how to structure piano learning

D

Djamaica2012

New member
hi guys

I am currently learning the piano, currently my practice looks like this;

1) Practice all progressions from chart attached to this thread, 5 times
2) Practice / Go through all major inversions, 3 times
3) Practice / Go through all minor inversions, 3 times
4) Practice all progressions from chart with 3rd inversion ( i like neo soul type chords in my production ) 1 time
5) Pick a song from youtube or wherever and try to work out chords by ear

This is pretty much my daily routine for practice, I do not have money for lessons, I am trying to go off a lot of different sources on the internet.

My aim is become a better producer and to do that i need to understand more theory and develop my understanding for the 'rules' of music, by that I mean to have some form of structure when I want to develop an idea, before i have sat at the piano for hours singing this hook line that I cant seem to get to fit which can be very frustrating.

My question I guess is for anyone out there reading this, any exercises or sources of info that you would recommend, i have a great opportunity to further my understanding and ability on the piano and i want to make sure that i maximise this time.

I never wanted to be a traditional player in the sense of reading music and all that, I more so want to develop a really good ear and understanding for chords and song structure.

Thanks for reading this, sorry if its in the wrong forum.

Chart discussed above...

http://mugglinworks.com/chordmapsArchive/images/1-6chart.gif

J
 
change those numbers to 10 and you start to get close to the type of work needed in a single session

you may also want to add scales at the start and the end as warmups and warmdowns - get the fingers working and the posture working as well - use a metronome and start real slow ca 40bpm and work your way up to 260bpm (in increments of 2 until you hit 60bpm and then in increments of 3 until you hit 96bpm and then in increments of 4 until you get to the end) over many, many, many months. Play your scales solely as quarters, 8ths, 16ths and the triplets of each type mix and match after that. Note for each smaller division of the beat you are effectively doubling the previous tempo

good luck
 
thanks for the quick reply so let me just make sure i got this because this is going to be the structure of my learning for the foreseeable future, ok so to lay out my understanding of what you have said,

-your suggesting to change my 5 times, to 10 times for a start, correct?
- to start my session with scales with a bpm? am i right in thinking u mean to do every scale in this fashion major and minor, for example C maj @ 40,42,44,46,48 etc.... then 60,63,66,69 -96.....then 96, 100, 104 all the way up to 260bpm..... then would i do the same for Db or does the scale change with each increments you go up ..... typing that out i think i realise which one but i just want to clarify

not following the 8th,16ths and triplets thing, sorry could you be more specific?

my main ambition is to become really in tune with the ideas in my head, so that conversion from a lightbulb melody or hook I can get down quick like boom!!!

would you suggest anything else in terms of learning chords or would you say adding that to my current structure is the most efficient way to learn?

apologies if this is noobish, i really appreciate the feedback, just know that this is really going to help me achieve what i am trying to do.

thanks
 
day 1 40bpm and then 42 bpm as many scales as you currently know, look to add new ones as you go; use the following post, chart and linked sites to get better grip on this aspect of playing https://www.futureproducers.com/for...getting-started/how-play-scales-piano-471375/

all scales done as plain quarter notes to begin with, i.e. 1 note per beat
then do them as 8ths, i.e. 2 notes per beat
then 16ths, i.e. 4 notes per beat

quarter triplets = 3 notes per 2 beats
8th triplets = 3 notes per beat
16th triplets = 6 notes per beat

then mix and match the above to create dynamic scale studies

your chord ideas are fine for now

mugglin is a good source to use as well
 
Piano practice for non-virtuosos
1. Get a teacher and learn some technique so you won't hurt yourself. Carpal Tunnel and tendonitis are real.

2. Practice scales/modes to a metronome for warmup no more than 15 minutes. You can alternate- major scales one day, minor scales another day. Use the circle of fifths...it it your friend. Pay attention the interval relationships and SING those scales. I can't stress enough how important it is to sing what you play and hear.

3. Practice sight-reading tune. Don't know how to read music? Learn. Don't want to learn how to read music? Accept that you're a lame who isn't serious about learning music. A teacher can help you with this. This is where you learn and see chord progressions at a basic level. Get a Real Book or a book with known blues and RnB/soul standards- much of what you REALLY want/need to learn to play and compose with are in those genres. Reading will also help structure your chord and arpeggio voicing practice which is essential for learning improvisation. A qualified teacher can structure this for you further.

4. Practice transcribing melodies from songs. Youtube, radio- doesn't matter. Focus on SINGING what you hear and playing what you sing. Take your time, it will be slow going at first but you will get much faster the more you do this. Don't think you need to work out the entire song by ear- just take a few measures of the main melody and practice. Mary Had a Little Lamb is a good one to start with. This is the real meat of your learning and the most effective use of your practice time.

For those not seeking to be a skilled virtuoso pianist and just want to play what they hear and understand music, #2 and #4 is where the bulk of your time should be spent. Two hours a day minimum is fine. A qualified teacher will fine tune this list further.
 
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ok cool i think i am getting a better understanding for what i need to do now, thanks for your reply again, i would like to run this by you though, does this daily routine look ok to you and is there anything else you would or revise?

1. Practice Major scales with BPM 40bpm – 260bpm RH and LH
2. Practice Minor Scale with BPM 40bpm – 260bpm RH and LH
3. Practice all Major chords RH and LH, ( Triad, Major 6, Major 7[SUP]th[/SUP], Dominant 7[SUP]th[/SUP], Dim, Dim7th, Power chord, Aug Sus 2, Sus 4)
4. Practice all Minor Chords RH and LH , ( Minor Triad, Minor 6, Minor 7[SUP]th[/SUP], Dominant 7[SUP]th[/SUP], Dim, Dim7th, Power chord, Aug Sus 2, Sus 4)
5. Go through chord progressions via chart varying selection of chords from those above
6. Pick a song and try to play / learn it by ear

also other questions i wanted to pose to you, i saw what you posted about the scales on another thread, where does the melodic and harmonic scales fit in all this, i understand they are scales so a variation of major/minor scales... kinda... but in terms of songwriting when i go to write a song how does it apply, am i right in thinking songs are normally in major or minor keys?

when we are talking scales would you recommend just an octave or the whole piano?

I may be getting ahead of myself with this one but looks very cool anything a bit more stimulating like this that you can recommend or is it best master the above first

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrgDJJg1hvs

again really appreciate your comments man thank you
 
@pumpthrust i really appreciate that bro im going to throw that into the mix for sure...

when you talking about using the circle of fifths, you just pick a note and follow it round in a circle right with either scales or chords?
 
thanks for the reply, yeah i have a circle of fifths diagram i was just wondering if you meant by applying the practice using it, you meant going round the circle of fifths playing chords or the scale of the particular note...
 
Yes, your scale warmups should be done to the circle of fifths. Clockwise or counter clockwise is up to you. Chord practice should be practiced with lead sheets to actual tunes or at least in sequences (ii-V-I, I-IV-V, etc.) cycling around the circle of fifths.
 
is there any rules to combining them, for instance i-vi-iii or ii-V-vi-iii? i guess what im asking is there common ones that work more than random ones?
 
@bandcoach bro you have been so helpful today i cant thank you enough, I think i'm going to try and digest this info you have given me today study it and hit you back if thats cool with some questions
 
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