Nathaniel School of Music

One Rhythm Pattern Is All You Need to Create on Piano

You can improvise on piano over a single one-bar rhythm by filling its notes with scale patterns, such as sets of three on the three-note group and thirds on the two-note group, played ascending or descending in the key, or by fitting a five-finger drill into the same rhythm.

Video lesson by Jason Zac · Beginner · 17 min

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Key points

What this lesson teaches

This lesson closes Jason Zac's series on getting creative with one rhythm pattern lasting a single bar. A rhythm gives you no pitch or chord information, so the challenge is deciding what to play on the piano. Here you learn two ideas: improvising a right-hand melody with sets of three and thirds, and turning a plain five-finger drill into something musical. It suits beginners and improving players who can read a simple rhythm and know the E minor scale.

Why improvisation needs a plan

Just taking a scale and jamming on it often leaves you stuck, not knowing what to do next. Improvising works better when you have a few basic patterns or shapes and combine them in different ways. A restriction, like using only two patterns, gives you something to work with and actually sparks creativity.

Step 1: Find your thirds in E minor

The lesson uses E minor, treated as a hybrid minor. The seventh can be D (natural minor) or D# (harmonic minor). To build a third, skip one scale note and play the next:

Thirds are a very pleasant, usable interval because they build everything, including chords.

Step 2: Build sets of three

A set of three is simply three neighbouring scale notes, such as E F# G, then F# G A, then G A B, and so on up the scale.

Step 3: Fit them into the rhythm

The rhythm has a group of three notes followed by a group of two. Play a set of three on the three-note group and a third on the two notes. Starting simply, you might play E F# G, then E and G. It already sounds like a melody.

Change the direction

An ascending version followed by a descending one can work as call and response, which is a useful way to compose.

Move around the scale

Do not stay on the first few notes. Write out all your third pairs and sets of three across the scale, then mix them freely. You can also swap the order and play the third first, then the set of three. As long as you stay diatonic to the key, the choices are almost endless.

The left hand

Begin with a simple drone on E. Once comfortable, let the left hand move a little more while keeping it simple.

Step 4: Turn a finger drill into music

The classic beginner drill is going up and down the first five notes of the scale: E F# G A B, fingers 1 to 5. Instead of running it as endless eighth notes, play it in the same one-bar rhythm. It starts to groove.

Let the left hand play a pulse, a minim, or held scale notes, for example staying on E and then changing to C, A and B. For a bigger challenge, try a stomp-stomp-clap rhythm like Queen's We Will Rock You in the bass: pinky on the root twice, then thumb on the octave. Keep the main rhythm going in the right hand.

How to practise

  1. Count and clap the one-bar rhythm until it feels secure.
  2. Write out every third and set of three in E minor.
  3. Play one combination over a left-hand drone on E, then change direction.
  4. Improvise freely by mixing patterns and directions.
  5. Play the five-finger drill in the rhythm with a simple left hand.

Across the series, the five approaches are left-hand drum patterns, chord patterns, bass lines, right-hand melodies and rhythmic finger drills. All of them grow from one rhythm, and reading rhythm notation well makes every one of them easier.

Questions about this lesson

How do I build a third on the piano?

Start on a scale note, skip the next one and play the one after. In E minor that gives E-G, F#-A, G-B, A-C, B-D (or B-D#) and C-E.

What is a set of three in improvisation?

It is three neighbouring notes of the scale played in a row, such as E F# G or F# G A. You can play them going up or down.

What should my left hand do while I improvise?

Keep it simple at first, such as a drone on E. Later you can play a pulse, minims or held scale notes like E, C, A and B.

How can I make a five-finger exercise sound musical?

Play the first five notes of the scale up and down in a fixed rhythm rather than as steady eighth notes, and add a simple left-hand part. It then becomes a starting point for a melody.

Practise it

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