Piano Basics

All right, this post is mainly for those of you with little piano experience, or those who have never had private lessons. But, it's always important to review the basics, even for advanced players ^^

The Piano Bench/Chair
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Yes, that's right. There are some things you should know even about sitting o.o

1. Don't sit too close to the piano
- If your arms don't have room to move, it will be much more difficult to play!

2. Keep both feet flat on the floor (Unless you're using pedal)
- When you play piano, you are using your arm weight to press the keys, not your finger strength. If you don't have something to support all the weight, your tone will not be as rich. (Don't worry, I will explain this soon).

3. Adjusting the bench height
- The bench should be high enough so that when you put your hands on the keys, your elbow to your hand should be parallel to the ground. In other words, your hand should not be higher or lower than your elbow.

Elbow is higher than your hand -> Bad! >=[
Elbow is lower than your hand -> Bad! >=[
Elbow is at same height as your hands -> Good! (o^-^)o

4. Posture
- Don't slouch! Bad posture will result in bad playing! If you're wondering about all the pros who move around when they play, don't worry! It's neither a good thing or a bad thing, although it will eventually come naturally. It is not something pianists do for show, it's just that when you create music you aren't just playing notes - you're expressing yourself through what you play, and the music is almost like a part of you.

EDIT: Well perhaps some people do it on purpose...I have a friend who claims that Lang Lang moves around for show...xD