How to play and practice chord inversions (Major and Minor) // Full beginner tutorial

[@PianoFromScratch]

Check out part 3 next here to help you find and recognise each position straight away with moving through them first 👉 kzbin.info/www/bejne/nZStpoljfLChgac

[@liseauffray2119]

I've been playing of and on for several years. I just happened upon one of your videos and then watched several. I like the way you use visuals of the shapes, especially helpful for inversions. You've given me a whole new way of looking at these, that will make may playing easier. Thank you!

[@lawrencetaylor4101]

I watched your videos two years ago, and just watched for old times sake. You have the best method for teaching chords, period.

[@kenschiavo191]

I love the visualization of the keys...man it's a brilliant way of helping with inversions.I am struggling to find them, especially for songs involving a few black keys...this is absolutely the coolest way I've seen to help. Also, we can always either use thumb, middle or pinkie to play the root note, that also helps...and just try and visualize the other 2 notes in the chord, since the root note will be the same.

[@brendadavies3942]

Absolutely brilliant xx you are the best I’ve seen thank you xxxxx

[@6moon18]

Thank you

[@natneedle610]

I think you are a wonderful and insightful teacher, and I think my students will slowly come to see that as well. You really put so much thought into how students think and feel. Thank You!

[@2002jorgeparr]

AWESOME SIR!!!!!! YJAMK YOU SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!

[@LilianaLytvyn]

The most helpful video on memorizing and practicing inversions I’ve seen (and I’ve seen quite a few!) Thank you!!!!!

[@PianoFromScratch]

Glad it was helpful, thanks!

[@jorgeparr3002]

YOU MAKE LEARNING MUSIC THEORY FUN AND INTERESTING THANKS 😊

[@PianoFromScratch]

Awesome, and it's good to remember that a bit of understanding in music can help us play and have more fun too!

[@ryanbautista885]

At first I don't understand why do we need to study inversions, but when I already tried doing it I found them very useful.

[@BobJJ9999]

Your teaching style is first class! ( I’ve been a teacher for years! Not a piano teacher!) Thank you.

[@PianoFromScratch]

Thanks for the feedback!

[@Jason-rk4xc]

Such great content on this channel, I wish you well mate.

[@PianoFromScratch]

Thanks!

[@richard135b7]

Your videos are amazing and so insightful. You have a special gift for teaching. Thank you

[@PianoFromScratch]

Thanks for the feedback!

[@joshatus]

Thank u so much for the tips. Great stuff to learn it with ease.

[@Majkl7323]

Thanks for awrsome tutorials! ❤️

[@lpa9974]

Thank you for your videos. I am so happy that I found you. You are very logical and step by step- perfect for the way I learn. I would like to ask if you have more videos on chord inversions. I have watched four of them and they are excellent. I am looking for a lesson that shows you how to use inversions of different chords in a song so you don’t have to make large jumps between chords. I hope that makes sense and thanks again!

[@sayanthc938]

Thank you very much for doing this.

[@T-marie-N]

Very helpful! Thank you.

[@markuskukla1845]

Really great video, helps me a lot as a rookie

[@PianoFromScratch]

Glad to hear it!

[@jaishriram2020]

Very nice!! 👌👌

[@l.j.4453]

That video was pretty helpful, thanks! Can you do a video about sight reading, more precisely, a video in where you explain the most common music symbols? I try to learn sight reading and I have a hard time figuring out what all these different symbols mean and for example why some notes are connnected by lines etc. Or do you have any tips?

[@PianoFromScratch]

Hi, yes a plan on getting to some reading content at some point soon. A video on just common symbols as a good video topic though, thanks for the suggestion

[@allgood6760]

Thanks 👍

[@peterwalton763]

Thanks for another great video. Weirdly, I seem to like practising chords and scales, etc, much more than actual pieces! Also like improvising to your backing tracks. Looking forward to the next video 😊👍

[@PianoFromScratch]

That’s great, yes sometimes exercises can be kind of meditative I find. Still the ultimate goal is to play actual music though, of course

[@peterszasz5176]

Thanks!

[@PianoFromScratch]

No problem, thanks to you too

[@abdeljabarelgueddari735]

Hi, question pls🙂 C Chord : First invertion 3rd 4th. Second invertion 4th 3rd. I unserstand it. But how it works with C Minor for exemple? Where are the 3rds and 4ths in the First and second invertion and how can i count them in this case. Nice WE

[@PianoFromScratch]

It’s just the same, just some 3rds are major and some are minor. If you compare c major first inversion (E G C) to c minor first inversion ( Eb G C). Whether the E is flat or not it’s still 3 letters, E F G making them both 3rds. Eb to G is 4 half steps a major 3rd, E to G is 3 half steps a minor 3rd. Both cases the G to C is the same 4th

[@PianoFromScratch]

I was mentioning that in the video for the main reason of seeing how the white note inversions are all the same distance of white keys, so the same physical shape and size.

