Alberti Bass

The Alberti bass is a broken-chord accompaniment pattern where the notes of a chord are played in the order lowest-highest-middle-highest, creating a gently rocking figure that was ubiquitous in Classical-era keyboard music. It is named after Domenico Alberti (c.1710–1740), an Italian singer and harpsichordist who used the pattern extensively, though he did not invent it. Mozart, Haydn, and early Beethoven sonatas are full of Alberti bass figures, making it one of the first patterns every piano student encounters. The key to playing Alberti bass well is keeping it absolutely even and quiet — it should be a cushion for the melody, never competing with it; practise with a light, rotational wrist motion rather than individual finger strokes.