRIFFS
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
1
G A C REPEAT
1 2 3 etc
2
C Bb G REPEAT
3 2 1 etc
A A A A
G G G G
3 F# F
Eb E C
F# F
Eb E C
C
5 5
3 3
A A
4 F# F
G G
C Bb G
A A G
C
Eb E F# F Eb
C
5 1 3 1 5
3 3
7-32
MORERIFFS TOPRACTICEWITH
(from book 6)
These three note patterns are taken from the BLUESSCALE - experiment with them
C Eb F Eb F F# F F# G
F# G Bb G Bb C Bb C Eb
C Eb F F# G
This is a five finger position for the scale
This is called a SLIDE - you SLIDE onto the white key from the flat of the key
F# G C
22 5
This sounds similar but stretches the sound out. Variety is good
Notice that the sharp # in front of the first F makes them ALL sharp in that bar.
F# G C F# G C F# G C
2 2 5 etc
I call this the Bonnie & Clyde Riff. It always reminds me of the song.
C Eb E G E C
1 22 3 2 1
F# G C G F Eb C
22 5
7-33
MORERIFFS TOPRACTICEWITH
(from book 6)
The following 3 patterns are nearly the same. The second riff has just got an added C
note on TOP of the first note. This is a common blues trick. In the third riff the 2nd to
5th notes are played very quickly which is a riff in itself. LISTEN to the recording!
F F# F Eb F Eb C Bb C
3
F F# F Eb F Eb C Bb C
F F# F Eb F Eb C Bb C
Blues riffs very often use double notes - this gives an extra ring and you often SLIDE
on to the notes from a flat note.
5 A A G
3 F# F Eb E C
5 A A G A A G
3 F# F Eb E C Bb G F# F Eb E
You will have heard the following riff a million times. Try transposing it to F and G for
better effect.
5 E F F# G Gb F E
3 C D D# E Eb D C
(#)
1 2 3 4 1 3 1 2 3 4 1 3 1 3 1 4 3 2 1 3 1 4 3 2 1
7-34
RIGHTHANDRIFFS
PICKUPs, SLIDEs&TREMELOs
Pick Ups, Hammer Ons and Tremelos are devices that are often used in Blues.
A SLIDE is when you very quickly slide off one note onto another note.
(almost as if youve hit the first note by accident)
This is a typical BLUES device which is trying to copy the sound of a string being
bent on a Guitar - as often happens in the Blues
A TREMELO is when two notes are alternated many times at high speed giving a
vibrating sound. Listen to the sound clip.
Try the following two bars that use all three devices.
PICK UP
SLIDE on to E SLIDE on to G
from Eb from F#
12/8 SHUFFLE in C
In the following practice pieces I havent put in any TREMELOs but you can try
them yourself if you want to. For example in bars two, four, six etc you can either
hold the G and C note for four beats or play them as a TREMELO. Experiment!
I also havent written in all the notes for the HAMMERON because there wasnt
much room - I have written hammer on from Eb underneath instead.
7-35
SLIDE SHUFFLE
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
C E G A C E G A
Slide on to C Slide
E from Eb
C E G A (Try a TREMELO?) C E G A
Slide F Slide
C E G A
C Slide G
TRIPLETS
C E G A
F Slide C G
7-36
SLIDE ON BOOGIE
STRAIGHT EIGHT BOOGIE (Left Hand)
C E G A C E G A
Slide
C Slide
G A Bb A G
E E
C etc
C E G A C E G A
Slide F Slide
C E G A
C Slide G
G
C
C E G A
F Slide C
F
C
7-37
USINGTHEOCTAVES
12/8 SHUFFLE (Left Hand)
The great thing about piano is you can clearly see all the octaves. They all look
exactly the same! So if you learn a riff in one octave you can EASILY move it up
or down the piano to another octave. Even better is when you can LINK two or
three duplicate riffs together to take you up the piano and then use another riff or
run to bring you all the way down again.
Try the following exercise and then introduce it into your 12 bar blues.
C E G A
C E GA C E G A
Slide
Slide Slide
C Bb G Gb F Eb
C Bb G Gb F
C Bb G F
1 3 1 3 1 3 1 3 1 3 1 3 1 3 2 1
C BLUESSCALE - downwards motion
7-38
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
TURNAROUNDS
When you get to the 12th bar there is usually a device called a
turnaround which is basically a chord, lick or pattern that gives
you a strong audible desire to return to the beginning and start
again. This drives the tune forward and gives the listener a sense
of involvement in the tune.
Try the examples on the following page for Blues in the key of C
and then try to add them into your playing.
