Here is a method for getting started with basic improvisation with two hands on the piano.
Start with a chord sequence. Decide what key you want to play in and familiarise yourself with the scale of that key. Then work out what chords you can use in that scale. You can do this by taking each note of the scale and building a triad (3 note chord) on it. The particular note of the scale that you are building the triad upon is the bottom note or root of the chord. The second note of the chord should be 2 letter names above the root (or an interval of a third) but be sure to keep any sharps or flats that occur in the scale. The third note of the chord is another two letter names (or interval of a third) above the second note, again keeping in mind any sharps or flats within the key.
Here is an example:
The scale of D major is: D E F# G A B C# D.
The first chord is built on D. To get the second note of the chord go up two letter names from D, keeping in mind any sharps or flats relevant to the scale - you get F#. Another two letter names up from F# is A. So the first chord from a D major scale is DF#A.
The second chord would be EGB, the third chord would be F# A C#, the fourth chord would be GBD, and so on.
Once you've worked out your chords you can decide on a chord sequence. Play all the chords in order first just to familiarise yourself with them. Then start mixing them up to see what order you like the sound of. Write down the sequence you like, and then you can use this sequence as a basis for your improvisation. Often a chord sequence is repeated a few times in a piece of music. A very common and popular chord sequence is 1 4 5 1. In D major this would be: DF#A, GBD, AC#E, DF#A. You can try this chord sequence to start with or vary it/extend it.
Play your chord sequence a few times in the left hand just to familiarise yourself with it. Then try varying how you play the chords. You could turn them into broken chords or arpeggio patterns; you can make an octave of the first note of the chord with the third note of the chord in the middle (e.g. DAD for chord 1); you can invert the chords e.g. by putting the bottom note of the chord at the top instead; you can double up certain notes of the chords etc.
You can combine these ideas of broken chords/arpeggio patterns/inversions to get different effects. This will get you started with improvising a left hand accompaniment on a chord sequence.
Next you may want to think about adding a melody in the right hand. Play through your chord sequence again in the left hand and use the notes of each chord as a basic outline for your right hand melody. Then fill in the melody by adding some notes that pass between the harmony notes. Start to add some rhythm to your improvisation. You could start off with a very simple rhythm of just minims and crotchets, then be a bit more adventurous as you become more confident and fluent with improvisation.
This is a very basic method that can start to build up your confidence so that you can eventually experiment more with different styles and ideas. For example, you could take this method and use 7th chords instead, and improvise on the notes from a blues scale. This is also a useful method for getting started with composition.
Read more about chords here.
You may also be interested in reading about the benefits of improvisation, the benefits of learning piano, or watching me play a piece written in an improvisatory style.
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Start with a chord sequence. Decide what key you want to play in and familiarise yourself with the scale of that key. Then work out what chords you can use in that scale. You can do this by taking each note of the scale and building a triad (3 note chord) on it. The particular note of the scale that you are building the triad upon is the bottom note or root of the chord. The second note of the chord should be 2 letter names above the root (or an interval of a third) but be sure to keep any sharps or flats that occur in the scale. The third note of the chord is another two letter names (or interval of a third) above the second note, again keeping in mind any sharps or flats within the key.
Here is an example:
The scale of D major is: D E F# G A B C# D.
The first chord is built on D. To get the second note of the chord go up two letter names from D, keeping in mind any sharps or flats relevant to the scale - you get F#. Another two letter names up from F# is A. So the first chord from a D major scale is DF#A.
The second chord would be EGB, the third chord would be F# A C#, the fourth chord would be GBD, and so on.
Once you've worked out your chords you can decide on a chord sequence. Play all the chords in order first just to familiarise yourself with them. Then start mixing them up to see what order you like the sound of. Write down the sequence you like, and then you can use this sequence as a basis for your improvisation. Often a chord sequence is repeated a few times in a piece of music. A very common and popular chord sequence is 1 4 5 1. In D major this would be: DF#A, GBD, AC#E, DF#A. You can try this chord sequence to start with or vary it/extend it.
Play your chord sequence a few times in the left hand just to familiarise yourself with it. Then try varying how you play the chords. You could turn them into broken chords or arpeggio patterns; you can make an octave of the first note of the chord with the third note of the chord in the middle (e.g. DAD for chord 1); you can invert the chords e.g. by putting the bottom note of the chord at the top instead; you can double up certain notes of the chords etc.
You can combine these ideas of broken chords/arpeggio patterns/inversions to get different effects. This will get you started with improvising a left hand accompaniment on a chord sequence.
Next you may want to think about adding a melody in the right hand. Play through your chord sequence again in the left hand and use the notes of each chord as a basic outline for your right hand melody. Then fill in the melody by adding some notes that pass between the harmony notes. Start to add some rhythm to your improvisation. You could start off with a very simple rhythm of just minims and crotchets, then be a bit more adventurous as you become more confident and fluent with improvisation.
This is a very basic method that can start to build up your confidence so that you can eventually experiment more with different styles and ideas. For example, you could take this method and use 7th chords instead, and improvise on the notes from a blues scale. This is also a useful method for getting started with composition.
Read more about chords here.
You may also be interested in reading about the benefits of improvisation, the benefits of learning piano, or watching me play a piece written in an improvisatory style.
Articles main menu
Learning how to figure out and play chords with the help of flash cards can greatly improve your improvisation and composition skills. Try the flash cards and chord chart below: