Real men/women can play this chord

[K K]

WARNING #1 : Standard music notation ahead.

 

WARNING #2 : High risk of fracture, dislocation and/or damage to your hands.

 

Now, can anyone strike the last bar chord in tempo and as written without screaming in pain?

 

http://membre.megaquebec.net/skriabin/test.jpg

 

I say in tempo because I'm not talking about placing the RH fingers on the keys after a few seconds of contortion. Of course, one can also forget about the lower G in the RH and get a close result. But still, with such cheating you don't fall in the real man/woman category. And remember, no arpeggio here.

 

It's from a Rachmaninoff Étude. The guy was 6'6" and had gigantic hands. By the way, I can't play this atrocity either.

[stepay]

Yeah, that's a weird chord. If it were up a half step then you could use your thumb and hit the bottom two notes at the same time with that and then stretch for the other notes, but as it is, that's quite a challenge.

 

As an aside, I often will play an Am7 by hitting the A and the G both with my thumb (if I use that voicing where the G is the low note in the chord). Perhaps that breaks some rule, but I've got smallish hands, so I do what I can do.

[kanker.]

Originally posted by stepay:

As an aside, I often will play an Am7 by hitting the A and the G both with my thumb (if I use that voicing where the G is the low note in the chord). Perhaps that breaks some rule, but I've got smallish hands, so I do what I can do.

That's common practice.

 

I can *just* not hit that chord - pinky's just a umph too short.

[stepay]

Originally posted by kanker, apparently:

Originally posted by stepay:

As an aside, I often will play an Am7 by hitting the A and the G both with my thumb (if I use that voicing where the G is the low note in the chord). Perhaps that breaks some rule, but I've got smallish hands, so I do what I can do.

That's common practice.

 

I can *just* not hit that chord - pinky's just a umph too short.

Yeah. I figured it wasn't revolutionary or anything, but a classical player buddy of mine saw me do this once and thought it was "sloppy".

[lachesis]

That's one monster chord. I do the thumbing 2 notes a lot. I started doing that since I have small hands, but now I do it even when it's not necessary. I find thumbing two notes is just as reliable and repeatable as using two fingers, and it's easier on yourself, so why not?

 

On another note, don't people with huge hands have problems fitting fingers in between the black notes? Or does having big hands mean you don't really need to put fingers between black notes because you have so many other options where to put your fingers?

[kanker.]

I was taught to do that by a classical teacher. It's common practice in the classical world too. Fingerings are all about what makes a passage the easiest to play with the greatest effect. If you need to flatten your thumb out to play two or 3 notes, so be it. If you need to arpeggiate the last chord above, then so be it.

[kanker.]

Originally posted by lachesis:

On another note, don't people with huge hands have problems fitting fingers in between the black notes? Or does having big hands mean you don't really need to put fingers between black notes because you have so many other options where to put your fingers?

I have comparatively big hands, and my fingers are fairly thick. I have problems fitting my fingers between the black notes, and sometimes that can be a problem.

[Tusker]

As kiddo, I used to play his C# minor prelude which had some stretches I couldn't make.

 

Rubato and broken chords were my solution.

 

The nice thing about synths is that you can stack 16 orchestral stabs one one note if you like.

 

Jerry

[delirium]

There is one good thing in playing those kind of chords live..

You can ask some nice girl from the audience to give you a hand... with lower g...

[marino]

I would arpeggiate the whole thing from bottom to top very rapidly, playing the high G with left hand. Or, if I decide that the chord has to be played as a block, I would leave one note out (to decide which one, I would need to experiment a bit).

 

If you think this is a monstrosity, check Stockhausen's "Klavierstuck I" from 1954. It contains a nine-note chord (divided between the hands), with seven different dynamic levels for different fingers.

[Joe P]

I know I can hit the E-G minor 10, but I doubt I could do it with 3 notes in between. I'm gonna try it tonight.

 

Regarding the two notes with one thumb technique, I don't do it anymore because when I use the thumb AND forefinger, the arpeggio is right at my fngertips (so to speak...) if I need it.

