Bishop Street chords: identifying and playing with small hands
Found in: Blues, Foundation Songs
Marsha L., Virginia
I’m trying to figure out the I, IV, V chords in Bishop Street Blues. I know how to play it, but what are these chords? What makes it a I, IV, and V? Are the inverted/suspended/diminished chords? I wouldn’t explain it to my students at this stage, but I’m trying to understand for myself.
Also, tips for teaching a 6-year-old with small hands to play Bishop Street Blues?
Karolee G., Idaho
They’re blues chords, so the I is still a C chord, but it’s got a seventh and ninth added. Way too soon to explain to students, so just stick with the “new I chord” concept. I think of that as music theory that is being taught under the radar. Later in the program it will get brought up and explained, and the magic happens because the students already know how to play these chords.
Drop the finger 5 in the RH chords for small hands.
Laurie Richards, Nebraska
Bishop Street Blues chords:
- I is a C9 chord
- IV is an F13 chord
- V is a G7 chord
Small hands can omit finger 5 from the chords they cannot reach.
Kerry H., Australia
Occasionally for very small hands where even 1 & 2 is too much of a stretch, I’ve had to have the student use 1 & 3. In this instance I keep an eye out for when their hands are big enough, and then ask them to swap to 1 & 2. You can use this to celebrate how much they’ve grown.
Also worth noting: sometimes when students can’t reach, it’s because of where they are placing their fingers on the notes, for example positioning some fingers too close to the back of the piano or too close to the edge of the keys. I demonstrate that by experimenting with the placement of certain fingers, they can sometimes reach when it seemed they couldn’t.
I always insist that students do things the way I ask them to…setting things up for the future. I know of many teachers who didn’t insist on certain things, only to find it creates an issue when they get deeper into the program.
