How to play a song with black-key chords on a piano

Summary

Mix and match activities to create a fun lesson about learning to play a black-key song on the piano.

🎲 What’s included in the activities:

• Choosing and analyzing a song
• Learning the function and meaning of black keys on the piano
• Playing the E key
• Playing the E chord
• Playing the E chord in a song
• Playing the A chord
• Playing the E and A chord in a song

💻 Materials:

• Solfeg.io web app best used with Chrome browser
• Projector or computer and access to Wi-Fi
• Pianos or Keyboards for students

Inspiration

🕐  Time: 5 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Choose and analyze a song

🎶 Recommended Songs:

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🎲 Activity:

• Select the song 'The Git Up' by the Lumineers from the Song library. Click on 'Piano' under 'Tools' - 'Visuals' so that the keyboard is visible.
• Tell students a bit about the song. You can mention some facts from the song description!
• Listen to Intro and Chorus 1 with your students.
• Discuss with your students:

Is it a man or a woman singing? (Man)

Is there just one person singing or more? (One)

How would you describe the range of the melody? (Wide)

What is the genre of this song? (Hip-Hop)

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Why does a piano have black and white keys?

🕐 Time: 5 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Learn the function and meaning of black keys on the piano
  

🎲 Activity:

• Tell your students that the white keys represent a C major scale (C-D-E-F-G-A-B). Play this scale to your students! All these keys are called 'naturals' - when you play this scale, nothing sounds out of place and everything fits.
• Now, play the C scale, but change one or two notes to black keys (e.g. C-D-Eb-F#-G-A-B). Ask your students if the scale sounded funky or unusual. Tell them that one of the goals of black keys is to bring unusual or surprising melodies in music.
• There are 7 white keys in a C major scale. Black keys add another 5, bringing the total possible keys and sounds to 12.
  

Eh, where's the E?

🕐 Time: 5 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Learn to find and play the E key on the piano

🎶 Recommended Songs:

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🎲 Activity:

• Click on 'E' under 'Tools' - 'Chords' so that the Solfeg.io keyboard showing the E chord is visible.
• Tell your students to find the E key on the piano. If they are having some difficulties, tell them to find the place on the piano where the black keys are in pairs. The E key will be there on the right side to these two black keys!
• Ask your students to play the E key on their pianos with their right thumb.
  

Black Key in the Middle

🕐 Time: 5 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Learn and play the E chord on the piano

🎶 Recommended Songs:

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🎲 Activity:

• Tell your students that to play the E chord, they will have to press a white key (E) with their 1st finger, a black key (G#) with their 3rd finger, and a white key (B) with their 5th finger. You can also ask them to look at the Solfeg.io keyboard on the screen to see the chord.
• Ask your students to play the E chord with their right hand!

E in the song

🕐 Time: 5 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Learn to and play the E chord in a song on the piano

🎶 Recommended Songs:

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🎲 Activity:

• Play the Verse 1 of the song and listen to it with your students.
• Tell the students that they will now have to play the E chord in this song.
• As soon as the E chord passes the red line - play it! Other chords should be omitted now.
• Press play and let them practice the chord and get familiar with it! You can also press the loop button in the controls so that the Verse 1 section would repeat multiple times.

Same Shape, Different Chord

🕐 Time: 3 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Learn and play the A chord on the piano

🎶 Recommended Songs:

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🎲 Activity:

• Explain to your students that they will have to play another very similar chord with the same shape (white key - black key - white key).
• Click on 'A' under 'Tools' - 'Chords' so that the Solfeg.io keyboard showing the A chord is visible.
• Get your students acquainted with the A chord - explain that they have to press a white key (A) with their 1st finger, a black key (C#) with their 3rd finger, and a white key (E) with their 5th finger
• Ask your students to play the A chord with their right hand!

Switcharoo

🕐 Time: 10 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Play the E and A chord on the piano in a popular song

🎶 Recommended Songs:

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🎲 Activity:

• It's time to try to combine the 2 chords. Show this chord combo to your students - E-A-E-pause. Repeat it multiple times.
• Now, let the students practice this combo by themselves. Encourage them to slowly build up the tempo if they feel comfortable enough.
• Next, invite your students to join you! Try playing Verse 1 together with them. Again, you can loop this section if needed.
• If the students feel confident enough, you can also play Verse 2.

The Chord Up

🕐 Time: 10 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Play the E and A chord on the piano in a popular song

🎶 Recommended Songs:

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🎲 Activity:

• Play the Intro of the song to your students. After that, press play and let the students try to repeat the intro by themselves. You can loop the Intro section and do it multiple times until the students feel comfortable with this part of the song.
• Next, play Chorus 1 to your students. Explain that the chord combo does not change and is the same one as in the Intro.
• Then, let the students do the Chorus 1!
• If the time allows, you can try to combine both Intro and Chorus 1 or even learn a further section of the song (there are no new chords in the remaining parts of the song).

Reflection

🕐 Time: 5 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Reflect on the learning process

🎲 Activity:

• Ask these questions to the class and have a short discussion

Was this your first time playing chords with black keys?

What was fun and what was challenging when you played?

What did you like about the song 'The Git Up'?

Which other parts of the song would you like to learn (vocal, rhythm, ukulele)?

Homework assignment

🕐 Time: 3 min

🎯 Objectives:

• Practice the C chord on the piano
• Find and learn more songs with the C chord present

🎲 Activity:

Challenge students to go beyond the lesson by…

• Students can learn basics of piano playing by completing Solfeg.io 10-day program on the mobile app (Day 4-Day 6 includes a song with black-key chords);
• For students feeling comfortable with black-key chords, you can give a 10-minute piano workout 'Black Key Drill' which contains parts from 10 songs with various black-key chords (A, D, E, Bm, F#m, C#m).

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