THE PRACTICAL THEORY BOOK

FOR PIANIST

BOOK 1
For the Absolute Beginner

Written by; KIGGUNDU JOSEPH

Director
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 CHAPTER: 0 CONTEXTS

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This is a very important chapter, here, I will discuss the approach that I will use
to lay down the concepts that you will need to confidently play music on the keyboard

First of all, I would like to congratulate you on this bold move that you have taken
to learn how to play the keyboard. This is a very important chapter. Here, I will
discuss the approach that I will use to lay down the concepts that you will need to
confidently play music on the keyboard. I have developed this
BOOK 1 for the absolute beginner. This means that if you do not know anything
then this is the right book for you. This book can also be used by keyboard players
who want to have a deeper understanding of musical concepts or to just revise and
refresh on concepts.
Throughout this book, I will treat music like a language. That is because
music can be thought of as a language. Since you are reading this text, I will use
English as an example.
• In English we have letters from the alphabet. These 26 letters are the building
blocks for the language. Well, in music, the building blocks are musical notes.
• After learning the English alphabet, we proceed to put some of these
letters together to form words. Well, in music, we put notes together to form
chords.
• Words are put together to form sentences. In music, chords are put together to
form chord progressions.

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 • Finally, when sentences are put together, a story can be told. In the same way,
when chord progressions are put together then we have a song.
A good communicator has a rich vocabulary and uses appropriate and
relevant words. Likewise, a good musician has a wide variety of chords at their
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disposal. Therefore, your aim should be to build a rich musical vocabulary.
Fortunately, music is filled with patterns. These patterns make things easier to
remember. The more patterns you notice, the better. Let’s look at the first pattern
you see when you look at the keyboard.

There are 3 black keys followed by 2 black keys then 3 then 2 etc. This is a simple
pattern but is very useful as you will see in the next chapters. Let’s go!

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 CHAPTER 1 – THE MUSICAL ALPHABET

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English we have letters from the alphabet and in music, we use musical notes.
As discussed in chapter 0, in English we have letters from the alphabet and in
music we use musical notes. Fortunately for us, these musical notes are named
using some letters From the English alphabet.
• The Musical Alphabet consists of 7 letters: A B C D E F and G
Only these 7 letters are used in music. Therefore, once you get to G, you restart
form A
Instead, of continuing to H, I, J etc.
So that will be:
A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C and so on.
In general, we get Higher pitched sounds (Sharper sounds) when we move up the
musical alphabet. And lower pitched sounds (flatter sounds) when we move down.
In music we generally prefer to start on C instead of A, therefore it is more
common to say out the musical alphabet as
C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C and so on
WHITE KEYS
Next, let’s see how these notes are located on the keyboard. A good place to start is
to remember the notes C and F.
• C is the white note that is at the left of the 2 Black keys.
• F is the white note that is at the left of the 2 White keys

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Once we locate F and C, the rest is pretty much “Fill in the blanks”

As you can see, for keyboard players, the seven letters of the musical alphabet
correspond to the white notes on the keyboard. This makes them easy to identify
and remember.

BLACK KEYS
Consider the black key in between A and B

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This black key can’t be given a logical alphabet name because no alphabet letter
comes between the letters A and B. As a result, black keys borrow the same name
as the closest white key together with the suffix sharp (#) or flat (b) added to it.
Let’s look at these 2 musical terms: Sharp (#) and Flat (b). In general, to sharpen a
means to make higher in pitch, while to flatten means to make lower in pitch.
Therefore, Sharp is used for a black key to the right of (or higher than) the
neighboring white note.
Likewise, Flat is used for a black key to the left of (or lower than) the neighboring
white note.
Because every black key has 2 neighboring white notes, it means it has 2
names, depending on which white note you use to name it.
Therefore, the black note in-between A and B can be referred to as A Sharp (A#)
or B Flat
(Bb).
Here are the 12 keys with the names

Therefore, you need to know 12 and then it repeats forever.

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 REMARKS
Notice that there isn’t a black note between E and F and between B and C

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 CHAPTER 2 INTERVALS AND SCALES

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A good understanding of the information in this chapter will set you up for success
Ok, prepare yourself for some really important information. This is probably going
to be the most important topic I will ever write about in music. A good
understanding of the information in this chapter will set you up for success in
music, TRUST ME
THE BASIC INTERVALS
Simply put, an interval is the distance between 2 notes. There are a lot of intervals /
distances in music but we are just going to look at the 2 most important ones for
now -semitones (Half Step) and Tones (Whole Step).
Semitones (Half Steps)
A semitone (or half step) is the distance in pitch between a note and its nearest
neighbor on the keyboard.
Therefore, a semitone up from C is C#/Db. Also, A semitone down from C#/Db is
C. This is shown below

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 Also, a semitone up from Ab is A. A semitone down from A is Ab/G#. This is
below.

