The best scale practice series I've ever seen. Very detailed and well-explained. Not just "This is how you do it" but "This is what not to do." Your videos are helping me a great deal in creating awareness. Thank you so much!
I have a couple of video suggestions for you! 1. How to find a quality piano teacher/how to know if your teacher is actually teaching you 2. Just generally talking about your job as a music professor and like what exactly you do sort of? The things about it you like and dislike. The schooling you had to have in order to be qualified, and what you had to learn. Maybe some tips for people interested in becoming music professors?
Great suggestions! I actually do have plans to share collegiate tips and insights in the future, but I started my channel pretty recently, so I've been focusing on sharing technique and practicing foundations first so I can refer my own students to these videos. I really appreciate your other suggestions, too! I have also been meaning to make a channel intro video, and I'm trying to share behind the scenes stuff over on Instagram - your suggestion to talk about music prof life is a good reminder to do more of that. Thanks for watching! 🎹😊
Matthay talked about the "tone spot" and how important to become award of that and not continue the energy you used to create the tone by continuing to press the key down....which he called "keybedding" I have found it difficult to translate what he was trying to say in his books. You are making many of his ideas CLEAR and practice-able!!! Thank you,...oh yes in scales he advised us to be aware of rotation from one finger to the next...paying particular attention to the thumb. He reminded the reader that when we use the thumb the rotation is TOWARD the thumb especially when we pass the hand over the thumb to assume the next position AND that the next rotation is toward the next finger. One way he suggested we can realize how that works is to play an octave then play a slow tremolo in that octave and you'll see how the rotation is toward the thumb always. It may seem simple ..yet to keep it in awareness..that's the challenge. He insisted on exaggerating slowly the rotational movements then as we learn to be comfortable with it can speed with minimal movement ...we'll be able to do the rotation without exaggerating the motion. Check out exercise #14 in Dohnanyi...to me that offers some ways of practicing the use of the thumb..in simple concise patterns. but challenging...especially in passing the thumb under the 5th finger in a five finger pattern. Wonder if you would ever address that in your great videos?
Have you read the book "What Every Pianist Needs to Know about the Body" by Thomas Marks? He talks a lot about these concepts using physiological explanations.
@noProfKateBoyd I got the book!! Its a great resource book for anyone playing keyboards and others too...I was amused to find that the author did mention some of Matthay's principles in Chapter 7 without naming Matthay.
Thank you for this. I am 78 and decided to try to learn some piano but have three frozen fingers. Scales seemed impossible but this has explained a lot. One comment though. It is difficult to see how the opening and closing of the hand in the air translates to the keyboard, Even though you are slowing it down it still happens pretty fast. A close up slowed down version on the lines of this fimger does this then this finger does this would help numpties like me. Seasons greetings.
Thank you for your comments, and I’m so glad you found the answer as you continued watching! It’s wonderful that you’re learning piano - it’s never too late to start. I appreciate your feedback and will keep it in mind for future videos. Wishing you a joyful holiday season and all the best with your practice!
Thank you for your videos! I am playing again after 50 years. Unfortunately, I have arthritis. It is difficult for me to play scales and to move my thumb under my hand. What do you advise?
Dear Boyd, I really thank you for all your piano technique Videos, I am learning piano by myself, your video really helps a lot, please keep upload more! Thank you!
@@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Dear Boyd, since I'm learning piano from youtube without a teacher beside me, would you like to talk something about how to learn piano from video lessons like what you offered in TH-cam? or do you think it would be possible to learn only from video lessons without a real teacher sitting beside? or anything related.
dear prof. i find left hand scale is different from right hand to use this filp or shifting techniques. can you teach us left hand scale too as this video in the future please?
Thank you for this video and the others in the scale playing series Dr. Boyd. They're terrific. The open/close crab wallk up and down the piano is very innovative and simplifies the over/under. I'd like to ask for clarification on a few aspects: I understand the level wrist, but unsure of a few things: 1. The use of arm weight in scale playing. 2. Proper striking of the keys. 3. Use of the wrist for correct alignment. Thanks for taking the time to consider my questions and for replying. I'm looking forward to your guidance. BTW, I'm a proud grad of Stony Brook, too.
Hi Stephen, Greetings to a fellow SB grad! I would love further clarification on your questions - would you mind writing a longer version of each question or sending me an email? thepianoprof.com/contact/
Thank you for this video. I have had a problem with hopping in my right hand when doing scales and have been at a loss as how to fix it. I look forward to working on this! Thank you.
