Easy Piano Chords

One of the many things my students ask of me, is how to play chords on the piano. There are many reasons for wanting to know how to play easy piano chords, but the most popular reasons are:

1. If they have a favourite song they’d like to sing and play along to,
2. To be able to play along with (or accompany) another instrument, maybe a solo part such as a flute or clarinet,
3. To be able to improvise (play random stuff!) with a group of musicians.

Whatever the reason is, here is my very quick and easy guide to how to play easy piano chords.

Do you remember or have nightmares about practising those seemingly pointless scales? Well guess what? There is a use for them – and this is exactly it!

To be able to play chords quickly and easily on the piano, you do need to know the key signatures of the scales. And unless you would like to sit and work them all out everytime you need one (not recommended!) it’s probably a very good idea to learn them and practise them. Not only will this build your dexterity on the piano keyboard, but you will also learn the key signatures really quickly.

Basically, each scale is made up of 7 notes. These may be repeated, but the basic pattern are those 7 notes.

The picture below shows the construction of the scale of D major.

Each scale starts with note number 1 – so if the scale were that of C Major, C would be note 1.

To build easy and quick chords, take the numbers 1, 3 and 5 of the scale. The chord for D Major will then look like this:

So the chord of D Major will be made up of: D, F#, A.

To show you the difference, below is now the scale for one of the variations of D Minor.

And now, the notes for the chord of D Minor.

So the notes for the chord of D Minor will be: D, F, A. Now, play them on the piano, and hear the difference in the sound.

The notes for C Major – will be C, E, G.
The notes for the chord of A major will be: A, C#, E.
The notes for the chord of A minor will be: A, C, E.

Here is a quick reference guide as to how to make up some of the more easy piano chords using the note numbers – but please remember, you do need to know the key signature of the scale/key in question!

(If you see a “b” before a number, that note is a flat – lowered a semitone. Likewise if you see a “#”, the note is sharpened – raised a semitone).

CHORD TYPE
Major Triad – notes 1, 3, 5 of major scale;
Minor Triad – 1, b3, 5;
Diminished Triad – 1, b3, 5;
Augmented Triad – 1, 3, #5;
Major Seventh – 1, 3, 5, 7;
Dominant Seventh – 1, 3, 5, b7;
Diminished Seventh – 1, b3, b5, 6;
Minor Seventh – 1, b3, 5, b7;

Of course, there are many other variations of chords, but this is how to construct easy piano chords!