B Minor Scales, Arpeggios & Chords

Hello and welcome back. I'm Joseph Hoffman, and in this lesson we're going to learn how to play a two octave B minor scale and arpeggio. We'll also check out the diatonic chords for B minor. Let's come to the piano to get started. To figure out our key signature for B minor, we can use the ladder of fifths. Remember, for major keys we start with C major and then just go up fifths. Every time we go up a fifth, we add a sharp. Same for minor. The minor ladder of fifths begins on A minor, with zero sharps. If we go up a fifth to E minor, we get one sharp, then we go up another fifth to B minor, now we'll have two sharps. And what are those two sharps? We have an F-sharp and a C-sharp. So what is the relative of B minor? Remember, a relative key means the same key signature, and that relative is D major. They have the same key signature because both use F-sharp and C-sharp. So let's start with our right hand, and we'll play the B natural minor scale. And let's work in groups. So place finger 1 on B, and we'll use our standard fingering for two octave scales. So we start with a group of three, play this with me, then we do a group of four. And then we do a group of three. Try this with me, then a group of four, and then our finger 5 plays B on the top, then we come back to a group of 4, group of 3, group of 4. Group of three. Okay, and now if we play that one note at a time we get 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 and then we go back with the same fingering. Pause to work on the right hand B natural minor scale, up and down two octaves, then press play to go on. Now how would we change the natural minor scale into harmonic minor? Can you point to the note we should change? It's always the seventh note of the scale, so if you're pointing right here you're correct. Seventh note is just one before DO. And so we take this note, we raise it a half step, and now it's harmonic minor. We can use the same fingering as before. So we have 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 and then back down with the same pattern. Pause the video and work on right hand B harmonic minor, then press play to go on. Now, in a lesson the other day I also mentioned melodic minor. There are actually three forms of minor. There's natural minor, there's harmonic minor, melodic minor you also raise the sixth note of the scale by a half step. You raise both the sixth and the seventh to form melodic minor. So this is the melodic minor. That will sound like this: That's a really cool sound. Now, melodic minor I'll throw in as a bonus. If you'd like to practice it also great, but if you'd rather save it for later that's fine too. It's up to you. Now let's check out the left hand fingering for B natural minor. If you try to use the standard, basic fingering for scales, you'll find that finger 1 lands on this F-sharp and then you've got to cross over a finger 3 to a white key, which is very awkward. And will slow you down as you get to faster speeds. So, we're going to use an alternate fingering that's made specially for B minor. You start on a finger 4, and what that does is it times it so your finger 1 lands on a white key, and your finger 4 can cross over to a black key, which is a lot more comfortable. So actually do two groups of four to start out. Let's try this together now. Place your finger 4 on B, finger 3 on C-sharp, finger 2 on D, finger 1 on E. Just play them all together in a cluster, in a group, then try this group of four. So two groups of four in a row, then a group of three, then you finish with a group of four. Then repeat that group to come down. Group of three, group of four. And then we finish with one more group of four. So you're poor finger 5 left hand, sorry you don't get to play this time. All right, now let's try it one note at a time. 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 3 2 1 4 3 2 1. Pause the video and practice the left hand natural minor scale, and then press play to go on. We can use the same fingering for harmonic minor. 4 3 2 1 Now I just went up, but I'd like you to go up and down. Pause the video and practice the left hand harmonic minor. B harmonic minor scale, then press play to go on. And of course as a bonus, you can also do melodic minor. But totally bonus, up to you if you want to also practice that third form of minor, melodic minor. Now let's check out the arpeggio, and since we've been doing our left hand let's go ahead and start with the left hand for arpeggios. the fingering is 5 4 2 1 on that tonic triad. Remember, arpeggios are just a I chord played in broken form B D F-sharp B D F-sharp B. Now pause the video and work on your left hand B minor arpeggio, then press play to go on. Let's check out the right hand. 1 2 3 1 2 3 5 3 2 1 3 2 1 Pause to work on your right hand B minor arpeggio, then press play to go on. Now let's play through the diatonic chords for B minor. Remember, when you're doing diatonic chords, all you're doing is taking each note and moving up by a step to get all the possible chords for that key. Our I chord is built on B D F-sharp can you try this with me? You can play just right hand or just left hand or you can try both hands together, and we're going to name these chords out loud like this: B minor I chord. Now, sometimes as we get more black keys in the ke ...