LH trills

[farm boy]

I am having trouble with LH trills.  My RH can play them fast and articulate them well but how can I get my LH up to the same speed and confidence in these?

[awesom_o]

There is no overnight fix.

How good is your left hand at a wide variety of non-piano related tasks?

Can it throw a ball? Can it brush your teeth? Can you draw or write with it?

Can you juggle?

Do your left hand scales sound as good as your right hand scales?

They should.

[dima_76557]

I am having trouble with LH trills.  My RH can play them fast and articulate them well but how can I get my LH up to the same speed and confidence in these?

Have a look at what Edna Golandsky shows here and try to implement it:

That is the BASICS only. There is more to it than forearm rotation only, because you also need active fingertips, but without rotational freedom, you will mostly likely be training until retirement age.

[farm boy]

Thanks for your reply awesome_o.   My left hand in general is much weaker than my right hand on a number of the activities you have mentioned - much weaker.     My left hand scales are not too bad but not as good as rh.

[farm boy]

Thanks dima.  Had a look at the video and yes will certainly work on that.    My rh hand is fine, in fact very good.  It's really my left hand.  In general my LH is not as nimble esp when trying to play fast, but LH trills are a struggle (to play fast and be in control).  I am sure I have tension there and this is what Edna talks about.  Thanks

[swagmaster420x]

ive had to get better at left hand trills for a piece, it was very hard initiallyfor me to do but i ve found the best thing to do is just to practice the trill over and over slowly, hitting the notes as clean/solid as possible without stiffening your fingers. it sounds like an obvious fix, but it works, just gradually increas the speed

[dima_76557]

My rh hand is fine, in fact very good.  It's really my left hand.  In general my LH is not as nimble esp when trying to play fast, but LH trills are a struggle (to play fast and be in control).  I am sure I have tension there and this is what Edna talks about.

Keep in mind, though, that part of solving this problem may be going to the gym and working out your upper arms/shoulders as power sources, especially your left side. While the ultimate articulation for trills and other fingerwork is in the fingertips and doesn't require raw physical power, you should never forget about your overal health and condition.

[swagmaster420x]

just look at how your right hand trills,
your hand/arm should be twitching from side to side
how did you achieve that through your right hand? i dont think you needed to consciously make yourself do that

through practice, you can achieve the same with your left hand without much difficulty i think/hope cuz i need to work on it too

[awesom_o]

Thanks for your reply awesome_o.   My left hand in general is much weaker than my right hand on a number of the activities you have mentioned - much weaker.     My left hand scales are not too bad but not as good as rh.

uh-oh! Try juggling! Fantastic way for the hands to learn from each other and become equally skilled!!