BUILDING BLOCK NO. 3: SECURITY WITH KEYBOARD TOPOGRAPHY
Because there is so much physical memory involved, developing security with keyboard topography takes consistent practice over an extended period of time. In my experience it is rare for beginning students to instinctively feel their way around a keyboard. What follows are suggestions for helping students develop security with the geography of the instrument.
The Black Keys are Your Friends...
In his book and video Mastering Piano Technique (Amadeus Press) Seymour Fink advocates an orientation toward middle D as a means of centering oneself at the piano. Orienting in this manner makes students aware of the bilateral symmetry of the keyboard. As Fink puts it, "C may be the center of the tonal system, but D is the center of the keyboard."
This highly insightful approach to keyboard topography involves playing in contrary motion from middle D. One of Fink's first exercises is to have students play Ds and G-sharps with finger 3, moving away from center of the keyboard and back in. This promotes lateral motion of the upper arm and encourages students to play "in on the black keys."
Another exercise involves playing a chromatic scale in contrary motion starting on D, which makes the mirrored relationship of black and white keys in each hand immediately apparent. Expanding on this idea, students can practice chromatic major thirds in contrary motion from middle D, and even root position triads. (Be careful with triads: one hand plays major, the other minor.)
Fink's exercises are easily presented in a private or group teaching situation. In my experience they help students become comfortable with the location of white and black keys, and with the "highs and lows" of the keyboard.
Eyes Closed Drills with Triad Shapes
I like to reinforce both triad knowledge and keyboard topography by assigning students to practice playing and naming major triads up and down the keyboard chromatically - C, D-flat, D, etc. Eventually we will do the same for minor, augmented and diminished triads. Students are to do this with their eyes closed, hands alone, then hands together.
After first and second inversions have been introduced, I have students play these shapes chromatically as well, again with eyes closed. Inversions will present more of a challenge obviously, but they pay off in the long run, especially in terms of left hand security.
Helping Students Shift Position Comfortably
Beginning piano students need help learning how to shift from one hand position to another. Naturally, the more developed their awareness of keyboard topography is, the better off they will be. In my classes we talk about "anchor notes" and "creeping" when dealing with shifts of position. These are just informal ways of describing finger substitutions and contractions.
To illustrate with a specific example, an early lead sheet my students play is the first example on p. 72 of Alfred's Group Piano for Adults, Book 1. The root position left hand chords used are F, E-flat and C.
To teach them how to shift from F to E-flat, I have them play the F chord and "feel" the B-flat underneath finger 2 with their eyes closed. B-flat becomes the "anchor note" that will help them "creep" to the E-flat chord without looking at their hands. In this shift, finger 2 will be replaced by the thumb. Once the thumb is on B-flat, their hands should be able to feel the E-flat triad.
For the shift from the E-flat chord to the C chord the process is similar; the anchor note is G, first played by finger 3, then by the thumb.
When the left hand shifts from a C chord to an F chord at the end, the the anchor note is F. I remind the students that when playing a C chord, finger 2 rests on F. By quickly contracting their hand they can replace finger 2 with finger 5, form a new five-finger position and be ready to play the F chord.
I make sure students can do shifts like these back and forth with their eyes closed before assigning hands together practice on examples of this type.
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