The 3 Piano Chords ....

You Absolutely, Positively Need To Know......And How You Can Have Them Down Cold Before You Hit The Sack Tonight!

Ready?

Here they are:

and

Easy, eh?

Or you may be wondering

"What are these strange symbols?"

?

Not to worry! -- we'll have you playing them in no time flat!

     The 3 main chords in any key are called "the primary chords". Think of it as a family made up of a Mom, a Dad, and a kid. That's "the fam". There are cousins and aunts and grandpas and uncles and nieces and grandmas and nephews -- part of the extended family -- but they aren't "the fam", are they?

     It's the same way in music. When we play a song in the Key of C, for example, we might play all kinds of different chords, just like in a family relatives might drop by for awhile -- but they don't live there (hopefully!). Just the fam lives there -- Mom, Dad, and Kid.

     So in the key of C, the fam is:

C chord (made up of 3 notes: C, E, G)

F chord (made up of 3 notes: F, A, C)

G chord (made up of 3 notes: G, B, D)

Here's what they look like on music paper:

(Finale staff with C scale and I, IV, V chords)

And here's what they look like on a piano keyboard:

(Photos of 3 chords being playing by hand)

     That's all. That's the fam. That's Mom, Dad, & Kid. Cousins, such as D or A or E might show up from time to time, but the central characters in the Key of C are the C chord, the F chord, and the G chord.

      But you say "Why do you call them I, IV, and V then? Why not just call them C, F, and G.

     Good question. But here's a good answer:

     By calling them by I, IV and V, you can learn to play in ANY KEY! There are 12 major keys you can play in, and 12 minor keys you can play in. If you tried to memorize by rote what the "fam" chords are in each key, it would drive you nuts!

     But by UNDERSTANDING that the main chords -- the fam chords -- of ANY key are built on the I, IV, and V notes of that particular scale, you come out from under those clouds of confusion to the bright sunlight of KNOWING WHAT YOU'RE DOING AND WHY YOU'RE DOING IT!

     Now go to your piano and play the I, IV, and V chords in the key of C.

     Easy, isn't it?

     Next time we'll learn to harmonize most simple songs just using those 3 chords, so stay tuned.

     See you next week.