Beginner Piano Lesson #17
Playing with Dynamics (Soft and Loud)
One of the secrets to making music sound beautiful is dynamics—how softly or loudly you play.
New Terms
- p (piano) = play softly
- f (forte) = play loudly
- mf (mezzo forte) = moderately loud
- mp (mezzo piano) = moderately soft
Finger Warm-Up
Play each note slowly with your right hand:
C – D – E – F – G – F – E – D – C
Count:
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7 – 8 – 9
Play it:
- Softly (p)
- Loudly (f)
- Start soft and gradually get louder
New Skill: Crescendo
Crescendo ( < ) means gradually get louder.
Example:
C – D – E – F – G
Start very softly on C and increase volume until G.
New Skill: Decrescendo
Decrescendo ( > ) means gradually get softer.
Example:
G – F – E – D – C
Start loudly on G and gradually get softer until C.
Practice Piece
Right Hand:
C C G G A A G
F F E E D D C
Play the first line softly and the second line a little louder.
Homework
✅ Practice 10 minutes daily
✅ Play C major five-finger pattern with soft and loud dynamics
✅ Try one familiar song and add crescendos and decrescendos
Musical Thought
Notes tell us what to play.
Dynamics tell us how to play it.
A simple melody played with feeling often sounds better than a difficult piece played without expression. 🎹🌹