Repeated Notes — Piano Technique

1. Repeat a sound without losing the beat

A repeated note may look like the simplest thing on the page, yet each attack needs a fresh beginning. Start with a short group and listen for a clear sound each time. The key must release enough for the next note to speak; the amount and feel depend on the instrument. There is plenty to discover here before testing speed.

Repeated C: four attacks with finger 2, then four with changing fingers 3–2–1–3. Play one hand at a time first.

Each measure contains four eighth notes followed by a half rest. Count all four beats, including the silence. Use the rest to prepare the next group rather than immediately repeating as fast as possible.

Compare two routes

Play the first bar with finger 2. Listen for four distinct attacks with equal timing and volume. Then try the changing-finger bar at the same tempo. Neither route is a universal answer: choose according to the passage, tempo, articulation, and response of the piano.

With changing fingers, each new finger takes responsibility for a new attack. This differs from silent finger substitution on a held key, where the sound continues without another strike. Do not turn the printed repeated notes into tied or merely held notes.

A missing attack gives you a useful clue: slow down and check the release before it. Striking harder may hide the problem without making the next repetition easier. If the different fingers create different volumes, use a softer, shorter group and listen to one transition at a time.

Checkpoint: you hear four separate, evenly timed attacks, and can stop for the full rest. Add the second hand only after each hand can reproduce that result independently.

Repertoire direction: repeated-note passages such as the Scarlatti K.141 candidate will later show how fingering interacts with surrounding notes. This original drill is preparation, not a transcription of that sonata.

2. Prepare the note after the repetition

The note after a repetition often tells you which fingering to choose. A useful route lets you leave the repeated key ready for the next part of the phrase. The following study joins three attacks on one pitch to a short line. The two hands use different routes where that makes the continuation straightforward.

Repeated-note exits: a rising line from C, then a falling line from E. Editorial hand-specific fingerings.

In the first RH group, C uses 3–2–1, leaving 2–3 for D–E. In the LH, C uses 1–2–3, then D–E uses 2–1. Read the second measure separately: do not assume the first bar’s route must be repeated unchanged.

Build the transition

Play the final repeated note and the two moving notes, with their printed fingers.
Add the earlier repeated attacks, keeping the same tempo through the exit.
Observe the quarter rest; prepare the next starting pitch before its beat arrives.
Join the two measures and listen for the line continuing through the repetition.

Tempo experiment: shorten the group before raising the tempo. A brief reliable group followed by a full pause is more useful than continuing until attacks become indistinct. Reconnect it to the phrase at a manageable tempo before calling the faster version secure.

What to avoid: gripping the key between attacks, forcing a fixed wrist position, or adding an accent every time finger 1 arrives. Specific movements should serve the sound and fit the hand; they are not gestures to exaggerate from a verbal description.

Checkpoint: the moving note arrives in time and at the intended volume. If it is consistently late, give the exit its own few attempts. You may need less time repeating the starting pitch and more time learning how to leave it.