By Emilee Tran
Have you ever observed your favorite pianists, noticed their postures and how they seem to play with ease at all times?
Piano playing is an art. To achieve beautiful sound and good technique, you need to find the place that allows you to feel good at the instrument and enjoy your practice. In other words, good piano posture is that magical place. It’s the key difference between painful and effortless playing.
As you continue to practice your piano playing, having a correct posture can protect your spine and your arms from tension-related injuries, empower the freedom of expression, increase your productivity, and save you a lot of time and effort. What’s more, it gives you the confidence to feel and look your best when playing the piano. Read on to find out 5 basic elements to achieve great piano posture.
1. Find the right height of the piano bench.
Adjust the height of the piano bench to make sure that your elbows are aligned with the keyboard. Form an imaginary 90-degree angle between your lower and upper arm. Try to use only the front half of the bench and let the muscles under your thighs be free.
Avoid sitting too far from the piano as you need to be able to reach the keyboard. Likewise, don’t sit too close since your elbows will be pointing uncomfortably backward and hinder your arm movements. It’s recommended to keep a distance of 20 – 30 cm from the keyboard to your abdomen. If you sit too low or too high, you’ll have to raise your shoulders or slouch, which will cause pain in the long run.
2. Keep your back straight.
Sit proudly. No slouching. See yourself as a giraffe! Try to align your head, shoulders and hips for balance. It’ll help you avoid putting too much weight on your back and shoulders.
You should feel like you own the instrument. Play with grace. Keeping your back well-aligned with your body is not only good for your health, but it can also boost your confidence. If you find yourself leaning forward, a quick fix is to pull your shoulders up to your ears, backward and let down.
3. Support your feet.
Stability is important when playing the piano. You should be able to move the upper part of your body freely in order to reach all the keys on the keyboard. Make sure your feet are well-grounded, comfortably apart and close to the pedals. Don’t cross your legs or ankle, or place your feet under the bench.
Children tend to slide forward on the piano bench if their feet can’t touch the floor yet. Use a foot stool (or a pile of books!) at a comfortable height near the bench to help them rest their feet firmly, and provide the stability needed.
4. Avoid tension in your arms.
Relax, your arms are wings! Let them fall freely from your shoulders. Keep your shoulders down. Your elbows should hang comfortably and at a slight distance from your body. Your pinky finger, wrist, and elbow should form a straight line to prevent locking your wrist at an extreme angle and creating unpleasant pressure.
Flexible and tension-free wrists give you the freedom to express yourself, and achieve a beautiful piano sound and a good technique. They help transfer the weight of your arm into your fingers when you play. Allow your wrists to naturally drop as you play a key, and gently rebound back up as you prepare for the next down stroke.
5. Curve your fingers.
Many beginners tend to resist the notion of curved fingers as they can play some of the lines easily with straight fingers. However, this is a bad habit. If you wish to play the piano well, curved fingers are the technique you need to master.
Bear in mind that when pressing down on a piano key, the end joint of the finger should always curve out, not in. Imagine that you’re holding an orange or a soft ball in your hand. Alternatively, try to balance a penny on the back of the hand and see how many notes you can play before it slides off.
It’s not an easy job to apply those piano posture tips at once, especially if you’re a beginner. But don’t give up! It takes time and practice. Remember, the sooner you start this process, the sooner you’ll be on your way to mastering good piano postures and reaping their endless benefits. So fuel yourself with a positive attitude and relentless energy to achieve the art of piano playing.
Featured Image: Image Credit
Good morning!! Here’s a little Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer on the piano to start off your day ✨pic.twitter.com/stIWXnXDTh
— Matthew Ables (@matthewables98) December 12, 2015
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“Pre”-Lesson 1
Sitting At The Piano
For a very natural and effective piano posture, sit on the front half of the bench, with your feet firmly on the floor. (Your feet will be your balance as you need your hands for playing.)When you place your hands on the keys, your elbows should be slightly in front of you. If your elbows are directly to your side, or behind you, the bench is too close to the keys. If your arms are stretched out, you are too far from the keys. Via True Piano Lessons
The Correct Posture for Piano Playing
How come keeping the correct piano playing posture is so important? And why is so important to find a suitable piano bench? Where can you actually find good piano benches?
I’ve added the correct playing posture at this point of our piano lessons since sitting correctly at the piano has a few advantages.
1. Having the correct posture helps us preventing our body from damage and stress that might occur while sitting through these long hours, practicing.
2. It allows us to produce continuous power and flow while we play.
3. It helps us to play with a greater sensitivity. Via Piano Play It
Top Ten Tips for Good Piano Posture
Playing the piano is so much more than just picking out notes on the keys. Sound, look, and feel your best by following these tips for good piano posture. Click here for a pdf of this handy piano posture chart that you can print out and keep with your lesson materials.
1. FIND THE RIGHT FINGER SHAPE
To find the right finger shape for playing the piano, try putting your relaxed hand on your thigh and sliding it forward over your knee. Notice how your fingers naturally curve around your knee cap. Keep your fingers in that position as you lift your hand, and set it on the keyboard to play. Another trick is to cup both hands together as if you were holding a small, delicate baby chick. Now, keeping that finger shape, rotate your hands so they are palm down, and you’re ready to play the piano. Via Hoffman Academy
