Piano Posture & D Journey

Why does piano posture matter for beginners?

Piano posture matters for beginners because it puts them in the right position to play comfortably. Having good piano posture makes it easier to play. When we play with good piano posture, we find our fingers move quicker and can play with more strength. 

What are the four steps to good piano posture?

Good piano posture includes having your bench at the right height, sitting with a tall back, playing with your arm weight, and having curved finger shape. 

How do I know if my piano bench is the right height?

Your piano bench is at the right height if your arms are parallel to the floor as you set your hands on the keys. Smaller players may need to sit on a cushion to bring them up higher on the piano bench. If your feet don’t reach the floor, use a stepstool so that your feet can rest on a firm surface.

What is arm weight and why does it matter in piano playing?

Arm weight helps your fingers press down on the piano keys. Rather than using muscular force, allow the weight of your arms and hands to play notes and chords. Using this weight to play the keys makes you a more efficient player. To experience the weight of your arms, imagine you are a puppet with strings holding your arms out in front of you. Now cut the strings and let your arms fall. That falling sensation can be used to play piano – and it will help prevent repetitive stress injuries and wrist issues. 

What are common piano posture mistakes beginners make?

Tension in the body might be the most common piano posture mistake. Help your hands relax by first ensuring that your piano bench is at the right height and distance from the piano. Then, turn your palms over and imagine you are holding an orange. Keeping the same hand shape, rotate your hands so your palms face downward and set them gently on the keys. If you notice tension in your arms, back, or neck while sitting, make sure you’re at a comfortable distance from the keyboard. Take a few deep breaths and roll your shoulders, then let your body sit tall and relaxed on the bench. All these will help you play with more ease. For more on piano posture, read Our Top 10 Tips for Correct Piano Posture.

Transcript

Hello and welcome back. I'm Joseph Hoffman.
Today we're learning about piano posture.
Posture is a word that means the shape of your body for doing a certain task.
For example, let's pretend I'm going to eat a bowl of cereal.
Would this be a good posture? Nah. How about this? probably not.
How about this? Yeah, that would be a comfortable, good posture.
Well, it's the same with piano. There are some good ways and bad ways
you can shape your body for playing piano,
and if you learn the right posture, your playing will be more comfortable,
and we'll be able to progress faster and play better.
Please remember that the whole point of good posture
is to be comfortable and play better. It should feel good.

So today, let's learn the four steps for awesome piano posture.
Number one is bench position. It's more important than you might realize.
You see, it's very common for new students to sit too close to the piano.
Maybe they don't realize that it's okay to move the bench.
Sometimes I have a student come in and try to squeeze in.
Looks really awkward. If you sit too close to the piano,
you're going to have what I call Tyrannosaurus Rex arms.
Your elbows should not be jammed up against your body.
That will limit your arm motion as you play, and add tension.
On the other hand, if your bench is too far away from your piano,
then you're going to have Frankenstein arms.
You want the bench to be positioned just right, and you want to sit
about right smack in the middle, not all the way back and not on the front edge,
where you might fall into the piano pit of doom. Waaaaow! Help, please?
If you've got the bench just right, your elbows will be slightly but comfortably
in front of your torso when your fingers rest on the keys.

Then we need to deal with bench height.
The most common problem is having a bench or chair which is too low.
In fact, a regular chair is almost always going to be too low,
which is why I recommend using an actual piano bench. For most students
I recommend a bench height of about twenty or twenty-one inches.
You'll know if you're too low because your elbow to wrist,
which is called your forearm, will be sloped like this.
That's bad, because it can add tension to your wrist.
It's also bad to be too high. That will cause a slope the other way,
also adding tension to your wrist. The perfect bench height
is one that causes your forearm to knuckles to align with the floor,
and just in a flat smooth shape. Once you're at the right height,
if you find that your fee ...