Left Hand Piano Chords Shouldn't Be Complicated

+ How to Play Them

Left hand piano chords is a topic that I get a lot of emails and questions about. For some reason, almost all of us find the left hand just that little bit harder than the right hand. (I've actually met only one person in my whole life who didn't find this.)

But when it comes to chords, it really doesn't have to be difficult or complicated. In fact, it may just be the easiest part of playing chords.

Below we will go over:

what your right hand and left hand plays with chords
a few simple techniques for your left hand when playing chords
different styles you can use for your left hand
using rhythm with your left hand
slash chords

What Should Your Right Hand & Left Hand Be Playing With Chords?

Knowing what to play in each hand can be a bit hard to figure out because of the nature of playing chords themselves - they allow for flexibility and creativity. So there is no "right way" to play them. But there are a few guidelines and suggestions to follow.

Right Hand - Important for melody

Generally, you want to play the melody in the right hand. This is where it stands out the most. If you're not really playing a melody, your ear may still pick one up with the top notes you're playing.

Left Hand - Bass Lines & Support

One important job of the left hand is to provide us with bass, the low notes and low end of the music. This could be in the shape of a very uncomplicated and simple bass line (the lowest note of a chord) or a complex bass line (lowest note of the chord with more notes mixed in).

Left hand can also support the melody and right hand by playing notes from the chord, playing the whole chord or playing only the root note of the chord.

Video Tutorial: 3 Simple Left Hand Piano Chords Techniques Anyone Can Use

Left Hand Piano Chords - What I Play

Technique #1

When I play chords, what I basically play is the chord and melody in my right hand and the root note of the chord in my left hand. It really doesn't have to be more complicated than that in the beginning.

For the left hand what this means is that if there's a C chord, I'll be playing C. Em7 chord? I'll play E in the left hand.

Learning to play this, is a great first step and it's quite simple.

Once you're comfortable with it, you can turn that single note into an octave or add some rhythm to it.

Using Block Chords in Your Left Hand

Technique #2

One technique that many people start and stick with is playing block or solid chords in the left hand. This basically means playing the whole chord in your left hand while playing a single melody in your right hand.

When to use this technique:

This is a great beginner technique because it's on the simpler side - especially if you want to play a melody while playing chords or use a lead sheet. It's also great for learning the shape of a chord for your left hand. And for learning the notes too.

Another time you may want to use this technique is stylistically. If you want a very simple sound or really want the melody to stand out, you can try this.

This also sets the foundation for the next technique - playing broken chords.

Broken Chords with Left Hand

Technique #3

Broken chords are chords that are played one note at a time as opposed to all together. (Basically the opposite of block or solid chords.)

This technique can be seen in songs like Hallelujah with chords played broken over and over again.

This can be really nice in slower songs especially. The right hand would be playing melody or other bits of the chord.

If you wanted to write your own melody, you could try pairing it up with playing broken chords in your left hand. This is a great left hand piano chords technique and used often.

Rhythm with Left Hand Piano Chords

The left hand is a great place to add in some rhythm when playing piano chords. It doesn't have to be complicated though. It can be a simple rhythm and evolve as your playing evolves and you get more experience.

To begin with, just play the chord in your right hand and root note in your left hand. Then play the left hand on the first beat of the bar or when you first play the chord.

(RH = right hand, LH = left hand)

RH RH RH RH

Next, try playing the left hand on the first and third beats:

RH RH RH RH

LH LH

Then try an off beat - play the left hand some time when the right hand isn't playing.

RH RH RH RH

LH LH

If rhythm is something you know you need more work on, I am currently working on a little mini course and more information on this. (You'll hear about it if you're part of the email list which you can join by getting the free chord cheat sheet.)

Free Download:

Ultimate Chord Cheat Sheet

Subscribe below and get free access to the (printable) Ultimate Chord Cheat Sheet.

Left Hand Specialty Chord - Slash Chords

If you've ever seen a chord that looks like C/G or D/F#, these are slash chords and important for you to know for your left hand piano chords playing.

The note after the slash is the note you need to play as the lowest note in your left hand. It's the bass note.

If you're playing a root note or single note in your left hand, this is an easy change. For D/F#, you just play F# instead of D.

If you're playing the full chord in your left hand however, you'll need to play an inversion of the chord so that F# is on the bottom. (So playing F# A D instead of D F# A.)

There's More ...

There is a lot more you can do to play left hand piano chords - octaves, bass lines, arpeggios and so on. If want to learn how to use these techniques plus get exercises and my top tips on making your left hand sound pro, you can access the mini course 5 Simple Left Hand Patterns for Pro Piano Chords in the Piano Chords Club.

More pages that might help:

Chord Piano Lessons with Video
Free video chord piano lessons. Learn how to play chords and how to get better at playing chords.
How to Play Piano Chords
Learn to tips for how to play piano chords. Here are the first steps to take in learning to play chords.
Learning Piano Chords
A step by step approach for learning piano chords. Find out where to start and how to improve your playing of piano chords.
Major Vs Minor Chords in Piano: What to Learn & What's Different
Wondering what the difference is between major vs minor chords in piano? Learn what's different, what to learn first & how they sound.
C Chord On Piano - How To Play It
Learn how to play the C chord on the piano - also known as C major chord. Included here are C chord inversions and C/E and C/G.
Learn How to Make Chords (How To)
Learn how to make chords. A step by step approach for learning how to build chords.
Understanding Piano Chords
Help for understanding piano chords and a basic overview of what chords are.
m7 Chord: What is it & How Do You Play It? (Formula included)
What the m7 chord means, how it's formed, how to write it and how to play it on piano. Also known as the minor seven chord.
Join the 14 Day Piano Chord Challenge
Join the 14 day piano chord challenge and learn a new chord every day! Perfect for beginners learning to play piano chords.
Can You Learn Piano Without Sheet Music?
Ever wondering if you can learn piano without sheet music? There are a few options if this is something you want to do.
Learn Jazz Piano Chords (Beyond Major and Minor Chords!)
Learning jazz piano chords? Learn some of the important jazz chords to know, which notes to play for the chords, and how to figure them out.
Piano Chord Chart Book - A Peek Inside
Here's a peek inside my new piano chord chart book. It has piano chord charts for different chord types and different keys.
What Are Piano Chords?
Answering the question: what are piano chords? Find the basics here.
30 Day Piano Chord Challenge
Join us for the 3 day piano chord challenge where you will learn a new chord every day for a month.
Easily Make a Melody from A Chord Progression
Want to easily make a melody from a chord progression? You can. Step by step process here.