Thanks Danae, I’ve not come across these exercises before, this will really help me with some of the Bill Evans chord voicings I’ve been trying to learn which are really hard, thanks again for sharing.
Anyone watching this should check out the Taubman Technique - a very different approach! I recommend watching 'Choreography of the Hands'. Stretching is important but so dangerous if done incorrectly. Work within your natural hand shape and size.
Be very, very careful doing this. Being able to reach a comfortable 10th is not the norm for most people and you cannot safely (or effectively) make your hand wider than it is. Vlad had very wide hands so it was part of his natural equipment. Serious hand damage can come from this; same goes for some of Isador Philipp exercises. If you have to strain to get it, STOP.
2 роки тому+2
Yes, that’s absolutely true. Always be very careful with such extreme exercises! Thanks for adding this
Thanks for mentioning this to me in another video. I have to take it one stretch at a time, because I notice some pain in the middle of my hand. I play 2-3 hours a day at least. Index finger on b and pink on d is the most I can currently do, but we'll see how it goes. Your hands are mega big, I'm jealous. 😉
2 роки тому
Haha yes, it’s true that I have pretty big hands but yes, please take it easy and be very careful with stretching to avoid any injuries. Thanks for watching!
I liked it very much! At first wanted a good stretch my fingers good, that’s why I search at youtube and then I found your video interesting, good thing I checked it. 🥰👍
My hands are so small I can only barely reach the 9th with my pinky. Sigh. I have a difficult time playing octave scales cleanly without tension.
2 роки тому
Maybe these stretching exercises can help improve your hand span: ua-cam.com/video/m31AJwDNqEQ/v-deo.html But please make sure to stop as soon as you feel any discomfort or pain!
Either my hands are really small or your piano keys are skinny cause my fingers do not reach to a 10th. Please tell me which this us and if my hands are just too small, can you refer me to other exercises? Thanx
Hello Danae, I can barely do thumb C and pinky E if I play at the edge of the keys. Index refuses to reach E. The best I can do is the the gap between E and F for index finger. What would you recommend? When I do this stretch I'm also at the edge of the keys somewhat similar to how you demo! Your cautionary notes are absolutely clear and all other comments noted. Thanks so much!!
2 роки тому+1
I think you should simply go as far as your fingers / hand let you. So if this is where your index finger lands, I would not force it. If you simply do the exercise like this, in the way you can, after a while, you will automatically be able to reach the further and possibly to the E, because you will get used to this hand position more and more. Thanks for watching 🙏🏻
Thanks for posting this. 😊 I've been wanting to find a way to do some stretches between fingers that I haven't yet been able to achieve, but I hope might be possible for me. One being, I can reach an 11th between 1st and 5th fingers, but struggle with an octave between 2nd and 5th fingers. (Interesting thing though, if I'm not otherwise doing anything, as in, not while playing, I can sometimes manage a 9th between 2nd and 5th, but not while doing a 10th or 11th between 1st and 5th. Also I can almost manage a 10th between 1st and 2nd, if I haven't trimmed my fingernails.) I don't know if you've seen any of Stan Whitmire's piano videos (he's a gospel pianist), but there's a short video where he's talking about arpeggios and scales, and at one point in the video he plays Ab2-C3-Eb3-Ab3-C4 in his left hand, with an octave between 2nd and 5th fingers (on the two Ab's), and his hand is apparently big enough to play that in a "normal" position without curling the fingers sideways like I have to do (or barely hitting the edge of the key). Also it looks like he could probably at least reach a 12th, maybe a 13th, although the widest I've heard him play is an 11th. (There's a video on Collingsworth Family facebook page of Kim Collingsworth, Stan Whitmire and someone else playing a medley of Sound of Music and Climb Ev'ry Mountain, and there's a little portion in the bridge of CEM where Stan is playing solo, and he plays A2-G3-C#4 which I can't quite do, D2-G3 which I'm able to do with effort, then D2-C3-F#3 which is a bit tough for