Hey Key Notes...

The bass clef is USUALLY played with the left hand and the treble clef is USUALLY played with the right.

The real purpose of the clefs is to allow for the majority of the notes to fit on the staff, not necessarily which hand plays it. At least so far in my experience, the RH part is on top of the grand staff and the LH part is on the bottom, but the clef mark can be either one (or even something else, but piano music is always treble and bass (so far). If there is a melody clef, then it will be on top of the grand staff.

(The grand staff are the two clefs connected by the brackets).

I think of the staffs as a tool to help me read. Think of all the notes a piano can make from the lowest A to the highest C written on a piece of paper in order. Then the staff slides up and down the range of notes until it stops at a point where most of the notes being used will fit somewhere on the staff. The clef sign just tells you where in the range of notes that the staff is being used. The treble clef is also called the G clef, as it marks the G above middle C as a reference point, and the bass clef is also called the F clef, as it marks the F below middle C.

For some reason, I find it easier to think of the clefs as a marker for where the staff is in relation to the bigger picture, and not as individual staffs.

Key Notes - gmm1's explanation is right on the money, especially about the general use of the combined staves to encompass most of the notes and about the RH usually playing the notes on the treble staff and the LH usually playing notes on the bass staff.

However, in the future in your studies you will run across many examples where the LH will play certain notes up on the treble staff and the RH will play certain notes down on the bass staff (typically to make the execution of the notes easier at that point).

Even stranger (at least to you at this point) is that in some (more advanced) pieces you will see an occassional change of CLEF ON A GIVEN STAFF, say from the treble clef to the bass clef (usually temporary) and then back to the treble clef. This usually happens when the RH, for example, would have to be playing notes that would normally appear on the bass staff for maybe several measures or more.

As far as the Duet Part at the bottom of pg. 26 (to be played by another student or your teacher) both hands are assigned a separate "line" of notes which just happen to be down in the range where it's easier to use the bass staff to show them - the upper line is played by the RH and the bottom line is played by the LH, as indicated.

In summary, either hand can play notes on either staff at any time.

JF

Maybe this is a typical newbie questions but...

Does one have learn EVERY song in the Alfred book?

I'm doing pretty well with "Little Brown Jug" and "Mexican Hat Dance"? Why so many songs in F major?

I've always liked "Greensleeves"; can I just move on to Am? I promise to return to "Auld Lang Syne"-on December 31st- it's just not the thing for sunny spring mornings.

Thank you very much gmm1 and JohnFrank for your unlightening and clear explanations. I see now. It would've helped if they give us real beginners some background information such as yours before they ask us to play this piece.

I could've skipped it but I wanted to learn everything right and not misunderstand anything at tis point. I wish I could play this hands together but I guess I'll do it hand separate for now.

Thanks again and have a fantastic day!

Key Notes

Great question. For those of us without teachers, I guess we're on our own. I have every intention of skipping the Can-Can, for example... that piece annoys me when it is played well, to say nothing of what it would sound like the first hour or two I try it.

But I am pretty much playing everything else. I feel like the repetition of themes across pieces reinforces whatever I am supposed to be learning.

You're probably far ahead of many of us in being familiar with the bass clef.

Thanks for the reply!

You say about Can-Can "That piece annoys me..."

Right, so many pieces in Alfred's annoy me... "Go Tell Aunt Rhody", "LIttle Brown Jug", etc.,

Oh well... I realize that there's a certain pedogic method behind the madness.

Still, it's annoying.

You will find some "naff" pieces of music in any method you use, I have Bastiens, Thompsons, Arron and Piano Handbook here, you just have to consider that "naff" music as studies. I've used Alfred's as my main teaching method but constantly look for nice music outside of the method which is at my level. As I'm self learning I have to keep as close to the method programme as possible, I have not the luxury of a teacher for guidance...yet. Bear in mind that you are learning to play piano for enjoyment, if your not enjoying what you are doing look outside of Alfred's for inspiration, there's loads of free stuff online too.

