{"id":3653,"date":"2016-10-01T09:01:58","date_gmt":"2016-10-01T15:01:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pianonotes.wpengine.com\/?p=3653"},"modified":"2016-09-30T14:32:14","modified_gmt":"2016-09-30T20:32:14","slug":"learning-teaching-tools-11","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pianonotes.piano4u.com\/index.php\/2016\/10\/learning-teaching-tools-11\/","title":{"rendered":"Learning and Teaching Tools"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Off the Keys \u2014 Piano Practice Tips for Adults<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Listening<\/strong> \u2013 This one is obvious but easily overlooked. Find a professional recording of each <a href=\"http:\/\/takelessons.com\/blog\/famous-piano-songs\" target=\"_blank\">piano song<\/a> you are learning and make a playlist you can listen to in the car, around the house, or at work. You will reinforce tricky rhythms, changing tempos, dynamics, pedaling,\u00a0and so on\u00a0each time you hear it played accurately.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Hand<\/strong> <strong>Shape<\/strong> \u2013 You should already know\u00a0the importance of playing with a <a href=\"http:\/\/takelessons.com\/blog\/2013\/02\/piano-hand-position\/\" target=\"_blank\">rounded hand shape<\/a>, free from tension. If you have a squishy ball on your desk at work, pick it up right now and look at your hand shape. You should be able to see all three\u00a0knuckles. Each knuckle has an important part to play in good hand shape, but the knuckle closest to your fingernail is the most important. As a rule, that knuckle should never wiggle or collapse. Here are some ways to reinforce hand shape while away from the keys:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>After observing your hand shape while holding the ball, <strong>put the ball down but keep the same hand shape.<\/strong> You should be able to touch the desktop with all four\u00a0fingertips and the side tip of your thumb. Be sure your wrist is lifted.<\/li>\n<li>With that good hand shape, leave your fingers touching the desk and use a little pressure to push into the desk. <strong>Release<\/strong> without lifting away from the desk and <strong>push in again<\/strong> without letting any of the knuckles wiggle or collapse. Do this without allowing tension to build up in your hands by allowing the pressure to transfer to the fingertips.<\/li>\n<li>Now try <strong>tapping fingers individually<\/strong> without letting the knuckles wiggle or collapse.<\/li>\n<li>For a greater challenge, <strong>widen your span<\/strong> so that the thumb and pinky are fully extended, as if playing an octave. Slide the three\u00a0long fingers toward your palm until only the flat ends of the fingers are touching the desk. Tap those three\u00a0long fingers on the desk without letting the knuckle wiggle or collapse, together and individually.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Eliminate Tension<\/strong> \u2013 If you typically feel like your muscles are all knotted up after you finish a practice session, you are probably allowing tension to build up without even knowing it. Being aware of how tension feels and <strong>where<\/strong> you feel it, as well as <strong>when<\/strong> you feel it the most, are\u00a0the first steps toward eliminating it. Wherever you are right now, take a moment to evaluate the tension in your own body.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Spine<\/strong> \u2013 Start here and think about your posture. Are you hunched over or leaning to one side? With your feet resting flat on the floor, center yourself by straightening your spine from the bottom up. If you are near a wall, stand and let the back of your head rest on the wall. This will establish the feeling of good posture. Go back to your seat and sit quietly for 10 seconds with this corrected posture. With consistent reminders, your posture will improve!<\/li>\n<li><strong>Shoulders<\/strong> \u2013 Breathe in deeply and exhale. Did your shoulders drop? Do they feel more relaxed now?<\/li>\n<li><strong>Elbows<\/strong> \u2013 Are they suspended away from your body, causing your arms to ache and fingers to stiffen? Drop those elbows and let them rest at your side.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Wrists <\/strong>\u2013\u00a0You should be able to lift your wrists up and down with a beautiful fluid motion. Rest your forearms on the arms of your office chair and let your hands hang from the wrists. Slowly raise your forearms, bending at the elbows and keeping your hands relaxed, letting them dangle from the wrists. You can practice this while on the phone, reading emails, or during lunch!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When you do return to the keys, incorporate these important piano practice tips into your routine. Eventually your body will form natural, healthy habits that will greatly enhance your musicianship!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">Here\u2019s a\u00a0visual\u00a0to recap these tips\u2026<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-3654\" src=\"https:\/\/pianonotes.wpengine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/How-to-practice-off-the-keys.jpg\" alt=\"How to Practice Off the Keys\" width=\"564\" height=\"1039\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianonotes.piano4u.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/How-to-practice-off-the-keys.jpg 564w, https:\/\/pianonotes.piano4u.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/How-to-practice-off-the-keys-163x300.jpg 163w, https:\/\/pianonotes.piano4u.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/How-to-practice-off-the-keys-556x1024.jpg 556w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 564px) 100vw, 564px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Off the Keys \u2014 Piano Practice Tips for Adults Listening \u2013 This one is obvious but easily overlooked. Find a professional recording of each piano song you are learning and make a playlist you can listen to in the car, around the house, or at work. You will reinforce tricky rhythms, changing tempos, dynamics, pedaling,\u00a0and so on\u00a0each time you hear it played accurately. Hand Shape \u2013 You should already know\u00a0the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":3657,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Learning and Teaching Tools - PianoNotes Online<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pianonotes.piano4u.com\/index.php\/2016\/10\/learning-teaching-tools-11\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Learning and Teaching Tools - PianoNotes Online\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Off the Keys \u2014 Piano Practice Tips for Adults Listening \u2013 This one is obvious but easily overlooked. Find a professional recording of each piano song you are learning and make a playlist you can listen to in the car, around the house, or at work. You will reinforce tricky rhythms, changing tempos, dynamics, pedaling,\u00a0and so on\u00a0each time you hear it played accurately. 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