Hiya

I've recently started learning grade 7 & although I've learnt most of the scales I just can't seem to get the hang of the legato thirds one! I've tried using different fingering than what's suggested to see if that's the problem but I still can't do it. I know what I'm supposed to do but I can't seem to get it smooth. The right hand is definitely better than the left & although it's a lot smoother than it was, it's still not sounding smooth enough.

Has anyone got any tips as to how to do this particular scale as I'm really worried that I won't be able to do it in the exam. I'm fine with all the others so I guess it's only one that's not good but it would be nice not to have to worry about it.

Any help at all would be much appreciated.

Lisa xxx

Do a little bit on it everyday. If your exam is going to be in December that is about 150 days of practice. Loads of time!

Yeah, those scales are real little beasties to play, but the suggested fingering is the best way to do it. I did the "alternative fingering" in the scales book, which worked for me... though the left-hand turnaround at the top is a nightmare. You just have to keep slogging away at it, I'm afriad. It'll get better, but if you want it to be absolutely smooth like a normal scale, I'm not the one to give advice. Good luck, have fun!

Practise them s...l...o...w...l...y i.e. one note every 2 seconds. When you play one pair of notes, consciously move your fingers to the next pair whilst holding down the current pair (yes, sometimes this is impossible when you have to make a jump, but thinking about the next pair whilst holding down the current pair is definately the way to go).

I sugest that you pick a particular fingering and stick to it! Try putting a metronome on about 50 and playing the scale slowly making sure that the fingering is correct. Then every time you come to practice it increase the speed on the metronome by a few notches e.g -50, 54, 58 etc. If you find that whe you increase the speed it is becoming difficult again, take it back to the speed you were last comfortable.
It may sound very boring but it does work
Good luck but remember scales aren't the end of the world

It's also worth moving slowly from one pair to the next and back again: eg C-E, D-F, C-E etc. This keeps your hand from moving too far ahead of itself, which can be a problem, and concentrates the attention on the fingers.

It does get better, I promise. I romp through the C legato thirds now I'm working for Grade 8, and wonder what I used to find so difficult.

I've also recently started these scales, and I have found them quite tough.

My teacher made a number of recommendations, and the scales are slowly getting better. The one thing she said that hasn't already been mentioned is that it is sometimes necessary to jump from one key to the next and so it isn't possible to be legato. She said that in that situation I should hold down at just one of the two notes so that I still maintain the legato feel.

Practicing going from one pair to the other, as andante_in_c suggested, has also been very helpful.

Also worth working out at what angle to hold your hand in relation to the piano.
I found I needed to have my wrists angled outwards from my body.

Thank you all so much for your suggestions, I will definitely give them all a try & let you know how I get on. I do practise them over & over again every day but although the right hand has got slightly better, the left hand doesn't seem to be improving at all. I will keep at it though as I'm determined to get it right but if it turns out that I can't get the hang of it then I guess I've just got to look at it that it's only one mark so it's not the end of the world.

Thanks again,

Lisa xxx

It may be only one mark, but it is also a useful skill. Composers are rather fond of legato thirds. Don't give up, you'll get it.

Hey Lisa, I was just thinking that you got 27/30 for Allegro and that had two runs of legato thirds in in Eb and Bb major, how did you get on with those?

I can't remember exactly but I don't think I played them all legato, just parts of them. I did try to get them smooth but it was affecting my performance & making me slow down so I just did them the best I could.

Lisa xxx

Hi, I had my Grade 7 yesterday. I also found these quite tricky, especially the left hand. My Piano teacher suggested that every time you walk past your Piano, play it with both hands, whichever you find the trickiest, do first. If you are finding the fingering difficult, leave you music out on that page, so that you can just randomly play whenever you pass the Piano. It worked for me.

Hope this helps

I found them difficult at first too, but with practice they got much easier. Try concentrating on getting just the top (for RH) or bottom (for LH) of the thirds completely legato, and allow the other finger to come off. Once you've got your fingers round it so one half is completely legato, then try and make the other half more legato.

I have found it helpful just to use a tiny bit of wrist and arm with each chord -giving an impulse to each chord played. This is hard to explain but it keeps everything together and rhythmic for me!

Thanks again for everyone's tips. I have worked out that they sound a bit better if I sit in a certain position so I am going to continue practising them that way & see if they improve. Also, on the way up, it's easier if I have my fingers up quite high on the keys but on the way down it's easier if I have them right on the edge.

Thanks again, you've all been really helpful!

Lisa xxx