Piano Practice
Primary 6 · Creative Arts
Piano Practice
Lesson 4 of 5
35 min
Let's begin
Keza wants to play tunes she already knows. "Start with tunes that fit under your five fingers," says her teacher. "Then you never have to move your hand, and you can think about the beat."
The German composer Ludwig van Beethoven wrote this tune for the last movement of his Ninth Symphony, completed in 1824. Here it is written in C, and it fits under the right hand in C position.
We have made the rhythm of bars 4 and 8 a little simpler for beginners. In Beethoven's tune, the first note of those bars lasts one and a half beats and the next note only half a beat.
You sang this French folk song in P4. Now play it with your left hand in C position, reading the bass staff. The finger numbers are below the staff.
Ganzaa wrote this little waltz for you. Count "1 2 3" in every bar and lean a little on beat 1. The first line ends on D and sounds unfinished; the second line comes home to C.
Tip
Look, find, clap, say, play. Slow and steady first; speed comes later.
Try each one first, then tap Show answer to check.
Which fingers play the first four notes of Ode to Joy (E E F G)?
Answer: 3 3 4 5.
In Ode to Joy, which note is played by the right thumb (finger 1)?
Answer: C.
In Au Clair de la Lune, which finger plays the first three notes?
Answer: Finger 5, because they are all C.
Which left-hand finger plays D in Au Clair de la Lune?
Answer: Finger 4.
In Evening Waltz, how many beats does the last note last?
Answer: 3 beats. It is a dotted minim, filling a whole bar of three-four time.
What you learned today
Sources and credits
Beethoven's Ode to Joy melody (1824) and the traditional French song Au Clair de la Lune are in the public domain; the arrangements and fingerings here are by Ganzaa. Evening Waltz, the story, the notation drawings and the practice questions were written by Ganzaa. The bass clef in the diagrams was drawn by Ganzaa.
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Quick check
Put the five steps for learning a new tune in order.
Tap the cards in the right order.
