Welcome to the second of a two-part series on music theory! These are intended for students of the piano who are looking for an in-depth explanation of key ideas in music theory and how to apply them. In Part 1, I introduced some basic notation and talked about the structure of a composition. I told you about key changes, an important element in crafting structure. We used music theory’s circle of fifths as a central point of reference. I’d recommend reading through that one first if you’re new to theory; but if you think you have a good grasp of the basics and you’re just looking to fill in the gaps, that’s fine, too! In this article, I’ll tell you everything you need to know about chord progressions and harmony, then I’ll give some advice on how to use dynamics to add emotion to your music. At the end, I’ll tell you what I recommend in terms of next steps and resources for practice.
Chord progressions
Chord progressions are an essential feature of many if not all great compositions. To understand them fully, it’s important to first understand degrees. Fundamentally, a “degree” or scale degree is the position of a given note on a scale. For example, in the key of C, degree 1, also called tonic, would just be C. Degree 2, called supertonic, would be D. And so on. When I reference degrees throughout this article, that’s all I mean.
In Part 1, I mentioned that the keys of C Major and A minor share the same set of notes, or key signature. (They’re related; every major key has a relative minor key, and vice versa. To get from a major key to its relative minor key, lower the 3rd, 7th, and 8th notes by a half step each.) What differentiates C Major and A minor, then, is which note is chosen as tonic. In C Major, C is tonic, whereas in A minor A is tonic. The rest of the scale degrees are also named according to the tonic.
In order from 1 to 7, the scale degrees are called tonic, supertonic, mediant, subdominant, dominant, submediant, and leading tone. (There’s also subtonic, which is always one half step below the leading tone, and appears in the natural minor scale. The leading tone appears in the major scale and the harmonic minor scale, which you don’t need to worry about right now.) In the key of F, which has only one flat, F is the tonic, G the supertonic, A the mediant, B♭ the subdominant, C the dominant, D the submediant, and E the leading tone. Don’t worry, you don’t need to remember all these names. The only ones it might be good to keep in mind as we move forward are the tonic (1), subdominant (4), and dominant (5).
A chord progression, put into simple terms, is a scenario in which the musician shifts between different “chords” within a different key, for set periods of time. It’s one of those concepts that’s not difficult to grasp or to apply with a little practice but that also has a lot of associated theory that we can ignore for now. In Part 1, I talked about key changes; chord progressions follow some of the same logic but are all about nuances within a single key. The key you’re in doesn’t change as you progress through a series of chords. That said, you can and should employ chord progressions for every key you use in any given composition, assuming there are multiple.
Why even bother with chord progressions? Well, they are key to both variation and structure. Variation because there are pretty much infinite extrapolations on any given progression. Structure because they provide a kind of “under-theme” that you can return to again and again throughout your piece. They’re the perfect alternative to just repeating phrases, which gets old quickly.
One of the most common chord progressions you’ll hear about is 1-4-5-1. For this progression, first use a chord built on the tonic (1), then on the subdominant (4), then on the dominant (5), then the tonic once more. Remember, this is not a key change—that is, the tonic doesn’t change. To “use” a given chord, only use the first, third, or fifth note of the chord on the “on” beats. “On” beats depend on the time signature; for example, in 4/4 time, there are four “on” beats per measure; anything between them is considered an “off” beat. Still play other notes on the scale, namely degrees 2, 4, 6, and 7, on the off beats to add texture and variety.
Here are a few more chord progressions I’ve used personally. 6-4-5-1 means first playing the submediant, then the subdominant, then the dominant, then resolving on the tonic. This one works well in both major and minor, as does the 1-4-5-1 we’ve already looked at. 6-2-5-1 is another good option: that’s submediant, supertonic, dominant, tonic. 2-5-1 is a quintessential progression in jazz. There are endless possibilities when it comes to chord progressions and I’d encourage you to get out there and invent your own once you’re familiar with one or two easier ones.
Landing on the right scale degrees at the right time is only one part of crafting chord progressions, though. Another important factor to keep in mind is the duration of each chord. You want to hang on a chord long enough that it’s noticeable but not so long that it seems like you’ve departed from the main key (meaning the tonic). This usually means one or two measures. You also generally want to be consistent: use the same duration for all the chords in a given progression.
Repeated chord progressions are, as I mentioned, a great way to introduce cohesion in a piece. You can achieve this simply by occasionally coming back to one of the progressions mentioned above, or by literally having your entire piece follow the same sequence of chords. What you do with the right hand over the same chords can vary wildly throughout a given piece. Same with the left hand. Well, to an extent, anyway…
Basics of harmony
Now you know the “why” of chord progressions and you know how to achieve them in your melody. But how in the world do you commit to any given progression in both hands in a way that sounds natural? To answer that question, we’ll have to learn a little about harmony.
When I say harmony, you can assume for now that I mean the left hand (though that’s far from the only option, as I’ll discuss in a minute). To start, let’s forget about chord progressions and just assume the main chord in the melody is the tonic, which it probably will be most of the time anyway. I’d recommend starting with a basic harmony, like 1-5-3-5 or 1-3-5. Each of the numbers in that notation represents one “on beat,” when the right and left hand will harmonize with each other. 1-5-3-5 assumes 4/4 time; 1-3-5 could work in 3/4 time or in 4/4 time with the final beat held or silent. In F Major, that’s F-A-C, taking up one measure.
