My Color Music

Now that we know how to play music’s most popular chord—the major triad—let’s see it in action, shall we? In our next song, we’ll focus on hitting each major chord with the left hand … while playing the melody line with the right hand. In music notation, we show this by splitting the bass staff and treble staff, like so:

Because chords are used to support the melody, they’re usually written on the bass staff. Like pillars or columns, chords lay a solid foundation for the melody—which is usually written on the treble staff. By playing the chords and the melody together, we simply blend all the notes into a full and complete song.

To keep things simple, our first song includes just one major chord, C major … while the melody is based on the C major scale.

You’ve definitely heard this tune before. Some of you might know it as “Are You Sleeping?” … and others might know it as “Frere Jacques.” But either way, it’s pretty basic. Because we’ll play just one C major chord at the start of each measure.

At first, it might be a little hard to get both of your hands working together. But that’s only natural, so don’t worry. It can be a little strange to play one part with your left hand … and another part with your right hand. Which is why a lot of musicians learn new songs using a special trick. They simply practice each part separately before putting the melody and chords together.

To see what I mean, let’s try doing this with our new song. With the right hand, start out by going through the melody alone a couple of times. It’s in the key of C (with a 4/4 time signature), so it should be pretty easy to learn. Then with your left hand, go through the song again, hitting only the chords at the start of each measure. And once each hand is ready, go back to the beginning and play both the melody and the chords together.

The chords on the bass staff are written exactly under the notes of the melody. So as you play, make sure all the notes are lined up and played together at the same time. That way, the song will sound right and everyone will be happy.

Seriously … who knew that adding a few chords could make our music sound so much better?

Have you ever heard a song on the radio that you immediately loved? And for some reason, it just gets stuck in your head and stays there forever? Well, that happened to me the first time I heard “My Best Friend’s Girl” by The Cars. When I was a kid, it was one of my favorite songs. But I never got the album … until last week when I rediscovered this song and fell in love with it all over again.

Honestly, I can’t remember what life was like before it. This song was written in 1978. And, if you ask me, the band should have won a Nobel prize for that recording. It’s brilliant … everything about it is excellent. The whole song is like sugar spraying out of my stereo speakers.

It’s got kind of a honkey-tonk sound … with a 1950s vibe, which is very cool. Every time I listen to this song, there’s something new to hear. It’s full of good harmonies, slick guitar solos, bouncing keyboards, and solid drums. And of course, the lyrics are awesome—telling the story of some guy whose girl left him for his best friend … sort of like this picture (from AwkwardFamilyPhotos):

Nice.

Seriously, though … you should check it out. This song never gets old. (Even though the video is pretty ancient.)

Let’s face it … making music is all about the hands. Sure, we’ve got to understand what we’re actually doing if we want to get really good. (Thank you, Color Music.) But it’s just as important to have nice, flexible fingers. After all, your hands are what connect your brain with your instrument. So if your hands ain’t workin’, then everything stops.

That’s why it’s totally important to take care of your hands … and treat ‘em like babies. (That is, if you’re good with babies….) Because if your fingers are in good shape, then your music will sound better.

Don’t get me wrong … I’m not saying we all should go out and get a manicure every Saturday night. But as a rule of thumb, try doing the following and you’ll be able to make music for a long, long time:

1. Try not to crack your knuckles
2. Keep your hands warm (wear fingerless gloves if you have to play in cold weather)
3. Use hand lotion if your skin gets really dry
4. Always do finger warm-ups before you play (gently stretching your hands for better flexibility)
5. Trim your nails (for better sensation and grip), and finally …
6. Avoid rock climbing, fist fights, and other activities that might mangle your hands

That last one is especially good advice … in general, really. Because a broken hand is a sad hand. Of course, you’ll sometimes hear about musicians who live on the edge and do crazy stuff with their hands. (Like Richard Hughes of the band, Keane—who is an avid rock climber. Or Kid Rock—who has an odd reputation for punching people.) But most of the time, musicians take it easy when it comes to their fingers.

So the bottom line is this: Take care of your digits … because your music depends on it. As they (should) say, “Happy hands make great musicians.”