What makes for a great sight-reader? I think most piano teachers and pianists generally understand the critical importance of learning to sight-read. This skill is not just about playing new pieces more quickly; it’s about deepening our musical understanding, enhancing our ability to accompany, and increasing our overall versatility and confidence as musicians. For the longest time, I believed that the best sight-readers were simply those who could glance furthest ahead on the music sheet while flawlessly hitting every note. Logical, right? The more notes you could see and prepare for in advance, the better your performance would be. It turns out we might have been overlooking a crucial piece of the puzzle.

The Eye-Hand Span (EHS)

A recent study has made me rethink what truly defines proficient sight-reading. Led by Yeoeun Lim and colleagues, and published in Scientific Reports in 2019, this research delves deep into the dynamics of eye-hand span (EHS) and its role in piano performance. EHS is basically how far ahead you can look at the notes on the sheet music before you actually play them. It was thought that the bigger your EHS (meaning the further ahead you could look), the better you were at sight-reading.

This study found that it’s not really about how far ahead one can look, but rather how one utilizes this span as a dynamic strategy tailored to the music’s complexity and tempo. Let me explain.

The study meticulously analyzed the sight-reading abilities of 30 professional pianists across pieces of varying complexity and tempo. By measuring the EHS and assessing performance accuracy, the researchers found that proficient sight-readers dynamically adjust their EHS in response to the music’s demands. This contrasts the idea of simply maintaining a consistently large span.

A new perspective on sight reading

Imagine two pieces of music placed in front of your student: one is a straightforward Bach Minuet, and the other, a densely packed Liszt Rhapsody. Following the traditional EHS belief, we might encourage our student to read as far ahead as possible in both pieces. However, this strategy overlooks the demands of each piece. The Bach Minuet, with its predictable patterns and structures, might benefit from a broader EHS, allowing the student to anticipate and prepare for what’s coming with relative ease.

On the other hand, the Liszt Rhapsody, brimming with complex rhythms, sudden tempo changes, and intricate passages, calls for a more detailed approach. Here, a broad EHS is not as effective. Instead, adept sight-readers adjust their span, narrowing their focus to deal more attentively with the complexity at hand. This flexibility in adjusting the EHS—not the ability to sustain a large span—is what distinguishes truly proficient sight-readers.

Practical takeaways for piano teachers

So what does this mean for us teachers? How can we cultivate flexibility and adaptability in our students’ sight-reading practices? Instead of just striving to extend the distance between eye fixation and hand execution (cue dramatic flashback to my teacher’s finger frantically jabbing towards the future notes on the page, chanting, “Look ahead! Look ahead!”), we should emphasize the skill of dynamically adjusting this span. Here is a strategy to incorporate into your teaching:

• Contrast Practice: One effective strategy is to incorporate “Contrast Practice” into their sessions.
  
  1) Present a variety of pieces with differing levels of complexity and tempo within a single practice session, thereby pushing students to adapt their eye-hand span (EHS) strategically across these variations. Start by selecting a diverse mix of music—ranging from simple compositions that allow students to comfortably extend their EHS and anticipate upcoming notes, to more intricate works that necessitate a narrower focus due to complex rhythms or quick changes.
  
  2) Explain the unique challenges and objectives of each piece, guiding students to modify their EHS accordingly. Remind them not to get discouraged; it’s not a test or a measure of their intelligence!Rather, it’s an exercise – an effort that should be respected and celebrated.
  
  3) Afterwards, facilitate a reflective conversation, encouraging them to share their experiences of adjusting their EHS, the challenges encountered, and the impact of these adjustments on their performance. This not only sharpens their sight-reading skills but also deepens their understanding of the dynamic nature of EHS as a tool for navigating varied musical landscapes, ultimately fostering greater adaptability and insight into their own learning processes.
  
  At bare minimum, talk to your students about EHS. Explain to them that EHS is a dynamic, strategic tool in sight-reading and it can equip them with the skills needed to tackle diverse repertoire with confidence and agility.
  
  Thanks for reading! What are your favorite strategies for sight reading? Please comment below.

Source: Lim, Y., Park, J.M., Rhyu, S.Y. et al. Eye-Hand Span is not an Indicator of but a Strategy for Proficient Sight-Reading in Piano Performance. Sci Rep 9, 17906 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-54364-y