The course › Unit 1: Discovering the piano
Lesson 3 of 72 · From thumb (1) to pinky (5), on the black keys
Both hands use the same numbers: the thumb is always 1.
At the piano, each finger has a number: 1 is the thumb, 2 the index finger, 3 the middle finger, 4 the ring finger, 5 the pinky (your little finger).
Sheet music and the falling notes show these numbers: they tell you which finger to use.
Tip: A little game, away from the piano: rest your hands on a table and lift the finger whose number you say. Then ask someone to call out numbers, and try it with your eyes closed!
Put fingers 2 and 3 of your right hand on a group of two black keys, and fingers 2, 3 and 4 on a group of three.
Keep the dome shape: each finger plays on its tip, and your wrist stays loose, level with the keys.
Tip: Press the key all the way down, then let up just enough for it to rise. No need to hit it: the weight of your arm makes the sound.
Play at whatever pace you like: the next note lights up, with its finger.
One finger per key, without moving your hand.
Same thing on the left, an octave lower: careful, the numbers go the other way!
The computer plays three notes on the group of three (fingers 2, 3, 4). Play them back! The first note lights up.