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How to Play Boogie Woogie Piano - WikiHow

9,511,112 views November 5, 2016 6:47

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ChannelArthur Migliazza

In brief

Master the classic boogie-woogie piano style by breaking down left-hand bass patterns and right-hand rhythms, then combining them into a full 12-bar blues progression. Ideal for beginners struggling with hand independence or those eager to channel the sound of legendary pianists like Meade Lux Lewis and Pete Johnson.

Questions & answers

Can I practice without a piano?

Yes—tap the rhythms on a desk or lap while imagining the piano keys to build muscle memory.

Chapters

Description from the creator

This video was created to accompany Arthur's WikiHow article on how to play boogie woogie piano. Read the Article here (there are also some transcripts of the other parts):
wikihow.com/Play-Boogie-Woogie-Piano

The official PDF SHEET MUSIC to the final part, "Let's Boogie!" (6:09), can be downloaded here for $1.99: schoolofboogie.wixsite.com/school/store

Book a private lesson with Arthur at www.arthurmigliazza.com/lessons

Arthur's instructional book "How to Play Boogie Woogie Piano" is here at Amazon: amzn.to/1Ri43TT

WHAT IS THE CORRECT WAY TO PLAY A 12 BAR BLUES?
youtube.com/watch?v=nmXEbDfZ4SE&t=12s

FOR PEOPLE STRUGGLING WITH HAND INDEPENDENCE:
Hand independence relies on muscle memory. The length of time it takes a person to get something "automatic" can vary from 1 day to 6 months. It depends on how much time you spend repeating the motion. No different than learning how to drive a stick shift or tie your shoes or chew food or type on a computer keyboard. The more frequently you can repeat a motion, the sooner it will become automatic.
In this case you are trying to get your left hand/wrist/arm to remember to move up and down in a specific rhythm while alternating your top note.
If you put in a collective 20 min a day on just your left hand (meaning 5 min here 10 min there, etc... or 20 min all at once) for 2 weeks and you still don't see any improvement I will be surprised.
You don't even need to be at a piano to practice the repetitions of your left hand. Tap out the rhythms on your desk, alternating your top finger as you do so (i.e. index to thumb as I show in the video). Imagine yourself playing the piano as you do this. You can even do it on your lap as you're sitting or stuck in traffic. Get creative. Teach your left hand the motion. You can do it. You learned how to walk. You can learn how to do this on piano.

Some of the GREATS alluded to in Step 1 are:
Clarence "Pinetop" Smith, Cripple Clarence Lofton, Jabo Williams, Montana Taylor, Jimmy Yancey, Hersal Thomas, Cow Cow Davenport, Little Brother Montgomery, Albert Ammons, Meade Lux Lewis, Pete Johnson, Big Maceo Merriweather, Otis Spann, Amos Milburn, Johnny Johnson, Bob Seeley, Professor Longhair and James Booker. There are tons more that you will find along the way too. Download their music and listen a little bit to them every day to start getting the true sounds of boogie-woogie in your ears!

Chapters

0:00 Part 1 Step 1 (Listen)
0:07 Part 2, Step 1 (Left Hand)
0:51 Part 2, Step 2
2:02 Part 2, Step 3
2:20 Part 3, Step 1 (Right Hand)
3:00 Part 3, Step 2
3:26 Part 3, Step 3
4:30 Part 3, Step 4
5:08 Part 4, Step 1 (Intro)
5:43 Part 4, Step 2 (Ending)
6:09 Part 4, Step 3 (Let's Boogie!)

About this tutorial

Arthur Migliazza published this 6:47 video tutorial on November 5, 2016. It has been watched 9,511,112 times on YouTube.

Category
Education
Duration
6:47
Published
November 5, 2016
Views
9,511,112
Likes
232,090

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