# positioning the hands



## jamzky

I am back playing again and although I was formally trained to an extent I am now curious as to what people feel are the answers to these questions. I looked at Richter, Horowitz, Pogorolich and Argerich at the piano and see various approaches... at least to my eyes. 

How close does one sit to the piano?
How high should the piano stool be?

And here is the one that effects me right now, I notice my left arm dropping alot so that my hand is bent upwards often i.e. my elbows are too high?? my right hand is actually higher. Should my rists be flat and on a level with backs of my hands - that's not easy to do! Does this matter that much bearing in mind the many "eccentric" yet brilliant pianists like Gould, not to mention the world of Jazz? Should I just do what feels natural? 

Thanks


PS. My avatar is no good an indication of how to position oneself well at the keyboard, sadly


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## handlebar

As everyone is different and taught as such by their respective teachers, I can only answer for myself.
I tend to sit farther away from my keys and a bit hunched over. My teachers HATED that and always tried to correct my posture. I already have a bad back and stand all day at work,so it is pointless now at my age to undo the many years of such a position.
I know Horowitz had criticisms during his lifetime about his own posture and position on the keys. But that did not stop him from producing beautiful music and doing it well!
My teacher's teacher was Menahem Pressler and so he was part of a good lineage. He also hunched a wee bit.


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## nahkaiser

Well it all depends on your actual form. You should just position yourself so that your arms aren't tucked too tight into your body and your hands stay naturally level with the keyboard. A good way to judge if you are in correct position is to play for a few minutes and if you feel like your hands are about to drop off, then you got it a little bit wrong and need to adjust it a little. Find the best match for you.


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## Rasa

As far as the hands to I tried to maintain a straight line along my arm and 5th finger


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