me yet. Also I've sometimes just randomly noticed a few people's hands when they weren't playing the piano, and they're able to stretch the 5th finger pretty far out from vertical. It almost looks like it's near a right-angle to the rest of the hand, but I don't think it's quite that far. (it is quite a bit farther than I'm able to stretch right now, though.) I have a bit easier of a time with stretches in my left hand than my right, maybe cause it's had more practice already? For example, I can, as I said, play 11ths in the left hand, but in the right I have to do one key than the other. Same with some major 10ths that go between black and white keys, for example Bb-D or E-G# - those are doable with my left hand, but I struggle with the right hand on those. I also notice that my thumb tends to bend "backwards" a bit, which makes some of the wider intervals a challenge. Is there some way I could remedy this? (There's a timestamped example of it in the video I mention below.) I uploaded a video in which I was attempting some of the Horowitz stretches you were talking about, plus a few others that were a bit wider. I also attempt a 12th, but if you see the video, it's not quite something I can actually do while playing a piece. 😊 (Also it kinda hurts a bit so I very rarely attempt it.) I also tried a few other chords, intervals, etc, including a few arpeggiated ones that I wish I could play cause I like the sound of them. But, I KNOW a 15th is completely out of the question for me (unless I had one of those very small reduced-width Steinbuhler keyboards), and I imagine that even if I could stretch my hand span, a 13th would probably be a bit much too. (Maybe I'm already close to that "straight line" you talk about with the 12th?) I'll link the video in a reply to this comment, it's on youtube so hopefully YT won't auto delete it. 😊
Danae; forgive me, but shouldn't there be a note of caution here? It's very easy to injure oneself when putting the hand in extreme positions, even when following your instructions. I found out the hard way, thinking the Godowsky's stretch exercises would be good for me in my 60s some years ago. Josef Hoffmann advised against stretching exercises for students without careful consideration and even suggested they might produce the opposite of the desired result if fatigue is allowed to set in. He did recommend soaking the hands in very warm water and gently stretching the fingers. (Piano Playing by Josef Hoffmann, 2nd part, section on stretching in Questions Answered.. I can provide a link if you wish.)
2 роки тому+3
I absolutely agree with you about having to be cautious! I thought I communicated that in the video, but if that didn’t come across as intended, I definitely want to emphasize it here again. Anything that results in the slightest feeling of pain should immediately be stopped and the correct posture of fingers, hands, arms and shoulders is essential. I also would only recommend doing this for a minute every day, definitely not longer or too much. Thanks for pointing this out and thanks for watching! 🙏🏻
As a many-years piano teacher, this exercise is impossible to many of my students (playing a regular keyboard). I've had some students who barely can reach an octave on a regular sized keyboard. There is an alternative, which I made a video about, and many are not aware that you can get a keyboard that has narrower keys. (I've got one) ua-cam.com/video/TfdNxbHl_40/v-deo.html&t
Super helpful!! I’m a beginner practicing arpeggios and this was a game changer!
so glad to hear that :)))) all the best to you!!
I immediately saw improvements in my playing because of this thank you so much
Very good execise. Thank you very much.
Thanks Danae, I’ve not come across these exercises before, this will really help me with some of the Bill Evans chord voicings I’ve been trying to learn which are really hard, thanks again for sharing.
🤗🙏🏻
Thank you. Was able to do it first time out! Any other Horowitz exercises you might be able to share. Your channel is the best. God Bless.
DUDE this is no joke. I done a lot of technical exercises and this is way up there in difficulty. Thanks!
Haha, yes it is definitely an uncomfortable one!! 💪
@ Every time I hear your pieces on Apple Music I give it a ❤️. Your awesome.
@ Every time I hear your pieces on Apple Music I give it a ❤️. Your awesome.
Commendable for explaining and portraying in such detail. Thank you.
