Want to play Rachmaninoff? Then you need these classical piano exercises!
Classical piano is all about having good technique. If you want to master your favorite pieces, there’s no going around it: you gotta eat your vegetables (meaning: practice your scales!).
In this lesson, we’ll share three types of exercises (scales, arpeggios, and Hanon exercises) in three levels of difficulty: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Remember to download a free PDF of our exercises before you start!
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Love classical music but not sure where to start? Head over to Classical Piano Quick Start, four free lessons designed for beginners taught by Victoria Theodore. Victoria is a classically trained pianist with degrees from Oberlin College and Stanford University. She has also shared the stage with stars like Beyoncé, Stevie Wonder, Prince, and more. Start your classical journey with Victoria today!
Scales are like vegetables. If you don’t do them, YOU DIE.
Just kidding! But scales are important — they train your dexterity, hand independence, and speed.
As a beginner, you’ll want to start with C Major and its relative minor, A Minor. This is because both C Major and A Minor don’t have sharps and flats, so you’ll be playing all white notes. Just remember to tuck under and cross over as needed — this will take time to get used to! Once you’ve mastered playing hands separate, try playing hands together. This will be challenging!
A good question to ask is: how fast should you play scales? The answer: whatever tempo you need to play consistently! Use a metronome. Consistency > Speed 🙂
As an intermediate level piano player, you’ll be seeing more complex key signatures in the music you play. So let’s practice two keys with four sharps: E Major and C-Sharp Minor. And try to play a little faster — in the video, I play E Major at 90 bpm with two eighth notes per beat.
When it comes to C-Sharp Minor, you’ll be learning a new fingering pattern and starting on your third finger. This can take time to get used to, so take it slow.
For our advanced level scale, we’ll be using a key signature with four flats: A-Flat Major and F Minor. Like C-Sharp Minor, A-Flat Major has an unusual fingering pattern, so again, start slow! Once you’ve mastered the pattern, try using a metronome and playing two notes per click.
The second item on our list of classical piano exercises are arpeggios. These beautiful patterns can be found everywhere in classical piano music, so practice them well!
At the beginner level, focus on playing a C Major arpeggio or A Minor arpeggio for an octave. A good way to practice is to play the arpeggio five times on your right hand, five times on your left, and five together. Make sure your wrist is nice and flexible — it’ll be doing most of the work by rotating you through the notes.
For our intermediate level arpeggio, we’ll be playing an E Major arpeggio and C-Sharp Minor arpeggio over two octaves. This means you’ll have to tuck under or cross over, just like you do in scales. Again, make sure you do a proper physical warm-up because you’ll be moving more! Your elbow will lead the hand as its rotates.
Get ready for a challenge: we’ll be doing three-octave A-Flat Major and F Minor arpeggios at this level. Remember: go slow! Being consistent at a slower tempo is better than playing fast and messy.
When playing in a key with lots of black keys, it may be easier to play higher up (closer to the fallboard) the key.
The last of our classical piano exercises is the notorious Hanon. Here are three levels of these exercises that have been used by piano players for hundreds of years:
The first Hanon exercise includes a little skip in the first two notes. Feel free to write down fingering numbers when you’re first starting out, like this:
This intermediate level exercise works some of our toughest fingers: the ring and pinky fingers are often the weakest fingers to coordinate. They’ll be working hard during this exercise!
Not only will your fingers work hard in this exercise, so will your brain! Again, feel free to pencil in finger numbers when you’re just starting out.
The secret to succeeding at these exercises? Pay attention! Focus on how everything feels. Then, dial your metronome, adjust your posture, and vary your finger pressure as needed.
We hope these classical piano exercises take your playing to the next level, from beginner all the way to advanced. Now that you’ve eaten your vegetables, it’s time to conquer your next classical piece!
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Lisa Witt has been teaching piano for more than 20 years and in that time has helped hundreds of students learn to play the songs they love. Lisa received classical piano training through the Royal Conservatory of Music, but she has since embraced popular music and playing by ear in order to accompany herself and others. Learn more about Lisa.
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