Finishing up "Money Can't Buy Everything" - I don't know why I had so much trouble with that one. Working now on "Cuckoo" and "Harp Song". They seem easy enough. Will stick to those three for a couple of days, then review everything from "Saints" on up before moving on to the next victim.

How do you remember all the chords? I can see this getting to be very confusing.

Cuckoo was one of my favorites from that part of the book. As to the chords, what do you mean by "remember"? Remember the fingering for them, or remember which to play when?

Hmmm... both, I guess. I can figure out the fingering, but I didn't have to when I was only using C & G7. I could tell by their shapes and by their "names". Now that I have added F, G and D7 with both hands, and I know there are more to come, how do you remember which ones are which?

Okay, I know there are pictures of them on the page, but that won't last forever. :-)

Ok, I'm with ya. To me, there is no "identification" per se... I would equate that with being able to sight-read (a noble goal, but I'm years away). Neither the chord names (G, D7, what have you) nor the chord numbers (see page 106, where Alfred tells us that "It is important that you now think of the C, F, and G7 chords in the key of C MAJOR as the I, IV, & V7 chords!") do me any lick of good whatsoever. At this point, it is a matter of practicing the piece enough times to know that one or another of these is coming, and my LH needs to get ready to render the chord.

What I hope for is this... that somehow, by sensing what my RH is doing, I am developing some sort of automatic system that "knows" which chord is appropriate on the LH side. This is the sort of thing I tell myself as I am playing some of these pieces over and over again. And it's also the underlying hope for the last thing I wrote in my blog today, about key signatures. I mean, do accomplished musicians just know, without thinking about it, what the appropriate intervals and chords are for a given key? Or does this sort of thing come about over time, as you go from one key to the next?

Sorry for the drift, but in my mind, all these things are related.

I guess I shouldn't worry too much about it then, as long as I can play the piece in the lesson. Hopefully it will all sink in with enough repetition. Right now I'm still a little iffy on the notes in G-position also. Have to keep going back to review that little one octave scale.

I read your blog, Always Wanted to Play Piano - and chuckled, as I've put aside anything with more than one flat or sharp myself. I figure I have enough trouble with the natural notes. But I'm sure in another month or two we will be playing them with no problem.

I'm so exited I have to share. I've just started learning "Jingle Bells" tonight from the Afread's AIO Book 1 and for the very first time in my life and dream of playing the panio with both hands, I started to do it tonight! It's so nice to hear that the music is coming out from very my own hands.

It was very awkward at first trying to coordiante everything, reading all of the notes, knowing where all of my fingers are and which keys they're on, etc., but somehow it got better after many repetitions. I'm still having quite a bit of trouble with that last 2 measures though. Will have to conquer that too.

Thanks for reading and sharing my special moment with me.

Key Notes

That's fantastic! Congratualtions Key Notes!

Congratulations, Key Notes! I'm not that far away from Jingle Bells myself, and I remember the feeling of the struggle, and then it all coming together. You will have some more feelings of awkwardness, struggle and then accomplishment and pride coming up in Mary Ann and When the Saints Go Marching In. Enjoy!

Thanks BazC and mom3gram! I appreciate it.

mom3gram, you must've started on your book at similar time as I did? It's so nice to know that there are someone out there who are at a similar place as I am.

If I may ask, are you working on your own or in conjunction with an instructor? While I understand that everyone learns differently and at different rates, I was wondering if we can learn, not just correctly, but also faster with an instructor. I've read about this subject on another thread but just curious as to what you think.

Thanks to both again for the encouragements.

Key Notes

I'm working on my own. I'm sure that I could learn more correctly and faster with an instructor, but I don't have a real piano, which would be a problem with an instructor, plus I just don't want the committment or expense that outside lessons would involve.

I understand and can definitely relate to all that you've mentioned. I'm also trying to learn as much as I can on my own until I feel that I need and can afford an instructor. I have a lady friend who is a classical piano instructor and she was nice enough to offer to help me free of charge. I may take her up on it someday but for now, while I'm a firm believer in taking lessons with whatever i would like to pursue, I think it would be fun to challenge myself in this case. So onward and upward hopefully.

