Piano Technique Tip  #1

"Holding the Egg"

As piano teachers we instruct our students to keep our hands in a cupped formation with our fingertips on the keys and our hands and wrists relaxed. I originally taught my younger students to pretend that they are holding a ball. I noticed that with some of my students, they would tighten their grip, even with constant reminders. Then it occurred to me...change the analogy. I asked my kids if they have ever held an egg. Most of them said yes but all of them knew how delicate an egg is. So instead of telling my students to hold the ball, I instruct them to "hold the egg" but they have to be very careful not to crush the egg or they are going to make a huge mess that will need to be cleaned up later.