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How to understand the notes on a piano or

MIDI keyboard
By Computer Music (Computer Music, Future Music, emusician, Keyboard Magazine)
January 04, 2021

Learn the layout and start playing

(Image credit: Clavia)

If you're looking at a piano or MIDI keyboard for the rst time then it
can seem bewildering, but take a little time to understand it, and all of
those black and white notes start to make sense.

Here's a complete beginner's guide that explains the layout, one step at a
time...

How to navigate the keyboard

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(Image credit: Future)

Step 1: The layout of black and white keys has been standard on most
piano and keyboard instruments for centuries, but how do you nd your
way around it? With 88 keys, a full-size piano keyboard might look
intimidating, but it’s really just the same group of 12 notes – or octave –
repeated seven times, with a few extra thrown in at the top.

(Image credit: Future)

Step 2: If we examine the keyboard, we can see that the black notes are
arranged in alternating two and three-note clusters. If you zoom in on a
section of the keyboard and nd any cluster of two black notes, the white
note immediately to its left will be a C. On an 88-note keyboard, there will
be eight C-notes in total, with C8 at the very top.

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(Image credit: Future)

Step 3: This works anywhere on the keyboard to be able to nd any C-

note. The note known as middle C will, naturally, be the one in the very
centre of the keyboard. If we do the same thing, but this time homing in
on a cluster of three black notes instead of two, the white note
immediately to the left will be the note F.

(Image credit: Future)

Step 4: Counting two white notes down the keyboard from a C gets us to
the note A. From there, it’s just a question of lling in the gaps to get the
names of the other white notes in between. Once we get to G, we start
again at A (there’s no H, except in the German system, which replaces the
‘B’ we use in the UK/US with ‘H’). We get A, B, C, D, E, F, G.

Naming the black keys

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3/22/2021 How to understand the notes on a piano or MIDI keyboard | MusicRadar

(Image credit: Future)

Step 1: To name any black key, start with the white key just to the left of it,
then just add a sharp sign (#) to the note name. So, for example if we start
on C, the black key to the right of it will be C#, from D it’ll be D# and so on.
There is no black key to the right of E, but there is one next to F, so that’s
F#. Same goes for G# and A#.

(Image credit: Future)

Step 2: Hang on though – if you start from the white key immediately to
the right of a black key and step down the keyboard to it instead of up,
you add a at sign (b) to the name. So starting from A we’d go down to Ab,
from G down to Gb, and so on. There are no black keys to the left of C or F.

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Step 3: So each black key actually has two names, as black notes can
either be referred to as sharps or ats, depending on which key you’re in.
These pairs of names are known as enharmonic equivalents, for example
C# and Db, which are the two names for the key on the keyboard that lives
between the white keys C and D.

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Things to avoid when practising

Once you know the pattern, identifying notes on the keyboard becomes
second nature after a bit of practise – one good exercise is to have a friend
call out random note names for you to nd and play. As with any learning
process, though, there are a few do’s and don’ts to try and keep in mind
when starting out on keyboards. These include:

Bad posture

Try not to slouch! Instead, focus on keeping your back straight, shoulders
relaxed, with your arms forming a series of gentle arcs from the shoulder
through the elbow to the forearm and wrist. Also, make sure your
keyboard is at a sensible height – for reference, the average grand piano
keyboard is set at a height of around 72cm – and that you’re not sitting too
close to it.

Sticky-out ngers

It’s important to adopt the proper hand posture right from the o , so
when you position your ngers on the keys to play, make sure they’re
nicely curved and relaxed instead of sticking out at – imagine resting your
ngers across the top of an orange, and you’ll get an idea of the shape
you’re after.

Going too fast 

The old ‘don’t run before you can walk’ adage de nitely applies here –
many budding players try to play too quickly too soon, only to run into
trouble and give up. Playing things slowly to start with can take almost
superhuman patience, but it’s important to build accuracy without
overwhelming your muscle memory.

Not using a metronome 

Building a good sense of timing is crucial for any musician, so make time
in your regime to practise playing against a regular beat, be it a traditional
metronome or a pre-programmed beat or loop in your DAW. It’s fun too!

Not practising  

To get into the habit of practising, try and set aside a regular slot of at
least 30 minutes in your daily routine. At the same time, however, don’t
forget to keep it fun – if things get boring or frustrating, take a break and
come back later on.

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