Each Finger Should NOT Go On A Separate Key Like This

[@EaglesVision999]

Factors that make your videos the best 1. Your professional experience 2. Your voice 3. Your calm not nervous 4. You know what you are saying 5. You know that the ones who are watching are both negative minded and positive minded. Are beginners who lost their hope and are advanced people who are returning back to the piano. 6. You show examples that are mind blowing because like the one with the fingers not so spread out cannot reach that high versus when fingers are loosely close to each other. When I saw that it gave me a better understanding. 7. You actually care about us being lost. 8. A lot of content. 9. Thank you

[@PIANO_LAB]

You are very welcome! I thank you for your support and encouragement!

[@EaglesVision999]

@@PIANO_LAB Heyyyy. That's how it is. That's how we do. Se Acabo. Have fun

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

Great specifics about why Craig's approach and personality are contagious. Personal as well as professional qualities.

[@Fanchen]

These videos are useful to a teacher, such as myself. I do these things subconsciously, it’s great to hear a clear explanation. I’ll be applying these values to my students.

[@alexscott1257]

I also find it interesting and useful as a teacher. I think that KZbin is an odd phenomena and has the potential for so much good but also so much damage in the music education sphere. The other day a young student tried to play me a piece of music that he had learnt from a KZbin video and it was way beyond his capabilities. I asked for the link so I could watch the video and it had a disturbing number of likes. There was no reference to a score of any kind and it was all just rote learning and no mention of technique whatsoever! I have often pondered in recent years whether or not things like KZbin could make music teachers obsolete but I am still firmly of the belief that there is no substitute for a real teacher. I will sometimes give a link to a video for a student to watch for homework or for reference to a specific technique we are learning at the time but the difference is that the teacher has the ability to discern between people who know what they are doing and people who don't whereas a student might not be able to tell the difference. Craig has taught me some things through his videos that have helped my playing tremendously.

[@Starritt_Piano]

Oh my word … I have listened to Irina Gorin explain this so many times, especially with beginning methods and fine finger positions. But your depth of thinking has given me another dimension of perspective. Your teaching is so enthralling with so much depth behind it!!!

[@nicosobral225]

Thank you too much for all your content! It was truly helpful for me. Sadly most of my teachers never talk anything about technique and they focuse only in the interpretation. Greetings from Argentina

[@PIANO_LAB]

You're very welcome! Yes, it seems most teachers only focus on interpretation. I'm glad you find the videos helpful!

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

Totally agreed, starting with posture from the feet to the fingertips.

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

Wonderful to share piano issues with all kinds of folks all over the world.

[@peterstadler6217]

Your teaching is incredibly valuable. In my experience, it is the technical basis for the „singing instrument“, the uplifting, inspirational sound of the piano.

[@mudbone7706]

I've heard this concept summarized as "keep the hand small". By keeping the hand "small" (not reaching laterally with fingers) in passagework you then have to use your arm to walk across keyboard and stay aligned behind fingers.

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

Right on. Yet another way to express it.

[@IPlayPianoSometimes4Fun]

You provide this advice in such an articulate way. I tried playing the ending to Comptine d'un autre ete by Yann Tiersen and noticed how long I hold onto my reach into the next octave - playing several closer together notes with my hand still outstretched. It really illustrated how it was easier for me to learn by holding my fingers over the right keys than to try learning more fluid motions to shift between different positions. This gives me a lot more motivation to seek out a teacher to correct my poorly learned practices.

[@sacrilegiousboi978]

I have a friend who plays with his fingers always close to, and centred over keys, he is scarily accurate (barely misses keys or slips even when playing very difficult Bach counterpoint and advanced pieces like Ravel Une Barque sur L’Ocean), but his emphasis on positioning over keys leads to a certain stiffness, lack of fluidity, freedom and tonal/expressional variety in his playing.

[@deovin70]

Thank you for these videos! I'm just getting into "intermediate" territory and your channel is exactly what I've been looking for to improve my technique and speed.

[@TeleNobels]

Dude this channel is awesome. I love how you take physiology into account, really helps make things click for my brain.

