Learn the rules of harmony and counterpoint:

Harmony is the art of combining different notes simultaneously to create harmonious chords and progressions.

This involves studying chords, all the relationships between them, the different ways of conceiving them (inversions), and all the combinations that allow you to move from one chord to another (passing notes, culmination, embellishment and retard).

Counterpoint is a compositional technique characterised by the superimposition of melodic lines played simultaneously (point against point, or note against note). It guarantees an ‘aesthetic’ composition thanks to a set of rules and principles, making it possible to avoid the dissonances linked to these superimpositions.

To fully understand the difference between the two concepts, it is often said that harmony is vertical (chords), while counterpoint is horizontal (melody).

As the diagram opposite shows, harmony and counterpoint can be seen as the centre of a spider’s web within which piano playing, music theory, composition and improvisation are appendages or complements.