Merci beaucoup for this description. I've concentrated on technical skills at the expense of musicality. I don't have a melody in my head, since I never learned to harmonize with anyone. In choir class I was told to move my lips and not make a sound. My only attempt at singing in a Beginning Singing class at University (where the teacher asked if it wasn't too late to get my money back on the first day!) I did learn to try to make notes and feel the vibrations on my nasal bones. Should I try to feel vibrations when I play the piano to try to hear a melody in my head?
I had a teacher once who helped me focus on feeling the vibrations in my skull bones while I played - so I think it can really help! Also, there is a story about Beethoven's piano having BITE marks on it, because apparently he bit the piano while playing it in order to try to feel the vibrations of the instrument because he couldn't hear it. I don't recommend biting your piano 😂 BUT I do think that you can learn to tune into the vibrations of the instrument in your bones.
@@ThePianoProfKateBoyd I just now saw the comment. I'm getting over my fear and have started singing, but not enough. I'll listen for the vibration. BTW I've heard of the Guidonian Hand. This was taught from the Middle Ages and into the Classical period in Europe. So this must be in our DNA. I heard a singer say that he feels the notes of the hand as he plays the lute. As a therapist I know that 10% of the brain is used for the hand, and 45% is used for the TMJ, linked with the throat where the vocal chords are located. There are some that have said that it isn't the brain that controls the body but the body that controls the brain. I tend to believe them. I have a patient that lives with more metal in his neck than in his warehouse. His neck is better (demonstrated by testing different muscles neurologically) when he does piano finger exercises. The fact that by singing, using the hand and the vocal chords, along with hearing the sound is a total body and brain experience.
Hi, the technique of opening and closing the hand while playing scales is extremely helpful. Do you recommend the same technique for playing 4 octave arpeggios? Thank you.
I just started playing I don’t have a teacher yet, I’m wondering when I should start learning the wrist circles motion Should I learn it now? Or wait Also should I lift my fingers up as I play scales or should I keep them all resting on the keys
Try to keep your fingers resting on the keys as you play scales. This avoids any unneeded excess motion, like lifting up your fingers to play the keys, which can create more tension. You can incorporate wrist circles as you'd like! Including them early on in your learning can be helpful, because the more you do it, the more they will naturally become a part of your technique.
Hello Dr. Boyd, thank you for the great ideas.. I have some further possibly interesting observations about your technique and video that I would enjoy sharing with you. - Joe
Interested to see you next video, because I was originally taught to move my wrist a lot, and to let it sort of flow and circle! I can't remember all the details at this point. However, my first teacher was educated in and fled the USSR, and I wonder if the technique was taught differently there.
Hi Meredith, nice to see you here! I agree that it's important to move the wrist and have flexibility - I made a video on wrist circles where I discuss this. th-cam.com/video/8jbvOgGxk5c/w-d-xo.html "Keep your wrist flat" when playing scales refers to the default height of the wrist: not too low and not too high. But then from that default height, the wrist is still flexible. I do plan to make a video about this, but that's the quick summary! 😊
The Taubman approach can be very effective and has helped many people. I have not been trained in the approach but I have had some lessons on it and read/watched videos about it. I think it's a great approach. They have a lot of wonderful materials on their website!
Do you have any advice for keeping the hand aligned when crossing the 4th finger over the thumb when playing a scale like Bb major, left hand ascending? Because the 4th finger has to cross over a whole step, I find that I have to twist a little in order to reach the note
When practicing a major scale ascending (R.H.), should the thumb start to travel into the closed position as soon as second finger is played, or do you wait until 3rd finger to close?
The hand will be a bit flatter but not totally collapsed. The wrist will be flat. I am going to make another video about the flat wrist in scales, and I'll address hand position. 😊
imho I’d call the hand more like “level”. The video shows the degree of the angle of the top of the hand and the wrist. Excellent video on a most important lesson in learning technique. Thanks
It's a result of spreading the fingers - the hand position is still supported but because the hand is spread over a larger span, the knuckles don't pop up as they do with chords.
But it seems ignore the movement of small. For small hand if you don’t raise up your elbow, your thumb is unable to reach to the note next to the middle finger.
There is a great book called "Adaptive Strategies for Small-Handed Pianists" - here's a link to my resource page so you can check it out: thepianoprof.com/books/
It seems easy when others do it. I can't even begin. It's harder to do than it seems. The reason is that I broke my right pinky 4 decades ago and never had it fixed.