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

Clear explanations of the reasons for something are so much more effective than just telling one to do it.

[@alexscott1257]

It's such an obvious thing and yet there are few teachers (in my limited experience) that do reference physiology! But when you think about it should be the first thing that you think about when you start to learn the piano. People like Craig will lead the revolution!

[@alexandercarroll9707]

I’ve always put each finger on a separate key as kind of a subconscious axiom, and never even considered that I was doing it. Nice video thabks

[@anggunnenohai3870]

Thank you so much, dear our online piana teacher. Thank you for preparing all of these. Stay healthy and happy for you and your family. 🌻

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

Going through all videos again from beginning. Love the dog's cameo; it sets a tone and helps define and sell your brand. Very appealing. A mensch who listens to his dog for piano tips! Agreed. Any excessive, read extended time, finger stretching, taxes the fingers unnecessarily. Even this far, in pseudo position. I find this as I'm developing the D & G flat M scales (and arps) with 4-3-2 on 3 black keys. I notice that. Working through it for more fluidity. Thumb on F and C are so natural. Again, back to the simple "mother" security of moving the entire forearm and hand into position before the twiddling fingers do their easy work; all works together, no overemphasis on any one aspect over the other. Fingers then work intuitively, somehow the natural positions tend to encourage themselves. Agreed further. Traditional teaching emphasizes interpretation and style, not much on development of a solid, natural and easy technique, which makes all interpretive efforts more expressive. That starts with optimum posture. Thanks to all contributors of good will.

[@MrBaldylocks13]

The walking analogy really brings home the idea of the shift, Thanks!

[@GoofRebelMusic]

This simple concept is rocking my world.

[@alexanderastapov2560]

First I was like no way it's gonna help, but then you proved it, I tried it and it worked like magic!

[@lynzannabel6990]

Another brilliant lesson, it made sense. Thank you Piano Lab! 👍🏾🇬🇧

[@Gilloringsend]

Thanks very much for that, so well explained concept. I’ve heard this idea being half explained often but you really got to the kernel of it. Cheers

[@PIANO_LAB]

Very good to hear! Glad it was helpful!

[@winsomewalstead2157]

Really enjoying your detail shots of everything. Great videos!!

[@PIANO_LAB]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@kristinamusik7414]

Great thanks a lot for this video. This will save my hands and my playing. I all to well know about pain in my shoulders and my hands. I need to learn this

[@SidharthKapur]

So clear and well explained!

[@ToddieM]

Interesting concept . Might I suggest bringing down the overhead view? It’s hard for me to see what you’re doing

[@susanmorrison8403]

Thank you for this informative video. I teach piano, and this helps me to put into words to my students how to play with less tension. I really appreciate you sharing your advice!!

[@jslonisch]

Good video. When I first learnt this idea, the images that helped me get it were (a) stopping and really “feeling” the arm weight lined up behind the playing finger and (b) looking at the finger that was playing and seeing it in a straight line with the arm (which means the wrist needs to adjust left-right slightly with each finger change).

[@PIANO_LAB]

Yes! These are great thoughts. Thanks for sharing

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

Sounds perfect to me. Elbow to finger playing aligned, with even imperceptible movements of forearm, wrist and hand. Hand position is the crux of technique, good technique gets the hand in position. You slowed down so as to specifically observe the alignments working.

[@lizweekes8076]

Thanks Craig! 🎉

[@ocardaugh]

Valuable advice. Thank you

[@darrenclarke8655]

Very simple but great advice

[@PIANO_LAB]

Glad it was helpful!

[@dr.george]

Informative 👍Thank you🎹

[@PIANO_LAB]

Glad it was helpful!

[@Anonymous-fj2uo]

I need to find a teacher like you!!

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

You have a teacher like Craig: Craig.

[@brieslew]

If my arm needs to maintain a right angle to the keyboard, how do I keep that angle when I am reaching toward the center or other side of my body? Do I simply scoot over on the stool?