 

Regards,

Joe

[Bridog6996]

hmmm....can't seem to view the picture.

[Dave Pierce]

Wow. I guess I'm not a real man after all. Huh.

 

 

--Dave

[K K]

Don't worry, this is just a thread to help us remain humble.

 

According to Mr. Rachmaninoff's colleague Cyril Smith, the composer could hit the following chord with his left hand :

 

C Eb G C G

 

and this other one with his right hand :

 

E C E G C

 

Of course, we're not talking about technique here, but physical abnormality.

[delirium]

Originally posted by Cydonia:

Don't worry, this is just a thread to help us remain humble.

 

According to Mr. Rachmaninoff's colleague Cyril Smith, the composer could hit the following chord with his left hand :

 

C Eb G C G

 

and this other one with his right hand :

 

E C E G C

 

Of course, we're not talking about technique here, but physical abnormality.

come on we're humans not freaks...

[ProfD]

I play inversions a lot resting my the thumb on the 6 and/or 7 and root. Love those rich chord voicings with extensions further out.

 

If the monster chord notated above were too big a stretch, I would reharmonize it quickly.

[Jazzwee]

Cydonia, I almost had to go to the hospital. Cruel cruel chord.

 

I could do it only as a stretching exercise but I would not be able to move my hands at all.

 

BTW - Cydonia, being a jazzer, we only take music notation on an advisory basis, not literal, so I'll just be striking out the bottom couple of notes. We'll just call it a jazz voicing.

[JeffLearman]

Yeah. I figured it wasn't revolutionary or anything, but a classical player buddy of mine saw me do this once and thought it was "sloppy".

It's only sloppy if it's an accident!

 

Classical pianists will also never slide from black key to white, but there are licks that can only be played (by mere humans) without doing that, because the other fingers are needed elsewhere. Unfortunately, those licks don't translate to all 12 keys, so you do need to learn to get the sound of a this kind of finger slide the "right way" as well.

 

I can play a white-to-white 10th, but not hitting much else inbetween. I kinda have to approach the keys from the front edge to avoid pressing the adjacent white keys.

 

I do play a song where I walk 10ths with the left hand, Stolen Moments, but fortunately it's always white on one end and black on the other. Wouldn't work in all keys.

[moj]

If a chord symbol notation was added above the staff it would be written as : C

You could say that it's a C chord with extentions...physically-challenged ones, that is.

[Jazzed]

I'm close. Can't get the EGCEG...but I can do EACEG. Obviously this changes the chord, so my answer has to be no. My index finger just won't do that bit. Blah.

[Dave Horne]

.... maybe if we used a sequencer .... nah, not for real men.

 

You know, it's not a crime to leave out notes ... a C major chord is a C major chord ... Shakespeare said it best.

[gangsu]

Originally posted by learjeff:

Classical pianists will also never slide from black key to white

Please, no absolutes. And what is a classical pianist anyway..

 

I have no trouble with the LH, but the R I'd have to leave out either G.

 

Thanks for including us, Cydonia.

[dementedchord]

SADIST !!!

[K K]

Originally posted by gangsu:

I have no trouble with the LH, but the R I'd have to leave out either G.

 

Thanks for including us, Cydonia.

Hey Sue, glad you're back.

[Clavinovaguyusa]

With the 2 grace notes and a held chord, I would play it like this: Left hand first grace note C octaves, second grace GEG, chord CG

Right hand played like this: First grace note E, second grace note G, then chord CEG.

[delirium]

ok, I came back home and tried it out and I can play both hands relatively easly but without that stupid lower G...

[jook]

I like the PC-ness of this thread's title... see... if you can't play it, you're not a real man,... nor a real woman... what exactly are you then?

 

A fake man-woman?

[delirium]

you're alien...

[jon from oz]

Hey ! I can play it (with a bit of stretching ) but my fingers don't fit between the black notes . I would rather have smaller hands with thinner fingers anyday.

[gangsu]

Originally posted by jon from oz:

I would rather have smaller hands with thinner fingers anyday.

Careful what you wish for.

 

Hi Cydonia