How to Hold Fingers on a Keyboard

Playing a keyboard instrument requires proper hand positioning.

Proper piano finger placement will ensure that you have a productive and efficient keyboard experience. Learning to play the keyboard with proper finger placement will reduce tension, increase your speed and dexterity and enable you to improve your ability to play complex music. Learning to use the proper finger position will also help you evoke an air of experience and knowledge when approaching the piano. Good pianists can tell just by looking at the fingering position of a pianist if he has received proper training.

Instructions

1. Sit at the middle of the piano. Place your right thumb on middle C. This is the white key in the center of the piano next to two black keys. Place the remaining fingers on consecutive white keys D, E, F and G.

2. Position your left hand an octave below the right hand. The pinky will sit atop C, while the remaining fingers occupy a single white key each, up to G, which is played with the thumb.

3. Hold your elbows slightly below the line of the keyboard.

4. Arch your fingers as if you are holding a ball in your hand. This curved motion provides the essential elasticity to prevent your hands from cramping and getting tired. It also makes it much easier to move around the keyboard and jump from one octave to another.

Tips & Warnings

• Avoid long nails when playing the piano. This will cause problems with sound production. The audience should not hear your nails tapping against the keys.

• The initial hand position for new students places the right thumb on middle C. However, when playing music, there are several positions indicated by the key of the music and starting pitch.

• Fingers are numbered in piano music to help you know what finger to use. Starting with the thumbs on both hands, the numbers move from one to five out to the pinkies.

References

• Dummies: Perfect Piano-Playing Hand Posture