RH needs to be louder than LH

[fuel925]

One thing im trying to work on at the minute is getting my RH to be much louder than my LH. I can do this just by concious effort, but do you have any other tips or tricks to improve this?

[stormx]

There are some topics already adressing this issue. Search them in the archives.

All i can say is that this is a main problem for me 

[jeremyjchilds]

Ghosting almost always works...

Just play the melody in the R.H while silently touching the keys in the L.H.

This also serves as a great way to make sure your melody is articulated correctly.

Once you can ghost easily, try to play the l.h. quietly with the R.H and you might just be suprised.

Good luck

[bernhard]

Jeremy suggestion is very good.

If you play both hands at exactly the same volume, the right hand will naturally come out because the high register is heard more distinctly. The usual problem is not to make the right hand sound louder, but to make the left hand sound louder.

If you can practise in a digital piano with split voices, make the voice for the right hand a subdued instrument (like wood bass, for instance) and the left hand a bright instrument. This way you reverse the situation above and in order to hear the right hand you will need to really accent it.

Finally, get a pair of surgical gloves and cut the finger ends (so you have touch unimpaired). Now play wearing a glove on the right hand After a few minutes of practise, take the glove off and you will see that the right hand (the one with the glove) is now more accented.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[janice]

Finally, get a pair of surgical gloves and cut the finger ends (so you have touch unimpaired). Now play wearing a glove on the right hand After a few minutes of practise, take the glove off and you will see that the right hand (the one with the glove) is now more accented.

Why?  Can you explain how this would help?  Thanks!

[m]

If you play both hands at exactly the same volume, the right hand will naturally come out because the high register is heard more distinctly. The usual problem is not to make the right hand sound louder, but to make the left hand sound louder.

The natural raise in sensitivity of our hearing in mid band is offset by the much greater lengh and mass of the strings in low register. So if you play both hands with the same volume (meant as a phisical touch sensitivity), acoustically LH will sound louder. If you need the RH to be above (usually, the melody is more important than accompaniment) first thing is to make the LH less, and here I agree with Jeremy's message. The LH covering the melody is the most usual problem with students.

Finally, get a pair of surgical gloves and cut the finger ends (so you have touch unimpaired). Now play wearing a glove on the right hand After a few minutes of practise, take the glove off and you will see that the right hand (the one with the glove) is now more accented.

Rather than spending money for gloves, I prefer to engage student's ears to find the right balance.

[jeremyjchilds]

I think the surgical glove idea is interesting...students love to have thier little "secret weapons."

I think the problem is usually most pronounced when a song features multiple voices in one hand with a single melody line in the other. ex chop. prel. in E min. The problem is that we are dealing with three to one odds, and I have yet to hear an inexperienced player who does not naturally let this inbalance show through. Of course, the role reverses when you get to the b min Prelude.

If the melody is featured over top of a chord progression, then we are dealing with tone projection...a whole different animal. Often the melody can be lost not because it is played quieter, but because the notes of the chord are not played at exactly the same time. when played at the same time, the harmonic value of the chord sounds quieter.
The best way to think of this, is to point with your finger towards the note being played as you play. Talk with your teacher though..you will need a few specific excercises to lead you on a lifelong journey of tone projection.