IMPORTANT PLEASE READ

Hi guys!

I taught myself to play piano/keyboard about a year ago now :)

and by "taught myself" I mean I can play parts of about 11/12 Coldplay songs and a few others, including a Muse song, Fur Elise (a simple version and I think I spelled that wrong...), a Titanic song, a My Chemical Romance song, Wonderwall by Oasis (piano cover) etc...

However I still can't read sheet music. For christmas I got a Coldplay piano book with sheet music for their songs.

I was really excited about playing the songs but I havent got a clue how to read it...

I looked at some websites and articles on how to read it but I've never had a lesson and don't know many proper/technical names.

 

Any tips and information you could give me and I would be extremely grateful

 

Thanks:hug:

This thing is called the stave. All the notes sit on it.

 

The stave is split into bars by vertical lines which mean different things:

 

With me so far?

Haha yeah :|

This thing is called the stave. All the notes sit on it.

 

The stave is split into bars by vertical lines which mean different things:

 

With me so far?

 

:lol: I find this extremely humorous

 

What you have to learn is the note placement first. If you go to a book store and spend lke $12 on a "How to book" it should have a note chart for both staffs (aka staves). Or do what I do and buy the book and use the internet.

 

 

The Treble (G) staff is the top one and the Bass (backwards C) is the bottom. Usually your right hand plays the Treble staff which is usually the melody and your left hand plays the Bass staff which is the baseline respectively.

 

Once you know where the notes are on the piano, the rest is easy. You also have to know that the notes correspond to a different octave, or section, on the piano. For example, if you;'re reading sheet music and see a high F (the one on top of the Treble Staff,) that does not mean play any regular F, but to play the F on the piano that's at a higher pitch as shown here:

 

 

Also take note of the thing that says "middle C." It is very important to know where it is on a piano because middle C actually connects both staffs together. Also, it helps you not to play in different octaves. On a regular piano is just usually the C in the middle of you if you're sitting on a regular piano. It gets more tricky to find on a keyboard since the keys are limited, but the same rule usually applies to keyboards as well.

Oh yeah I guess note placement is pretty important too :laugh3:

Not unless your Chris and start playing augmented and sustained chords :lol:

Sharp and flats are also a thing, which raises and lowers a note by half tone, respectively. These are called semitones, and is represented by black keys on the piano. Don't forget the natural accidental. This accidental neutralizes the effect of sharps and flats.

 

Also, ties and slurs. Ties are those curved lines that connect two or more notes of the same pitch. Tied notes are to be played as one long note, with length corresponding to the sum of all tied notes. For example, a whole note (oblong, 4 beats) and a dotted half note (oblong, holed, stemmed, with dot just right of it, 3 beats) with the pitch A#, when tied, corresponds to only one note with 7 beats. Slurs, on the other hand, work like ties, the only difference being that they connect notes of changing pitches, like 2 notes of pitch A and E or 3 notes of pitch C, D and C, or 3 notes of pitch C, C (these two notes, aside from being connected by the slur, are also connected by a tie, resulting in two connections), and D. The notes are played independently in a piano. In the case of the third example, 2 notes instead of 3 are played. In violin, notes are played in one slide, and in vocals, notes are sung in one syllable.

 

Also the 'loudness indicators' as I call them. First is p, piano, which means soft. f, forte, loud, pp, pianissimo, very soft, ff, fortissimo, very loud, mp, mezzo piano, a little softer than p, mf, mezzo forte, a little louder than f. < means crescendo, or increasing loudness. Its length indicates the length of the intensity transition. > means decrescendo, or decreasing loudness.

 

In old sheet music, like Mozart's Turkish March, the staccato is used. Staccato is a dot below an upright note or below a downright note. A note with a staccato has, say, no length. It is just played by 'tapping'. Staccato aren't used that much anymore afaik, and they are denoted as an 8th/16th note and a rest or two.

 

Too lazy to add pictures.

 

EDIT: Also note lengths. A whole note is a holed note without a stem (that straight line attached to either sides of the note head), and is equivalent to 4 beats. The half note is a whole note with a stem, and is equivalent to 2 beats. The quarter note is a half note without a hole in its head, and is one beat long. The eighth note is a quarter note with a 'flag', and is a half beat long. Last is the sixteenth note, which has two flags. Length is equal to quarter beat. When playing these notes in the piano, the key/s must be held for a length of time equivalent to the number of beats the note corresponds. (This should have been first, but meh)

 

Pics coming ... or no?

What he's referring to dynamics, but that's a little more advance...well not really, but something to work on once you can read music. Usually if you read orchestrated music, like me cause I have an orchestra class :lol:, dynamics are key in performing. In conjunction with dynamics, you have to know how to use the 3 pedals on the piano.

 

On a keyboard you typically have only 1, and you have to buy it separately, but it's plugged into a jack that says "sustain." On a regular piano that would be 3rd pedal which is the pedal to the right. The sustain pedal is a very important tool when playing because it "sustains" the notes, or makes them last/sound longer. If you press a key on the piano and hold it, the sound continues for as long as you hold the key down. If you press the key sharply, the sound goes and stops. By pressing the sustain pedal down, you and sharply press keys and they could continue to play. This is extremely useful when you need to free your hands.

 

Also if you haven't bought a piano with a staff screen then I suggest this one if you can find it lmao.

 

 

That was my first real keyboard, but if you aldreay have one and are looking to upgrade, then I suggest my Yamaha YPG-235. It's almost a full key keyboard, 75 keys, it's a great performing keyboard.

 

 

The third clef, the Alto clef. Hope I can see a good sheet music written in this clef in the present tense.

 

 

I have this one.

 

I know it's probably crap compared to all yours, but it works, so it does for me, as i'm obviously no pro yet, as i improve i'll get a better one:) but it's good for now imo:)

I have that keyboard too! The problem is that it has no touch sensitivity or dual voice features, which my keyboard teacher is always saying that I need :(

In Christmas Lights, there's part when you have to play softly and can't do that:(

 

I want Yamaha GT20

Woah the GT-20 is like a professional piano. You can play softly on the YPG-230. Even though it has lightweight keys, it still has touch sensitivity.

 

Btw, dont just get the piano because Chris has it and it's awesome looking :P

That's not why I wanted it :uhoh:

 

:laugh3: That is the only reason I want it :P It is beautiful though

However they're about £3,000 on the internet. So doubt i'll ever have one of those.

 

Plus I wouldn't get one yet anyways, I have a lot to learn before getting something like that :dazzled:

Do what I did: find a shoddy upright at your school, play it for 2-3 years, develop a reputation that states that that is your piano, and you can play it without anyone giving you 2 shites :P