Playing Your Favorite Songs on the Piano

Start with the chorus

Begin with the part you know best, usually the chorus and the part that leads into it, the pre-chorus. Find where the chorus starts in your music and write the measure number at the top of the page. Learn that part first, then go back to the beginning and fill in the rest of the song. The chorus often comes back two or three times, so it pays off fast.

Melody on top, chords below

Let the right hand play the melody and the left hand play chords. Basic triads, three notes in each chord, give a steady, full sound under the tune. To build one, put a finger on the root, skip a white key, play the next one, skip again and play the next. Use fingers 5, 3 and 1 in the left hand.

Learn four chords that fit many songs

C major, G major, A minor and F major work together in a huge number of songs. Play each one with your left hand and say its name out loud. Then play them in that order, one chord every four counts, and loop back to C major. Once this loop feels easy, you can play along with many songs you already love.

Keep the chords close

Jumping your whole hand from chord to chord is slow and tiring. Instead, move the notes of a chord around so the hand stays in one spot. These new orders of the same notes are called inversions. Play G major as B, D and G, A minor as C, E and A, and F major as C, F and A. Now most changes move only a key or two.

Read a lead sheet

A lead sheet shows the melody with the chord names written above it. Use those chord names to build your left hand part. Play the chord when its name appears and hold it until the next name comes. A letter by itself means a major chord, and a small m means minor, so Am is A minor. If a name sits over the middle of a measure, the chord changes right there.

Keep the left hand up

If your left hand chords sound muddy, play them one octave higher. Chords around the C below middle C ring clearly, while the same chords near the bottom of the piano blur together.

Give every chord its full count

Count in your head so each chord lasts as long as it should. Some chords get three beats and some get one. Counting keeps every chord the same length each time you play. Watch the spots between parts too. When one part ends, go straight into the next one without waiting an extra beat.

Passing chords

A passing chord is a quick in-between chord that links two main chords and helps the music glide. It often lands on the last beat of a measure, right before the next main chord. Count one, two, three, then play the passing chord on four, and land on the next main chord right on the one.

The left hand is often the hard part

If you are right handed, your left hand will need extra time. Practice it alone and slowly, and treat it as its own piece until it feels natural. Keep your left hand fingers resting on the keys between chords. Lifting the hand high in the air means you have to look for the keys again.

Three left hand patterns to try

Once your chords feel steady, give the left hand a pattern. Try each one on C major for four beats, then use the same pattern on every chord in the song. 1. Block chord. Play all three notes together on beat 1 and hold them for four beats. 2. Broken chord. Play the root, third, fifth and third, one note on each beat. 3. Root and fifth. Play only the bottom and top notes, back and forth.

Try an Alberti bass

For a flowing left hand, play the notes of the chord one at a time in the order root, fifth, third, fifth, and repeat it under the tune.

Put the hands together

Learn the right hand first, then the left hand, then put them together one measure at a time. Read both hands at once by looking at the notes that are stacked above each other, since those are played at the same time. Start both hands on the keys even when one hand waits a few beats to come in. When two measures go well, join them, then add a third.

Learn it in an easier key

If a song is in a hard key, a version one half step away can use far fewer black keys. Learn that one first.

Play along with the recording

Once a part is steady, play it along with the recording. Join in with the left hand chords first, then both hands. Some melody notes may sound a little odd on the piano alone, because the singer slides between them, but they make sense with the music around them. If you learned the song in an easier key, play along with a version in that same key so the notes match.

Slow first, then full speed

If the music says the quarter note is 88, set a metronome to 44 for half speed. If a slow click is hard to follow, set it to 88 and count each click as half a beat, which is the same speed. When you can play the part three times in a row with no stops, move the metronome up by 5 or 10 and do it again. Keep your wrist loose as you speed up, because stiff fingers slow you down.

Common mistakes

Each of these has an easy fix. 1. The left hand jumps all over the piano. Use the close chord shapes so it moves only a key or two. 2. The chords sound muddy. Move them up an octave. 3. A chord gets cut short. Count every beat out loud until each chord gets its full count. 4. Rushing the easy parts and slowing down in the hard ones. Play with a metronome so the tempo stays steady. 5. Right notes with the wrong fingers. It still sounds fine, but it builds habits that are hard to undo, so slow down and fix the fingers now.

A ten minute practice plan

Try this every day with the song you are learning: 1. One minute. Play the four chord loop in your left hand, four counts each. 2. Two minutes. Play the chorus melody with your right hand alone. 3. Two minutes. Play the chorus chords with your left hand alone, counting out loud. 4. Three minutes. Put the hands together one measure at a time at half speed. 5. Two minutes. Play the whole chorus with the metronome or the recording, and finish on a good run.

Questions families ask

Here are short answers to the questions that come up most.

How long until a song sounds good

It depends on the song and how often you practice. A chorus built on four chords can start to sound like the song after a week or two of short daily practice. Starting with the chorus means you hear that progress sooner.

What age can my child start playing songs

Many children start simple songs once they can count to four and know the letters A to G. Block chords in the left hand and a short tune in the right hand work well for small hands.

How much should we practice

Ten to fifteen minutes a day works better than one long practice once a week. Short, focused practice every day helps the hands remember.

What should we buy first

A keyboard is fine to start. Look for full size keys that play louder when you press harder, and a bench or chair that lets the forearms sit level with the keys.

Do I need to read music to play songs

Not at first. Chord names on a lead sheet are enough to get started. Reading notes helps you learn melodies faster, and the two skills grow together.

Pick one song you love, learn its chorus with four chords, and play a little every day. Soon the whole song will come together. If you would like help learning your favorite songs, visit our piano page to book a time.