[@abdeljabarelgueddari735]

@@PianoFromScratch Thanks!

[@craigbernthal7388]

Great video. Do you have anything on how to put both hands together with the inversions? I find that to be very difficult.

[@timajrobins]

Hello, I was looking for a bit of advice on how to decide what inversions to play if you are learning a song. For example, recently I learnt how to play a progression all in root position, but realised there were a lot of big jumps when in root position (G to Dmin for example) which felt slightly clunky. Is the best way to decide what inversion to use (if any) just by what is physically closest/easiest to play from the previous chord? i.e. thinking, 'the next chord is D minor -- so it will have a D in it', and then just find that D and work out whether it's best to play 1st inversion or 2nd inversion just based on what your hand was doing before? I'm pretty good with the muscle memory/visuals of basic chord shapes, but as I don't really think about the actual notes of that chord so much I find it harder to think about what notes may be shared with the previous/next chord in the progression, or are close to it, and then find what inversion works from there. On this point - do you think it's a good idea when practising basic chords to maybe say out loud the notes in that chord, just so they are internalised and inversions can maybe be worked out more easily? Long question and that's maybe not very clear sorry :/ Am really looking forward to some guided practice on chord inversions and it messes with my brain so much! Thank you! Really liking all of the videos!

[@PianoFromScratch]

I know exactly what you means. Choosing what to play next should first and foremost be to do with the sound you want. There’s a million ways you can play a chord progression but if we’re using basic chord positions and inversion shapes, close movements often sound quite nice and a good place to start . You don’t necessarily want to do that all the time though. So you would often use a mixture of inversions to find a close position to play the next chord. I covered this a little bit an a video a while back that may help a bit and it’s something i want to get more in depth into on the channel at somepoint. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pH_Jl5-AetiSiJI

[@timajrobins]

@@PianoFromScratch Great, thank you! I think I watched that video but I'll revisit, and I'm sure there'll be some pearls of wisdom! Thanks for your reply.

[@timajrobins]

Thanks, just watched the video and was helpful. I'm sure you have a plan for upcoming videos, but I wondered if at some point you could do one about practices techniques for chord inversions? Am currently just playing up and down, then testing myself with choosing random chords in different inversions (harder to do by yourself!). Would like some ideas for exercises/musical ways to solidify inversions. Thanks for all of your work on the channel, it's a really great resource!

[@realebogapetlele6713]

There are soo many things to practice I get bored and discouraged 🥺🥺🥺 I just want to play songs already 😂😂 but when I learn songs I realize I need the basics cause I don’t know what I’m playing huuuu send hello 😩😩😩

[@PianoFromScratch]

Yes I know the feeling, there's endless things you can be learning and it can certainly be overwhelming! The trick is to set some small short term goals, organise what you're going to work on and don't try and learn too many things at once. Working on something like chords and inversions or scales for example, there's loads to do eventually, but just gradually work your way through things over longer period of time. Perhaps aim to add on a new scale every couple of weeks for a while (or whatever works) for example and maybe aim to learn all the 1 octave major scales starting from white notes to start with? Or aim to work on chord inversions twice a week, might be good to start with white key major and minor chords and when that feels good, add on the chords with a black key the middle like D major, E major etc. It works much better to build up step by step! And I know things can get frustrating from time to time but try and remember that whilst we're really here to play actual music, the fundamentals and learning a bit about how music works ends up giving us way more freedom to enjoy the actual music, do more with it and learn new things quicker and quicker.

[@arthouston7361]

When I started this journey a couple of years ago, I took the approach that we have had this version of the keyboard for perhaps 260 years or so, and that everyone who has learned it well has taken a very similar approach, and that includes theory and written music on staffs. So, I decided that I would learn as much as I can and practice the skills regularly, because that is a common factor in piano success. I knew that some of it would be boring or even discouraging, but I keep the goal of proficiency in mind and press on. Day by day, I can't really see much improvement, but looking back over the past two years, I have made light years of progress and can now do things that were only a dream at the beginning, and now that I have those accomplishments to look back on, I am more motivated than ever. So, enjoy the great days and push yourself through the bad days, and you can do it!

[@abdeljabarelgueddari735]

Nice!

