Level 21 of 36 · Book III: Intervals and chords
Sight-reading exercises: two chords a bar
The left-hand chord changes twice as often: on beat 1 and beat 3. Two triads a bar, in half notes, still turned to stay close together.
- 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 21 adds
Chords move between I, IV and V in their nearest inversion, two per bar. The right hand plays whole and half notes, by step and skip, so the busier hand is the left.
What to watch for
- Beat 3: the chord change comes mid-bar. Count it.
- Same chord twice: sometimes both halves of a bar keep the same chord. Check before you move.
- Reading chords faster: you have two beats to read the next one, not four.
How to practise it
- As in level 20, look for the notes that stay and the ones that move by step.
- Read the left hand ahead: while one chord sounds, find the next.
- If it gets too fast, use a slower count. The level’s tempo is ♩ = 52.
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.