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Also, because there isn’t a black note between E and F, a semitone up

from E is F. Using the same logic, a semitone up form B is C. A
semitone down from F is E and a semitone down from C is B. This is
shown below.

From the above examples, you can see that if you move one step without skipping
a note then a semitone is formed.
Tones (Whole Steps)
A tone (or whole step) is an interval of 2 semitones added together.
A tone up from E is F#/Gb. A tone down from F#/Gb is E. Similarly, a tone up
from A#/Bb is C. A tone down from C is A#/Bb This is shown below

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 A tone up from C is D. A tone down from D is C. Similarly, a tone up from A is B.
A tone down from B is A. This is shown below

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From the above examples, you can see that if you skip a note then a tone is formed.
Here are a few more examples of tones and semitones.

SCALES
Generally speaking, a scale is a specific arrangement of notes with a distinct
pattern of tones and semitones. There are several types of scales that exist but the
major scale is by far the most important scale in music.

1. CHROMATIC SCALE
The chromatic scale is a scale that is built by just using semitones. Therefore, the
notes in the chromatic scale are:
C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C

2. THE WHOLE TONE SCALE

The whole tone scale is a scale that is built by just using tones. Therefore the notes
in the C whole tone scale are:

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 C D E F# G# A# C
Make sure you can build both the Chromatic scale and the Whole tone scales
before we look at the major scale. When you do this correctly, you know that you
can accurately identify tones and semitones. Let’s go
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3. THE MAJOR SCALE

The Major scale is by far the most important scale in music. In order to form the
major scale, the following formula is used:
Tone, Tone, Semitone, Tone, Tone, Tone, Semitone.
This can be abbreviated as
T,T,S,T,T,T,S
Let us use this formula to form the C major scale:
We Start form C.
Move a TONE up from C, we get D
Move a TONE up from D, we get E
Move a SEMITONE up from E, we get F
Move a TONE up from F, we get G
Move a TONE up from G, we get A
Move a TONE up from A, we get B
Move a SEMITONE up from B, we get C
Therefore, the C major scale is
C,D,E,F,G,A,B,C

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 Each note in the major scale can be given a number. This is an important concept.
Therefore, in the C major scale;
1=C
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2=D
3=E
4=F
5=G
8=A
7=B
8=1=C
Use this formula to form the remaining 11 major scales. The next page has a table
for you to fill out. PLEASE DO NOT SKIP FILLING OUT THIS TABLE. If you
don’t want to print the page, make your own table.

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 Fill the table with the 12 major scales

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 DO NOT GO TO THE NEXT PAGE UNTIL YOU HAVE FILLED IN THIS
TABLE!!
There are 12 major scales,
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 Here is a chart that shows the major scales on the piano. You may use this as a
reference until you have memorized these

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 THE PRINCIPLES OF SCALE FINGERING
The principles for scale fingerings in use today were first proposed by C.P.E. Bach
in his treatise, Essay on the True Art of Playing Keyboard Instruments (1753).
Page | 15 There are two main principles.

1. Neither the thumb nor the 5th finger are used on black keys (the exceptions
are the arpeggios of F sharp major and E flat minor)
2. Each scale is made up of a short group (123) and a long group (1234) in
alternation.

There are some useful pointers:

 Long fingers (2nd, 3rd and 4th) usually play on black keys
 Short fingers (thumb and 5th) go on white keys
 The 4th finger appears only once in each octave* – if you are struggling
to remember the fingering for a scale, just notice where the 4th fingers go
and use these notes as anchors.

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 CHAPTER 3 BUILDING CHORDS
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When two or more notes are played at the same time, a chord is formed. We will
be looking at triads in this chapter. These are chords which consist of three notes.
In this chapter we will look at how to build Major Chords (Major Triads) and
Minor Chords (Minor Triads). We will also briefly discuss diminished chords
(Diminished triads). There are many other types of chords that exist but at this
stage these will be suffice

THE MAJOR CHORDS

We have seen from previous chapters that there are 12 unique notes in music. We
have also seen that there are also 12 Major scales that exist. As a result, there are
12 Major chords chat can be formed. There are several ways to form these major
chords. I shall discuss two methods here.
1. Building major chords from the Major scale.
2. Building Major Chords using intervals.

