Left hand

As Printed on a Score

Printed over or under notes in piano music (L.H., l.h., left hand) to give them to the left hand, often where the hands cross or share a staff; it applies to the notes it marks.

Abbreviations: L.H., l.h., L. H.

How Composers Use It

Use it where staff position would mislead about which hand plays: in crossings, in passages shared between the hands, and where the left hand takes notes written on the upper staff. It also records a redistribution that makes a passage easier to play. Older and continental scores use m.s. (Italian), m.g. (French) or l.H. (German); keep to one form within a piece.

Example

Warlock, Saudades, “Along the Stream”, piano, m. 18: “L.H.” is printed in a bar marked pp with an sfz.

Related Terms