3. Bench Height and Distance from Piano¶
The right height of the bench and its distance from the piano is also a matter
of personal taste. For a good starting point, sit at the bench with your elbows
at your sides and forearms pointing straight towards the piano. With your hands
on the keys in playing position, the elbows should be slightly below the height
of the hands, about level with the keys. Now place your hands on the white keys
– the distance of the bench from the piano (and your sitting position) should
be such that the elbows just miss your body as you move them in towards each
other. Do not sit at the center of the bench, but sit closer to the front edge
so that you can plant your feet firmly on the floor or pedals. The bench height
and location are most critical when playing loud chords. Therefore, you can
test this position by playing two black key chords simultaneously, as loudly as
you can. The chords are C#2 G#2 C#3
(5,2,1) for the left hand and C#5 G#5
C#6
(1,2,5) for the right hand. Press down hard, leaning forwards a little,
with the whole weight of your arms and shoulders, to make a thundering,
authoritative sound. Make sure that the shoulders are totally involved. Loud,
impressive sounds cannot be made using only the hands and forearms; the force
must come from the shoulders and the body. If this is comfortable, the bench
and sitting positions should be correct. Historically, there has been a
tendency of teachers to sit their students too high; consequently, the standard
bench height of fixed height benches tend to be one to two inches too high,
thus forcing the students to play more with their fingertips than the front
finger pads. It is therefore important to have a bench with variable height.