Now let’s think about how to approach harmony during chord progressions. To figure out what to do in the left hand when your melody focuses on a given chord, take the first, third, and fifth of that chord, just as you did in the right hand. Then figure out how best to structure those three notes for the on beats in your harmony.
Let’s look at an example scenario. At a point where your melody is playing on the subdominant degree in the right hand, your left hand would want to harmonize with 4, 6, and 8 (which becomes 1). 461, in that order, is called “root position.” But it’s not the only option. 146 is actually more commonly used in harmonies as it begins on the tonic, making it easier to transition back and forth between it and 135. Clever, right? Musically, 146 is equivalent to 461—just arranged differently for convenience. There’s a name for this new arrangement. 146 is called the second inversion of the fourth degree chord. Similarly, 725 is the first inversion of the 5 chord, and the most natural shift to and from 135 in the left hand: in making the shift from 135 to 725, like to 146, only two fingers move, and by one degree each. (“7” here refers to the 7 of the next octave down, so one note under your tonic.)
To review: to make the subdominant chord sound good in both hands, you’ll want to use an inversion in the left hand, probably 146, and, in the right hand, try to land on 1, 4, and 6 on the on beats, saving other tones for the off beats. This basically ensures that your melody is faster than your harmony, which is generally what you want.
To get an idea of harmony structure, my best advice is, as always, to look at famous songs. Try different harmonies like the 1-35-35-35 from Mozart’s Rondo Alla Turca or the slower and more thoughtful 1~351-351 from Yann Tiersen’s La Valse d’Amélie. There’s no end of harmonic inspiration to be acquired from any of the greats.
Now, that’s all great and you’re welcome to stop here and move on to the next section—you may want to do so if this is your first time creating music. But there’s one more thing I should touch on for those who are looking for a bit more nuance. As can be observed in famous pieces, like those mentioned above, the left hand rarely keeps to the same pattern throughout the piece. There’s a reason for this: just like in any other facet of writing music for the piano, variation in the left hand is key. However, this needs to be approached with caution. The harmony grounds the piece. It should be repetitive. But there are ways to include variation that don’t betray harmony’s purpose. These include resting the harmony (not using the left hand) for a short time. You can fill the empty space with the right hand to emphasize a certain part of your melody, or just leave it empty. (In a given piece, the notes that are left out are often more important than those that are played. This can sound fairly archaic; all it has to mean right now is that periods of rest or “low energy” are important.) Alternatively, you can rest in the right hand and pick up the melody in the left hand for a time. This is always appreciated. Here are two more options like it for the daring composer: 1) move the melody to the left hand; 2.) switch between melody right/harmony left and melody left/harmony right.
This provides a glimpse into a concept in music theory called counterpoint, which refers to the practice of writing multiple melodies in conjunction with each other. It’s not an easy topic to learn or teach, so I won’t go into it here. If you take classes in music theory or progress significantly in any other way, though, I can guarantee you’ll run into counterpoint at some point. Right now, all I’ll say is this: once you’re ready, try to include melodic lines in both hands that are independent and yet harmonize with one another. This is by no means trivial. But it’s pretty much undefeated as far as next steps go.
Dynamics and additional resources
Perhaps the most obvious aspect of music performance to the untrained ear—and yet so often overlooked by new composers—is volume. Dynamics are pretty much guaranteed to set any piece with them apart from any without. As with chord progressions, look at classical pieces and ask yourself why certain choices were made: Why louder here? Why barely perceptible here? In your compositions, don’t leave out dynamics. If you can’t think of any other reason to use them, use them to emphasize the parts of the piece you’re most excited for people to hear. If you’re able to provide a well-thought-out distinction in volume between different sections of your compositions, your listeners will love to listen.
Dynamics also help to add a human element to a song. An entire story can be told through musical highs and lows. They’re a great way to add contrast. Just remember to always ask yourself “why.”
Here’s a fantastic resource detailing the history of volume in music and providing a lot more information about using dynamics effectively. See “Dynamic Indications at a Glance” for a chart detailing how to represent different volumes through step, transition, and accent dynamics.
This leads nicely into the resources section of this article. For more detailed information about some of the terminology I mentioned and a few terms I forewent, here’s a great article.
In terms of simply bulk practicing music theory, Tenuto is my go-to. With customizable practice in everything from key signature identification to chord construction to ear training, the app is well worth the $4. This is a workbook I’ve used in addition to get practice, ideal if you prefer practicing with pen and paper. It’s expensive, though, so feel free to explore other options online or at your local music store.
“Music Theory Fundamentals” tells you everything I know about theory and composition. If you’re interested specifically in improvising for the piano (making stuff up on the spot), here’s an article I wrote all about the best ways to start. The guidance I provide there together with a basic knowledge of music theory should get you a long way in improvising.
Finally, if you’re interested in learning more about counterpoint, here’s a great introduction to the concept, including its historical background and detailed information about how to start using it in your compositions.