[@torugodfrey5380]

Great video🎉 But what is the left hand pattern

[@jgtbym601]

I like your tutorial because you explain well, but as a suggestion, could you show the actual fingering on the keyboard so that we could follow you. I find that I’m listening to your explanations more than actually doing. Thanks

[@mitchy_blacc]

is learning inversion chord only on the right hand an alright standard to learn??

[@rickhood]

In practicing anything I find a difference between "hand memorization" and "mind memorization". Hand memorization comes with lots of repetition, but not so much mind memorization. For example, I am in the process of re-learning (after 20 years) all 24 scales (12 major and 12 minor natural). At this point my hands have them memorized, but my mind does not have them all memorized, meaning that I cannot easily start an unusual scale right off the bat - I struggle hitting the right notes the first time, but when I get it once, my hands take over and go. Most of the major scales my mind has memorized, but not the minor scales yet. I am sure the same is true when I move on to do arpeggios and inversions. Question: does "mind memorization" just happen over time, or do you do other things to memorize -- flash cards or something?

[@PianoFromScratch]

Yes there certainly is a difference, sometimes we just get in a routine of what to play and one thing leads on to the next automatically. I’ll try and answer your question in 2 ways, they way I see it. Firstly, what can help with ‘mind memoization’ (this probably works better with an actual piece of music a piece of music) is using markers. So for example, remembering a few notes at particular points of a melody, could be the first note of each hand position change perhaps. It’s not one simple answer but I think the main thing that really helps with what you’re calling mind memorisation though is just understanding how things work properly and being able to visualise shapes as opposed to just memorising how to recite things (Which is why I put a lot of focus onto that on my channel). It actually becomes less like memorisation and more like you just know it, or can figure it out so quick, it feels like it’s memorised. When you really understand how a scale is built for example, AND you’re practiced at recognising the shapes and finding those intervals that build it, shapes just start appearing in front of your eyes. Of course this takes time. I have this video on how to picture major scales which explains the method kzbin.info/www/bejne/p2OvoHeMe5KHiK8 Then for minors - I assume you’re just learning the natural minor at the moment from the sound of what you said but in case you weren’t aware, there’s different types too. - compared to a major scale, natural minors have a flat 3rd flat 6th and flat 7th, so if you’re comfortable seeing those notes move down from a major shape, that’s one pattern to learn that you apply to different keys. It’s hard to explain that fully but I do have a video on that idea too kzbin.info/www/bejne/jHSpiKFnm9Jmaa8 Flash cards are useful too to test you. I’m starting different series of guided practice videos on the channel for different things with a similar approach as I think testing is important. Coming up soon are videos on finding intervals and major/minor chords, but there will be inversions and scale etc plus more in the future. Time is also a factor of course too, the more you use these things, the more internalised they will become. Regular practice just keeps you getting more and more familiar with the keyboard, the notes and all the chords and scales etc

[@rickhood]

@@PianoFromScratch thank you so much for your detailed answer. I asked someone else in another forum. specifically about "mind memorizing" scales and he recommended that I jump around from scale to scale rather than stick too long on one (which is what I usually do). I tried that last night and it worked great:. I jumped around between these, doing them only twice before moving to another (normally I would stay on a scale for like 5-10 minutes each): Cmaj > Cmin ...2 octaves, only twice Gmaj > Gmin ...2 octaves, only twice Dmaj > Dmin ...etc. Amaj > Amin Emaj > Emin Bmaj > Bmin repeat... Now I have those minor scale notes memorized. Came back to it this morning and remembered. :-) Now I will do same with then next set: F#maj > F#min C#maj > C#min A♭maj > A♭min E♭maj > E♭min B♭maj > B♭min Fmaj > Fmin Basically what this does is what you said: "being able to visualise shapes as opposed to just memorising how to recite things".

[@PianoFromScratch]

Great well done! Yes that’s a good suggestion I should have mentioned that to you too, I actually included that in my 101 tips videos, so it’s useful to have a different focus. Sometimes we practice scales and working on technique or speed etc and other times, play slower but your aim like you say is to be able to switch from key to key

[@jph7957]

Very helpful advice, thank you! I'm never reminded too much to relax my wrist, when appropriate...

[@milliesadielucy]

ok i need to do this 1 at a time that add black notes. the last part of lecture went too fast and need to review it,

[@onimisilovesonmusic4548]

Your tutorial has been so helpful. Thanks a lot..pls i have a question, pls as beginner piano learner, should i learn all 12 keys or just learn a few keys. Whats the best method to get good at playing all songs....

[@struben9549]

Nice work the whole channel is super helpful have sent $10.00 AU via paypal probs looks like an odd amount in GBP !

[@PianoFromScratch]

Ah thanks that's much appreciated. I hope the channel continues to help you out!