Anyone watching this should check out the Taubman Technique - a very different approach! I recommend watching 'Choreography of the Hands'. Stretching is important but so dangerous if done incorrectly. Work within your natural hand shape and size.
Be very, very careful doing this. Being able to reach a comfortable 10th is not the norm for most people and you cannot safely (or effectively) make your hand wider than it is. Vlad had very wide hands so it was part of his natural equipment. Serious hand damage can come from this; same goes for some of Isador Philipp exercises. If you have to strain to get it, STOP.
Yes, that’s absolutely true. Always be very careful with such extreme exercises! Thanks for adding this
@ The entire piano world easily overlooks the true “best” way to increase your hand span…
Narrower keys.
Thanks for mentioning this to me in another video. I have to take it one stretch at a time, because I notice some pain in the middle of my hand. I play 2-3 hours a day at least. Index finger on b and pink on d is the most I can currently do, but we'll see how it goes. Your hands are mega big, I'm jealous. 😉
Haha yes, it’s true that I have pretty big hands but yes, please take it easy and be very careful with stretching to avoid any injuries. Thanks for watching!
I liked it very much! At first wanted a good stretch my fingers good, that’s why I search at youtube and then I found your video interesting, good thing I checked it. 🥰👍
Thank you!
My hands are so small I can only barely reach the 9th with my pinky. Sigh. I have a difficult time playing octave scales cleanly without tension.
Maybe these stretching exercises can help improve your hand span:
ua-cam.com/video/m31AJwDNqEQ/v-deo.html
But please make sure to stop as soon as you feel any discomfort or pain!
This is interesting. Had no idea VH did any sort of technical exercises!
Thank you for the great tutorial
Either my hands are really small or your piano keys are skinny cause my fingers do not reach to a 10th.
Please tell me which this us and if my hands are just too small, can you refer me to other exercises?
Thanx
Hello Danae, I can barely do thumb C and pinky E if I play at the edge of the keys. Index refuses to reach E. The best I can do is the the gap between E and F for index finger. What would you recommend? When I do this stretch I'm also at the edge of the keys somewhat similar to how you demo! Your cautionary notes are absolutely clear and all other comments noted. Thanks so much!!
I think you should simply go as far as your fingers / hand let you. So if this is where your index finger lands, I would not force it. If you simply do the exercise like this, in the way you can, after a while, you will automatically be able to reach the further and possibly to the E, because you will get used to this hand position more and more. Thanks for watching 🙏🏻
@ yep that’s the recipe, thank you!!
@ Danae, you're so right, it does work after daily practice, to my surprise my left hand (less dominant) is more flexible.
@@kapilyoutube You can grow your hand very easily…
With a narrower keyboard.
Grazie per il video! Bravissima.
🙏🏻
Thanks ! 👍
Çok iyi bir video, başarılarının devamını dilerim…
Thanks for posting this. 😊 I've been wanting to find a way to do some stretches between fingers that I haven't yet been able to achieve, but I hope might be possible for me.
One being, I can reach an 11th between 1st and 5th fingers, but struggle with an octave between 2nd and 5th fingers. (Interesting thing though, if I'm not otherwise doing anything, as in, not while playing, I can sometimes manage a 9th between 2nd and 5th, but not while doing a 10th or 11th between 1st and 5th. Also I can almost manage a 10th between 1st and 2nd, if I haven't trimmed my fingernails.)
I don't know if you've seen any of Stan Whitmire's piano videos (he's a gospel pianist), but there's a short video where he's talking about arpeggios and scales, and at one point in the video he plays Ab2-C3-Eb3-Ab3-C4 in his left hand, with an octave between 2nd and 5th fingers (on the two Ab's), and his hand is apparently big enough to play that in a "normal" position without curling the fingers sideways like I have to do (or barely hitting the edge of the key). Also it looks like he could probably at least reach a 12th, maybe a 13th, although the widest I've heard him play is an 11th. (There's a video on Collingsworth Family facebook page of Kim Collingsworth, Stan Whitmire and someone else playing a medley of Sound of Music and Climb Ev'ry Mountain, and there's a little portion in the bridge of CEM where Stan is playing solo, and he plays A2-G3-C#4 which I can't quite do, D2-G3 which I'm able to do with effort, then D2-C3-F#3 which is a bit tough for me yet.
