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Key of E Minor – PWJ Active

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Instructor
Jonny May
Course
Beginner
01:39:54

E minor is a favorite key in rock and pop music, with a dark, powerful sound that’s perfect for big, anthemic songs. It’s closely related to G major, so the notes will already feel familiar. You’ll learn the E minor scale in each hand, plus two variations that give minor music its unique flavor. Jonny also shares tips for crossing your fingers smoothly and building speed.

Next, you’ll learn the chords used in nearly every popular song in E minor and the chord progressions (chord patterns) you’ll find in real music. Then you’ll bring it all together with PWJ Active, an easy original tune and a tip of the hat to Imagine Dragons.

Once you’re comfortable, you’ll learn inversions, which are different ways to play the same chord, and use them to make PWJ Active sound smoother. Then you’ll play it along with a bass and drums backing track for the full pop-rock experience. Finally, you’ll learn simple ways to play chords for someone else to sing or play along to.

Course Objectives
  • Play E natural, harmonic and melodic minor with smooth, accurate thumb crossings
  • Learn the 10 essential chords and the most common chord progressions in E minor
  • Read slash chords and use inversions for smooth chord transitions
  • Perform PWJ Active, an original tune inspired by Imagine Dragons, with a full backing track
  • Create pop-style accompaniment patterns to support other musicians
Learning Focus
  • Chords
  • Groove
  • Lead Sheets
  • Scales
  • Songs
Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Starting to shine
The song PWJ-ACTIVE was great to learn . I felt this course built upon the previous, and helped me learn faster and keep interest in playing piano
Learned a lot and created a lot
Three Type of Minors and the Ten Most Useful Minor Chords!
Thanks to this course, I now understand the differences between the three types of minor keys. Both instructors offer so much useful "incidental" information! They really help to fill in the gaps in my learning! Playing along to a backing track is also fun to do!
E minor
This was quite a fun little course, reasonably simple with a cool grove.🎶
Fun course. Not too difficult. Lots of easy possibility to explore.
I like the idea to improvise with the blue scale in E.

Course Lessons

1
Key of E Minor – Lesson 1
15:33

E Natural, Harmonic, & Melodic Minor Scales

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2
Key of E Minor – Lesson 2
17:36

4 Chord Progressions in E Minor

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3
Key of E Minor – Lesson 3
19:55

Song in E Minor, Melody, Chords, Grooves

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4
Key of E Minor – Lesson 4
19:46

Inversions

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5
Key of E Minor – Lesson 5
12:04

Play with Backing Track

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6
Key of E Minor – Lesson 6
15:00

Accompaniment

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Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Starting to shine
The song PWJ-ACTIVE was great to learn . I felt this course built upon the previous, and helped me learn faster and keep interest in playing piano
Learned a lot and created a lot
Three Type of Minors and the Ten Most Useful Minor Chords!
Thanks to this course, I now understand the differences between the three types of minor keys. Both instructors offer so much useful "incidental" information! They really help to fill in the gaps in my learning! Playing along to a backing track is also fun to do!
E minor
This was quite a fun little course, reasonably simple with a cool grove.🎶
Fun course. Not too difficult. Lots of easy possibility to explore.
I like the idea to improvise with the blue scale in E.
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Discover the moody, dramatic sound of a minor key, and learn the three scales that give it its unique character. You'll finish by playing Jonny Darko, a fun original tune.

Key of B Minor – Jonnylito

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