Free Piano Lessons for Beginners Part 1 – Piano Posture: How to Sit at Piano. Fingering.

If you want to learn to play the piano, you’re in the right place. You will find free piano lessons here.

First of all, you will learn how to sit at the piano (proper piano posture).

Where you put the piano bench and how you position yourself on the bench is a very important part of piano playing. By having the proper posture and position you will be able to reach the entire keyboard and be comfortable while practicing or playing.

Sit tall but not stiff. Your feet should be flat on the floor and your back straight. Your right foot may be slightly forward especially for using your piano pedals. Position yourself forward on the piano bench toward the piano but make sure you’re comfortable. You shouldn’t have too much thigh on the bench. Position yourself at the center of the piano.

Piano Posture – How to Sit at the Piano

Lean slightly forward. Let your arms hang loosely from your shoulders. Bench must face the keyboard squarely. The bench should be positioned so that your hands are resting over the keys. Elbows should be bent and slightly higher than the keys. Adjust the bench so that your forearms are parallel with the floor. Knees should be slightly under the piano keyboard.

Your fingers should be curved. Pretend you have a bubble in your hand. Be sure to keep your fingernails reasonably short as well.

Free Piano Lessons for Beginners – Piano Fingering

Piano Fingering – Guide to Piano Finger Placement

Learn Where Your Fingers Go on the Piano Keyboard

The graphic below illustrates the piano fingering number system. As can be seen, the thumb is the first finger of each hand.

It is very important to learn finger numbers because as part of your beginner piano lessons, you have to learn the proper fingering for scales, chords, arpeggios and musical passages. By using the correct fingers for the correct keys, playing the piano will be easier. You will be able to execute new techniques, master awkward positions, and exercise speed and flexibility. It is important to get this right from the start. There are too many piano players struggling with their playing because they use the wrong fingers for particular keys.

Right hand piano fingerings for Beethoven’s Ode To Joy.

Fingered piano music marks each note with a number that corresponds to one of the five fingers. The numbers 1-5 are written above or below the notes. These numbers tell you which finger to press for which key. Here’s an example below.

Piano fingering for both hands are as follows:

• Thumb: 1
• Index finger: 2
• Middle finger: 3
• Ring finger: 4
• Pinky finger: 5