How much can you change a piano chord progression without changing your right hand? Quite a lot, as it turns out. In the first of this short series, I look at how moving just the bass note can change the harmony while the notes above it stay the same.
Starting with a simplified example inspired by Jamie Cullum’s “Don’t Give Up on Me”, I explore how a simple E flat chord shape takes on a different character over an A flat bass. Then I apply the same idea to a familiar 1–5–6–4 progression in C major, creating richer, extended harmonies with very little movement.
It’s a useful technique for piano improvisation, songwriting and accompaniment: sometimes you can make a progression more interesting by doing less.
Explore my piano and music coaching at billspianopages.com.