I always tell my pupils to imagine their hand is a crab that moves sideways and this stops twisting at the wrist. It's a bit like your 'closing' but just with the thumb moving inwards.
This is probably the most valuable scaling tutorial I've seen. The missing piece is so important yet nobody really talks about it. Thank you Dr. Boyd!
Thanks so much! Glad you find it helpful!
I think you're the best on youtube. Thank you !
Wow, thanks! Glad you're here! Happy practicing! 😊🎹
“close/open” is now my new scale playing mantra. This is a game changer! Thankyou! 🙏👏👏👏
You're so welcome! Good luck!!
Thank you for your videos. I am a piano instructor and enjoy watching your videos as profession development!
You're very welcome! I really appreciate your comment - I'm so glad you're finding these videos helpful. 🎹😊
Out here changing the game for my playing! I'm so relaxed now with the open and close technique. Why didn't my teacher learn me this
The best scale practice series I've ever seen. Very detailed and well-explained. Not just "This is how you do it" but "This is what not to do." Your videos are helping me a great deal in creating awareness. Thank you so much!
Wow, thanks! Glad it was helpful!
I have a couple of video suggestions for you!
1. How to find a quality piano teacher/how to know if your teacher is actually teaching you
2. Just generally talking about your job as a music professor and like what exactly you do sort of? The things about it you like and dislike. The schooling you had to have in order to be qualified, and what you had to learn. Maybe some tips for people interested in becoming music professors?
Great suggestions! I actually do have plans to share collegiate tips and insights in the future, but I started my channel pretty recently, so I've been focusing on sharing technique and practicing foundations first so I can refer my own students to these videos. I really appreciate your other suggestions, too! I have also been meaning to make a channel intro video, and I'm trying to share behind the scenes stuff over on Instagram - your suggestion to talk about music prof life is a good reminder to do more of that. Thanks for watching! 🎹😊
Those guidelines are just what was needed to play at a faster rate. Thank you.
Wow, thanks so much for the SuperThanks!! 🙏 So glad it was helpful!
Matthay talked about the "tone spot" and how important to become award of that and not continue the energy you used to create the tone by continuing to press the key down....which he called "keybedding" I have found it difficult to translate what he was trying to say in his books. You are making many of his ideas CLEAR and practice-able!!! Thank you,...oh yes in scales he advised us to be aware of rotation from one finger to the next...paying particular attention to the thumb. He reminded the reader that when we use the thumb the rotation is TOWARD the thumb especially when we pass the hand over the thumb to assume the next position AND that the next rotation is toward the next finger. One way he suggested we can realize how that works is to play an octave then play a slow tremolo in that octave and you'll see how the rotation is toward the thumb always. It may seem simple ..yet to keep it in awareness..that's the challenge. He insisted on exaggerating slowly the rotational movements then as we learn to be comfortable with it can speed with minimal movement ...we'll be able to do the rotation without exaggerating the motion. Check out exercise #14 in Dohnanyi...to me that offers some ways of practicing the use of the thumb..in simple concise patterns. but challenging...especially in passing the thumb under the 5th finger in a five finger pattern. Wonder if you would ever address that in your great videos?
Have you read the book "What Every Pianist Needs to Know about the Body" by Thomas Marks? He talks a lot about these concepts using physiological explanations.
@@ThePianoProfKateBoyd lI have not yet....I will see about ordering a copy.Thank you!!
@noProfKateBoyd I got the book!! Its a great resource book for anyone playing keyboards and others too...I was amused to find that the author did mention some of Matthay's principles in Chapter 7 without naming Matthay.
@@stephenvinson6474 Glad you like the book! Interesting observation about Chapter 7!
Thank you for this. I am 78 and decided to try to learn some piano but have three frozen fingers. Scales seemed impossible but this has explained a lot. One comment though. It is difficult to see how the opening and closing of the hand in the air translates to the keyboard, Even though you are slowing it down it still happens pretty fast. A close up slowed down version on the lines of this fimger does this then this finger does this would help numpties like me. Seasons greetings.
Should have go on to the end. Much clearer now with the exercises. Apologies.
Thank you for your comments, and I’m so glad you found the answer as you continued watching! It’s wonderful that you’re learning piano - it’s never too late to start. I appreciate your feedback and will keep it in mind for future videos. Wishing you a joyful holiday season and all the best with your practice!
