Struggle with some chords

wilton · Post by **wilton** » 16 Jul 2008, 06:44

I have quite large hands but struggle with some chords, eg c, e, g, c. and g, b, f, g. How do others handle this, particularly ladies with small hands. Which exercises are best for this problem, eg Hanon, Czerny, Wieck, etc

markymark · Post by **markymark** » 29 Jul 2008, 22:16

You seem to be talking about your hand span or stretch in music terms.

Sometimes talking the chord you are trying to play and then argeggiating it without trying inversions can be useful. You'll find your hand starting to hurt slightly but if your hands are quite big, then building up strength and expereince may also be an issue. Hanon has always worked well for me, besides that, scales (stoc, leg., p, f, etc.) also pushes your hand control and helps build up consistency.

markymark · Post by **markymark** » 31 Jul 2008, 20:27

I was just re-reading your post and thought about something that is blatantly obvious - what fingering are you using for these chords?

yourforte · Post by **yourforte** » 01 Dec 2008, 19:24

I think the length of particular fingers have a lot to do with it. I struggle with g, c, and f minors in the RH because my finger 2 is too short. My LH doesn't have the equivalent problem where the stretch between fingers 2 and 3 is a major 3rd. Yes, you have to adapt your fingering.