How To Play Christmas Sheet Music
The secret to playing Christmas sheet music is to make the melody prominent, get some rhythm happening underneath and bang out some chords to support the harmony of the song. And, while that may seem like a fairly simple concept, for most pianists it takes some practice. Here are some ideas that may help you.
First let's start with the melody. I think for some reason many musicians forget that the melody is the most important thing. I'll never forget this one time early on in my career when I got a gig with some prominent local jazz musicians. It all started out ok, but eventually we got into some tunes where I didn't know the melody very well. I was playing all kinds of way out improve and the bass player turned to me and said, "Hey man, just play the flippin melody!"
It was kind of embarrassing that's for sure. Anyway, I never forgot that and to this day I always put the melody before anything else. What does that mean? It means to get the melody right and make it the most prominent part of your playing. The next thing to go along with your melody is rhythm. It's so important that your playing has some feel to it. So often, pianists focus on getting the notes right and therefore lack the rhythm and feel of the music. If you can, play your music along with the radio or a recording. That will help you develop some feel.
Feel comes from playing with others. It comes from bassists, drummers and other instrumentalists. Even now when I'm playing solo piano concerts I can hear the drums and bass in my head and that will be very evident in my left first and sometimes in the right hand as well with rhythmic chords.
And, speaking of chords, you cannot forget to add a good dose of rich chord structures to your playing. Very often Christmas sheet music has chord symbols on it and you can take your lead from those symbols.
If you don't know how to read chord symbols here's a simple rule. If you see a simple triad chord symbol such as "G". That means it's a G major triad or 3-note chord. First plunk down a G then a major third above which is a "B" then a minor third above that which is a "D."
For minor chords the intervals are inverted. A minor interval first then a major interval on top of that. Then if you want to get really fancy add sevenths to your chord voicings. For example; if you see a G7 chord symbol that mean a major triad with another minor third stacked on top. In others word the chord would be in order from bottom to top; G, B, D and F.
If you see a Gmaj7 chord symbol it's the same as a G7 chord except the top note is an F# instead of an F. Or, think of it as a G major triad with another major third stacked on top.
The only other chord symbol is a minor seventh chord or G-7. This would be played as a G minor triad with a minor seventh stacked on top or; G, Bb, D and F.
While this may seem like a fairly simple approach to playing chord symbols it covers at least 85% of all Christmas sheet music. There are other chord symbols which you may come across from time to time but, like I said, that's pretty much it.
So, when practicing Christmas sheet music play the melody prominently and correctly in the right hand, add some rhythmic feel to it and drop in a good helping of chords to back up the harmony of the song. Christmas sheet music will never sound the same again.
The author, Paul Tobey, has a piano music website where you will find a unique collection of original Christmas sheet music and the ultimate Christmas carol sing-a-long CD.
Related Articles:
Wedding Website Provider WedShare.com Announces New Music Capabilities
Sharing your wedding details is easier than ever with today's biggest wedding planning trend: the custom wedding website. Wedding website provider WedShare.com has developed a service enabling any couple, tech-savvy or not, to create their very own personal wedding website and have it live on the Internet in minutes. With new updates released this month, WedShare.com is now pushing the boundaries of audio as well as photo and video for this cutting-edge corner of social technology.
Words and Music Concert and CD Release Party
Recording Arts & Technology @ Tri-C Presents: "Words & Music"
The Songs of Don Dixon, Doug Gillard, Carlos Jones and Tommy Wiggins
A Benefit and CD Release Concert.
National Recording Artist Sy Smith Performs With Special Guest Alison Crockett For Detroit's Premiere Soul Music Series, The Mocha Mahogany Mixer
Diamond Dynasty Entertainment Group in association with Crush Media Group and Soultracks.com, the Nation's top rated Soul Music Website, have geared up to bring the return of the Mocha Mahogany Mixer, Detroit's Premiere Live Music Series.
ClickForLessons.com Announces Top Ten Requested Lessons for 2006 - Demand for Private Music, Dance Lessons on the Rise
2006 showed dramatic increase in lesson requests by Jesse Jayne Rutherford.
