black key

[marao]

I need to improve my fluency in the black keys.

I am so far away of Chopinīs studies , but I wonder if there is some "risk" or, on the instead of that, if there is some benefit in doing the study number 5 of Chopin in a slower tempo?

If discouraged, could suggest me a way to solve this technical problem?

Thank you

[verqueue]

It's very good etude to improve fluency in black keys. I think you get a lot of fluency, because of doing this piece. Even if you play it only slowly.

In which pieces have you problems with black keys?

[marao]

I am in trouble with any passage by black, but just  at high speed. Until the arpeggios in G flat at high speed. Scales the difficulty is lower.

I feel as if the keys were too thin and fingers always slip down ... I think it is just adaptation. Some times I compare with the tightrope walker, able to walk quietly on a thin line, but if we raise this same line to two meters from the ground the thing has a different story ... I have to educate myself, as well as the floor, in this case,  the black keys are just keys...

am i right?

[verqueue]

When you practice try to hit the middle of a black key - you can't slip from the key if your finger is on the middle of it. In some cases this is impossible in tempo, but in slow practice it will give you more accuracy. Think only about a middle and after some time it'll be easy to play black keys.

[1piano4joe]

Hi marao,

I do occasionally miss a black key. However, sometimes I slide right off the top of the key at speed. I have to put on the brakes so to speak. I think that the technique used, makes the difference.

I was just recently practicing a Gb root position right hand arpeggio. I was doing thumb under and using standard fingering of 1231235. Okay, the usual problem with crossing the thumb under a perfect 4th skipping two scale tones. I do this in C major with the notes c,e,g,c,e,g,c again fingered 1231235. So this should be similar, right?

NOT! When I depress g with the r.h. 3rd finger it is wedged in on the sides by f and a. There is no sliding off! Not to mention this part of the white key is much, much wider.

At speed, I have better success with moving my whole arm and using thumb over which maintained my hand position and somehow aids the braking process.

Something like that, Joe.