## Virtual Piano

Click or tap the keys above to play. The keyboard shows three octaves around middle C, sounds a sampled grand piano, and labels every key with its note name so you can see what you are playing. If you connect a MIDI keyboard, the keys light up as you play it.


## How To Play The Virtual Piano

1. Click or tap a key to play it; hold to sustain. On a touch screen you can play several keys at once.
2. Use the **Note names** switch to show or hide the letter on every key. Hide them once you know where the notes live.
3. Use the octave arrows to shift the keyboard up or down when you need higher or lower notes.
4. Plug in a MIDI keyboard and allow the browser to use it when asked. Your playing is shown on the keys above, and the chord you are holding is named underneath.

The white keys are the seven letters A to G, repeating. The black keys are the sharps and flats between them, in groups of two and three; the white key just to the left of any group of two black keys is C. [Middle C](/about/music-notation/middle-c.md) is the C nearest the middle of a real piano, and the one this keyboard opens on.


## What A Virtual Piano Is Good For

A virtual piano is not a substitute for a real instrument, but it is the right tool for several small jobs:

- **Checking a note.** You are reading a piece away from the piano and want to hear whether that note is a D or an F. Tap it.
- **Trying a chord.** Press three keys and the [chord finder](/tools/chord-finder.md) underneath names what you played.
- **Learning the layout.** Beginners often struggle to find notes quickly. Turn the note names on, then off, and test yourself.
- **Ear training.** Play two notes and try to sing the second before you press it.

When you want to practise properly, with your playing graded against real sheet music, open a piece in the [sheet music library](/sheet-music.md) or start the [beginner course](/lessons/adult-beginner-piano.md). Chordzy listens to your MIDI keyboard, or to the same on-screen keys, and shows which notes were right, early or late.


## Faq

### Can I play with my computer keyboard?

Not yet. The keys respond to mouse, touch and MIDI. A MIDI keyboard is the way to play with all ten fingers.

### Why is the first note delayed?

The piano sound is downloaded on first use, which takes a second or two. After that every note plays immediately.

### Is the sound a real piano?

It is a sampled acoustic grand from a public soundfont, played through your browser's audio engine. The full Chordzy app offers a range of instruments and soundfonts; see [sound fonts](/help/synthesizers/sound-fonts.md).