General Music question left hand playing?

[ekurburski]

As I watch the many excellent demos of all of the different arrangers I notice that the reall goo players are doing more than just playing a chord with the left hand.  I have played arrangers for 20 years and have basically always simply laid down the background of the tune by playing the chord in the left hand and doing fills with the right.  What are you guys doing that keeps your left hands so busy?

[Roger Brenizer]

In my case, Earl, I'm playing the bass clef of piano music most of the time.  There are times when I will use chords, as you do, but I will also improvise when playing the left hand. 

[ekurburski]

 Roger, how do you have the left hand set up in relationship to the style?

Earl

[Roger Brenizer]

I don't use a style when I play piano music, Earl. 

[XeeniX]

I usually learn a song using no style, only piano. Once I mastered a song I start experimenting with a suitable style setting and chord fingering set to AI Full Keyboard. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't but it's worth a try

Peter

[Ed B]

Hi
One thing that can be done if you are using a style is to set the left hand voice so that it overlaps the chord section. Then the chord you play will trigger the left hand voice. You can then use a country style and a banjo voice. By pumping the chord you can create a strumming effect which is kind of different. If you use AI fingered or fingered on bass you can create a walking bass line or a pedal tone line using inversions. You can also playing three figures side by side have only the drums play.(Only AI) Always set the chord section for touch so that you can alter the volume with pressure. You can also have the chord section trigger a multipad set to repeat to add to the accompaniment.
You can as has been noted play it like a piano either using AI full keyboard as noted by others or play one voice such as " tutti " which gives timpani section on the bottom as well as the full orchestra on top. Another mode is to split the keyboard and  play different voices in each section.
I know I have missed some but this will certainly give you an indication of the many things you can do.
Regards
Ed B

[Joe H]

ekurburski,

The left hand also operates the Pitchbend Wheel and the Modulation Wheel.  On the Tyros, the Multi Pad buttons are located just above the Style Control buttons, so they must be operated with the left hand.

Joe H

[SciNote]

When playing a song "live", as opposed to making a multi-track recording, I try to play as much accompaniment with my left hand as I can.  I generally only use the style for the backing drums.  Unless I'm playing a piano piece, I usually split the keyboard so that I can have different sounds being played by my right and left hands for orchestration.

[jwyvern]

Having started as a piano player I am a believer in making best use of both hands to play the keys. So using a style the LH can be used not only to define the chords but to add an extra accomp part of its own via having the left voice on and choosing appropriate inversions of the chords, so there is a logical "musical movement" (that's my story!) to them. Examples of left voices would be strings, or a guitar, the latter useful for accompanying a solo voice in the RH. The most use I make of the LH voice is for BigBand songs. I feel conventional BB misses that interplay between the different sections in a real band where say two thirds of the band plays melody while the rest will respond to varying levels with supporting accomp and brass stabs. For that I use a custom voice in the left which plays ensemble saxes (because of the chording) which when higher velocity is used brings in upper octave brass as stabs or longer accompaniment notes.
Having done that for some years I now feel there is a definite "hole" in the arrangement if I don't use the left voice! You can to some extent use the style parts to cover but they are severely limited in flexibility, and in any case the more prominent you make them, the more obvious their repetition becomes, something you can guard against if you play the more prominent accomp. yourself.
John

[ekurburski]

I want to say thanks to all.  This really shows up a major weakness in my playing.  I never learnt how to play standard piano parts.  My first instrument was trombone and well in the army band at Ft Hood, Tx back in 1968-69 I took a correspondence course in arranging from Berklee.  I learned chords and proper movement. I bought a Magness chord organ and used just the keyboard to play what I was writing.  I used one set of inversions so all my chords would fit in one octave,  After a while I could move from chord to chord and play melodies in time.  In 1971 I purchased a home style organ and started playing out.  never did learn how to read standard piano parts but just used what I call arranger chops.  I have tried several times to work mt way through piano methods but have always dropped it in favor of working on new tunes,  May have to devote some practice time to this again.

Earl

[DerekA]

I think a good start is using the Fingered On Bass mode. This opens up a lot of interesting 'slashed' chords, without going all the way to AI Fingered.

It does mean that you need to use the 'right' inversion rather than the closest one, but you'll hear the benefit. It makes quite a difference in a lot of songs.

[Denn]

Hello Earl. Too true what you say about the "Demonstrators" with ten fingers racing up and down the keyboard.
I have NEVER played piano and I get frustrated with the demonstrators that spend 75% of their demo time showing off how good they can play piano. I often answer "If I wanted a piano I would buy a Steinway and not an arranger keyboard. Now, having written that, I set my T4 to AI fingering, chose a style that suits the song, set the right hand voices to what I think and PLAY!! That is the main objective of the arranger keyboard. However, you have to realize that the Yamaha instruments are designed and built by non-entities for modification and improvements by experts. There are many people out there that just play an on-board style and play one finger on the right hand. Check the demo that Andy Gilbert does on the Genos.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxeWRmhqyHA
Regards, Den.

[mikf]

One off the advantages of the arranger is that it lets you make music at your own level. You can play single finger LH chords and single finger RH melody and make decent sounding music. Or you can go all the way to playing ten fingers across the whole keyboard. You do get much more control though over the music when you use the more sophisticated fingering settings, which is why better players would do that. It's not really just 'showing off' - it can produce better sounding and more satisfying music.
Mike

[Denn]

Hello Mike,Thanks for the post. I agree with you all the way. What I was trying to point out that when an average or novice payer wants to buy a keyboard it would  be better to have some of the demonstration in the form that they use. Sure, have a concert pianist demonstrate the ultimate that can be achieved but I have experienced first time buyers that have been very disappointed when they take the instrument out of the box and it does not sound the same as it did in the shop. That was ME to start with  I still like to play with 2or 3 voice and just one finger in  the right hand. As I have said before, music is an art form and whatever you do you are right. It is your opinion that matters, Regards, Denn[ /size]