Beginner Piano Exercises That Actually Sound Nice
Three musical beginner piano exercises from Jason Zac: repeat E G# A B over changing left-hand bass notes, improvise grooves on the E minor pentatonic over a steady pulse, and pair each note of the Ab major scale with the diatonic third below it in the left hand.
Key points
- Repeat E G# A B in the right hand while the left hand holds one bass note per four or eight notes; E, C#, D and B work, Bb clashes.
- The E minor pentatonic hand position is E G A B D, with an optional bluesy Bb.
- Tap a groove on a table first, then play that rhythm on the pentatonic over a steady pulse.
- In Ab major, pair each right-hand note with the diatonic third below it in the left hand.
- Exercises matter, but enjoying and making music matters most.
What this lesson teaches
This lesson from Jason Zac at Nathaniel School of Music gives you three piano exercises that build speed, dexterity, harmony and hand independence while still sounding like real music. It is aimed at beginners, but anyone who has played for one to three years will find it useful. All you need is to know where the white and black notes are, including sharps and flats.
The big idea is that exercises should never take away the joy of playing. Drills, scales and inversions matter, but your goal is to make music.
Exercise 1: Four notes over a moving bass
The right hand
Use just four notes: E, G#, A and B. Try different fingerings and see which four fingers feel best. Play the group over and over, ascending (going up) and descending (going down).
Adding the left hand
Now let the left hand hold down one note while the right hand keeps repeating its pattern. Play no more than one left-hand note for every four right-hand notes, or even one for every eight (a full bar of quavers, or eighth notes).
- E works naturally because E is already in the right hand.
- C# is not in the right hand, yet it sounds lovely because it creates harmonic movement, taking the music on a journey.
- D, B, A and G# also work well.
- C and F give a mysterious colour.
- G sounds odd, and Bb clashes. That does not make them bad notes; they simply do not fit this right-hand pattern.
A sample progression is E, C#, A, B in the left hand. You can also try the right-hand variation E, F#, G#, B. Explore freely and notice which bass notes feel plain, adventurous or wrong to you.
Exercise 2: A pentatonic groove
The hand position
Place your right hand like this: E with the thumb, G with the index finger, A with the middle finger, B with the ring finger and D with the little finger. These five notes form the E minor pentatonic scale. For a bluesy flavour you can slide into a Bb.
Finding the pulse
Play up and down the scale at your own pace. Nod your head to the music; that steady beat is the pulse, or quarter notes. Let the left hand tap out that pulse while the right hand speeds up, slows down or doubles. Every speed works.
Turning a rhythm into music
- Tap a groove you enjoy on a table or drum until you feel confident.
- Return to the pentatonic hand position and play that same rhythm on the keys.
- Jump around, repeat one note, combine notes or add the blues note, keeping the rhythm.
- Keep a steady pulse in the left hand while the right hand explores, or swap roles if you prefer.
This also trains your memory, since you must remember the rhythm's hit points.
Exercise 3: Diatonic thirds in Ab major
Use the Ab major scale: Ab, Bb, C, Db, Eb, F, G, Ab. Fingering is not important here. For each right-hand note, play the note a third below it, from the same scale, in the left hand:
- Ab over F
- Bb over G
- C over Ab
- Db over Bb
- Eb over C
- F over Db
- G over Eb
You do not need every pair. Pick a few combinations, add a rhythmic twist, move higher on the keyboard and think like a drummer with two hands. Stick to these pairings; because they are diatonic thirds from the scale, they give the modern pop sound and stay easy to control.
How to practise
Work through all three drills over a week or more. Go at your own pace, experiment, and above all keep it fun.
Questions about this lesson
What do I need to know before trying these exercises?
You only need to know the names and positions of the white and black notes on the piano, including sharps and flats. No advanced theory or fingering is required.
Why does C# sound good in the left hand when it is not in the right-hand pattern?
C# complements the E G# A B pattern by creating harmonic movement, which takes the music on a journey. Not every outside note works, though; Bb clashes with this pattern.
What notes are in the E minor pentatonic scale?
E, G, A, B and D. You can place one finger on each in the right hand, and add a Bb as a bluesy note.
What are diatonic thirds in Ab major?
They are pairs of notes a third apart taken from the Ab major scale, such as F with Ab, G with Bb and Ab with C. Because they come from the scale, they sound good almost all the time.
Practise it
- Two NotesA guided field guide to intervals: consonance, inversions, scales, modes and the Circle of Fifths.
- PitaraPlay the piano on your computer keys or a MIDI keyboard and see every note on the staff with its chord name.
- Piano classes at Nathaniel School of MusicLive online or in Bangalore, with a teacher.
- All free music apps40 practice tools for harmony, rhythm, ear training and more.
Related lessons
- How to Create a Blues Solo on Piano (Scales and Phrasing)To create a blues solo on piano, form the major blues scale (major pentatonic plus the minor third) or the minor blues scale (minor pentatonic plus the tritone), then build a short, singable motif from it and play it, and smaller pieces of it, over the 12-bar blues.
- How to Write a Melody on Piano Using the Pentatonic ScalesTo write a melody over a chord progression on piano, build the major pentatonic (scale degrees 1, 2, 3, 5, 6) or its relative minor pentatonic, then create tunes from mechanical note patterns, by singing phrases and playing them back, and by repeating a short motif that fits every chord.
- The Only Left-Hand Piano Arpeggio You Need (Works on Any Song)Play each left-hand chord as low, high, middle, high in steady eighth notes (two cycles per bar), use inversions so the chords move smoothly, and then improvise a right-hand melody using chord tones, the pentatonic scale, singing, or small scale shapes.
- Piano Hand Independence and Interval Theory: One Modern Pop DrillThis modern pop piano drill uses four right-hand notes from Bb major (G, A, Bb, F) over left-hand notes a diatonic third below, then builds hand independence with rhythmic ratios such as 1:4, 4:1, 1:3, 3:1, 2:4 and 4:2 before stacking fifths and thirds into seventh chords.