Hands Up! The Biggest Mistake Beginner Pianists Make
March 21, 2010 by Ryan Edward · Leave a Comment
The weary teacher often wishes she could make this demand at the point of a pistol, and thus insure results. The continual repetition of “hands up,” “wrists up,” is exhausting. Yet pupils do not realize the importance of this injunction. They continue to play with their wrists sagging below the keyboard, which not only presents a poor appearance but makes the playing weak.
The wrist should be held in a level line with the elbow and middle knuckles, for ordinary playing. Sometimes it should be raised higher when much force is required, and sometimes dropped to mellow the tone, as in chords. But the “standard” position is the level one.
Time after time, I have come across pianists who cannot read music well and rely on memorization to save them. Do you admire pianists who can just pick up any piece of sheet music and play without stumbling? If you want to take your sight reading to the next level then check out the piano course "Mastering The Art Of Piano Sight Reading!"
Tips For Reading Piano Music
January 1, 2010 by Ryan Edward · Leave a Comment
With just a little success behind you, you can tackle the task of learning to read music. Of course there are a number of successful musicians that aren’t able to read music. They can simply listen to a song and play it by ear. They are able to make improvisations on simple things to deliver elaborate variations of well known songs. These musicians seem to know their instruments just as well as a singer knows his or her own voice.
You might be the type of person that can do that. You will learn more a little later about chords and improvisation. However, if you are just learning about the piano, it’s very likely that you will get more help from written music. Further, when you learn how to read music you will open a new world for yourself. You will be able to play songs that you have never heard before. Not only will you be able to play this music, but you can repeat your performance anytime you want to because the sheet music guides you note for note.
There is a great deal to learn. You will have to find out how each note is depicted. You will have to know what the staffs are that the notes are written on and what they look like. You will have to learn how rhythm, sharps, and flats are represented. Once you learn these basics, you can start to build on the knowledge. Read more
What Are Piano Scales?
December 22, 2009 by Ryan Edward · Leave a Comment
A scale on the piano consists of the eight notes that lay between one note and the same note but an entire octave higher. The scales are all different. There are minor scales as well as major scales. The more upbeat and lighter sounding scales are known as the major scales. The more melancholy or deep and gloomy sounding scales are what people refer to as the minor scales.
Practicing keying scales is very important as the muscles in your hand must form a memory of where the keys are in relation to each other. As you spend some time practicing your scales you will find that your fingers seem to move on their own as they have developed a pattern and are following suit. As your eyes move across the sheet music or as you play back a favorite song or tune in your head, you will find that your fingers are moving right along, almost without any thought on your part at all.
Anytime you mention scales you will most certainly also mention keys. When a pianist hears the word keys, they think of either the ivory or wood keys on the keyboard or quite possibly the keys that a melody or scale is being played in. Read more
Getting A Feel For The Piano Keys
December 22, 2009 by Ryan Edward · Leave a Comment
When you start playing the piano, one of the first things you have to consider is where to place your hands. All you have to do is look at the keys positioned in t he center of the keyboard. These are your nine home keys and where your starting position begins.
Yes, we understand most of you have 10 fingers, but the thumbs rest together on the middle C. It’s not a difficult task either. In fact, if you look close enough at the black key/white key pattern, the middle C is easy to spot. When you look at the center, find the area where there are two white keys together.
In the front of each key is either a letter or number. The letter C is placed on the area where your thumbs rest and every key after that goes up in numbers. So your index fingers will rest on the 2s, middle fingers on 3s, rings on 4, and pinkies on the 5s. Read more
Looking at the Piano
December 21, 2009 by Ryan Edward · Leave a Comment
Before you jump head first into playing the piano, it’s important to get a better feel of how it works. First off you have to take a look at all the various forms of pianos that are out there. Upright pianos have a certain appeal that offers vertical options that are large, heavy, and even tall. They can be around 36″ to 51″ high. Now, if you’re looking for a shorter version like Spinets, these are 36″ to 39″. Studio vertical pianos are 44″ and higher.
If you get the chance to play a grand piano, the sound and overall quality is much better. We consider these horizontal pianos that are around 5′ to 9′ in length. Keep in mind the strings are horizontal as well. What about vertical pianos? Well there strings are vertical.
When it’s time to play you will see a music rack right in front of you. It might be a fold down option or some actually slide into a slot, but you will find one or the other. Just sit down on the bench that the piano comes with and set your music in the rack. Just remember to sit at a comfortable distance so you can reach both ends of the piano during your play. Read more
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