Ambidexterous Piano Players

I know that people who are ambidexterous (able to use their right and left hands equally well) would have an advantage in terms of the ability of thier individual hands when playing the piano, but I was wondering if they would be able to make their hands work more independantly of each other than non-ambidexterous people? I am right handed, and when I play the piano, it can be difficult for me to make my right and left hands do two different things at the same time.

Well to speak from experience (I'm ambidextrous), I'd say that while there is an immediate advantage in terms of dexterity and independance for both hands, I'm not sure it makes that much of a difference in the long run.

What I mean is, while ambidextrous people will be able to grasp the techqnique of playing with both hands doing different things more quickly; in the end even people who aren't ambidextrous can train themselves to be as proficient. This will take them a lot of time and effort mind you, as opposed to the ambis who will probably find it comes more easily to them.

Basically; ambis will get proficient faster, but I'm not sure if they end up actually better at it than their dominant-handed peers. Who knows, maybe one day when I become the most brilliant ambidextrous pianist in the world, I may get back to you with a better answer :thumbsup:

I'm not ambidextrous and I have a hard time playing fugues and such as well (on the piano). I think the way you study pieces can make a great difference. And in the end not the technique matters but the music you're conveying.

Techniques everything :P

and i have none! :)

Originally posted by snees

......And in the end not the technique matters but the music you're conveying.

You're my kind of guy after all. :)

Techniques everything

and i have none! [/b]

Maybe it is. It depends upon your point of view, and what you're trying to accomplish.

I know a violist whose father was a doctor. He and I went to high school together. He got to go to all the best teachers, got his BA from UCLA and his MA from Northwestern University. His parents paid for everything...he never had to take a job even for spending money. He worked really hard, practicing 4 to 6 hours a day. When he came back to LA, he managed to charm his way into all the right circles, and impress people with his formidable technique. He plays in the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra now, making a really good living, and he does all the best studio gigs. He's never had to work a "real" job in his life.

But he's all technique. All business. I listen to him play, and it's perfect...sterile, and perfect. There isn't a note of music in anything he plays.

The unofficial motto for "professional" musicians in LA is "in tune and on time." That's all anyone really cares about. And it shows.

I have another friend I went to high school with, a cellist who has always struggled with her technique, but for whom making music was always at least as important. She got her MA from Carnegie Mellon, now has a career as a teacher in Pittsburgh and gets some decent gigs in local orchestras as far away as Youngstown, Ohio. She also is in a faculty piano trio that does some fine work. She may not be as successful, but she's by far the better musician...head-and-shoulders above our other friend. She impresses me every time she picks up her bow. Her soul cascades out of her through her instrument and bathes the room in warmth. Her beautiful playing has brought me to tears many times. Our other friend never has. He doesn't speak to us anymore...he's too good, you see.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is, it depends upon what you want out of music and out of life. Me, I'd work on music at least as much as the technique. Read from all this what you will.

If you can achieve the perfect mix of musicianship and technique, I suppose that's the ultimate.

I know that people who are ambidexterous (able to use their right and left hands equally well)

Coincidence. This is because they practiced. Keep in mind some people may need more practice than others.

I am right handed, and when I play the piano, it can be difficult for me to make my right and left hands do two different things at the same time.

This has nothing to do with being ambidextrous. You don't need to be ambidextrous to play the piano. If you are ambidextrous and never played the piano before, you will have the same difficulty as a person who is not ambidextrous.

You will train your hands to be "ambidextrous" regarding the piano, the more you play. Just as, you can train your weak hand to write if you really tried.

What you are talking about is coordination. This comes with practice. Coordination is much different than technique. You can be very coordinated, but be horrible at playing the piano.

There are three necessary things you need to play piano well.

1. Coordination

2. Musicianship

3. Technique

It is difficult to put 2 hands together, but most people can do it if they practice enough. Does this alone make that person a good pianist? No way.

Musicianship has to deal with your style, the way you play the piece, how soft you can play it when your supposed to, your use of pedal and staccato , and not playing the piano as fast or as hard as you can the whole time, as if you were trying to impress an audience.

Technique probably is the most important. Without technique, you may have memory lapses, may have poor fingering, may not play the piano very smoothly, are not consistent enough, play certain sections louder than others, have weak fingers and miss notes when playing due to fatigue. You also may not play chords with ease, or they feel awkward. While you may play the piece correctly, have coordination and have musicianship, without technique your playing still will sound amateurish.

The point is, being ambidextrous has nothing to do with playing the piano. It is a completely different skill, and being lefty and righty has nothing to do with how well you can play.

I am ambidextrous...and I learned to play the piano in a few days :thumbsup: