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How do pianists protect their hands?

The Pianist's Wrists A soft wrist cushions the hand and fingers, offers protection against injury, and shapes phrasing and articulation.

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When I said this to one of my students, he looked at me slightly askance from beneath his thick fringe of auburn hair, and I could see him thinking his piano teacher was probably slightly mad. Of course we play the piano with our fingers, but these are, literally, the tips of a much larger mechanism: the wrists, arms, shoulders, back and trunk assist in the production of sound and movement, and enables the pianist to navigate the keyboard efficiently, economically and safely. During performance, the pianist conveys both the music’s narrative and his/her expressive intent to the audience through postures and movements which create the sounds and the accompanying expressive gestures. Frédéric Chopin: Etude No. 13 in A-Flat Major, Op. 25, No. 1, “Harp Study” (Freddy Kempf, piano)

The Pianist’s Forearm

The use of arm weight, a concept developed by renowned pianist and pedagogue Tobias Matthay (1858 – 1945) in the early years of the twentieth century, influences sound quality by controlling how the hand drops onto the keyboard. Conversely, lifting out of the keys, again by harnessing the forearm and muscles further up the arm and shoulder, can affect articulation, such as staccato.

The Pianist’s Elbow

The elbow, often ignored by pianists and teachers, has a number of important functions, including forward and backwards movements in and out of the keyboard, particularly to and from the black keys to avoid stretching the hand and fingers; it drives the rotation of the forearm to enable the pianist to play, for example, tremolo octaves; and it enables the pianist to create elliptical, expressive movements in the forearm and hand.

The Pianist’s Wrists

Then there is the wrist, the pianist’s most important joint. A soft wrist cushions the hand and fingers, offers protection against injury, and shapes phrasing and articulation. Rolling the wrist from side to side in a semi-circle – called “rotary movement” – gives shape to melody and accompaniments, including the Alberti Bass, releasing tension and allowing the fingers to fall onto the keys with the minimum of effort. The wrist keeps fingers in alignment with the forearm and guides the fingers to the notes, avoiding awkward stretches and unnecessary tension. Upwards wrist movements give lift and lightness to sounds, creating breathing space between phrases as the fingers lift out of the keys. Dropping the wrist into the keyboard, using the weight of the forearm, brings emphasis to accents while avoiding striking the keys too harshly, creates a rich sounds, and is essential for healthy playing of chords, especially in the louder dynamic range, by acting as a shock absorber.

The Pianist’s Back and Shoulders

The back and shoulders assist in creating a rich forte, especially for pianists with smaller hands. By engaging the stronger, large muscles of the back and shoulders to support the hands and fingers, the pianist can play more expressively. Claude Debussy: 12 Etudes – No. 11. Pour les arpeges composes (For written arpeggios) (Noriko Ogawa, piano) While a proper understanding of how fingers, hand, wrist, forearm, elbow, shoulders and back are employed to support technical facility and protect against injury, it is important to appreciate how these parts of the pianist’s body are also harnessed in the artistry of playing, including sound quality, gesture and communication. Such movements also resonate with audiences, who perceive such movements as expressive, thus creating a more empathetic engagement with the music being played.

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Is playing piano attractive?

But did you know it's considered to be sexy too? A Vanity Fair/60 Minutes survey ranking the sexiest instruments to play has the piano at number three—just behind the guitar and the saxophone. They found that the top instrument was the guitar at 26 percent, followed closely by the saxophone at 25 percent.

pianoinaflash.com - Survey finds many agree that playing the piano is ""sexy""

Survey Says Playing Piano is Sexy

Posted at 14:44h in in News

Playing the piano has many cool benefits (like you need to tell us, huh?). But did you know it’s considered to be sexy too? A Vanity Fair/60 Minutes survey ranking the sexiest instruments to play has the piano at number three—just behind the guitar and the saxophone. They found that the top instrument was the guitar at 26 percent, followed closely by the saxophone at 25 percent. The remainder of the list was made of the piano (21 percent), violin (14 percent), drums (seven percent) and flute (five percent.) Interestingly the poll also showed that 42 percent of Americans believe “this decade” has had the worst music in 45 years and it’s not just older Americans that feel that way. Those under 30 are also most likely to think that this decade has had the worst music since 1970. (There’s hope! Ha!) But you know what’s REALLY sexy? Learning to play piano and playing YOUR favorite kind of popular music while doing it. That’s the way we do things around here at pianoinaflash.com! Scott has taught thousands of adults how to play the piano with his Piano in a Flash method, which is also super sexy! The job is done, the kids are grown and gone and you’ve still got a LOT left to do. It’s your time to play, so check out the Piano in a Flash method TODAY!

Your Time to Learn More:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/whats-the-sexiest-instrument-to-play/

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