How to Write a Beautiful Piano Chord Progression & Melody

Learn how to write a beautiful piano chord progression and melody, using a music theory hack from the goosebump-inducing song “Black” by London artist Dave. Subtitles/CC available.
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0:47 - Theory
London rapper Dave just dropped his new single “Black”, which is a goosebump-inducing song with one of the most sophisticated piano parts we’ve heard in the New Music Friday playlist in a very long time! What makes the piano part so good? Well, a couple of things. Firstly, the chord progression lasts for an epic 16 bars. This is extremely rare in today’s music, which usually consists of four-bar loops. Secondly, the chord progression switches back and forth between the natural minor (popular music’s favourite scale) and the harmonic minor. This creates a Classical flavour to the piano part, as the harmonic minor is the quintessential Classical scale. And it’s this Classical vibe that adds a timeless feel and a musical weight to the song, which in turn makes Dave’s important lyrics even more powerful.

1:35 - Setup
Alright, now you’re gonna learn how to use this theory to make your own version, and what you see on the screen right now is our version that we made earlier. So, start by setting up 16 bars of 4/4, with your grid set to 1/8 notes, and your tempo set to 84 BPM. Dave’s song is in the key of D minor, so we’ll use it too.

1:55 - Step 1 - Left Hand (chords)
We’re gonna start with the left-hand part, which will simply play octaves of each chord’s root note. These octaves provide a minimal harmonic backdrop, which creates a more delicate sound than full chords. So, first things first, here’s the menu of chords in D minor that you can choose from: Dm, Edim, Fmaj, Gm, Am (or Amaj), B♭maj, Cmaj, and C♯dim. And please note, the Amaj and C♯dim chords are from the harmonic minor. Now, choose whichever chords you like from the D minor menu, but approach your 16 bars as 4x four-bar chord progressions. And start each four-bar progression with the root chord (Dm), except for the last progression, which you wanna start with one of the major chords in the key (we chose B♭maj), to provide an uplifting vibe to the end of your epic 16 bars. Lastly, the Cmaj to C♯dim movement has a magnetic pull to the Dm, so definitely use that progression somewhere.

3:02 - Step 2 - Right Hand (melody)
Right, it’s right-hand time, and that means melody! So, using 1/8 notes, come up with a motif (which is a short musical idea) over the Dm chord. Base your motif around the 2nd note (cos it’s a beautiful interval), and the 3rd note (cos it’s a deeply emotional interval). Over Dm, the 2nd note is E, and the 3rd note is F. Then, once you’ve got your motif, you can re-use it over the other chords (obviously basing it around each chord’s 2nd and 3rd note). Next, tie ‘em all together with some other notes, and be sure to use some arpeggios too, which is when you play a chord one note at a time. Also, throw in a few melodic variations to keep things fresh!

3:57 - Bonus Hack (intro)
Lastly, if you want a beautiful intro (like in Dave’s song), then use this bonus hack. Set up four bars for your intro. Now, start on the root chord (Dm) and play it for two bars, then go to another chord (we chose Fmaj) and play it for two bars as well. You see, by playing each chord for two bars, instead of one bar or less (like in your verse), the harmony in your intro will move at half the speed. This is so powerful, cos when your verse kicks in, the harmony starts moving at double the speed, which makes everything feel like it’s totally ramping up!

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ABOUT
Hack Music Theory is a pioneering DAW method for making great music that stands out, so you can move and grow your audience! Taught by award-winning music lecturer Ray Harmony, and his protégé wife Kate Harmony, from their studio in Vancouver BC, Canada. Ray is the author of critically-acclaimed book series "Hack Music Theory", and has made music with Serj Tankian (System of a Down), Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine), Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree), Devin Townsend (Strapping Young Lad), Ihsahn (Emperor), Kool Keith (Ultramagnetic MCs), Madchild (Swollen Members), and more!

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© 2019 Revolution Harmony
Revolution Harmony is Ray Harmony & Kate Harmony
All content (script & music) in video by Revolution Harmony
Dave photo by Regina Lemaire-Costa https://www.reginalemairecosta.com