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 Using Major Scale
As previously discussed, each of the notes in the major scale can be given a
Page | 20 number. So, for example, the C Major scale is

In order to build a Major triad from the major scale, use the following formula:
Major Chord = 1+3+5

Therefore
C Major Chord = C+E+G
Let’s look at another example.
Consider the Bb major scale

Remember,
Major Chord = 1+3+5
Therefore, for the Bb Major chord
Bb Major Chord = Bb+D+F

Let’s look at another example.

Consider the A major scale

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Page | 21
Remember,
Major Chord = 1+3+5
Therefore, for the Bb Major chord
A Major Chord = A+C#+E
Now that you know how to build the Major chord using the Major scale, Build
the rest of the Major chords for yourself before you proceed.

Using Intervals

There is another way to build major chords that uses intervals. This is another
good method to know as it is sometimes used in advanced topics in order to build
some fancy chords.
In this method, we think of a chord as a stack of intervals.
So,

Here I will use semitones to define the interval. So, for a major chord we have.

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 For C major chord:
The first note is C, then 4 Semitones form C gives us an E then 3 Semitones form
E gives us a G.
Page | 22 Therefore, C Major = C+E+G
For A major chord,
The first note is A, then 4 Semitones form A gives us a C# then 3 Semitones form
C# gives us an E.
Therefore A Major = A+C#+E
For F# major chord,
The first note is F#, then 4 Semitones form F# gives us an A# then 3 Semitones
form A# give us a C#
Therefore F# Major = F#+A#+C#
Now that you know how to build the Major chord using intervals, build the
rest of the Major chords for yourself before you proceed

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 Here are the 12 Chords

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 Here are the 12 major chords

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 The Minor Chords
There are several methods that can be used to build minor chords.
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1. Minor Chords can be built from the Minor Scale
2. They can be built from the Major Scale
3. They can be built from major chords
4. They can also be built using intervals.
Since we have not looked at minor scales, I will not be discussing the minor scale
method here.
Using Major Scale
Let’s build a C minor chord.
As previously discussed, each of the notes in the major scale can be given a
number. So for example, in the C Major scale

In order to build a Minor triad from the major scale, use the following formula:
Minor Chord = 1+3b+5
Therefore
C Minor Chord = C+Eb+G
Let’s Build a Bb minor chord
Consider the Bb major scale

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 Remember,
Minor Chord = 1+3b+5
Therefore, for the Bb Minor chord
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Bb Minor Chord = Bb+Db+F
Lets Build an F# minor chord
Consider the F# major scale

Remember,
Minor Chord = 1+3b+5
Therefore, for the F# Minor chord
Bb Minor Chord = F#+A+C#
Now that you know how to build the Minor chord using the Major Scale,
Build the rest of the Minor chords for yourself before you proceed

Using Major Chords

If you already know how to play a Major chord, then you can easily play a minor
chord by simply modifying the Major chord. Play a Major chord and simply flatten
the 3rd
.
So From
C Major Chord = C+E+G
Flattening the 3rd will give you
C Minor Chord = C+Eb+G

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 Now that you know how to build the Minor chord using the Major Chords, Build the rest
of the Minor chords for yourself before you proceed

Using Intervals

Page | 27 Here again, I will use semitones to define the interval. So for a minor chord we
have

For C Minor chord:

The first note is C, then 3 Semitones form C give us an Eb then 4
Semitones form Eb give us a G
Therefore, C Minor = C+ Eb + G
For A Minor chord:
The first note is A, then 3 Semitones form A gives us a C then 4
Semitones form C gives us a E.
Therefore, A Minor = A +C+E
Now that you know how to build the Minor chord using the intervals, build
the rest of the Minor chords for yourself before you proceed

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 Here are the 12 minor Chords

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 Here are the 12 minor Chords

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 The Diminished Chords
We will quickly look at how to make diminished triads. You will not use them as
much as the other two at first but you will find them really useful later on.
Page | 30 Diminished chords ca be written with a “Dim” Eg Cdim or with a little circle such
as C˚
Using Major Scale
Let’s build a C Diminished chord.
As previously discussed, each of the notes in the major scale can be given a
number. So for example, in the C Major scale

