Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum 1 year self learning share progress for advices

(Sorry for my english, I'm from France!)

Hey guys,

I play the piano since one year without any teacher because I can't afford it. I don't know anybody playing the piano so I learn by myself and I feel that it prevents me from improving my skills. I recenlty bought a new piano and last month I thought that it would be interesting to share my progress on the Internet to get advices from pianist but since nobody watch my videos, I'm still looking for those advices

I have two questions for you.

Here is the the link to my channel : http://www.youtube.com/user/NobuOrigin/videos I apologize if it's not allowed to add such link. I'll delete it if there is a problem. You won't see my right hand since I put the camera on a chair to record.

I spent the last three months practicing the tempo but now I'd like to try more difficults sheets and I feel that there is a problem with my fingering. Is there a book or tutorial explaining the mistake to avoid ? I have large hands and I often don't feel comfortable (my thumb and little finger are too close and I feel pain in my wrist)

Also, I still don't understand how to use the other pedals. It often sounds like I "cut" the sound brutally and it doesn't sound good.

Would mind giving me advices or links to good tutorials ?

Thanks a lot!

If it's not allowed to link a video, I understand and will delete it from the comment!

Have a nice day

Your playing is very nice!

Hard to believe you've only been playing a year, and without a formal piano teacher.

Wishing you all the best!

Rick

I agree with Rick and congratulations on a well spent year!

I agree you're doing well! See, there's nothing to this piano playing.

All the Best
FJ

I'm working with a teacher now, after having started self-taught years ago. Here are some general principles you can play with:

- The height and distance of your seating will affect comfort. If you are too high or too low you'll have to do funny things to your posture or wrists to compensate. If you are too close then you may have to bend at your wrists or elsewhere to make room. Find what is most comfortable.
- In the same vein, know that you can lean back or lean forward. When you play the keys right in front of you everything is really up close. Distant keys are "further away". Your whole body is part of your playing mechanism.
- Experiment in relaxing your fingers and hands after you press down the keys, i.e. you only need a certain stiffening (bad word choice) during.

In general, aim for the greatest comfort for producing each note, and in going from note to note. Experiment.

If you find books or tutorials, look for general principles, and avoid rigid rules.

I enjoyed your playing.

Thank you! I did not expect such a comment. I spend three or four hours playing the piano everyday since five month. I only play short sheets to not lose motivation. Unfortunately I feel that I need a teacher because I don't manage to play a longer sheet without mistakes.

I'm glad you like it!

Thank you for the advices. I often feel that I'm too close to the piano but I never find the good position.

On the other side, I make mistake wile playing because I don't know the good position of the fingers and it hurts my wrist

Do you know if there is a easy scorebook explaining the finger position?

(sorry for my english)

It might be worth posting some videos from different angles so that people here can you critique your posture.

Also, I don't think there are any set rules for fingering really, it seems to vary from person to person quite a bit. You just have to keep in mind what finger is going to be most comfortable and allow you to play without interruption in the context of the notes ahead. Sometimes you might have to play a note with a finger that seems less than ideal to make sure your hand is in position for the next set of notes, but you should generally be able to find a way to do it without causing pain, discomfort, or tension. The trickiest bit, in my opinion, seems to be knowing when to put a finger under or over in order to shift your hand up or down the keyboard.

Also, your English is quite good and I enjoyed your playing

I just recently came across these: The Well-Balanced Pianist and Healthy Hands in Motion

Agreed, nice work in a short time. You might want to try a little more explanation about the wrists hurting. That shouldn't be happening. From what I can see from the videos, you might want to watch how much you let your wrists fall after you strike a note.

Nice playing Nobu! And thanks Linda for the links, they came in helpful at a time when I was worried about tension in my hands when playing. I especially found the pictures in the second link useful.