(please put how longe you've been playing and if you do any stretches)
in my last debussy topic a few people told me their range. im curious to know. the people who cant reach a note in a piece that reply here seem very optimistic but when i cant reach a note in a peace i get frustrated because there's really nothing you can do about it but 'change' how it's written.

sometimes 9 or even 10...it depends what's in between the interval....

If I use 5 on my left hand and 1 on my right hand (or vice versa)
I can stretch 7 octaves or more.


Maggie

i acn comfortably stretch an occtave, and also usually a 9th, but no more!

I'd say 10 and a half - fairly comfortable tenth, just about an 11th but I couldn't play a chord in a piece comfortably that had an 11th

Dave

I can just about stretch a 9th!

10 but only just.....with only 'easy reach' notes in-between...and I'm hanging off the edge of the keyboard...but I can still do 10

I've been playing for about 10 years, and I can only just reach an octave, and my hands aren't exactly comfortable when I'm doing that!

I've been playing for four years, I'm about grade 6, and I can stretch a 9th with either hand if I sit there and actually try; in a piece I wouldn't be able to do more than an octave without arpeggiandoing (if that's a word!) I tried some stretching exercises for about a month but they hurt my hands so much i couldn't do anything else.

C#-D# (or C Natural to D Natural) Some scale book also recommend you play fingers 1 and 4 on Black notes in octaves. Chopin's Grand Polonaise and the hard left hand section, for example, would be E (1&5) D# (1 & 4), C# (1&4), with the last in the cycle, being B (1&5)

PR7

I've been playing for 11 years and have done stretches every day... last year I played my first octave! I was so proud of myself! It's annoying having such small hands... but it's not a hindrance really!

you people have got really big hands....

due the the nature of my race and my gender, i have really tiny hands

i only can reach an octave. if i stretch furthur, i can reach a 9th but i dont advis myself to do that lol.

my favourite pianist can reach an 11th!

gosh u guys do have quite big hands. no offance

i can just go about an octave n thats it lol .

You ARE one of the youngest BabyBanana!!!

I voted 9 1/2.

--------------------
~tremolololo~
Just done Grade 7 Piano (22nd Sept.) (done well except aurals!)

QUOTE (cecilia @ Sep 29 2004, 08:51 PM)

You ARE one of the youngest BabyBanana!!!

umm.. yeh i kinda new that .. heh..

Well, I'm almost one of the oldest! And can only stretch 9 sometimes at the most, hanging at the ends of the keyboard. 8 is ok, but I can't do it right on top of the keys either.

As someone has said above, it does depend what is inbetween.

But to get Einaudi back in the picture, when I play i Giorni I have to really stretch my left hand to reach the B to D chord, which is a 10th, and I do not always succeed! A real case of hand falling off the keyboard, but the more I play it the easier (slowly) it seems to be getting.

QUOTE (Silver pianist @ Oct 1 2004, 10:55 PM)

But to get Einaudi back in the picture

thats what i like to hear!

I can stretch t 9.

I think it definatley gets better with practise.

I've played Moonlight for so long that I have a brill octave stretch when I play anything containing one.
My hands recognise the gap/space immediatley.

Fiona

QUOTE (Prolifer777 @ Sep 28 2004, 08:08 PM)

C#-D# (or C Natural to D Natural) Some scale book also recommend you play fingers 1 and 4 on Black notes in octaves. Chopin's Grand Polonaise and the hard left hand section, for example, would be E (1&5) D# (1 & 4), C# (1&4), with the last in the cycle, being B (1&5) PR7

As an aside...

On the famous LH octaves in the op 53, I find it a little easier with
E (1&5) D# (1 & 3), C# (1&4), with the last in the cycle, being B (1&5)

This allows some pivoting, and helps the hand relax.

But it's bloody difficult.

I have Horowitz on vcd playing it, and he makes it look SO easy.

Mike

(Oh to stay in context, I can hit a 10th)

I can stretch a 13th on my left hand and an 11th on my right

A 13th?? Jeez, you must have big hands. Or long fingers! Or both...