I was recently looking for what bad habits I have when I sit down at the piano, as an intermediate player who has some bad habits from when I was a beginner I've now realized where I've went wrong with my posture and bench position. Thanks for the video! Going to need an adjustable bench myself now haha
I'm glad this was helpful! If you want a bench recommendation, check out my video on the Andexinger "lift-o-matic". I bought one a few months ago and have been incredibly happy with it... and it doesn't break the bank either!
Having battled chronic, and sometimes debilitating, pain in my damper pedal foot for years, I thought I knew everything about the musculature involved with pedaling. Soleus, Anterior Tib, etc. So, at 5:27 when you mentioned quad involvement, I thought you were mistaken. But I went and tried it out…and I am just floored right now!!! The quad DOES assist, in a very noticeable way…right above the knee. I’m sure it has to with the ankle joint being midway over the foot, instead of at the very back, like we imagine, so the leg must lift to allow the foot to lift. And the quad is responsible for that. I am subsequently realizing just how much tension I hold in my legs…I haven’t been allowing it to move at all. This may be a game-changer for me. I am beyond excited to work the knowledge into my playing. This, and MANY of the other things you’ve mentioned in this series. Without a doubt, these are the most enlightening, thorough and accurate videos on this subject that I’ve ever seen!! And I’ve seen them all! 😊 Thank you!
I have started a journey with my 4 year old into learning the piano after she expressed interest. Thank you for these gold nuggets which will help my personal progress and more importantly, give her the best foundation possible.
Definitely, Dale! Thanks for watching! I'll be starting a free live-stream here to answer questions for people in about a week, so that could also be a great place to keep us updated on your journey with your 4 year old and also ask any personal questions you might have!
Thank you Charles and greetings from Brazil! I started my journey in the Piano just a 151 days ago (with 52 years old) and your videos are ALWAYS a great source of information and encouragement.
Merci for this. I talked to my daughter and she is very busy but hopefully in the next two weeks she will be able to film me for my self treatment for the pianist. Great tips about the bench. You talked about stability, the first treatment/exercise I gave to my patients is a stabilization exercise for the low back, and it fits in perfectly with this video. You can do an isometric exercise (contraction without movement) in this position. With the feet fairly close together, push one foot down into the floor for five seconds as you're breathing out. It's as if you wanted to stand up from the sitting position, but there is no movment. Then place the same foot against the other foot and push against it as if you wanted to push it away, again breathing out as you push to not build up abdominal pressure. This is the start of my treatment for the low back to strengthen the gluteal and abdominal muscles. I tell my patients to do this once a day. They laugh when I say that, but it's better to do one than zero. I do it first thing in the morning, but you can do it as you start your piano learning, and maybe at the end. It isn't an exercise where you need to do it ten times in a row. But doing it once often is better. More to come.
Very good video. It's good to know the physiological reasons why sitting at the front of the bench feels better. One point you might add related to the position relative to the keyboard. Organ students are always told "nose over middle D". If you sight vertically down the manuals to the pedal board, you see that the D's line up perfectly. On the piano, middle D on the keyboard lines up with the middle of the sostenuto pedal. So "nose over middle D" is a good rule for the pianist.
There some truth to this for the very early beginners, but for most repertoire I actually sit centered on the B below middle C. I find the position gradually moves left the more and more advanced the pianist becomes.
I have no doubt Charles will share his views about lateral position as it really deserves a dedicated video. Charles is a 'few' generations more current than me, though learned from teachers who would have taught similar technique to mine, so no doubt the video and discussion on lateral position will be very interesting. For instance, pianists of my generation and style of teaching were taught a neutral position of slightly left of Middle-C as a general rule. This allows a pianist's right foot to fall naturally on the most-used sustain pedal and a nice relaxed position for the right arm and hand across the similarly most-used middle register. If sitting correctly on the front of the bench it is then easy to carry your weight on your left leg and shift slightly if a better attack is needed on the upper register. For some pieces we were taught to specifically use a slightly different neutral position.
@@contributor7219 Yes, this very much aligns with how I was taught as well. I actually didn't plan lateral position in this set of videos, but perhaps I should add it in. It's been so long since I've had to correct it with a student that I simply forgot about it!