7-39
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
TURNAROUNDS
(In the key of C)
BASIC TURNAROUND
F C C G
BAR 10 BAR 12
TURNAROUND
CHORD
LEFTHAND TURNAROUND
F C C G
BAR 12
BAR 10 TURNAROUND
G C C# D
C F F# G
TWOHANDS TURNAROUND
F C G C G F# C G F C F
C
BAR 12
2 5 2 1 5 2 1 5 1
BAR 10 TURNAROUND
G C C# D
C F F# G
7-40
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
BLUESINTHE
KEYOF G
If a Blues tune in the key of C doesnt fit your vocal range then
the next easiest key to try is G.
Over the next few pages I will give you some guidelines for the
key of G but its even better practice if you can transpose every-
thing you have learned so far into the key of G by figuring it out
for yourself
7-41
SEE ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
LEFTHANDPATTERNS FORTHEKEYOFG
VIDEO
page 41
LEFTHAND STRAIGHTEIGHTBOOGIE
G
G B D E F E D B
C E G A Bb A G C
G D
D F# A B
C G
C E G A
12/8 SHUFFLE
LEFTHAND
G
G D
C G
7-42
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
RIGHTHANDCHORDS FORTHEKEYOFG
BASICCHORDS
G
1 3 5
C7 (Middle - no root)
1 2 5
D7 (backwards)
1 2 5
ADVANCEDCHORDS
G6 (middle)
1 2 3 5
1 2 3 5
D
1 3 5
7-43
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
THEGBLUESSCALE (RIGHTHAND)
THEGBLUESSCALE
ONEOCTAVE
1 2 34 1 3
TWOOCTAVES
1 2 34 1 3 1 2 34 1 3 1
ONEOCTAVE
G Bb C Db D F G
TWOOCTAVES
G Bb C Db D F G Bb C Db D F G
7-44
G BLUESSCALERIFFS TOPRACTICEWITH
(Practice these higher up the keys as well)
These three note patterns are taken from the BLUESSCALE - experiment with them
G Bb C Bb C Db C Db D
Db D F D F G F G Bb
G Bb C Db D
This is a five finger position for the scale
This is called a SLIDE - very often you slide onto the white key from the
flat of the key
C# D G
22 5
This sounds similar but stretches the sound out. Variety is good
Notice that the sharp # in front of the first C makes them ALL sharp in that bar.
C# D G C# D G C# D G
2 2 5 etc
I call this the Bonnie & Clyde Riff. It always reminds me of the song.
G Bb B D B G
1 22 3 2 1
C# D G D C Bb G
22 5
7-45
G BLUESSCALERIFFS TOPRACTICEWITH
(Practice these higher up the keys as well)
The following 3 patterns are nearly the same. The second riff has just got an added G
note on TOP of the first note. This is a common blues trick. In the third riff the 2no to
5th notes are played very quickly which is a riff in itself. LISTEN to the recording!
C Db C Bb C Bb G A G
3
C Db C Bb C Bb G A G
1
C Db C Bb C Bb G F G
Blues riffs very often use double notes - this gives an extra ring and you often SLIDE
on to the notes from a flat note.
5 E E D
3 C# C Bb B G
5 E E D E E D
3 C# C Bb B G F D C# C Bb B
You will have heard the following riff a million times. Try transposing it to C and D for
better effect.
B C C# D Db C B
G A A# B Bb A G
(#)
1 2 3 4 1 3 1 2 3 4 1 3 1 3 1 4 3 2 1 3 1 4 3 2 1
7-46
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
TURNAROUNDS
(In the key of G)
BASIC TURNAROUND
C7 G G D
BAR 10 BAR 12
TURNAROUND
CHORD
LEFTHAND TURNAROUND
C7 G G D
BAR 12
BAR 10 TURNAROUND
D
G G# A
G
C C# D
TWOHANDS TURNAROUND
C7 G D G D C# G D C G C
G D
BAR 12
2 5 2 1 5 2 1 5 1
BAR 10 TURNAROUND TURNAROUND
D
G G# A
G
C C# D
7-47
EXTRALEFTHANDRHYTHMS
(one bar in the key of C - Transpose to all keys)
BARRELHOUSE
G A G A
C C C C
ROCKABOOGIE 1 G
C C D# E C F
ROCKABOOGIE 2
Eb E Eb E
G
C
BOOGIE WOOGIE
C C E F F# G G G
BROKEN OCTAVES
C C E E G G A A
7-48
ADVANCEDBLUESPIANO
TAKINGITFURTHER
Hopefully, you will now have a feeling for playing Blues Piano.
