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Piano in a Flash Syllabus

One method, endless possibilities

The Piano in a Flash Online Method teaches adults how to recognize, combine, play, and improvise the chords and melodies that make up thousands of modern songs from any genre. The courses themselves use familiar tunes to develop your musical ear and motor function with fun practice—if you can even call it that. Check out the in-depth syllabus below to learn more about how they work.

COURSES 

1-2

These two courses provide a great start to beginning students and will fully immerse you in the core tenets of how it is we go about playing piano in our style using Lead Sheets. We will be playing 10-15 actual songs in 4 or 5 different genres as we work through the new concepts and gain confidence in our ability. Absolute must-have info for players in our style…

Course 1 Lessons & Songs

Course 2 Lessons & Songs

  • Differences in notation styles
  • Finding your way around a keyboard
  • Middle C
  • Your first chords: C, F, and G Major
  • How to handle fingering
  • Getting hands to work together
  • Pick up measures and N.C.
  • How long to hold notes and tied notes
  • Reading Lead Sheets
  • Playing a tune vs. reading a tune
  • The three parts of every tune
  • Time signatures, bar lines, and measures
  • Waltz pattern with your left hand
  • New chord "flavor": minor
  • Chord inversions vs. root position chords
  • New chord "flavor": 7ths
  • Latin pattern for your left hand
  • Hearing music vs. reading music
  • Chords in the right hand
  • Learning the "road map" of a tune
  • Rock-n-Roll pattern for your left hand
  • Learning the Blues changes
  • Learning Roman numeral chord changes
  • More fun left hand chord patterns
  • Learning how chords are constructed
  • Whole steps and half steps
  • Understanding sharps and flats
  • Introducing chord substitutions
  • Riffs and signature licks
  • Accompaniment style vs. solo style
  • I - vi - IV - V chord progression
  • Passing tones in bass lines
  • Tricks to jazz up the right hand melody
  • Even more Major, minor, and 7th chords

Jingle Bells, Love Me Tender, Aura Lee, When The, Saints Go Marching In, Kumbaya, Joy To The World, Have I Told You Lately That I Love You, Deep In The Heart Of Texas, Ode To Joy, Jambalaya, The Birthday Song, Silent Night, Rock Of Ages, Que Sera Sera, On Top Of Old Smokey, Don'T Be Cruel, Blue Danube Waltz, Fascination, Just A Closer Walk With Thee, King Of The Road, Release Me, Away In A Manger, Feliz Navidad, Don't Worry, Be Happy, Down By The Riverside, Baby Love, Knock Three Times

Hound Dog, Heartbreak Hotel, Shake Rattle And Roll, All Shook Up, 12 Bar Blues, Kansas City, C Jam Blues, Me And Bobby Mcgee, Be Bop A Lula, Amazing Grace, If I Had A Hammer, Can't Buy Me Love, Heat Wave, They Call The Wind Mariah, Your Cheatin’ Heart, Beautiful Dreamer, Bridal Chorus (Here Comes The Bride), Don't Cry For Me Argentina, Don't Let The, Sun Go Down On Me, Dust In The Wind, Twist And Shout, Love Me Do, Free Bird, Little Brown Jug, Red River Valley, Brahms Lullaby, At The Half, I Saw The Light, The Twist, Cold Cold Heart, Up On The Housetop, Stand By Me, Please, Mr. Postman, Stay (A Little Bit Longer), Earth Angel, Sh-Boom (Life Could Be A Dream)

COURSES 

3-4

With the basics fully under hand from Courses 1 and 2, you'll advance at a pace pretty shocking to many previous students of traditional lessons. We really get into more advanced ideas and tips and tricks that pros use to sound like they do. You'll begin to really understand the theory behind why it is that different styles sound like they do, and be able to apply that knowledge to the many songs we continue to learn and work through.

Course 3 Lessons & Songs

Course 4 Lessons & Songs

  • New chord "flavor": Major 7th
  • More chord substitutions
  • Da Capo, Dal Segno, Fine - road map signs
  • New chord "flavor": minor 7th
  • Deciphering rhythmic values with notes and rests
  • More rhythmic patterns for the left hand
  • Authentic bass lines for the left hand
  • More accompaniment styles
  • Technical explanation of time signatures
  • Introducing "slow stride" for the left hand
  • Pedaling to the rescue!
  • Changing things up at the bridge
  • Authentic ballad ideas
  • 6/8 Arpeggios for the left hand
  • Transposing
  • Using a glissando as a right hand technique
  • More Major, minor, and 7th chords and substitutions
  • Understand intervals
  • Ear training - hearing intervals
  • Continuing chord substitution suggestions
  • Continuing inversion training
  • New chord "flavor": Augmented
  • Intro and ending ideas
  • New chord "flavor": Diminished
  • Octave melody right hand trick
  • Amen cadence ear training
  • 6/8 March feel
  • Playing a vamp for variety
  • More on AABA song form
  • Turnarounds using Roman Numerals
  • Blues notes for color
  • Defining triplets technically
  • Learning a "faux stride" technique
  • Musical terms: legato, rubato, crescendo, etc.

Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You, It's Too Late, How Can You Mend A Broken Heart, Can't Smile Without You, My Love, Your Song, Best Of My Love, Lean On Me, When I Fall In Love, And I Love, Her, All I Ask Of You, Angel, Rocky Mountain High, Goin’ Out Of My Head, Moon Glow, Night Moves, What The World Needs Now, Penny Lane, Every Breath You Take, Locomotion, Born To Be Wild, Little Green Apples, Get Back, Can't Help, Falling In Love, Unchained Melody, Misty, All Of Me, Dream A Little Dream Of Me, Memory, House Of The Rising Sun, Moon River, Norwegian Wood, Greensleeves, Thank God I'm A Country Boy, I'll Fly Away, Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, Tears In Heaven, Put Your Hand In The Hand, Great Balls Of Fire

Born To Be Wild, What A Wonderful World, Send In The Clowns, If, Unchained Melody, Wake Me Up, Before You Go-Go, Blackbird, Stranger In, Paradise, Moon River, Physical, Bali Ha’i, All I Ask Of You, All The Things You Are, Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, Blue Suede Shoes, I Saw Three Ships, Beyond The Sea, When Johnny Comes, Marching Home, The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, You've Lost That Loving Feeling, My Love, When I Fall In Love, Willow Weep For Me, On Broadway, Moonglow, Night Moves, It's Too Late, Year Of The Cat, My Way, Wonderful Tonight, Send In The Clowns, Summer Breeze, Body And Soul, Can You Feel The Love Tonight, You Are The Sunshine Of My Life, People, The Christmas Song(Chestnuts, Roasting On An Open Fire), American Pie, Let It Snow

COURSES 

5-6

In these courses we'll cover even more advanced concepts that open the doors to being able to sound truly professional - things like playing by ear, transposing, chord substitutions, and scales used in improvising. This info can many times only be found by studying with a professional pop/jazz musician - which is in fact exactly what you will be doing!

Course 5 Lessons & Songs

Course 6 Lessons & Songs

  • Why scales matter
  • Major and pentatonic scales
  • Blues and minor scales
  • Ear training with minor intervals and scales
  • Introduction to voicing
  • 1-5-7-3 voicing
  • Playing more chord tones with the right hand
  • New chord "flavor": Major 9th
  • Boogie Woogie left hand pattern
  • New chord "flavor": minor 9th
  • The "Duke Ellington" ending
  • The "Count Basie" ending
  • New chord "flavor": half-diminished
  • Chord identification ear training
  • Identifying bass notes "by ear"
  • Gospel style I - IV walk up
  • Intro to developing your own arrangement
  • New chord "flavor": sus2 and sus4
  • The "Floyd Cramer" lick
  • New chord "flavor": 13th
  • mMaj7, altered and slash chords
  • "Mystery" Ending
  • Substituting more advanced chords
  • Introduction to improvisation
  • Walking bass lines
  • Playing "by ear" with chord recognition
  • iii7 - vi7 - ii7 - V7 - I∆ progression
  • Modulation and more on transposing
  • "That's All Folks" turnaround/ending
  • How to play with a bass player
  • Bossa Nova 2-hand pattern
  • Inserting ii-V7 substitute chords
  • Learning patterns as starters for improv
  • Vince Guaraldi "Peanuts" lick

Last Date (Floyd Cramer's “Slip Note” Style), Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head, Tears In Heaven, Blueberry Hill, Crazy, Georgia, 12 Bar Blues With Advanced Blues Voicings, Autumn Leaves (With The Advanced Chord Substitutions), In A Sentimental Mood (With The, Advanced Chord Substitutions), My Favorite Things (With, The Advanced Chord Substitutions), Can You Feel, The Love Tonight (With The Advanced Chord Substitutions), Yesterday (With The Advanced Chord Substitutions), Fly Me To The Moon, Bye-Bye Blackbird, Don't Get Around Much Anymore, My Romance, Satin Doll, Sentimental Journey, Mood Indigo, Moonlight In Vermont, Skylark, Solitude, Stormy Weather

Improvising Over Various Chord Changes, In A Sentimental Mood, My Funny Valentine, Autumn Leaves, How Sweet It Is, Kansas City, The Girl From Ipanema, I Will Remember You, Mandy

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