UNIT 1 Introduction to Playing

Lesson

Posture at Piano
Finger Numbers (1-2-3-4-5)
Damper Pedal
Dynamics (piano, forte)
Rhythm
The Music Alphabet (A-B-C-D-E-F-G)
Learning C-D-E (Merrily We Roll Along)

Technique

Interval
Learning F-G-A-B (Merrily We Roll Along)
Transposing
The Measure
C Pentascale
Interval (2nds & 3rds)
Musical Form

Theory

New Dynamic Mezzo Forte

Study in 2nds & 3rds - RH
Study in 2nds & 3rds - RH

Key Words
broken
blocked
damper pedal
dynamics
dotted half note
double Bar Line
C pentascale
forte
G pentascale
half note
interval
measure
metronome
mezzo forte

Review 2nds & 3rds

Two Handed Rhythm
Black-Key Improvisation

musical alphabet
musical form
musical pattern
piano
pedal mark
pentascale
quarter note
repeat sign
rhythm
seconds
sequence
thirds
transposing
whole note

Music List

Raindrops (RH), Thunder (LH)..p.8

Amazing Grace (Black Keys). p.9
Camptown Races (Black Keys) p.11
The Music Alphabet p12
Merrily We Roll Along (C-D-E). p.13

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Merrily We Roll Along (F_G-A) p.15

C Pentascale Warm-up p.16
Warm-up with 3rds.. p.17
Ode to Joy. p.18

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Lesson Notes

Posture at Piano
1. Distance Sit straight on front half of bench.
2. Seating Height Check Forearms level with keyboard.
3. Hand Position Relaxed rounded hand position, with thumb on side tip.

Finger Numbers (1-2-3-4-5)

Thumbs are finger 1!

Damper Pedal
The Damper Pedal is the right most pedal, which sustains/connects the sound
(smooth/legato), played with the right foot. It allows the notes to sustain after your
fingers release the keys; its often called the sustain pedal.

Soft Pedal (or una corda

Sostenuto Pedal middle

pedal) left most pedal used

to softens the note by allow
only 2 of the 3 strings to be
struck. Left most Pedal.

APA1: Unit 1

pedal that acts like a damper

pedal and sustains only the
note or notes your fingers are
playing when you press the
pedal down.

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Lesson Notes continued2

Dynamics (piano, forte) - pp, p, mp, mf, f, ff

Dynamics indicate loudness or softness of music.
The two basic dynamic indications in music are:

p or piano, meaning "soft".

or forte, meaning "loud".

More subtle degrees of loudness or softness are indicated by:

mp, standing for mezzo-piano, meaning "moderately or medium soft".
m, standing for mezzo-forte, meaning "moderately or medium loud".

Beyond mp and m, there are:

pp, standing for "pianissimo", and meaning "very soft",
, standing for "fortissimo", and meaning "very loud",

Rhythm
The pattern of musical movement through time. A specific kind of pattern, formed by a
series of notes differing in duration and stress.

The Music Alphabet (A-B-C-D-E-F-G)

These letters repeated over and over, name the keys on the piano and notes on the grand
staff. (A-B-C-D-E-F-G)

Learning C-D-E (Merrily We Roll Along)

Using the 2-black-key group to locate C-D-E.

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Lesson Notes continued3

Interval
The distance between two musical tones, keys on the keyboard, or notes on the staff.
(Ex. 2nd , 3rd, 4th 5th)

3rd (Skip) - C up to E

Broken C E

vs

Blocked

Learning F-G-A-B (Merrily We Roll Along)

Using the 3-black-key group to locate F-G-A-B.

The Measure
Music is divided into groups of beats called measures. Bar lines divide the music into
measures.

Transposing
Playing the same piece using different keys is called transposing.

C Pentascale

The word scale comes from the Latin word scala, meaning ladder.
Penta is latin for five.
Pentascale is a 5-note scale.
C Pentascale (C-D-E-F-G)

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Lesson Notes continued4

Interval (2nds & 3rds)

The distance between two musical tones, keys on the keyboard, or notes on the staff.
(Ex. 2nd , 3rd, 4th 5th)

2nd (Step) - C to D
3rd (Skip) - C up to E

Broken C D

vs

Blocked

C
E

Broken C E

vs

Blocked

Musical Form (AABA)

The overall structure or plan of a piece. (Ex. ABA, AABA)

Technique

New Dynamic Mezzo Forte

Study in 2nds & 3rds - RH
Study in 2nds & 3rds - RH

Theory

Review 2nds & 3rds

Two Handed Rhythm
Black-Key Improvisation

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Key Words Defined

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.

blocked The tones of a chord or interval played together. (p. 15)

broken The tones of a chord or interval played separately. (pp. 13, 136)
damper pedal The right most pedal, which sustains the sound, played with the right foot.
(pp. 5, 7, 38)
dynamics The louds and softs of music. See dynamic markings at the top of page 174. (pp.
8, 20, 65, 140,)
dotted half note - Three counts or beats (p. 10)
double bar line A thin, then thick bar line indicating the end of a piece. (p. 11)
C pentascale Five notes stepping up from C: C-D-E-F-G. ( pp. 16, 36, 56, 84)
forte Loud (p. 8)
G pentascale Five notes stepping up from G: G-A-B-C-D (pp. 19, 90-91)
half note Two counts or beats (one-half the value of a whole note). (p.10)
interval The distance between two musical tones, keys on the keyboard, or notes on the
staff. (Ex. 2nd , 3rd, 4th 5th) (pp.13, 16, 17, 28, 44, 51, 55, 110-111, 114, 116)
measure Music is divided into groups of beats called measures. Each measure has an equal
number of beats (p. 15)
metronome A rhythm device that ticks a steady beat. Adjustable settings allow a faster or
slower beat. (pp. 10. 123, 149)
mezzo forte Moderately loud (p. 20)
musical alphabet A-B-C-D-E-F-G. These letters repeated over and over, name the keys on
the piano and notes on the grand staff. (p. 12)
musical form The overall structure or plan of a piece. (Ex. ABA, AABA)(pp. 18, 30, 38, 40,
53)
musical pattern A short rhythmic and melodic set of notes (p.20)
piano Soft, quiet. (p. 8)
pedal mark Shows the down up motion of the damper pedal. (p. 27)
pentascale Five finger scale.
quarter note One count or beat. (One-quarter the value of a whole note)(p. 10)
repeat sign Play the music within the repeat signs again. (pp. 16, 59)
rhythm Music has short, medium and long notes. Counting the duration of each note using a
steady beat or pulse creates rhythm. (p.10)
seconds (2nd)(step) The interval that spans two letter names. (Ex. C up to D, or F down to E)
On the staff: line to the next space or space to the next line. (p. 16)
sequence A musical pattern repeated at a higher or lower pitch, (pp. 20, 54)
thirds (3rd) (skip) The interval that spans three letter names. (Ex. C up to E or F down to D)
On the staff: lineto-the-next-line or space-to-the-next-space. (pp. 13, 17, 44)
transposing to play music in a different key (p. 14)
whole note Four counts or beats, (p. 10)

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Notes or Questions

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