Level 20 of 36 · Book III: Intervals and chords
Sight-reading exercises with chord inversions
Inversions: the same chords as level 19, rearranged so the left hand barely moves. Instead of jumping from C–E–G to F–A–C, the hand plays C–F–A, keeping the C and moving two fingers.
- Hands together
- C major
- 4/4 time
- = 52 to start
8 different exercises, each 8 bars. Listen first, or play it yourself: the music waits for each note.
What level 20 adds
The chords are I, IV and V, each turned to be as close as possible to the one before: C–E–G, C–F–A and B–D–G in C major. One chord per bar, held as a whole note, under a right-hand melody.
What to watch for
- The gap: an inverted triad has a fourth in it, so one pair of its notes sits further apart (a line and a space with a gap) than in a snowman.
- The common note: from one chord to the next, a note often stays where it is. Keep that finger down.
- Naming isn’t the goal: read how the shape changes from the last chord rather than working out which chord it is.
How to practise it
- Watch which notes move. Usually one or two notes step up or down and the rest stay put.
- Learn the three shapes of C major: C–E–G, C–F–A and B–D–G. They come back in every exercise.
- Keep your hand in one place over C to A, and let your fingers do the moving.
Each exercise is new music, written for this level by the same generator the app uses, so you can’t have learned it by ear. Read it once before you play, keep a steady beat, and play on through mistakes. Play it yourself checks your notes from a MIDI keyboard, the mouse or your computer keys, and Print gives you the music alone, to read at the piano.
A new piece every day, at your level
Pianomi is the app these exercises come from. It listens to your MIDI keyboard, grades every note and every beat, and moves you up the 36 levels as your reading improves. It’s free.