In order to build a Diminished triad from the major scale, use the following
formula:
Diminished Chord = 1+3b+5b
Therefore
C Diminished Chord = C+Eb+Gb
Using Major Chords
If you already know how to play a Major ch ord, then you can easily play a
diminished chord by simply modifying the Major chord. Play a Major chord and
simply flatten the 3rd and the 5th
So From
C Major Chord = C+E+G
Flattening the 3rd and 5th will give you
C Minor Chord = C+Eb+Gb

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 Using Intervals
Here again, I will use semitones to define the interval. So for a diminished chord
we have
Page | 31

For C Diminished chord:

The first note is C, then 3 Semitones form C give us an Eb then 3 Semitones form
Eb give us a Gb
Therefore, C Diminished = C+ Eb + Gb
For A Diminished chord:
The first note is A, then 3 Semitones form A gives us a C then 3 Semitones form C
gives us a Eb.
Therefore, A Diminished = A +C+Eb
Now that you know how to build the Diminished chord, Build the rest of the
diminished chords for yourself before you proceed

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 Here are the 12 diminished Chords are:

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 The 12 diminished Chords

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 CHAPTER 3 THE DIATONIC CHORDS

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“Words are put together to form sentences. In music, chords are put together to
form chord progressions”
Every song you will play has will be in a particular key. The key of a song is a note
that will be the tonal center of your song. More often than not, a song will be in a
Major Key. This means that the song will be based on the Major scale.
So, for instance if a song is in the key of C Major, it means it uses the notes in the
C Major Scale.
We have looked at how to build Major scales and how to make chords. Now we
want to know which chords to use when we are playing in a particular Major Key.
Diatonic Chords
You should think of diatonic chords as a family of chords all tied to one another by
the notes of a key. They are all connected together by the key of the song.
So far we’ve established that each Major scale contains seven different notes. It is
possible to build a chord on each of these seven notes. When we do so, each note of
the scale serves as a root note for a chord. Therefore, each key has 7 basic diatonic
chords.
We can use the Major scale of the chosen key to determine the diatonic chords.
Basically, to make the diatonic chords, choose the note you want to form the chord
from and play every other note in the Major scale until you have the 3 notes for

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 your triad chord. If you get to the end then of the scale continue by restarting the
scale.
Let’s look at some examples:
Page | 35 Consider the key of C.
The Key of C Major contains 7 notes. These 7 notes are

1 is C, play 1 + 3 + 5 of the C Major scale. That is C + E +G. The Diatonic Chord

formed by doing this is C Major Triad.
2 is D, play 2 + 4 + 6 of the C Major scale. That is D + F +A. The Diatonic Chord
formed by doing this is D Minor Triad.
3 is E, play 3 + 5 + 7 of the C Major scale. That is E + G +B. The Diatonic Chord
formed by doing this is E Minor Triad.
4 is F, play 4 + 6 + 1 of the C Major scale. That is F + A +C. The Diatonic Chord
formed by doing this is F Major Triad.
5 is G, play 5+ 7 + 2 of the C Major scale. That is G + B +D. The Diatonic Chord
formed by doing this is G Major Triad.
6 is A, play 6 + 1 + 3 of the C Major scale. That is A + C +E. The Diatonic Chord
formed by doing this is A Minor Triad.
7 is B, play 7 + 2 + 4 of the C Major scale. That is B + D +F. The Diatonic Chord
formed by doing this is B Diminished Triad.
This can be done for any key and you will get the same results.

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 Therefore, for any major Key, Diatonic triads are

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This means that 1,4 and 5 will use Major Chords while 2,3,6 Will use minor
Chords.7 Will be a diminished chord.

Using the above table, let us use the Key of Bb Major as an example.
The Key of Bb Major contains 7 notes. These 7 notes are

The triads that correspond to each of the notes in the C Major Scale are therefore:

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Page | 37

Now that you know how to determine the diatonic Chords for a Key. Find the
diatonic chords off all the Major keys before you proceed

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 The Diatonic Chords for the 12 Major scales are given below

Page | 38

Now that you know How to form Diatonic Chords, you are well on your way
to playing chord progressions.

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 You are now ready for Volume 2 of this series

You are just right in the piano world keep doing more practice…
Page | 39
For online classes just subscribe on my YouTube channel [Teacher jose] and
press join

INTERMEDIATE TRAINING IN BOOK 2

THANK YOU

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