Thank you for your videos! I am playing again after 50 years. Unfortunately, I have arthritis. It is difficult for me to play scales and to move my thumb under my hand. What do you advise?
Thank you Dr. Boyd, this is so helpful.
You are very welcome! Glad you found it helpful. Thanks for being here, and good luck with your piano playing! 🎹😊
Thank you for sharing this tip! I will be practicing scales with this technique for sure!
Wonderful! Glad it was helpful!
Thank you Dr. Boyd. Will work on these techniques during Christmas break. Happy Holiday’s to you.
Same to you!
This is really helpful. Lot's of "don't do this" tutorials but this is a super practical approach.
I'm so glad this video offered a helpful, fresh, and practical perspective for you!
Dear Boyd, I really thank you for all your piano technique Videos, I am learning piano by myself, your video really helps a lot, please keep upload more! Thank you!
Thanks! I’m planning a whole bunch more videos and will upload more soon. Any particular topics you’re interested in?
@@ThePianoProfKateBoyd Dear Boyd, since I'm learning piano from youtube without a teacher beside me, would you like to talk something about how to learn piano from video lessons like what you offered in TH-cam? or do you think it would be possible to learn only from video lessons without a real teacher sitting beside? or anything related.
Fascinating! Excellent! Although, you actually did that hop pretty smooth! I like the smooth backward run down the scale! A true teacher!🎼🎶🎶🎵🎹
Thank you very much!
These are amazing tips! Thank you!
Thank you 🙏🏾
You are so welcome!
Thank you so much for these valuable technique and tips🙏🤗
You are so welcome! Glad to be helpful!
This is amazing 🎉
Thanks!
Thank you
You're very welcome! 😊
You're very welcome!
Was taught to tuck my thumb under- this is fascinating (and helpful) thanks
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks a Ton , Mam
dear prof. i find left hand scale is different from right hand to use this filp or shifting techniques. can you teach us left hand scale too as this video in the future please?
Thank you for this video and the others in the scale playing series Dr. Boyd. They're terrific. The open/close crab wallk up and down the piano is very innovative and simplifies the over/under. I'd like to ask for clarification on a few aspects: I understand the level wrist, but unsure of a few things: 1. The use of arm weight in scale playing. 2. Proper striking of the keys. 3. Use of the wrist for correct alignment. Thanks for taking the time to consider my questions and for replying. I'm looking forward to your guidance. BTW, I'm a proud grad of Stony Brook, too.
Hi Stephen, Greetings to a fellow SB grad! I would love further clarification on your questions - would you mind writing a longer version of each question or sending me an email? thepianoprof.com/contact/
Thank you for this video. I have had a problem with hopping in my right hand when doing scales and have been at a loss as how to fix it. I look forward to working on this! Thank you.
Glad it was helpful! Hope you were able to figure it out. Happy practicing!
Excellent video!!
Thank you very much!
Merci beaucoup for this description. I've concentrated on technical skills at the expense of musicality. I don't have a melody in my head, since I never learned to harmonize with anyone. In choir class I was told to move my lips and not make a sound. My only attempt at singing in a Beginning Singing class at University (where the teacher asked if it wasn't too late to get my money back on the first day!) I did learn to try to make notes and feel the vibrations on my nasal bones. Should I try to feel vibrations when I play the piano to try to hear a melody in my head?
I had a teacher once who helped me focus on feeling the vibrations in my skull bones while I played - so I think it can really help!
Also, there is a story about Beethoven's piano having BITE marks on it, because apparently he bit the piano while playing it in order to try to feel the vibrations of the instrument because he couldn't hear it.
I don't recommend biting your piano 😂 BUT I do think that you can learn to tune into the vibrations of the instrument in your bones.
@@ThePianoProfKateBoyd I just now saw the comment. I'm getting over my fear and have started singing, but not enough. I'll listen for the vibration.
BTW I've heard of the Guidonian Hand. This was taught from the Middle Ages and into the Classical period in Europe. So this must be in our DNA. I heard a singer say that he feels the notes of the hand as he plays the lute. As a therapist I know that 10% of the brain is used for the hand, and 45% is used for the TMJ, linked with the throat where the vocal chords are located. There are some that have said that it isn't the brain that controls the body but the body that controls the brain. I tend to believe them. I have a patient that lives with more metal in his neck than in his warehouse. His neck is better (demonstrated by testing different muscles neurologically) when he does piano finger exercises. The fact that by singing, using the hand and the vocal chords, along with hearing the sound is a total body and brain experience.