Keep transposing all you have learned into as many other keys as possible.
Buy more books on Blues Piano - listen to CDs - pick out the ryhthms and the
riffs.
Start adding all the various elements together - have fun - experiment - make
mistakes - sing along - practice, practice, practice.
7-49
FAKE STRIDE
7-50
FAKESTRIDE
part 1 - real stride
Im sure youve seen a seasoned pianist playing stride piano. His or her left hand
going smoothly from a low bass note up to a chord back down to a note up to a
chord and so on. Looks easy but is actually very difficult.
Lets see how it might work with the chord of C - first find the notes
LEFTHAND LEFTHAND
C Middle Inversion C C C
C G C G
ROOT CHORD 5th CHORD ROOT CHORD 5th CHORD
7-51
FAKESTRIDE
part 2
FAKE stride produces a similar sound to real stride but is much easier to
perform. In fake stride the object is to keep the bass notes and chord notes in
closer proximity so that your left hand doesnt have too far to travel.
LEFTHAND
G G G G
E E E E
C G C G
1 1 1 1
FINGERS 3 2 5 2 3 2 5 2
Can you see that the single bass notes are basically the same rhythm you
played in the Oom Pah rhythm and the 1st and 2no beats of the bar are a
SPLIT CHORD
Transpose the rhythm to the chords of F and G and try the following chord
progression - LEFTHANDONLY
F C
G C
7-52
FAKESTRIDE
part 3
LETSMAKEITEVENEASIER
Even the fake stride can be difficult to begin with (and tiring on the muscles)
To help your practise you can take out one of the CHORD notes (the 3rd). This
will help you get used to the movement of the notes without over-complicating
things.
Try the progression again and notice the missing notes. Much easier!
C G G G C G G G C G G G C G G G
3 1 5 1 ETC
F C C C F C C C C G G G C G G G
3 1 5 1 ETC
G D D D G D D D C G G G C G G G
3 1 5 1 ETC
7-53
FAKESTRIDE
part 4
C E G CE GC E G C E G ETC
C G G G etc
F A C etc
F C C C etc
G B D etc
C G
G D D D etc
G C
7-54
FAKESTRIDE
part 5
C E G CE GC E G C E G ETC
F A C etc
G B D etc
C G
G C
7-55
The song youve been waiting for
THEENTERTAINER
by Scott Joplin
Now its time to try the first part of the all-time classic Ragtime song -
The Entertainer - made famous in recent times in the film The Sting.
Were going to play it using the Fake Stride so it wont be too difficult.
There are a few extra things to look out for.
The classic three bar opening is played using OCTAVES. This is actually easy
if you just LOCK your hand and concentrate on ONE finger. Look at the 3 bar
pattern carefully and youll see it is just ONE pattern repeated over three octaves.
(same notes - but 8 notes to the left) See if you can memorize it.
D E C A D G
D E C A D G D E C A B A Ab
D E C A D G
D E C A D G
D E C A B A Ab
Look out for BASSRUNS either single note (bar 10) or Octave notes (bar 12)
There are two versions of the piece. The second one adds in some SIXTHS to fill
out the Right hand melody (Bars 6-7, 14-15, 17-19)
This piece needs a LOT of practice but its worth it. Have fun!
7-56
SCOTTJOPLIN Page 1
1
OCTAVES 2 3
OCTAVES
OCTAVES
G
G
E C E C E C
C D D# E C D E B D C D D#
1 2 3 3
1
C C7 F G C
2 3
3 3
3 3
Bb
E C E C E C
4 3 2 1 2 4 3 2 1
1
2 3
C C7 F Bass run D G Octave Bass run
E Eb
1 2
G A B
E C E C E C C D D# E C D E B D C
C D
1 2 3 3
1
1 2
C C7 F G C
3
3 3
3
E C D E C D C E C D E C D C E C D E B D C E F F#
3
1 2 3
4
5
5 G A B
SCOTTJOPLIN Page 2
The Entertainer
G A G E F F# G A G E C G A B C D E D C D G
4 E F F#
3 2 1 2 1 1 4
1 2 3 1 2 3
C C F Fm C
5
3 3
G A G E F F# G A G G A A# B B B A F# D G E F F#
4 1 2 3 1 2 3 3 2 1 1
F E D
G A G E F F# G A G E C G A B C D E D C D C G F# G
3 2 1 2 1 1 2
4 1 1 2 1
C C F Fm C C7
C A C A C A G C E G E C G A C E D C
3 2 3 2 1 2 3 5 1 2 4
F D C D7 G C
G C
F# C Middle
7-58
YOU CAN NOW
TRY SECTION 8