With so many method books out there, it’s exciting to see how different learners can take up skills on the instrument in different ways. Some people learn the white keys first whereas others get used to the black keys. Some learn more theory and then put that into practice, whereas others learn more practical music and then dissect the music. Yet the practical side of playing piano quite often boils down to a few simple rules. And one such rule is:
The hand needs to be in a comfortable position.
With such a plethora of workbooks for learning out there, it is interesting to see that so many of them build the learner up from a simple starting point. This usually involves ‘C Position’, which is where the right hand lays the thumb on middle C, finger 2 on D, finger 3 on E etc. - and the left hand does the same idea but one octave lower and, of course, fingers reversed (finger 5 on C, finger 4 on D etc.).
But…there is one fundamental problem with this technique!
YES - it gets us used to playing at least something from the off.
NO - it doesn’t truly reflect the skills required going forward.
And one of the main things that I find from this is that the hand can struggle to adjust itself to different positions because of how used it gets to C position.
Consider this: C position is all white keys.
If you wish to play a scale of C major - whether that be the full scale or just a pentascale - you can easily do this by keeping your hand in a position that graces toward the edges of the keys. You don’t need those black notes getting in the way!
However, when we finally do introduce black notes - even if only one (for example, an F♯ if we play a piece in the key of G major) - it can lead to all sorts of weird and wonderful acrobatics from the hand because we assume that we need to just grace the edges of the keys for the entire duration - like we do when it’s all on white keys! Thus, when we come to a black note, we literally have to stretch or jump or twist our wrist in order to reach it!
And is this the correct way to play piano?
I’ll let you decide the answer…
And for those who can’t make up their minds…
The correct answer is…
NO!
So let’s investigate just a couple of ways in which the hand position can be developed so they become a much more settled part of our body whilst playing piano:
The Coin on the Back of the Hand Method
This is an oldie but a goldie, and one that tends to be employed right from the off by teachers that wish to use it (I don’t personally use it by default, but if I were to ever come across an extreme example of bad hand position I might try it).
Simple execution: Place a coin on the back of your hand. Play. Keep the coin on the back of your hand.
Note that the coin will probably slide off when you take your hands off the keys, so if you are changing hand position or jumping off keys - particularly with a little vigour - then you can be forgiven for dropping it. But in general, passages of music that you play note after note with your hand should be done so in a way that allows the coin to stay on.
Moreover, you should feel it being still. If you feel it sliding around, you’ll know something’s amiss. And if you feel it start to slide off, you will hopefully be able to pinpoint from that the exact moment that your hand position is losing its discipline.
Improving Hand Position on Piano with Chords
Familiarity of the shape of chords is a good way to practise getting your hand position much stronger, and taking it ascending chromatically (up one semitone at a time) is better still as this will require constant readjustment.
When beginners start to shift between chords, they will often lock their wrists into a set position away from the keyboard - almost like they’ve been shackled from a wall behind them and can only get so close to the piano. Therefore, any exercise in chord shifting becomes an exercise in finger twisting. For example, C major stays at this safe distance away from the piano, but then when E major is attempted, the hand doesn’t move, the E and the B are pressed in about the same place as these are the white keys, yet the third finger attempts to stretch out to play that G♯ rather than just…moving the hand forward slightly!
The reason that chromatic ascension of triad chords is such a good tool to practise with is because it is continuous readjustment of hand position.
If you need help identifying all the chords, read my blog on how to find them here . Even if you only find four or five neighbouring chords, that’s a great start to help you out. But if you do manage all twelve, try playing the major triads of C, C♯, D, D♯, E, F, F♯, G, G♯, A, A♯, B - or, indeed, their minor alternatives.
Don’t race through them.
Take a moment to appreciate the slight adjustments that you are making with your hand. You’re not aiming to just graze the keys by fluke - it has to be a definite depression. Remember the curvature of your fingers at all times.
Twisting
No pain, no gain, right?
Wrong!
You shouldn’t be feeling excruciating pain from this exercise, but it’s important to recognise it and adjust as necessary. It’s also important to recognise when this is just discomfort from a new exercise that you should work through. This usually feels more like fatigue than discomfort or pain. If you’re getting sharp pains, something isn't right and the most likely cause is…twisting!
Using your right hand as an example, the further up the keyboard you get the more lopsided your chords will get. In white note chords such as C, F and G it’s easy to keep the fingers relatively even in length, but as you progress up you will find exceptions. For example, B major has two black notes in fingers 3 and 5, leaving the thumb on a white note which causes a bit of a twist. Work with it and make subtle adjustments to make sure that you are both playing the chord confidently and not causing yourself unnecessary discomfort.
Height
Remember also that height plays a part! Just look at the keyboard and notice that the black keys protrude up by at least 1cm, so to not add a slight bit more elevation in your hand position would be illogical.
Similarly, don’t think you can get around this constant adjustment by always playing with exaggeratedly raised hands. As I always say - pianists are always looking for the easy option, and I can assure you that playing with this added strain is not the easy option. You add a bit more lift when you need to work around the black notes, which has the advantage of naturally curving the fingers round a touch more. In doing so, it increases their precision in hitting the black notes. Let’s not forget they have much less surface area and also - being high - can be ‘slipped off’ if not struck correctly, so do yourself the favour of giving yourself every possible chance of actually playing them!
Incorporating Technique into Musical Passages
When your hand position is feeling much more confident, you can incorporate this into your performance of musical passages too. Before you delve straight into a piece of music you are learning or wish to learn, try it with some of your simple exercises such as scales.
Try a simple 1 or 2 black note scale (G major, D major, F major, B♭ major) and work in your understanding of when your hands needs to push forward ever so slightly and then pull back as well as the moments in which you could advantage the fluidity by lifting your hand (and arm if needed) to accommodate for those black notes.
Don’t forget that we are never seeking exaggerated movements and we certainly aren’t looking for sharp movements. Everything that we seek to do as pianists should be with a fluid movement. A rise and fall like sweeping hills. Not up and down like a zigzag! Try to visualise the movements of your hand (and arm) like waves in the sea as they rise up and down and for the forward and back motion ensure you avoid sharp movements as these will send shock waves down your arm and fatigue and hurt, not to mention affect your playing.
Try it yourself, and for a video demonstration of all I have covered check out below:
Make sure you subscribe to my YouTube channel to never miss a video!
Jack Mitchell Smith is a piano teacher based in Macclesfield, Cheshire. Click here to find out more.
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