Thanks a lot for this useful video !
You are welcome!
Thank you for generously sharing your knowledge! I find your videos very helpful.
Thank you so much! That makes my day. Glad you find these tutorials helpful. Good luck with your scales!😊🎹
Hi, the technique of opening and closing the hand while playing scales is extremely helpful. Do you recommend the same technique for playing 4 octave arpeggios? Thank you.
Yes, absolutely!
I just started playing I don’t have a teacher yet, I’m wondering when I should start learning the wrist circles motion
Should I learn it now? Or wait
Also should I lift my fingers up as I play scales or should I keep them all resting on the keys
Try to keep your fingers resting on the keys as you play scales. This avoids any unneeded excess motion, like lifting up your fingers to play the keys, which can create more tension. You can incorporate wrist circles as you'd like! Including them early on in your learning can be helpful, because the more you do it, the more they will naturally become a part of your technique.
Hello Dr. Boyd, thank you for the great ideas.. I have some further possibly interesting observations about your technique and video that I would enjoy sharing with you. - Joe
Joe, feel free to contact me at this link: thepianoprof.com/contact/
Interested to see you next video, because I was originally taught to move my wrist a lot, and to let it sort of flow and circle! I can't remember all the details at this point. However, my first teacher was educated in and fled the USSR, and I wonder if the technique was taught differently there.
Hi Meredith, nice to see you here! I agree that it's important to move the wrist and have flexibility - I made a video on wrist circles where I discuss this. th-cam.com/video/8jbvOgGxk5c/w-d-xo.html
"Keep your wrist flat" when playing scales refers to the default height of the wrist: not too low and not too high. But then from that default height, the wrist is still flexible. I do plan to make a video about this, but that's the quick summary! 😊
The flawless thumb-under, without pause or accent?
That is the goal! You can do it!
What do you think of the Taubman technique of rotating the wrist as you play scales?
The Taubman approach can be very effective and has helped many people. I have not been trained in the approach but I have had some lessons on it and read/watched videos about it. I think it's a great approach. They have a lot of wonderful materials on their website!
Dr Kate Boyd:
Can the opening and closing of the hand be applied to arpeggio playing?
Yes, DEFINITELY!! 😊
Do you have any advice for keeping the hand aligned when crossing the 4th finger over the thumb when playing a scale like Bb major, left hand ascending? Because the 4th finger has to cross over a whole step, I find that I have to twist a little in order to reach the note
Hi there, thank you for your comment! Here is another video link that might be useful to you:
th-cam.com/video/1uZzAMCbCiM/w-d-xo.html
And here is another video on technique of the thumb that also might be helpful to you! th-cam.com/video/5i_AHx0iBFQ/w-d-xo.html
When practicing a major scale ascending (R.H.), should the thumb start to travel into the closed position as soon as second finger is played, or do you wait until 3rd finger to close?
I suggest closing the hand as you play the 3rd finger, but it ultimately depends on your speed.
Thanks, Dr. Boyd. But why would you play the scale with a flat hand?
The hand will be a bit flatter but not totally collapsed. The wrist will be flat. I am going to make another video about the flat wrist in scales, and I'll address hand position. 😊
imho I’d call the hand more like “level”. The video shows the degree of the angle of the top of the hand and the wrist. Excellent video on a most important lesson in learning technique. Thanks
Just curious, are you still using arm weight? Noticed knuckles are not raised like usual, is this a result of flat wrist?
It's a result of spreading the fingers - the hand position is still supported but because the hand is spread over a larger span, the knuckles don't pop up as they do with chords.
But it seems ignore the movement of small. For small hand if you don’t raise up your elbow, your thumb is unable to reach to the note next to the middle finger.
There is a great book called "Adaptive Strategies for Small-Handed Pianists" - here's a link to my resource page so you can check it out: thepianoprof.com/books/
I guess I know your secret; your piano have a wider keys
Just joking, Happy New Year dear Teacher! Thank you for Great Lessons >!
😂 Happy New Year to you, too!!
It seems easy when others do it. I can't even begin. It's harder to do than it seems. The reason is that I broke my right pinky 4 decades ago and never had it fixed.
So sorry to hear this!
✌ 🎹
Thanks for stopping by!
I always tell my pupils to imagine their hand is a crab that moves sideways and this stops twisting at the wrist. It's a bit like your 'closing' but just with the thumb moving inwards.
That's a great image - thanks for sharing! 🦀🎹
Thank you 🎉
You're welcome! 😊