5 Minute Piano Lessons: Basic Fingering
This picture demonstrates proper rounded fingering
As a teacher of twenty five students, I highly recommend private lessons. For those on the go, wishing to learn what they can, this is the place for you.
It takes years of study to play the piano correctly. I will only be touching on the finer points here. Feel free to post any questions pertaining to this lesson at the bottom.
The difference between an okay piano player and a talented pianist is often found in how they use their digits. A full piano keyboard has 88 black and white keys. Learning how to maneuver up and down these 12 repeating notes (seven white and five black) is not for the faint of heart.
Those who go at it blindly must reinvent the wheel. Such people think that, for instance, square or triangle shaped wheels are easier to build and thus better for travel. Such unhappy fellows move stiffly up the keys, not really considering what their fingers play. What starts out as innocent plucking become bad habits that limit your movement along the keyboard. Let’s learn how to avoid them.
The goal here is to make smooth rounded wheels. It may take longer to make but we have a rather long journey ahead of us. Preparing correctly for that journey will make it so much more enjoyable! We are shooting for ease of travel here, that is ease of travel up and down the keyboard. This means doing things that feel uncomfortable at first, but later become very comfortable indeed!
Numbering your fingers
Place your palms against each other like you are saying a prayer.
The thumbs are henceforth christened as 1.
The pointer finger shall be named 2.
The middle finger shall be named… take a wild guess you weren’t born yesterday! (hint: its the 3 finger)
This would make the ring finger 4 and the pinky dubbed as 5.
In this fashion we name our fingers from 1 to 5.
Name them all aloud wiggling each finger named.
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Sounds simple enough. Unfortunately the keyboard before you is not shaped as your hands are.
The Shape of things to come
Hold your hands out and you will find they are mirror images of each other. The piano does not share in this. It was designed with low notes on the left and high notes on the right. Music in turn is formed this way with such low and high notes playing off each other. Your symmetrical digits must learn to adapt to the asymmetrical plane of piano keys!
It seems silly to mention this (I promise it isn’t) but there is a certain rule of thumb you must always remember… That being: the thumb is always the 1 finger!
A second important finger to recognize is the pinky which is always the 5 finger.
Practice
In previous lessons you learned the white notes. Find the C in the middle of the piano.
Right hand
Make a loose fist with your right hand, putting the thumb on the side of the hand. Place your right hand 1 finger (thumb) on the C. Now unravel the fist so that 2 is on D, 3 is on E, 4 is on F, and 5 is on G. Make sure that all your finger tips are lined up with each other. This will naturally round your hands. This is how you must always hold your hand when playing the piano (no long, open palm fingering here).
Slowly play the notes C, D, E, F, G. Then play them backwards G, F, E, D, C. Do this a few times. Not too fast! Playing slowly helps build up the finger muscles.
Don’t mind the four finger. It is always the hardest finger to play. With daily, practice all of your fingers will get stronger and therefore easier to play.
Find the G key to the left of the middle C key.
Left hand
Make a fist with your left hand, putting the thumb on the side of the hand. Place your left hand 1 finger (thumb) on the G. Now unravel the fist so that 2 is on the F, 3 is on E, 4 is on D, and 5 is on C. Make sure that all your finger tips are lined up with each other. This will naturally round your hands (no long, open palm fingering here).
Slowly play the notes: C (this means start on the 5 finger), D, E, F, G. Then play them backwards G, F, E, D, C. Do this a few times. Not too fast! Playing slowly helps build up the finger muscles.
C position
This is how you find and place your hands in C position. Practice finding this position three times. Remember, the R.H. 1 finger is on the middle C. The L.H. 5 finger is on the other C.
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Notice that each thumb is on a different note. In fact only the 3 fingers (middle fingers) share the same note (E). Every other note is on a different finger. So now you understand how confusing things can get.
Slowly play both Cs on the piano (R.H. uses the 1 finger, L.H. uses the 5 finger)
Play both Ds
Play both Es
…both Fs.
Gs…
Once this is mastered do it all backwards.
Remember
Keep your fingertips lined up with each other.
Do not lift any fingers up off the keys while playing a note.
It may not be easy to do this at first but I promise it will be in time.
Other piano lessons to peruse at your leisure
Happy piano playing
