Wrist turn practising arpeggio?

[popcornn]

Hi I have a quick question:

In practising arpeggios I looked on youTube for tips and there was differing opinions as to wether thumb under whilst turning wrist (finger still on last note) or the whole hand shifts with no wrist turning?

I tried the former and my wrists had to move considerably to keep last note still sounding while thumb (RH) located first note of the next position. The latter way of playing would be slightly stoccato on last note in position to give time for hand position shift.

So I'd appreciate any advice here

Thanks,
Popcorn

[pianoplayjl]

I practice with a wrist turning nad I often find that my forearm shifts as I move. As you know Arpeggios have to be played as legato as possible. Maybe try some finger changes or try shifting hands. Experiment and see what works best.

JL

[keyboardclass]

Chopin advises against worrying about connecting notes in an arpeggio.  He says it's far more important for the arm to move smoothly up the keyboard.

[sucom]

My view on this is that one should aim for a smooth flowing, legato movement up and down the keyboard, if playing arpeggios as an exercise.  It does take practice but can be achieved over time.

I can understand the quote from Chopin - arpeggios appear in music in many different ways and there may be occasions when a smooth legato is not required or not so important.  Each situation must be taken on its own merits but for general practice, I would aim for legato, certainly not using staccato to get me from one hand position to another.  The wrist does become more flexible with practice.

[pianoplayjl]

My view on this is that one should aim for a smooth flowing, legato movement up and down the keyboard, if playing arpeggios as an exercise.  It does take practice but can be achieved over time.

I can understand the quote from Chopin - arpeggios appear in music in many different ways and there may be occasions when a smooth legato is not required or not so important.  Each situation must be taken on its own merits but for general practice, I would aim for legato, certainly not using staccato to get me from one hand position to another.  The wrist does become more flexible with practice.

True. I found that out when I first started practicing arpeggios and dominant sevenths. You should  relax your hand on the keys and not plant them into position. Instead let the fingers do the playing and it should come naturally.

 
JL

[keyboardclass]

I can understand the quote from Chopin - arpeggios appear in music in many different ways and there may be occasions when a smooth legato is not required or not so important. 

Chopin is saying the timing is more important than the articulation.  It requires a beautifully placed and flowing hand.

[popcornn]

Thanks everyone.

So perhaps my wrist is turning so much because this movement new to me and my wrist needs to loosen up. Then eventually I am looking for a smooth movement with most of the movement comming from my fingers i.e. little sideways movement from my wrist and hand.

Thanks again,
Popcornn

[nyiregyhazi]

Thanks everyone.

So perhaps my wrist is turning so much because this movement new to me and my wrist needs to loosen up. Then eventually I am looking for a smooth movement with most of the movement comming from my fingers i.e. little sideways movement from my wrist and hand.

Thanks again,
Popcornn

I think it's a big mistake to focus on the wrist. It's just the join in your arm, not a major source of movement. Feel the position coming from movement at the shoulder and keep the sense of the elbow hanging back slightly- so it effectively pulls a loose wrist straight, should it start to stray into major twisting. If you intend to move from the wrist itself, you can get into all kinds of trouble. Changes in wrist alignment should be a passive response to movement of the whole arm.

[postirony]

Thanks everyone.

So perhaps my wrist is turning so much because this movement new to me and my wrist needs to loosen up. Then eventually I am looking for a smooth movement with most of the movement comming from my fingers i.e. little sideways movement from my wrist and hand.

Thanks again,
Popcornn

correct me if i'm totally off base here, but i've found that exaggerating the movement at a slower tempo to get the technique down and condensing as you get faster has made all my technique better/easier.  it's good to have very "loose", relaxed arms/wrists to get that motion down.  also, i try to imagine literally shifting the weight from one key to the next