Nathaniel School of Music

The Best Blues Piano Patterns for Both Hands (Swing and Charleston)

A classic blues piano groove pairs a left hand alternating root-fifth and root-sixth over each chord (C-G, C-A for C) with a right-hand Charleston rhythm, played legato on the beat and staccato off the beat, counted with the feel on beats 2 and 4.

Video lesson by Jason Zac · Beginner · 12 min

Can't see the video? Watch it on YouTube.

Key points

This lesson is part two of Jason Zac's blues piano series. It teaches a left-hand blues rhythm used in many blues and early rock and roll songs, and the Charleston rhythm for the right hand, which works in pop as well as blues. Along the way you will learn how swing and the blues time feel work and how to make your chords sound more bluesy. It suits beginners who know basic major chords and want to start playing the 12-bar blues.

The Left-Hand Blues Pattern

Instead of playing full chords in the left hand, play only two notes at a time. Start with the root and fifth (1 and 5), then move to the root and sixth (1 and 6). Alternating these gives the pattern its bounce.

Each pair of 1-5 and 1-6 fills one bar. The lesson demonstrates this over a 12-bar blues in C using the song I'm Tore Down: the first line stays on C for four bars, the second line has two bars of F and two bars of C, and the last line moves through G, F and back to C. The V chord appears only once in this form.

While you learn the left hand, just hold the chord in the right hand. If that is too much, play the left hand alone first and add the right hand later.

Adding Swung Eighth Notes

For more punch and a dancier feel, play the left-hand pattern in eighth notes (quavers), doubling each shape. In blues the eighth notes are not played straight; they are swung, with a long-short lilt.

Notice the mix of staccato and legato in the left hand. Keep your wrist relaxed, because this pattern can tire the hand and forearm quickly. Letting your wrist bounce gently gives the rhythm natural dynamics.

Counting the Blues Feel

Before the right-hand rhythm, practise snapping or counting with the focus on beats 2 and 4: count a one TWO three FOUR. Do not lean on beats 1 and 3. This backbeat feel is an important exercise in itself and makes the groove feel natural to your body.

The Charleston Rhythm (Right Hand)

The Charleston rhythm has two chord hits per bar: one on beat 1 and one on the and of 2. Count one and two and three and four and.

Learn it first over a simple left hand, either holding a note or playing a steady pulse, before combining it with the blues pattern.

The Displaced Charleston

For variety, shift the rhythm: start on the and of 1 (staccato, as it is an off beat), then hit beat 3 (legato, as it is an on beat). You can also combine the two, playing a bar of displaced Charleston followed by a normal one. The result sounds like a vocal a cappella group or a horn section.

Spicing Up the Chords with Dominant Sevenths

Instead of plain major chords, add the flat seventh to make dominant seventh chords in every shape you play:

These give the right-hand Charleston much more blues colour and texture.

How to Practise

  1. Play the 1-5/1-6 left hand through the 12-bar form while holding chords in the right hand.
  2. Try the swung, doubled eighth-note version with a relaxed, bouncing wrist.
  3. Snap or count with the weight on 2 and 4.
  4. Learn the Charleston over a simple left hand, then the displaced version, then combine them.
  5. Put both hands together, switch to dominant seventh chords, and finally sing the melody over it.

Questions about this lesson

What is the basic blues left-hand pattern on piano?

Play the root and fifth, then the root and sixth of each chord, alternating. For C that is C-G then C-A, for F it is F-C then F-D, and for G it is G-D then G-E.

What is the Charleston rhythm?

It is a right-hand chord rhythm with hits on beat 1 and on the and of beat 2. The on-beat hit is played legato and the off-beat hit is played staccato.

What is the displaced Charleston?

It shifts the rhythm so the first hit lands on the and of beat 1 (staccato) and the second on beat 3 (legato). You can alternate it with the normal Charleston for variety.

How do I make blues piano chords sound more bluesy?

Turn each major chord into a dominant seventh by adding the flat seventh: Bb for C, Eb for F and F for G.

Practise it

Related lessons