The 5 creative piano skills that Elton John uses in his playing

Elton John is one of the most iconic piano players in modern history, with a career spanning five decades of beautifully crafted songs. He's a masterful musical storyteller who is able to evoke a huge emotional range from his compositions, from party songs like "Crocodile Rock" to haunting love songs like "Your Song". So, how does he do it? What makes an 'Elton John song' sound like Elton John? How can you learn to play piano like Elton John?

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Slash chords in the second half of Verse 1, "Rocket Man"

1. ​Slash chords. One of Elton John's favourite harmonic devices (chord selection) is to use 'slash chords', where a chord in the right hand is paired with a different note in the left hand. You can see this device used in 'Rocket Man' to great effect through both the verse, pictured below, and the chorus of the song. By using slash chords, Elton expands his palette of available chords, which in turn expands the number and complexity of the moods he can create through his use of chords.
2. Inversions. The key to making so many different chords sound unified is to find the similarities in each chord and choose the appropriate voicing, or inversion, that highlights those similarities and creates a cohesiveness in sound. Using inversions also has the added benefit of being able to play more by touch rather than sight, which is essential when playing to a crowd and communicating with your band. Read more about choosing effective chord voicings here: Extended chord voicing: it's not what you put in, but what you leave out.
3. Arpeggios. By breaking up his chords in to their individual notes and playing them in sequence instead of all at once, Elton creates melodies that are built from the chords. Rather than the arpeggios just ascending or descending, there is often a more elaborate pattern involved that can sound random - think middle note, low note, middle note, high, middle, low, middle, low, high etc. Some of his most famous riffs, like "Tiny Dancer" are built using this method.
4. A focus on rhythm and accents. Because Elton John is singing his melodies, often his piano playing is providing accompaniment to his voice. As such, there is a strong use of the piano as a rhythm instrument, adding additional layers of groove and syncopation in and around the drum kit and bass guitar. You can particularly hear this in songs like "Benny and the Jets" where the piano can feel like it's taking you by surprise at times. His early work as a session player for R'n'B groups was likely a big influence on this style of playing. In the gaps between the singing, the piano also adds a drum-like feel by inserting "fills", or more complex rhythmic sections to help build excitement.
5. Collaboration. In having all of his songs' lyrics written by Bernie Taupin, Elton John is in a wonderfully inspiring creative position whereby he is trying to complete a puzzle. If a lyric suggests melancholy, then it's his job to meet that mood by choosing the corresponding chord extension or voicing. Often in creative practice, the more restrictions you give yourself then the more easily things can flow. By having lyrics already written, he is free to concentrate fully on the melody and chords.

So, how can you learn to play more like Elton John? 

1. Lean your chords and inversions inside-out.
2. Practice playing with different arpeggio shapes
3. Practice playing drum kit rhythms on the piano (left hand = kick drum, right hand = snare drum/hi-hats)
4. Ask your piano teacher to help you learn more Elton John songs! Ready to start learning? Sign Up Now for your first piano lesson at Counterpoint Music in Brisbane and learn how play the songs you love!

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