101

In this session, you're going to play Patterns One and Two in D, up and down continuously, choosing fingering to get your fingers to the keys in time and keep going.

Look at the voice movement diagrams and circle/square/triangle symbols above the chords (you don't have to be able to read music to do this), and rehearse mentally what is going to happen.

 Pattern One in D

Play Pattern One in D straight through, once with 1-3-5 for root position (circle) chords, and once with 1-2-4.

Run through this at least two or three times, until your fingering settles down and you're actually choosing the notes and fingers.

 Pattern Two in D

In Pattern Two, "two notes move twice". (Look at the voice movement diagrams and point out to yourself where that happens.)

(In Pattern One, that never happens - only one note moves at a time.)

Play Pattern Two in D, once using 1-3-5 for the root position (circle) chords, and once with 1-2-4 (where convenient), then 'freestyle'.

 The hybrid Pattern Three in D

Pattern Three ascending uses one bar of Pattern Two followed by one bar of Pattern One, alternating over the whole octave. Rehearse the pattern mentally and/or at the keyboard, without rhythm.

Descending, Pattern Three starts with a bar of Pattern One, then Pattern Two, and alternating all the way down.

Rehearse, then try playing along with the Pattern Three in D video, using any fingering that suits.

 The hybrid Pattern Three in B flat

Finish off by working your way through the hybrid Pattern Three in B flat.

It's worth obsessing over something like fingering the triads for a while - it gets you 'over a hump' that can continue spoiling your enjoyment and holding you up for ever if you don't tackle it head on with enough intensity at some stage!

Repeat the triad shapes drills in new keys to help you see the scale in the keyboard and get your fingers used to new combinations of black and white keys.

Now go on to the last page in the series.

Hope you're enjoying studying with Musicarta! Come back soon!