How to Find Your Place in the Band as a Keyboardist | Piano Tutorial 

As a keyboardist for the past 25 years, I can say that the most important thing you can learn is to listen. This is one of the things I continue to go over with keyboardists in my youth bands -- listen to what the other instruments are doing and then decide what you need to do to compliment them (BTW, I reverse this same instruction to my other instrumentalists). Often, keyboard players do not need to play anything with their left hand. If they're playing a synth or pads, that frees up the left hand to do other things like modification of the pad/synth sound. The second thing I highly recommend to keyboardists is understanding how to invert and color chords. Figure out how to reduce wasted motion between chords. This means learning to invert chords out of root inversion. I see so many young players in my youth bands that always place a root inversion C followed by a root inversion F. You have to move your entire hand to change the chord, and younger players run the risk of missing the chord entirely if the song is a faster song. So many are surprised when I show them how to place a C triad followed by a second inversion F chord -- they don't even have to move their hand, just a couple of fingers. They are even more surprised when I show them how to play a C followed by a F2 in second inversion -- now they get to move a single finger! Then you can show them how to play a first inversion C followed by a root inversion F2 -- again, a single note moves and you have a totally different chord. I will agree with those who have commented on making sure your musical alphabet is consistent. If you say the song is in Db, make sure that all of your references to note are within the Db scale. That would be my only thing to improve, but everything else is spot on!

So basically, everyone has to be listening to each other. And the piano has a great ability to fill in the gap wherever needed.

Aaron you’re a pro dude. Lots of dudes hit the stage without knowing how to sound good in a band... you’re ALL CLASS

I have just joined a band today as a keyboardist and didn't know what I shall do, this video actually helps thanks!

Me and my guys we have a rock band and i as a pianist sometimes feel a bit left out of the lime light to put it in words. I know the guys appreciate what i do but sometimes i feel like the audience doesnt necessarily see the thing i do as being as important as the two guitarists jumping around on the stage. Its not why i do this no but i sometimes judt feel insecure about my art. Thank you for this video. It makes me feel good

How to find your place in the Band as a keyboardist: Be the singer as well. Your value goes up exponentially.

This is so nice can't stop listening and watching, have learnt alot

Great video! Def helps me as a non keyboardist get ideas for next time I play keys In church

Great video! I learned a lot from his suggestions and examples! Thanks for sharing!

Thank you so much. This definitely helped me on my journey of worship.

Great video! I really learn stuff i hadn't notice before! Great job!!

This was wonderful! Bless you!

Glad I watched...thank you guys. And God bless ❤

I am a keyboardist in a band and was really having trouble finding my place and this video really helps! Thank you!!

You have such great gift in playing. 💛

I'm sharing this with all my people here in JC. Thanks for all the tips and tricks, Aaron!

Awesome teacher! Highly appreciate this lesson! Thank you 🤗

It's a brilliant teaching video!! Thanks a lot from me and my band.

very well spoken and talented young man, i actually a guitarist who during this pandemic time trying to learn playing piano/keyboard at least to the point that i can playing your usual 80's - 90's pop songs, so i thank you for the explanation, God Bless

Amazing musician! Beautiful 🥰

thankyou. great teaching skill

Great, thank you. A thoughtful video.

Man, this helped immensely! Thank you sooo much!

Fantastic. You were speaking my language. A tremendously helpful tutorial.

This man should sing! You gotta voice!

i love the mix

Truly I love the wonderful work. Blessed people of Jehovah. Thank you Men the staff was super good.

This is gold

I love it❤❤

This channel deserves way more subs. I have a camp retreat in a few days for my youth group. I have 24 songs to play within a span of 3 days and my practice hasnt been as good as I wished. I havent played for a big crowd yet, at most around less than 10 people so this is gonna be an experience. Praying that I do good for God!

Beautiful

Great musician! Pray that one day ill be able to play as well as you!

Great advice!

Love him!!!!!

Thank you!

Great stuff here. Thanks! It did make the music major part of me squirm a little to hear you talk about flat notes when you were teaching about an F# chord.

Awesome

NICE !!!

Thank you so much for video

Technical name for the chords he is talking about is Suspended Chords

Very good Information

Brilliant video, respect, bless you each. Rodge David Kidderminster UK. X

Very informative.

Thank you, it's a great video. What kind of delays or pads I could use on my keyboard ?

There are plenty of very skilled musicians who does not understand this and who are having a hard time finding space. This applies to all who play an instrument in a band: find your place and stay in your lane. Simple is very much appreciated and listen to the band.

