Lesson 9: The black keys
Discover your first black key, F sharp, put your hand in D position and play the beginning of “Happy Birthday”.
What you'll learn
- Understand how the black keys are named
- Find F sharp at a glance
- Play in D position
- Play the beginning of “Happy Birthday”
The lesson, step by step
- You now know every white key. Today, you'll play your first black key. You'll discover what the black keys are called, and put your hand in a new position. At the end, you'll play the beginning of Happy Birthday.
- A black key takes the name of the white key just to its left, with the word sharp. Find a group of three black keys. The first one, just to the right of F, is F sharp. Watch first: we play the two F sharps on the keyboard.
- A sharp is a tiny step to the right: the sound goes up just a little. Listen to the difference first: F, then F sharp, twice in a row. You can play both with the same finger.
- Here's a new position for your right hand: D position. Thumb on the middle D, index finger on E, middle finger on F sharp, the black key, ring finger on G, and little finger on A. Your middle finger reaches forward a little onto the black key. Listen first to the five notes going up.
- Now, let's go back down from A to D, from your little finger to your thumb, passing over the black key. Watch first.
- Today's song is Happy Birthday. It starts with two Ds played with your thumb: the first one a little long, the second one very short. Then E, D, G, and an F sharp that lasts two beats, with your middle finger. Listen first.
- Here's the next phrase. It starts the same way, but this time your little finger plays A, and your ring finger finishes on a G that lasts two beats. Listen first.
- Your song: the beginning of Happy Birthday, with your first black key. Listen to it once, then follow the falling notes.
- Well done, you just played your first black key. Each black key is named after its neighbor on the left, with the word sharp. In the next lesson, you'll discover more black keys.