The Best Help for Successful Two-Handed Piano Playing – Part 3

​We have been discussing this month the best ways to improve our two-handed playing on the piano.

• The first week we learned about using scales and then moving on to Hanon exercises to practice on daily to strengthen our coordination.
• The second week we added in some original exercises and then arpeggios to give us more options and ways to practice two-handed playing.

This week we are going to look at some specific pieces that you can now start incorporating into your practice routine that utilize all of the work you have done through practicing your scales, exercises and arpeggios.
First, we’re going to go over four different pieces at varying levels of difficulty to show you how to progress through pieces according to where you are in your learning.

• When you first start playing pieces with both hands remember to start with a really easy piece and then start moving up towards more difficult pieces. The first piece that we go over in the video is “Chopsticks”…which is perfect for beginners. We will also learn “Ode to Joy”, “Prelude in C Major” by Bach, and “Minuet in G”, also by Bach.
• You’ll also get the benefit of seeing me answer student questions on this topic which may be some of the same questions that you have!

​The second thing we want to go over is how and where you can find two-handed piano pieces online that will be easy enough and fun for you to play. I will show you in the following video how to search for these pieces online.

• Look for pieces that have a simple melody in the right hand and just chords in the left hand. This is the easiest type of pattern to start with. You’ll see an example of this in the video.
• Many of the pieces from the different resources that I show you are free!
• I have included links to each of the resources I go over in the video description. 

​Next we’re going to look at some even more difficult pieces by J. S. Bach that are commonly used by pianists to increase their two-handed playing.
Remember that when first starting to play two-handed pieces I recommend that you find simple melodies and chord patterns before moving on to more difficult rhythms and contrasting melodies in each hand.
Bach is well known for something called “counterpoint” which simply means more than one melody line being played at the same time. This means that each hand is playing its own melody…there isn’t one supporting the melody line with chords, like we had in the beginning.

• This really works on your focus because each side of your brain is working just as hard as the other.
• Counter melodies utilize all of your scale knowledge and skill so make sure you have most of your scales learned and keep practicing them daily because you will be using them often in your piano pieces.
• Bach also incorporates articulations such as accents - which emphasize specific notes – in each hand instead of just one.
• He also uses dynamics more in his music then beginning two-handed pieces and each hand may be playing a different dynamic which is typical of more advanced piano music.
• Phrasing is used a lot in Bach’s music too. Phrasing is how notes connect to each other and this is often indicated by slur lines in the music.

I will give you three specific pieces by Bach that are the best ones to start with as you advance in your two-handed playing. You also have the advantage of hearing me play them and you can practice with the video as well. 

Next week we will finish this series on improving your two-handed piano playing with specific tips and the best ways to practice everything that we’ve gone over this month so you can overcome and challenges that you have now or may encounter in the future.
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If you like my tips and lessons, you will love the courses over on my website. Whether you are a beginner looking to get a solid foundation to build on or you are looking to take you existing skills to that next level, the online music courses on my website - https://www.pianolessonsontheweb.com will help you do just that.