Have a good day and happy playing to you!

Key Notes

Hi Key Notes,

I started Alfreds in Dec of last year and sort of up to page 80 or so. I haven't seen my teacher for 2 months so we have 40 pages to go over. That reminds
me I need to write in the stuff. I have 2 lessons tomorrow so its gonna be a busy day.
Carillon lesson in the am, piano in the pm.
Need the keyboard to learn carillon. I honestly figured once I learned the notes on piano, I could drop it but that was a very WRONG assumption.
I have worked on Alouette and am mostly done with it.
nice to see there are other true beginners here.

lol funny story...

i've been playing for about two months and today started thinking well you know i should probably check out these alfred's books everyone kept talking about, just to make sure i'm learning everything i should be bla bla bla...

i came home and told my girlfriend i was interested in some book series for piano called alfred's adult beginner's something...

she laughs at me and pulls out alfred's books 1-6 for both technique and theory

so i've got some playing to do hehe :p

Greetings 1silkyferret,

So it took you about almost 4 months to get to page 80. I wonder how long it'll take me since I tend to go back and redo many of the fingers warm ups and practice pieces before moving on to new pieces just to reinforce them. I didn't know that they have Alouette in there. Looking forward to it since it'll definitely bring back some fond childhood memories.

Interesting that you are learning to play Carillon as well. Curious as to why you didn't see your teacher for 2 months. Seems like quite a long interruption to me but glad to hear that you are back on track again.

Yes, I'm also glad to have found this PW forum which is filled with many talented individuals at varying levels where I can also learn from.

Thanks for the note and good luck with all of your lessons.

Key Notes

Zwischenzug,

That's a funny coincident and very convenient indeed that your girlfriend already has Alfred's books. So I presume she's also playing or is learning as well? I'm curious as to what you've been using instead of Alfred's during this past two months.

The instructions in Alfred's All-In-One, book 1 has been pretty clear so far and I'm really enjoying learning on my new dp. I also decided to go with this one because so many people on this beginners' forum are talking about it and are using it, so I figured its popularity couldn't be too bad. Plus I'll also get lots of help and advice when I needed them.

Good luck on your lessons.

Key Notes

Hi Key Notes,

I have this friend who is this absulutly infreakin carillon player.
he was and is the reason why I wanted to learn. Its a real complex to play and I'm having to learn how to use both paws instead of playing anything below middle c with left and above with the right. I'm only on quarter notes but need to learn basic technique correctly from the start.

I was on the road for 2 months so no lessons.

My girlfriend took lessons as a kid so i guess they have been using alfred's for quite some time hehe...

before these books i was using some other piano books that just had simple piano peices in them...learning minuets etc...

Hi Key Notes and all,
I had an ego booster from my piano teacher. We managed to go thru a lot of the pages I did on the road. We went thru 20 pages. I had about 10 more pages to play for him.
he was full of complements on my progress after feeling like a total idiot this am, that was nice.

Nice indeed. Keep up the good work!

Maybe you covered this elsewhere, and if so, please forgive me. But how did you make progress on the road? I have a convention coming up in April, and will be gone for eight days. I figured I would take my daughter's little 31 key rollup with me, just to keep from regressing... but if there is a way to make real progress, I am all ears.

dear Always Wanted to Play,

I would not worry about 8 days away. I got a small movable keyboard, and put aside 45 minuits to an hour 3 days a week to practice. This of course after trail and much error. Not wanting to embarass myself in front of Larry. I find out that most of these teachers don't take students with less than 2 years of piano training. So needless to say I am busting my tail.

cindy

Earlier this month I missed about 10 days of piano when I attended a week long art workshop in SC. Five days of class plus travel time, and then came home to no electricity or heat. Obviously, I didn't learn anything new in this time, but surprisingly I didn't notice regressing any either. I was able to pick up right where I left off with no noticeable disintegration of my "skills". As for making progress on the road, I guess it depends on how good that little roll-up piano is, and how much time you have at your disposal. Good luck!