God bless u so much

Great 👍 Thanks a lot🚀👏✌️

Great and Awesome Project. God bless you and keep up with the Good Work👍🏾

Great Video! We are having a heck of a time finding a keyboard player that can blend. Seems like everyone wants to be a Bruno Mars copycat now days, where they jump up with a ukulele, or take over the vocals, or just drown out the guitars.

As a keyboardist you have to listen to everything, what the band is doing and what the singers are doing. You miss the whole experience if you're just focusing on what you and the band is playing.

Awesome. I tried and it sounded good. Thank you so much

I like your style bro...

My guys in Uganda should know this, thank you

Good job. Thank you so much. Can you do something on reggae please

Please do more videos!!

Great video. Shout out for the MX88 lol.

This dude is legit

butiful

Hahaha did anybody else crack up @ 5:42? “Your name, your name, is Victor..” 😂

Thank you. That was very helpful!!!!

Don Moen did an excellent segment on that as well.

Nice

Very nice 👌👌👌👌👌

Love the video, but when my classically trained ass heard the “ F#Bb Db” explanation of F# major chord, took me a second to comprehend 😅😅 great advices!

I'm new to your channel , I'm a classical pianist but i need more of that gospel sound on a church upright electric keyboard, can you tell me if you using piano voice or is it something else

Aaron Copland❤

My audio team always tells me that piano doesn’t sound good in the band so they EQ out most of my pianos range. I don’t know what to do. Can I change sounds, some how avoid playing the Bass sounds, avoid playing the lead sounds, etc

What type of things said into the mic?

The bassist is soooo goooood

Is there space for a keyboard player in a two guitar band - feels mainly like at best a bit part

I am in Georgia and I am looking for a keyboard player for my church. I need one that can flow with the spirit and back me up. This man is awesome!

Aw...Almost makes me miss gigging and dragging all that equipment around...but not quite !

What sound is he using ing 5:54?

huuuuuuuuu I WULD LIKE TO GET THIS TUTORIAL

Thank you so much. My name is Nathaniel from Ghana. Please can you teach me online?

how would you recommend playing in a old school song? like Ron Kenoly and things like that?

hello about the chords, if the major chords were to put 2's in it. what about the minor keys? 7ths? 9th's?

I will definitely use this once I get better at piano. Also I want to say something that might sound stupid: while looking at this video I had a rude thought about one of the people in the video and it’s bringing me guilt. I would just like to apologize for something that I may not have said aloud, but something I definitely thought in my mind.

Do church piano players learn how to read sheet music or is it learn as you go?

Great tips! My only criticism is you may confuse people who don’t know a lot of music theory by saying you’re playing F# and Ab. In the key of Db, you should be saying Gb and Ab. But awesome tips!!!

He should spell chord in the same diatonic. If you say you play in the key of Db. The fourth chord should say Gb not the F#. He should spell in Db major scale. It will easier to explain to people. Another subject he explain very good. Thanks to share the good VDO content.

The only video on youtube that has zero dislikes

Very nice piano sound you got out of MX88

Anyone know good tutorials for chord voicings?

First off... What's the song title? Then thanks alot for this illustration... It has given me insights on how to fit in... God bless you always♥️

How will i have those creativity for more fills

Can You Plug a Surge Protector into an extension cord?

All I hear is everybody overplaying something that should be sounding simple and organized. What makes a band sound solid is maintaining clarity over the caos that the climax of a song creates. If at that point everybody starts overplaying the parts it turns into noise. Of course youll understand that when you actually arrange music.

6:55 how many string does bass guitarist have? lol

You didn't talk about that minor chord part u skipped 😍

That keyboardist looks like Aaron Spears the drummer... ehhehehe :P

Unfortunatelly, the future (actually, the present, too) of keyboardists is.... be substituted by sequencers

Why aren’t you holding an apple while playing the piano?

I guess you have to imagine the guitar player doing what he asked. 🤣

The part when he started playing I got drunk

This is a useful video, but I don't subscribe to the notion of the keyboard player trying to "stay out of everyone else's way". Every instrument has a function and keyboards cannot be replaced by guitars or vice versa. I happen to think that keyboardists come up with more interesting arrangements because they can use both hands to build chords. Also, keyboardists in a worship settings can create atmosphere in ways that guitars can't, unless they are using a synth module. Personally, I avoid using an acoustic piano sound when playing with guitarists as the tonal quality is too similar and tend to lean towards electric piano and rhodes sounds layered with strings. We have many sounds at our disposal as keyboardists and need to move beyond the piano.

Many churches have the piano as the lead instrument.

He looks like EJ Johnson. 😂😂😂

sorry my dear we could not learn or seen anything from u. All the best.

if your song is in D flat, there is no F# chord in that scale.