When sitting at the piano should the knees go underneath the keyboard? If so, if one has long legs the pedals become a problem. Is there a standard height from floor to keyboard. Being very tall I find this a problem.
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2Are you saying that the length of your lower leg from the bottom of your food to the top of your knee is longer than the height of the bottom of the piano keyboard from the ground? If so then I think you'll want to elevate your piano. There are things to do that but I'm not super familiar with them so I'll wait for someone who knows more to answer with those details.– Todd WilcoxCommented Jan 9, 2018 at 17:35
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3Quick measurements [I assume not all pianos will be identical]... floor to underside of piano 24"/61cm. I'm 6"/1.83m & in shoes my floor to knee is 23"/58cm. If you lifted the piano, you'd have to have the lyre extended too.– TetsujinCommented Jan 9, 2018 at 17:39
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@Tetsujin - mine's 2' as well - probably pretty standard. Uprights (studio pianos) don't have a lyre, but would still present a pedal problem if raised on blocks. There again, long legs often sprout long feet...– TimCommented Jan 10, 2018 at 11:40
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I tried to go with the knees underneath the keyboard, since it seemed to work for some people. I quickly realised that it didn't work really well for me, having rather long forearms. What I personally do is I make it so when I sit at the bench, the part between the legs align with the bench (so my butt is sitting in the middle), and my legs are aligned with the edge of the keyboard (if I lift them, they'll touch the edge, rather than hitting below the piano). Maybe I should write an answer instead of a comment...– ClockworkCommented Apr 13, 2021 at 11:01
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5 Answers
I'm 6'3", and my knees are almost never directly underneath the keyboard when I play piano; I think if they were, then my body would be so close to the keyboard that I would feel like a piano-playing Tyrannosaurus. I scoot the bench back far enough for my arms to feel comfortable and then position my legs; they usually end up forming a 60- to 80-degree angle with the ground so my feet can still reach the pedals.
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Do you have any tricks for reaching the pedals without hitting your knees? If the legs are too long, then bending one's knees will cause the knees to bump upward against the bottom edge of the piano.– jdjazzCommented Jan 12, 2018 at 0:37
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The reason my legs are at any angle is to reach the pedals.– John DoeCommented Jan 12, 2018 at 1:32
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Floor to top of the white keys is fairly standardised at about 28". You could block the whole piano up, but then there would be problems with the pedals. I guess you've got long arms to match your long legs?
Here's one make that seems to offer a tall piano. But I don't know if it would be sensible to get used to one height at home, then have to perform on a lower height when it really matters?
Yes, the knees are supposed to go beneath the keyboard.
Sometimes, leg dollies are placed underneath the legs of a grand piano, to make the instrument easier to roll around. You may find a set that adds an inch or two of height for you.
I play piano in music class and I have legs that are too long for the piano I play, so I adjust my legs in a way for them to be comfortable and so that I can push the pedals. It made me uncomfortable at first to put my legs underneath the piano but now I can sit at the piano all day.
I'm 6"3 not wearing shoes. What's more, I have shoe size 15 US. This creates an irredeemable problem for me on normal pianos. I think the worst of it has to do with pedal distance. They should simply be further back.
I think the only option that would work for me is buy a quality stage piano and put it on a folding stand. This way, I'll have the leg room to put the pedal more to the back.
What I'd really like is buy a quality digital piano (well what I'd really-really like is an acoustic, but those make too much noise for me to feel i can practice freely), but those come with fixed pedals. Like, sure u can still put those keybeds on a folding stand and put the pedal behind the folding stand, but then you'd be forced to put the pedal at least as far back as the depth of the folding stand.
Sorry for the whole woe is me attitude, but I've been frustrated about this for a while now. I really would like to learn classical repertoire and just become the best pianist I can be, but it seems like it just kind of isn't meant to be, and the reason for that seems so frustratingly small.
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This does not really answer the question. If you have a different question, you can ask it by clicking Ask Question. To get notified when this question gets new answers, you can follow this question. Once you have enough reputation, you can also add a bounty to draw more attention to this question. - From Review Commented Jul 15 at 22:08