How to Increase Dexterity of Piano Fingers

Increasing the dexterity of your piano fingers can be accomplished with the right exercises and technique. Concentrate on developing coordination and strength in your fingers to increase the dexterity of your piano fingers. Piano playing requires the use of each finger on both hands, so you will need to practice exercises that put an equal emphasis on all fingers. Focus on decreasing the strength disparity between each finger. Exercises should be done at the beginning of each practice session.

5-Note Exercise

Step 1

Place the left hand on the piano keyboard starting with the pinky finger on a white key. The actual key doesn't matter. Place the remaining fingers on consecutive white keys.

Step 2

Depress the first key with your pinky finger, avoid moving any of the other fingers and use a controlled motion to slowly move the pinky finger down and then up. Complete this exercise five times on each finger of the left hand. With time, you will increase your ability to keep the remaining fingers motionless.

Step 3

Position the right hand on the piano keyboard and complete the same exercise with each finger.

Hanon Exercises

Step 1

Print the first exercise from the set of Hanon exercises and place it on the piano keyboard in front of you.

Step 2

Set the metronome to the appropriate metronome marking at 60 beats per minute. As you increase your skill, gradually increase the tempo to 108 beats per minute and then move to the next exercise.

Step 3

Practice each exercise in different keys once you have mastered the first 20 Hanon exercises.

Warnings

Don't practice for more than 30 minutes if this is your first month playing. You can strain the muscles in your arms.

References

The Virtuoso Pianist in Sixty Exercises: Charles-Louis Hanon [http://www.hanon-online.com/]