[@mudskipper6702]

Abby Whiteside said think of the line from the elbow to the hand as one rake

[@lizweekes8076]

Thanks 🎉

[@tomaspontofinal]

thank you! I think I was needing this haha :)

[@PIANO_LAB]

You're so welcome!

[@alexscott1257]

And it's another great piece of content from PIANO LAB! I can remember the early days, I can't remember what the channel was originally called but it had few subscribers and videos would be lucky to get a handful of views. I'm so glad to see that Craig's videos are reaching a wider audience these days. I don't think that there is enough talk about physiology and injury while playing the piano. Thankfully these are topics that are being more widely discussed and thought about these days. Thanks for everything you do Craig I really appreciate it!

[@Starritt_Piano]

Practical piano technique … it’s a workout for the tongue!!! :p but it’s so kind of you to highlight the wider audience and what’s amazing is you don’t know what he will come up with next 😆❤️

[@Tautropfenoase]

Wonderful channel.👍💛🤗

[@olou6393]

I understand the shifting concept but cannot reproduce it spontaneously. Is it because I started to play as an adult? Will my hand ever adjust to play correctly? I started to learn by myself 6 years ago. I can understand I have a poor technique because my arms and shoulders are son tense when playing the piano. It is so painful that I lost the pleasure of progressing. Thanks for your videos, I will keep trying.

[@thebulletkin8393]

I’m a fairly new piano player, only learning some simple songs for fun, but the videos I’ve seen have all said that you need to be efficient and move the least amount possible. So to me this technique looks like it adds so much more hand movement that it kind of contradicts that idea. Is this concept you show here still allowing for efficiency?

[@19divide53]

Didn't Chopin recommend his student to put their right hand fingers on E F# G# A# B which are separate keys though?

[@satouhikou1103]

Yeah, but Chopin's dead. Why would I take advice from someone who died. Must not have been good advice.

[@19divide53]

@@satouhikou1103 But everyone dies, so every advice would've become bad advice by your logic (provided it's not already bad and the person who gave that advice wasn't already dead)

[@josantonioalcantara]

@@satouhikou1103 let me put it this way, Chopin was able to hack piano technique. The proof of it is that he composed 24 of the most difficult etudes in the piano repertoire and 24 preludes that are basically mini etudes. These 48 pieces cover most of the difficulties that you will encounter in the piano in a raw form. He was able to achieve this composition’s by dedicating all his life to one instrument, the piano. Probably one of the few composers and pianists that had a very deep understanding of the instrument. That pretty sums up why you should take advice from THAT dead guy. It is THe guy you wanna take advice for the piano

[@josantonioalcantara]

Yes he did, but the shape of the hand is completely different from the examples managed in the video. The one recommended by Chopin on those keys is comfortable and relaxed for the hand while the position for black or white keys only is more difficult because stretching the fingers in those positions creates unnecessary tension and people tend to flatten the fingers due to discomfort of the hand

[@charlesloving4820]

2:10, pans to dog. Ha ha ha.😄

[@hselasky]

What you are trying to explain sounds pretty much like my MidiPlayerPro 's CHORD-MODE :-) Just search for my name on KZbin !

[@brendanmohareful]

I wish my piano teacher was nice like this guy instead of a hand slapping tyrant

[@MathieuPrevot]

Play Stravinsky Petrouchka, Rachmaninoff 3rd concerto or cello sonata or most of his music, Godowsky études (or even Chopin, eg., 11, 4 op 10), you'll see that nothing you developed here holds, and *it's largely on the side of BS* . What matters is to be relaxed between notes, and to provide the desired sound (using muscles and weight).

[@susanmorrison8403]

That was a rude comment. 😡Appreciate the effort put into these videos.

[@MathieuPrevot]

@@susanmorrison8403 Appreciate the effort of the honest comment ;)

[@mccallgriffin5941]

Camera is lacking focus.

[@joshwinfree6057]

I don’t get technical with this crap it is about emotion and I play a heck of a lot better than the people I listen to on KZbin

[@PIANO_LAB]

I bet you do 😅 lol

[@DavidMiller-bp7et]

@@PIANO_LAB Touchee.