How to Play F Sharp Major and F Sharp Minor on the Piano

Learning to play major and minor chords on the piano is a basic part of being able to accompany a band or vocalist. In the key of F sharp, you'll be using both the white and black keys on the piano to get into this key which is one half step between F and G.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Start by finding your middle C on the piano. To do this, look at the ways piano keys repeat themselves in octaves. You have 2 sets of black keys in each octave, a set of 2 and a set of 3. Look at your set of 2 black keys. The white key directly below the lower of the 2 black keys is middle C. Playing the white keys from C up to C will give you C, D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. No sharps or flats.

2. Find your F sharp note. Remember, the white keys in the key of C don't include sharps or flats. The F sharp is just a half step above the F. Look at the F key, just before the first black key in the set of three. The F sharp is just directly above; it's the first black key in that set of three.

3. Add the other two notes. They're all black keys. The first one is A sharp, the third of the 3-key set, and the other is C sharp, the first black key of the two-key set.

4. Play these three black keys together and you'll get a major chord, F sharp major. Piano players don't think of major chords as being played on the half-step keys, but in this irregular key, they are.

5. Move the A sharp down to an A (the white A key) to get the F sharp minor chord. Play again, and you'll hear the minor of the chord, a distinctly different sound from the major.

Tips & Warnings

• For a better understanding of keys in piano, look at how F sharp is different from other keys. You'll see that piano players use the white and black keys differently according to what key the song is in.