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Key of A Minor – Jonny Darko

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Instructor
Jonny May
Course
Beginner
01:36:17

Every major key has a darker partner, and A minor is the partner of C major.

Major keys tend to sound happy and bright, while minor keys sound darker and more emotional. A minor is the perfect first minor key to learn, because like C major, it uses only the white keys. In this course, you’ll learn the A minor scale in each hand, plus two variations that give minor music its unique flavor. You’ll hear how each one sounds a little different.

Next, you’ll learn the chords used most often in A minor and four common chord progressions (chord patterns) you’ll hear in real songs. Then you’ll bring it all together with Jonny Darko, a fun original tune with a playful nod to a certain movie.

Once you’re comfortable, you’ll learn inversions, which are different ways to play the same chord, and use them to make Jonny Darko sound smoother. Then you’ll play it along with a bass and drums backing track, so it feels like you’re playing in a band. Finally, you’ll learn simple ways to play chords for someone else to sing or play along to.

Course Objectives
  • Play the A natural, harmonic and melodic minor scales and understand how they differ
  • Learn the most common chords and four essential chord progressions in A minor
  • Use inversions and smooth voice leading to connect minor chords beautifully
  • Perform Jonny Darko along with a bass and drums backing track
  • Support a singer or instrumentalist with simple, effective accompaniment grooves
Learning Focus
  • Chords
  • Groove
  • Lead Sheets
  • Scales
  • Songs
Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Very educational and fun..
Levelled up speed and accuracy
Back me up!
A minor is like one of my favorite keys! I love anything minor. This is a great way to introduce theory to students of all ages. I love how in Lesson 6, it explains how to move smoothly between chords. Also I agree with playing with a backing track is more fun than a metronome. Back me up, (Sam). :)
Preparing you for the real world
In. my experience, beginner's courses in the past haven't given much information that could be applied to the real world. These courses do! Even at their most basic, they start showing you how to think like a jazz pianist and show you tools that can later be applied to real playing situations.
Engaging and thorough
I liked how each lesson in the course built on the previous concepts taught and that there was lots of reinforcement of musical theory. Playing along with the backing track was challenging at first but made me think more about what was going on - such as the chord inversions. A lot was covered in an enjoyable way.
Nice song, great course!
Very good demonstration of the skills and concepts required using the A minor key. I learned a lot, thank you 🙏🏻

Course Lessons

1
Key of A Minor – Lesson 1
17:12

Natural, Harmonic, & Melodic Minor Scales

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2
Key of A Minor – Lesson 2
16:02

Common Chord Progressions, 4 Examples

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3
Key of A Minor – Lesson 3
26:04

Jonny Darko, Lead Sheet, Melody, Chords, Patterns

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4
Key of A Minor – Lesson 4
21:00

Inversions

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5
Key of A Minor – Lesson 5
6:34

Performance with Backing Track

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6
Key of A Minor – Lesson 6
9:25

Accompaniment

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Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Very educational and fun..
Levelled up speed and accuracy
Back me up!
A minor is like one of my favorite keys! I love anything minor. This is a great way to introduce theory to students of all ages. I love how in Lesson 6, it explains how to move smoothly between chords. Also I agree with playing with a backing track is more fun than a metronome. Back me up, (Sam). :)
Preparing you for the real world
In. my experience, beginner's courses in the past haven't given much information that could be applied to the real world. These courses do! Even at their most basic, they start showing you how to think like a jazz pianist and show you tools that can later be applied to real playing situations.
Engaging and thorough
I liked how each lesson in the course built on the previous concepts taught and that there was lots of reinforcement of musical theory. Playing along with the backing track was challenging at first but made me think more about what was going on - such as the chord inversions. A lot was covered in an enjoyable way.
Nice song, great course!
Very good demonstration of the skills and concepts required using the A minor key. I learned a lot, thank you 🙏🏻
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