That's a great question! There isn't any specific reasoning given from what I can find, but if I were to take my own guess: If the back legs of the bench were brought much closer to the front, the bench would turn more and more into something akin to balancing on only two legs. So the narrower the depth, the less stable, regardless of where on the bench the weight is placed. Perhaps the Jansen company found, when it started producing benches, that 16.5" is the ideal balance for distribution of weight, stability, and also aesthetic. From there, many companies probably just copied their standards. By the way, my own two artist benches are 23" deep each... and the new hydraulic benches by Hidrau and Andexinger that are more and more common in concert halls are only 13" deep, but sit on a platform base instead of 4 legs and are far heavier than the typical Jansen models. I have a new Andexinger one coming this week, so I can let you know the difference in stability between it and the nearly twice as long artist benches I currently own! I'm suspecting the steel frame, and the very low center of gravity in the new bench will actually make it more stable, despite the massive difference in size.
I unboxed my new Andexinger bench yesterday and filmed the whole thing. It's probably a month or two before I'll be able to get it edited, but to give you some quick impressions: I'm super impressed. The steel base is very heavy and the bench is physically impossible for me to tip forward while I'm sitting on it. The hydraulic mechanism works like a charm and it's very easy to make small adjustments, unlike many office chair hydraulic systems. The 13" depth doesn't make a difference in the feel while sitting on it. The bench was only $277 USD... shipped from Germany to Colorado cost another $130, but well worth it. Overall, I think it's slightly less than the Jansen hydraulic bench and it's significantly less than the Hidrau benches from Japan which are great and that I've used on stage before, but this Andexinger is 99% as good, for less than half the cost. And maybe best of all, it came fully assembled... no unboxing and then putting it together the way nearly all artist benches are shipped.
🆓 ➡ Want to learn how to accomplish more during your practice AND get some free sheet music?? ➡➡ bit.ly/FreePianistDownloads
I was recently looking for what bad habits I have when I sit down at the piano, as an intermediate player who has some bad habits from when I was a beginner I've now realized where I've went wrong with my posture and bench position. Thanks for the video! Going to need an adjustable bench myself now haha
I'm glad this was helpful! If you want a bench recommendation, check out my video on the Andexinger "lift-o-matic". I bought one a few months ago and have been incredibly happy with it... and it doesn't break the bank either!
Having battled chronic, and sometimes debilitating, pain in my damper pedal foot for years, I thought I knew everything about the musculature involved with pedaling. Soleus, Anterior Tib, etc. So, at 5:27 when you mentioned quad involvement, I thought you were mistaken. But I went and tried it out…and I am just floored right now!!! The quad DOES assist, in a very noticeable way…right above the knee. I’m sure it has to with the ankle joint being midway over the foot, instead of at the very back, like we imagine, so the leg must lift to allow the foot to lift. And the quad is responsible for that. I am subsequently realizing just how much tension I hold in my legs…I haven’t been allowing it to move at all. This may be a game-changer for me. I am beyond excited to work the knowledge into my playing. This, and MANY of the other things you’ve mentioned in this series. Without a doubt, these are the most enlightening, thorough and accurate videos on this subject that I’ve ever seen!! And I’ve seen them all! 😊 Thank you!
Danny, this is AWESOME to hear! I'm go glad this series has been helpful for you, even after so much time and research already spent on the subject!
My piano teacher was nationally certified and her husband was an internationally acclaimed opera singer. This is the way she taught me to sit.
Finally! Amazing tips, thank you so much!
I have started a journey with my 4 year old into learning the piano after she expressed interest. Thank you for these gold nuggets which will help my personal progress and more importantly, give her the best foundation possible.
Definitely, Dale! Thanks for watching! I'll be starting a free live-stream here to answer questions for people in about a week, so that could also be a great place to keep us updated on your journey with your 4 year old and also ask any personal questions you might have!
I am learning SO much from these videos! Thank you Charles:)
Awesome, glad to hear Meaghan!
Thank you Charles and greetings from Brazil! I started my journey in the Piano just a 151 days ago (with 52 years old) and your videos are ALWAYS a great source of information and encouragement.
Wonderful, thanks Alexandre! I'm happy you find these helpful!
Merci for this. I talked to my daughter and she is very busy but hopefully in the next two weeks she will be able to film me for my self treatment for the pianist.
Great tips about the bench. You talked about stability, the first treatment/exercise I gave to my patients is a stabilization exercise for the low back, and it fits in perfectly with this video.
You can do an isometric exercise (contraction without movement) in this position. With the feet fairly close together, push one foot down into the floor for five seconds as you're breathing out. It's as if you wanted to stand up from the sitting position, but there is no movment. Then place the same foot against the other foot and push against it as if you wanted to push it away, again breathing out as you push to not build up abdominal pressure. This is the start of my treatment for the low back to strengthen the gluteal and abdominal muscles. I tell my patients to do this once a day. They laugh when I say that, but it's better to do one than zero. I do it first thing in the morning, but you can do it as you start your piano learning, and maybe at the end. It isn't an exercise where you need to do it ten times in a row. But doing it once often is better.
