Hammond Music

I often notice students using awkward fingering when playing piano. There is no doubt in my mind this is a topic that interests many beginners and intermediate piano players.

Contrary to what you may believe, this is actually quite a controversial subject.

There are people who strongly believe in proper fingering for piano pieces. There are also those who are firm believers in free-style fingering.

Here are my thoughts on the subject…

Though the length of fingers differ from person to person, we all have thumbs that are shorter than the rest of our fingers.

As a rule (or rule of thumb), the thumb is the strongest finger of all. Thumb, index finger (2nd), and long finger (3rd) are the most used fingers for piano playing. The fourth finger and fifth finger are weaker fingers.

Here are some tips concerning fingering which you should certainly consider:

1. Never use the thumb to play a black key. The exceptions are a) when you are playing a piece that has all black notes. b) when you are playing a group of keys where there are black and white keys. For example if your right hand is to play Bb, D, and F together in Bb major chord root position,your thumb will play Bb (black note) in this case.

The bottom line is; the thumb is not designed for playing black keys, simply because it’s too short. Instead, it’s the second and third fingers which should be used for playing black notes. In other words, if you find yourself playing a peace which starts with a black note such as Bb major for example, you should use your second or third finger rather than your thumb.

2. In the event that you’re playing a piece with your right hand and you’re in a situation where some of the keys are out of reach, you should simply move your hand so that you can play the note. Of course, if the desired key is only one or two steps down from your thumb, then you can use the thumb as an anchor while are you cross your second finger over to the note in question. In this case, it wouldn’t be necessary to move to your hand, but instead, you simply move your second finger over.

Once the second finger plays the key, the thumb will soon follow to cross over to play other note left of the key. Suggestion: practice the scale well to know what finger to follow.

3. Same rule applies to left hand.

4. Watch other experienced pianists whenever possible, look at their fingering and imitate their movements. I suggest you watch those players who are well trained classically as they have spent many years going through the structured repertoire and virtuoso training that help built a firm foundation.

One important point: The function of good fingering is to ensure smoothness of musical passages.

If for example you want to play the work of Bach and other classical composers, then good fingering is crucial. In fact, even the slightest change in fingering can result in a complete disruption. On the other hand, strict fingering is less important for improvisational and accompaniment pieces.

You’ll also notice that musical pieces which have been edited by different editors tend to have changes in terms of fingering. For example, you’ll notice different fingering suggestions for the “Sonatina” piece composed by Clementi, depending on the different editors. While some prefer to use the second finger more often, others favor the third finger instead.

In conclusion: if you are improvising, pay less attention to which finger you are using. As long as you abide by the above rules and ensure a smooth flow of musical passage, you are fine.

If you get too critical about fingering, it distracts your musical thoughts and flow. After all, it is music that you are conveying. Piano playing gets rather complicated when you are trying to balance both hands, keep a steady tempo (rhythm), make sure the pedals are going in at the right time, listening to the music.

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