The Benefits of Using Inverted Piano Chords

Good morning. This is Duane, and today I’d like to talk about the benefit of using inverted piano chords: first, second, and third inversion chords. Most of us learned chords in root position where the name of the chord’s on the bottom. That’s the root position of the C chord because the root is C. If I was playing the D chord that would be root position of the D Chord because D’s on the bottom. See that? You can turn any chord upside down so I’m going to take the C off the bottom of the C chord and put it on top. That’s the first inversion of the C chord. Now if I take the note off the bottom again and put it on top I have that. That’s the second inversion of the C chord. In three-note chords there’s only root, first, and second inversion.

Now if you add a seventh to that, like C seventh, then there’s three inversions, aren’t there? That would be root position because the root’s on the bottom, first inversion, second inversion, and third inversion. Now, as you improve as a piano player it’s important that you start using some of those different inversions and not always stick with the root position. I’ll show you why.

In root position, if you want to add a 6th, it sounds like that. If you want to add a seventh, it sounds like that. If you want to add a major seventh, it sounds like that, and so on. That’s fine, except let me move it to first inversion here. Now if I wanted to I could stack that in fourths. I could play the third, the sixth, and the ninth like that, or the second. Why would I want to do that?

Listen. That’s called open voicing. It’s voicing in fourths: one two three four, one two three four. It’s a stack of fourths. You recognize that sound. What you can do if you’re playing … and so on like that. Notice you get that more contemporary sound. That’s the benefit of playing in first inversion. If you add a C seventh you could play it like that for example.

On F seventh I might even voice it with the seventh on the bottom, the seventh, the third, and the sixth like so. That’s the third inversion of the F chord. That’s the root position, first inversion, second inversion. If I put the seventh on the bottom then I’m able to do that sort of thing.

Now is important though in your playing that you sometimes hit the root down low so that people understand what the chord is. In other words, if you just pay that without playing the C it’s hard to understand what the chord is, but if you play a low C first then it makes sense. You see that? By playing the root that helps form the whole chord.

Now a second inversion chord would be like that on C, wouldn’t it? Root, first, and second. The advantage of that is I can use real tight harmony there. If I want to play a C major seventh that gives a nice sound. Very nice, tight sound. If want to play a seventh I can do that. I can put a sixth in. I can put a ninth in like that. I’ll make it a really complex, tight chord.

That’s just simply the benefit of learning the inversions of every chord. You start out with root but don’t stay there. Learn to use first inversion, second inversion, and third inversion if you’re dealing with a four-note chord. That’s my tip for today. If you enjoy this kind of thing, come on over to playpiano.com and sign up for my free series of piano tips. Bye bye for now.

***For lots more good stuff on piano playing come on over to my website at https://www.playpiano.com and sign up for our free piano tips – “Exciting Piano Chords & Sizzling Chord Progressions!”

Here’s a great little book on chords and chord progressions on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Piano-Chords-Chord-Progressions-Exciting-ebook/dp/B0076OUGDE/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404158669&sr=1-1&keywords=piano+chords+duane+shinn

You’ll learn piano chords galore and how to apply them when you play piano – major chords, minor chords, augmented chords, diminished chords, 6th chords, 7th chords, 9th chords, 11th chords, 13th chords, suspensions, alterations and more. Chords are the “missing link” in most piano lessons and you can learn them all easily. Learn piano playing and music theory at the same time – it will make your progress faster and you will understand music like you never have before.

Here is the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhFoQppyhVs&feature=youtu.be

_______________________________________________________________