More to come.
Yes, great! Thanks, Lawrence!
I really enjoy your teaching, thank you so much for sharing.
You are welcome! Thanks for watching!
I recently found your channel. I must say that I really like its informative content!
Thanks so much, Zinnia! Glad it's been helpful, and I hope to continue to see you in the comments or on the live streams!
These are really good and helpful tips - thank you very much.
Thanks, Andrew! My pleasure to share them!
Thanks!
Awesome, thank you so much Akshobiya for the Super Thanks and the support!!
Thank you, very helpful
You are welcome! Thanks for watching, Sally!
Great tips! Thank you
Glad you like them! Thanks for watching!!
Very good video. It's good to know the physiological reasons why sitting at the front of the bench feels better. One point you might add related to the position relative to the keyboard. Organ students are always told "nose over middle D". If you sight vertically down the manuals to the pedal board, you see that the D's line up perfectly. On the piano, middle D on the keyboard lines up with the middle of the sostenuto pedal. So "nose over middle D" is a good rule for the pianist.
There some truth to this for the very early beginners, but for most repertoire I actually sit centered on the B below middle C. I find the position gradually moves left the more and more advanced the pianist becomes.
I have no doubt Charles will share his views about lateral position as it really deserves a dedicated video. Charles is a 'few' generations more current than me, though learned from teachers who would have taught similar technique to mine, so no doubt the video and discussion on lateral position will be very interesting.
For instance, pianists of my generation and style of teaching were taught a neutral position of slightly left of Middle-C as a general rule. This allows a pianist's right foot to fall naturally on the most-used sustain pedal and a nice relaxed position for the right arm and hand across the similarly most-used middle register. If sitting correctly on the front of the bench it is then easy to carry your weight on your left leg and shift slightly if a better attack is needed on the upper register. For some pieces we were taught to specifically use a slightly different neutral position.
@@contributor7219 Yes, this very much aligns with how I was taught as well. I actually didn't plan lateral position in this set of videos, but perhaps I should add it in. It's been so long since I've had to correct it with a student that I simply forgot about it!
nice, i got this one right at least, thanks for sharing!
Yay! Glad it confirmed your good habits!
I'm curious why a traditional artist bench, like a Janson, is 16.5" deep when you're only supposed to sit on the edge of it.
That's a great question! There isn't any specific reasoning given from what I can find, but if I were to take my own guess: If the back legs of the bench were brought much closer to the front, the bench would turn more and more into something akin to balancing on only two legs. So the narrower the depth, the less stable, regardless of where on the bench the weight is placed. Perhaps the Jansen company found, when it started producing benches, that 16.5" is the ideal balance for distribution of weight, stability, and also aesthetic. From there, many companies probably just copied their standards. By the way, my own two artist benches are 23" deep each... and the new hydraulic benches by Hidrau and Andexinger that are more and more common in concert halls are only 13" deep, but sit on a platform base instead of 4 legs and are far heavier than the typical Jansen models. I have a new Andexinger one coming this week, so I can let you know the difference in stability between it and the nearly twice as long artist benches I currently own! I'm suspecting the steel frame, and the very low center of gravity in the new bench will actually make it more stable, despite the massive difference in size.
@@PianistAcademy1 Nice. Yes, please. I'm also looking at the Jansen Artist Petite since it's only 13" deep. I may have time to sit on one tomorrow.
I unboxed my new Andexinger bench yesterday and filmed the whole thing. It's probably a month or two before I'll be able to get it edited, but to give you some quick impressions: I'm super impressed. The steel base is very heavy and the bench is physically impossible for me to tip forward while I'm sitting on it. The hydraulic mechanism works like a charm and it's very easy to make small adjustments, unlike many office chair hydraulic systems. The 13" depth doesn't make a difference in the feel while sitting on it. The bench was only $277 USD... shipped from Germany to Colorado cost another $130, but well worth it. Overall, I think it's slightly less than the Jansen hydraulic bench and it's significantly less than the Hidrau benches from Japan which are great and that I've used on stage before, but this Andexinger is 99% as good, for less than half the cost.
And maybe best of all, it came fully assembled... no unboxing and then putting it together the way nearly all artist benches are shipped.