General Piano Knowledge
What are the black keys on a keyboard?
The black keys on a keyboard represent half tone changes, aka the sharp or flat of a note.
What is a key signature?
A key signature is a symbol used in music that tells you what key a song or music piece is in. Key signatures consist of a unique set of 7 notes.
What is a chord progression?
A chord progression is simply a succession of chords. Chord progressions are very common in western music today.
What is a time signature?
A time signature is an indication of rhythm, usually shown as a fraction. The denominator represents the beat as a division of a whole note, and the numerator represents the number of beats in each bar.
What is an interval?
This is a measure of musical distance.
What is an Octave?
An Octave represents the distance between a note and the next note with the same name. Octaves have 12 notes each including sharps and flats. Octaves have 7 whole tone changes and 5 half tone changes.
Which key signature has 1 flat?
F Major has 1 flat in it.
What is a triad?
A triad is a chord made of of specifically 3 tones.
What are sixteenth notes?
There are 4 of these notes in a quarter note.
What are the perfect intervals?
The unison, the fourth, the fifth, and the octave.
What is a half step?
Half steps are the smallest interval on the piano. These occur between black and white keys, and also on notes C and D, and E and F.
What major key signature has 7 sharps?
C# has seven sharps in its key signature.
What are primary chords?
Primary chords consist of a major third interval before a minor third interval. These include the I, IV and V chords.
What is tempo?
This refers to how fast or slow a piece of music is played.
How many half steps in a Major 7th?
There are 11 half steps in this major interval.
What are the treble and bass clefts?
The treble clef is used for higher pitched notes and is usually played with the right hand, on the higher end of the keyboard. The bass clef is used for lower pitched notes and is usually played by the left hand.
What is A minor?
What minor key signature has no flats or sharps?
What are secondary chords?
Secondary chords are chords that are altered and are not part of the musical pieces key signature.
What is "common time"?
This refers to the 4/4 time signature. This time signature is common in rock, jazz, country, bluegrass and even rap music.
How many half steps in a perfect unison?
There are zero half steps in this interval.
What is a grand staff?
A grand staff consists of the treble and bass clef joined together by a brace or bracket.
What minor key signature has 3 flats?
C minor has 3 flats in it.
How many major chords are there?
There are 12 of these you can play on a piano.
What is a measure?
This is a single unit of time with a specific number of beats played at a tempo.
What is a compound interval?
A compound interval is an interval spanning more than one octave.