Contrary Motion: Five Fingers
Both thumbs on middle C, hands moving in opposite directions.
- Level:
- 3 of 6
- Hands:
- Both hands
- Key:
- C major
- Notes:
- 18
- Range:
- F3 to G4
- One run:
- about 8 seconds at 80 bpm
The notes, in order
9 moments, 18 notes in total, some struck together.
- C4 + C4
- B3 + D4
- A3 + E4
- G3 + F4
- F3 + G4
- G3 + F4
- A3 + E4
- B3 + D4
- C4 + C4
How to practise it
- Both thumbs start on the same key, middle C
- The same finger number plays in both hands at each moment
- Mirror movement is the easiest way into hands-together playing
The scale behind it
This one is built on the C Major scale: C D E F G A B (no sharps or flats). Its right-hand fingering runs 1-2-3-1-2-3-4-5, and the scale page has the full diagram if you want to hear the shape on its own first.
How to play it here
Play along on the keys with your mouse, your computer keyboard, a touch screen, or a MIDI keyboard you have plugged in. Every key can show its own name, and the metronome will hold the tempo while you work through the 18 notes.
What it trains
- contrary motion
- hands together
More coordination
The two hands doing different things at the same time.
- Contrary Motion Scale (level 5)
- Arpeggio, Both Hands (level 5)
- Melody Over Chords (level 5)
- Two Rhythms at Once (level 5)
- Parallel Tenths (Both Hands) (level 6)
- Offbeat Hands (level 6)