Tritone Music Education Introduces Interactive Online Product Seminars and Teacher Training
Tritone, a division of Great West Music (1987) Ltd. is a music education innovator and provider of music education services, curricula and applied music technology. The company announces the release of online seminars to provide training and support for its music programs.
Juanes, Daddy Yankee, Mana and Other Latin Stars on V-me's New Music Interview Show Estudio Billboard -- Innovative Talk/Music format with Latin Lege
V-me's newest program, Estudio Billboard features intimate conversations with Daddy Yankee, Juanes, Franco DeVita, Gloria Estefan and many other top Latin artists. This new music and interview series debuts October 16 at 10:00 on V-me. The show was developed in collaboration with Billboard Magazine and is hosted by Leila Cobo, the ultimate Latin music insider.
PSP For Music Instead of Ipod?
It seems that now the PSP has been out for a couple of years, many owners are trying to branch out in the things they use their PSP for. If you?ve ever wondered about downloading music to your little PSP, or just wondered where the music may come from, check out the rest of this article.
Want Music Just Download It
Making music downloads legal seems to be the perfect solution to stopping music piracy, which really encompasses downloading music for than anything else. Many people like to download music because it is easy and the quality is of decent quality but most people are concerned about doing it illegally. Here are some reasons why downloading music makes sense. 1. You are able to listen to music for free before purchasing the entire CD. 2. You can are able to listen to new artists.
Royalty Free Music: Production Music Libraries
Music has always been a huge part of human lives. It is sang to us when we are babies as lullabies; it is used to help us remember important things while we are growing up, like the alphabet song; and music is used to help us celebrate and commemorate important events in our lives such as weddings and funerals. Because of the popularity of music, it is no surprise that there are more and more uses for music in films and other media outlets. Production music libraries have come into being for the sole purpose of providing music to producers in these venues.
Australian Indigenous Band the MERRg Sign With Hardrush Music
South Australian-based indigenous band the MERRg has signed with rising Independent label Hardursh Music. The deal involves the commercial release of their album "Introducing ?the MERRg," publishing and promotional assistance from Hardrush Music.
Famous Subliminal Messages In Music
There have been many different kinds of rumors and speculations that famous songs actually contain subliminal messages. Subliminal messages can be used in songs that are verbal or aural in nature, and are delivered either very quickly or backwards at such low volumes that the audience is unaware of receiving it. It is made in such a way so that the audience would not be aware that they are under the influence of such a 'trick' and would innocently be mesmerized by the songs they are listening too. Such charges are made not just to rock music, but even Christian songs as well!
Ariel Hyatt of Ariel Publicity & Bob Baker of TheBuzzFactor.com Present a Music Publicity Bootcamp for Musicians, Managers and Labels NYC Saturda
Ariel Hyatt of Ariel Publicity and Bob Baker of TheBuzzFactor.com are teaming up to give their first ever workshop. Artists will get four hours of personal PR training from veteran music publicist Ariel Hyatt and music marketing coach Bob Baker. This rare Music Publicity Bootcamp is designed specifically for for musicians of all levels, managers and labels. It will take place on Saturday June 2, 2007 in New York City. There are 7 seats remaining.
Make Money with Your Music – the Top 5 Ways
Songwriters dream of making their living by writing, and sometimes performing, their songs. But until that day comes they've got to make a living somehow! Sound familiar?With a little imagination, you can probably find a way to convert your love for music and songwriting into a means of making money.
Put the 'Fun' Into Functionality with the New Motorola Q Music 9m Cell Phone
The new Motorola MOTO Q music 9m from Verizon Wireless delivers V CAST Music and other multimedia capabilities in an ultra-thin package.
ON Networks Presents Dinner with the Band: A Virtual Mash-Up of Cutting-Edge Cuisine With Indie Music, Featuring Innovative NYC Chef Sam Mason and Ina
Two of life's passions - food and music - are sharing a virtual stage thanks to one of Manhattan's hottest young chefs and a rotating roster of some of the music industry's hippest up-and-coming bands. Launched on the Internet as a program for foodies and music gourmands alike, Dinner with the Band (www.dinnerwiththeband.tv) is the perfect mash-up of indie music and designer fare.