The Magic of New Age Piano

Appealing and attractive, the New Age piano genre has become welcomed into the homes of million's of people around the world. And why not? It's a beautiful music that has an honest, heartfelt approach.

And it's easy to create on your own! No extensive theory or training is required to play what you feel. On the contrary, a few chords and a simple melody are all that is necessary and the complete beginner can start creating music.

For example, in the lesson "Flower Garden," we have 3 chords to play - C Major 9, B flat Major 9, and A flat Major 9. We have a technique that we use throughout the improvisation called the crossover technique. Here we use the left hand to create a harmonic backdrop over which the right hand improvises a melody. A simple and effective approach to creating music, this harmonic loop is repeated over and over while the melody is improvised and changed around to keep the music fresh.

All of this is played over a 16 bar framework. The chord changes come every few bars and this is indicated on the chord chart. It's an easy map to follow.

These simple materials are used to create music with. In fact, you could actually create complete pieces of music using these materials alone!

The magic and beauty of the New Age piano style is that it offers the beginning piano student an accessible approach to the world of improvisation and composition. The music itself is quite appealing and has firmly established itself in the musical repertoire of the world.

Edward Weiss - EzineArticles Expert Author

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music's online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!