Open triads
With
Tim RichardsLearn how to open out a root position triad on the piano, and how to spread the notes of a tenth.
What's in the course
20 lessons (0h 46m) · 1 free
Lesson transcript
Left Hand Shapes in Eau de Cologne
So these left hand shapes we were just playing are fine. They fall easily under the fingers.
Moving to More Challenging Shapes
Later in Eau de Cologne, we'll be moving to some more challenging shapes to achieve a more open sound.
Open Triads
The easiest way to do that is to move the middle note of a triad.
- If you were playing it down here, move the B up an octave, and you get an open triad, sometimes called a tenth.
- Same with a minor triad: Move the C up an octave, which is just one note higher in the scale than the G1.
Overcoming Stretch Limitations
Now, most people, including me, can't really stretch those three notes together, so there are some ways to get around that:
- Pedal Technique: You could put the pedal down and flip them so that you get the notes all sounding together, flipping them from the bottom up.
- Isolated Notes: You could also play the bottom note by itself and the top two notes together again with the pedal.
- Arpeggiation: Or you could also play them as a sort of arpeggio.
You'll hear all those devices unfold in the left hand of Eau de Cologne.
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Meet your guru
Meet your guru
Critically acclaimed jazz pianist and composer Tim Richards is one of Britain’s most experienced jazz educators, teaching piano privately for over 30 years, as well as at Morley College, Goldsmiths College, the University of Surrey, Premises Studios and other venues in the UK and abroad. He has produced numerous titles for Schott Music, including the best-selling two-volume Exploring Jazz Piano, Blues, Boogie & Gospel Collection and the acclaimed Improvising Blues Piano. He is also co-author, with John Crawford, of Exploring Latin Piano and Brazilian Piano Collection.
More recently Schott have published Jazz, Latin & Modern Collection (15 pieces for solo piano), comprising Tim Richards originals alongside pieces by Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk, and the two volume set Beginning Jazz Piano (now a two-part MusicGurus course).
“The real joy of Tim’s music… is that it is both hugely educational but also such great fun to play. Anyone with the slightest interest in learning to play or teach jazz piano should really acquire a set of Tim’s books.” PianoDao
As a performer Tim has been a presence on the UK jazz scene since the 1980s, also playing the blues with UK and US legends such as Otis Grand, Earl Green, Dana Gillespie, Larry Garner, Joe Louis Walker and Mojo Buford. He has released over a dozen albums as a leader (featuring many of London’s best jazz musicians including Pete King, Gilad Atzmon, Tony Kofi, Jason Yarde, Seb Rochford, Ed Jones, Dick Pearce and many others), and toured all over Europe with line-ups ranging from duo to nine-piece. His latest recording, the album ‘Telegraph Hill’ by the six-piece Hextet, was described in The Observer as "A true joy from beginning to end".
More info can be found on his website www.timrichards.ndo.co.uk
