How to play an A major chord
Would you like to know how to play an A major chord on the piano? I’ll show you how. Look down at your keyboard and take your right hand. Place your thumb on the key A. Put your middle finger on the black key just to the right of C, and your little finger on E. This gives you the A major chord (you can find a detailed explanation here) in its simplest form, the so-called root position. Now remember this basic pattern, and you can play the chord in other places as well. The piano is laid out so that the notes repeat again and again in blocks. That means I can play A major in many ways.
More possibilities
You can also play the chord with your left hand. If you want to go a little further and get a few more variations of this A major chord, you can do the following: I start with the root position in the right hand and then play the A one octave higher. This gives me the first inversion of an A major chord. Then the same again – simply move the lowest note up – and I have the second inversion. The same once more brings me back to the root position. So now we have three different ways to play A major:
- Root position: A, C#, E
- 1st inversion: C#, E, A
- 2nd inversion: E, A, C#
This works all over the keyboard, with either hand. It is important that you can not only play this chord, but also know the names of its notes. With the Zapiano® Method I always teach holistically, and knowledge is enormously important – alongside playing, of course. So we know: an A major chord contains the notes A, C# and E.
And suddenly this opens up lots of variations for playing A major. You can also double the notes – that works too. It is a matter of taste. And so you suddenly realize: the keyboard isn’t such a big mystery after all. You can play across the whole keyboard and it always sounds good. You can hardly do anything wrong as long as you stick to these notes. Down in the bass it may sound a little grumbly – that is partly a matter of taste – but it will always sound correct.
It is also important that you connect with what you play through your ear
Here is how to start: when you play A major, first try singing the top note. That is the easiest. So you play a chord, and then you try to sing the other notes as well. You can then check whether it is really correct. This immediately gives you a deeper understanding of making music.
I can also put A major into a wider context. The chord can be the first degree when I am in the key of A major. But it can also be the fifth degree in D major or the fourth degree in E major. You can see which notes belong to A major in the A major scale.
Would you like to learn more about major chords and see more short piano tips like this? At Zapiano® you will regularly find short videos with tips and exercises for playing the piano. There is something for everyone – just as varied as our courses. And the best part: at Zapiano® you are never on your own. You can ask questions at any time and even upload a video of your playing once a month.