Hold down the low ‘G’ while playing the chord four times with your right hand, then move on to the next one. So, for the G major chord you will play a single note of ‘G’, but lower down. With your left hand, play the root note of each chord as a single note. You will be playing all the chords above with your right hand. Now let’s add a bass note to thicken things up. So we have a basic chord sequence that’s easy to play. Check out Axis Of Awesome’s comedy track ‘4 Chord Song’ on YouTube and you’ll see what I mean.

Popular tunes that use this chord sequence include ‘Don’t Stop Believing’ (Journey), ‘Beautiful’ (James Blunt), ‘Can You Feel The Love Tonight’ (The Lion King), ‘Paparazzi’ (Lady Ga Ga), ‘With Or Without You’ (U2), and ‘She Will Be Loved’ (Maroon 5), and the list goes on. To play this sequence, check out the diagram below, showing you which notes to play:

Let’s begin with an easy example, and take the old classic chord sequence G | D | Em | C, which has been used in thousands of songs. There are literally hundreds of combinations of passing chords, and as I discover them, I write them all down to keep track of what works. More specifically, I like to think of passing chords as a means of getting me to a particular place - so, I have passing chords that I know will move me to the chord of Em, for example. both, in their own way, get you from one place to somewhere else. Think of a passing chord like a bridge over a river, or eight pints of beer. Generally, passing chords are played quite briefly, rather than being sustained for a whole bar. So what exactly is a passing chord? A passing chord is something that’s not part of the fundamental chord sequence, but helps you move from one chord to the next. You don’t have to know every single chord in the book, but an understanding of the basic major and minor shapes is needed before you go any further. This article also assumes that you already have a basic knowledge of simple major and minor chords. I am going to focus on practical and easy tips for spicing up your compositions. This is where ‘passing’ chords can come into play: learn a few of these and you can breathe new life into your chord sequences.īefore I go any further, I want to assure you that this article is not going to be ‘theory’-heavy.

It’s so easy to get stuck in a rut and compose something that sounds just like your last piece. With a limited repertoire of chords, though, creating new parts can often seem difficult. No matter what genre you work in, learning to play basic chords on the piano/keyboard is a great way to accompany yourself and write new tracks.

Bored of the same old chord sequences? In this short series, we explore some simple ways to spice up your piano chords.

Between the bars piano chords