![]() ![]() ![]() Some artists take years to craft albums, agonizing over arrangements, lyrics, and their own performances. John took his stage name from two of his bandmates. Eventually, John was more consumed by his passion for composition than his studies, and he opted to drop out at the age of 17 to pursue a career. That innate talent for music earned him a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music in London at age 11. At the age of 3, he played "The Skater's Waltz" after learning it by ear. John was a musical prodigy, reportedly teaching himself how to play the piano. Elton John taught himself how to play piano. "If my mother can call me Elton, then everybody else can." 2. "Reg is the unhappy part of my life," he once said, according to a biography by David Buckley. He was called Reg or Reggie, but once he legally changed his name in 1972, he no longer wanted to be associated with his former name-even by those who had known him when he was younger. He was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on March 25, 1947, in Pinner, Middlesex, England, to parents Stanley and Sheila Dwight. So, you can enjoy the benefits of having smaller hands while mitigating any weaknesses by learning how to break chords that require stretches beyond your reach.Elton John in September 1974. You will find things that other people struggle with may come very naturally to you, and vice versa. With practice, you can play the piano with small hands. The most important part of playing the piano is achieving the sound you imagine. People with smaller hands have an advantage in being able to play quickly and lightly on the piano. This isn’t a problem for people with small hands since they can play at the point at which black and white keys meet. So, they have to play on the edge of keys as opposed to the inside near the fallboard which presents a big challenge having to travel in and out of the keyboard to negotiate both white and black keys. Believe it or not, some people have such large fingers, they don't fit between black keys. While there may be disadvantages to small hands, there are also tremendous benefits to having small hands for playing the piano. It’s not very difficult, and anyone can learn how to achieve this. The difference in sound is almost imperceptible when you quickly break chords you can't reach, and catch the notes on the pedal. The secret is: learning how to break chords very quickly using the pedal. You probably wonder if I have to leave out notes. But when I get into playing music with 10ths and 11ths, it requires a bigger reach then I can manage. Mine, on the other hand, are pretty much stuck where they are! At this point in my life, I have no trouble reaching an octave. But, you would never tell by the way he played Mozart Concertos, as well as demanding works of Chopin he managed just fine! I worked with Jake Clayton, who was a 10-year-old pianist at the time, who had trouble reaching an octave. It’s not impossible to approach even pieces that require playing notes far beyond your reach. If you are learning to play the piano and your hands are too small to reach an octave, you will be at some disadvantage for playing repertoire that demands a big reach. I was only able to achieve this by reaching around the sides of keys as opposed to playing from above them. I was learning music that required reaching an octave. This was a problem for me growing up and working on advanced repertoire. I don’t know if any of you have noticed, but I have small hands. Believe it or not, this is a question that is dear to my heart. ![]()
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