Phone Books, Heavy Wet Ropes, and Pecking Hens.
By Grace Suiter
Over the next several weeks in our IAFA piano studios, we are focusing on piano technique. At first glance, one might think that emphasizing proper technique with beginning pianists is a waste of time. However, the development of artistry at the piano begins during the formative years. If we overlook this important component of piano training, we shortchange the child’s musical experience, which may result in a loss of interest on the part of the child.
The most basic concept in proper piano technique is bench position and posture. If the student is sitting too high or too low at the bench, this interferes with hand, wrist, and forearm alignment. If you don’t have an adjustable bench, then a phone book might be just the thing to help your child keep a well-aligned hand-to-elbow position. Secondly, the bench should be far enough away from the keys so that the student’s elbows form no less than a 45 degree angle. It is best to sit on the front half of the bench, especially for students whose feet reach the floor! Finally, check for a straight spine and flexible torso. Slumping is not only unattractive -- it is also detrimental to the student’s piano technique.
Many of our students use the Faber Piano Adventures series, and we will especially focus on the development of your child’s technical skills through the use of following Faber concepts:
Arm Weight : With an exercise called Heavy Wet Ropes, the student imagines her arms to be waterlogged ropes. First, we practice dropping the “ropes” into our laps, and then apply the weight principle to the keyboard. Discovery of arm weight and the ability of the fingers to balance and transfer this weight are essential for beautiful tone and injury-free playing.
Firm Fingers : The Pecking Hen teaches the student to keep the fingers from collapsing. The thumb is used to brace each finger in the shape of an “O” and keeps the fingertip firm. In this position, the student can “peck” up and down the keyboard, experiencing the feeling of a rounded hand shape and firm fingers.
Moonwalk : The hand, wrist, and forearms should generally be aligned, with the wrist held neither too high nor low. A fun exercise that the students seem to enjoy is allowing the wrist to float off the keys at the ends of phrases or during large leaps and crossovers. Faber encourages the student to pretend he is walking on the moon with his hands. In between steps, the wrist rises and floats weightlessly.
If you have spent time with your child during their practice sessions, you have undoubtedly seen these concepts, either in the curriculum or teacher’s notes. As we teach proper technique in the piano studio and you help reinforce these concepts at home, we work together as a team in training your child in the development of beautiful artistry at the piano.
The most basic concept in proper piano technique is bench position and posture. If the student is sitting too high or too low at the bench, this interferes with hand, wrist, and forearm alignment. If you don’t have an adjustable bench, then a phone book might be just the thing to help your child keep a well-aligned hand-to-elbow position. Secondly, the bench should be far enough away from the keys so that the student’s elbows form no less than a 45 degree angle. It is best to sit on the front half of the bench, especially for students whose feet reach the floor! Finally, check for a straight spine and flexible torso. Slumping is not only unattractive -- it is also detrimental to the student’s piano technique.
Many of our students use the Faber Piano Adventures series, and we will especially focus on the development of your child’s technical skills through the use of following Faber concepts:
Arm Weight : With an exercise called Heavy Wet Ropes, the student imagines her arms to be waterlogged ropes. First, we practice dropping the “ropes” into our laps, and then apply the weight principle to the keyboard. Discovery of arm weight and the ability of the fingers to balance and transfer this weight are essential for beautiful tone and injury-free playing.
Firm Fingers : The Pecking Hen teaches the student to keep the fingers from collapsing. The thumb is used to brace each finger in the shape of an “O” and keeps the fingertip firm. In this position, the student can “peck” up and down the keyboard, experiencing the feeling of a rounded hand shape and firm fingers.
Moonwalk : The hand, wrist, and forearms should generally be aligned, with the wrist held neither too high nor low. A fun exercise that the students seem to enjoy is allowing the wrist to float off the keys at the ends of phrases or during large leaps and crossovers. Faber encourages the student to pretend he is walking on the moon with his hands. In between steps, the wrist rises and floats weightlessly.
If you have spent time with your child during their practice sessions, you have undoubtedly seen these concepts, either in the curriculum or teacher’s notes. As we teach proper technique in the piano studio and you help reinforce these concepts at home, we work together as a team in training your child in the development of beautiful artistry at the piano.
Sorry, Kids, Piano Lessons Make You Smarter!
E.J. Mundell for HealthDayNews
It's sure to be music to parents' ears: After nine months of weekly training in piano or voice, new research shows young students' IQs rose nearly three points more than their untrained peers.
The Canadian study lends support to the idea that musical training may do more for kids than simply teach them their scales--it exercises parts of the brain useful in mathematics, spatial intelligence and other intellectual pursuits.
"With music lessons, because there are so many different facets involved--such as memorizing, expressing emotion, learning about musical interval and chords--the multidimensional nature of the experience may be motivating the [IQ] effect," said study author E. Glenn Schellenberg, of the University of Toronto at Mississauga. (read the article here)
The Canadian study lends support to the idea that musical training may do more for kids than simply teach them their scales--it exercises parts of the brain useful in mathematics, spatial intelligence and other intellectual pursuits.
"With music lessons, because there are so many different facets involved--such as memorizing, expressing emotion, learning about musical interval and chords--the multidimensional nature of the experience may be motivating the [IQ] effect," said study author E. Glenn Schellenberg, of the University of Toronto at Mississauga. (read the article here)