Also I've sometimes just randomly noticed a few people's hands when they weren't playing the piano, and they're able to stretch the 5th finger pretty far out from vertical. It almost looks like it's near a right-angle to the rest of the hand, but I don't think it's quite that far. (it is quite a bit farther than I'm able to stretch right now, though.)
I have a bit easier of a time with stretches in my left hand than my right, maybe cause it's had more practice already? For example, I can, as I said, play 11ths in the left hand, but in the right I have to do one key than the other. Same with some major 10ths that go between black and white keys, for example Bb-D or E-G# - those are doable with my left hand, but I struggle with the right hand on those.
I also notice that my thumb tends to bend "backwards" a bit, which makes some of the wider intervals a challenge. Is there some way I could remedy this? (There's a timestamped example of it in the video I mention below.)
I uploaded a video in which I was attempting some of the Horowitz stretches you were talking about, plus a few others that were a bit wider. I also attempt a 12th, but if you see the video, it's not quite something I can actually do while playing a piece. 😊 (Also it kinda hurts a bit so I very rarely attempt it.) I also tried a few other chords, intervals, etc, including a few arpeggiated ones that I wish I could play cause I like the sound of them. But, I KNOW a 15th is completely out of the question for me (unless I had one of those very small reduced-width Steinbuhler keyboards), and I imagine that even if I could stretch my hand span, a 13th would probably be a bit much too. (Maybe I'm already close to that "straight line" you talk about with the 12th?)
I'll link the video in a reply to this comment, it's on youtube so hopefully YT won't auto delete it. 😊
Here's the video I was talking about, with me trying some of the exercises and some other chords.
ua-cam.com/video/mVEnsflCbrU/v-deo.html
This looks great already, well done! And the straight line is very very close, congrats :)
Danae; forgive me, but shouldn't there be a note of caution here? It's very easy to injure oneself when putting the hand in extreme positions, even when following your instructions. I found out the hard way, thinking the Godowsky's stretch exercises would be good for me in my 60s some years ago. Josef Hoffmann advised against stretching exercises for students without careful consideration and even suggested they might produce the opposite of the desired result if fatigue is allowed to set in. He did recommend soaking the hands in very warm water and gently stretching the fingers. (Piano Playing by Josef Hoffmann, 2nd part, section on stretching in Questions Answered.. I can provide a link if you wish.)
I absolutely agree with you about having to be cautious! I thought I communicated that in the video, but if that didn’t come across as intended, I definitely want to emphasize it here again. Anything that results in the slightest feeling of pain should immediately be stopped and the correct posture of fingers, hands, arms and shoulders is essential. I also would only recommend doing this for a minute every day, definitely not longer or too much. Thanks for pointing this out and thanks for watching! 🙏🏻
Hahahaha! I have small hands and arthritis. I can't reach a 10th in my right hand and no longer in my left either. I'm not a tall Russian.
As a many-years piano teacher, this exercise is impossible to many of my students (playing a regular keyboard).
I've had some students who barely can reach an octave on a regular sized keyboard.
There is an alternative, which I made a video about, and many are not aware that you can get a keyboard that has narrower keys.
(I've got one)
ua-cam.com/video/TfdNxbHl_40/v-deo.html&t
I once heard this turning of the hand be called "the scissors tecnique"
I didn't know that you could know some of the exercises that Horowitz did!
There even are books on Horowitz‘s exercises. :)
I feel ike this has to just be impossible for people with smaller hands
Holy mother of god 😂
A bit dangerous...
There is no stretching here, and I highly doubt Horowitz would teach that, there is absolutely nothing special here.
Hey Dane are you on instagram as well ?