Chapter 1 · Notes & The Keyboard
Piano Notes and the Keyboard
The piano keyboard is organized in a repeating pattern. Once you see it, you can find any note anywhere.
The Musical Alphabet
The musical alphabet uses just 7 letters: , , , , , , — then it repeats. These name the white keys on a piano keyboard. The pattern of 7 repeats all the way from the lowest note to the highest, with each repetition called an . Knowing these 7 names unlocks every concept in music theory.
Tip Start at C and count up: C D E F G A B, then back to C. You just played one octave.C D E F G A B — one octave of white keys
Finding Middle C — Your Anchor Note
Middle is the single most useful note to know. It's near the center of a full piano keyboard — the white key just to the left of the group of two black keys in the middle. Tiny Instrument labels it . Once you can find middle quickly, you can navigate the entire keyboard from there.
Tip The white key immediately to the left of every group of two black keys is always a C.Middle C — C4
Sharps and Flats — The Black Keys
The black keys fill in the gaps between some white keys. Each black key has two names: a sharp (#) and a flat (b). A sharp raises a note by one — the smallest step on the keyboard. A flat lowers it by one. The black key between and is both ( raised) and ( lowered). Two names, same note — this is called an enharmonic equivalent.
Tip Sharps and flats are context-dependent. Which name you use depends on the key you're in.The five black keys — C#/Db, D#/Eb, F#/Gb, G#/Ab, A#/Bb
Octaves — Same Note, Higher or Lower
When you play the same note in a different , it sounds like the same note but higher or lower. The frequency doubles with each up. vibrates at 130 Hz. (middle ) vibrates at 261 Hz — exactly twice as fast. This doubling relationship is why notes an apart feel so related that we give them the same letter name.
C in two octaves — C3 and C4
Half Steps and Whole Steps
A (semitone) is the smallest distance on the keyboard — from any key to the very next key, whether white or black. A skips one key — two s. These two measurements are the building blocks of every scale and interval in music. to C# is a . to is a .
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Chapter 3 · Intervals
Music Intervals Explained
An interval is the distance between two notes. Every melody, every chord, every scale is built from intervals.
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IntervalsChapter 4 · Scales
Piano Scales for Beginners
A scale is a set of notes in order. The major scale is the foundation of almost everything in Western music.
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ScalesGetting Started · Music Theory
Music Theory for Beginners
Music theory is the language of music. Once you know it, every song makes sense — and you can start making your own.
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Music Theory