Hi Guys,

I've been playing a couple of years now and I'm slowely getting my fingers around some simple Ben Folds tunes and the odd Stride/Ragtime tune.

Anyway, I've been looking at Pentatonic scales lately but the 3 books I have offer 3 different fingerings for scales like Bb major.

Here are the fingerings spread over two octaves:

Fingering 1:
RH = 3 1 2 4 1 3 1 2 4 1 3 ... and turnaround
LH = 4 3 2 1 3 2 1 4 2 1 3 ... and turnaround.

Fingering 2:
RH = 2 1 2 1 2 4 1 2 1 2 4 ... and turnaround
LH = 3 2 1 2 1 3 2 1 2 1 2/3 ... and turnaround

Fingering 3:
RH = 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 ... and turnaround
LH = 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 ... and turnaround

I notice that some approaches encourage the use of all fingers while others seem to be happy rely on 1, 2 and 3 and only use 4 at the start or end.

I also notice other subtle differences which I tried to explain but it didn't read well and may have been misleading in highlighting my main question, which is this ...

Is there an advantage of one approach over another? What should I keep in mind when choosing a fingering?

Sorry for the newbie sounding question but I've been giving this alot of thought and I'm going in circles.

Thanks in advance,

Rob.

The trouble with working out fixed fingerings for scales going regularly up and down is that you rarely play them that way during improvisation anyhow, or at least I don't. Even with ordinary scales I never seem to use the same fingering from one day to the next because I don't go up and down in the same way each time I play. The choice of grip during improvisation is a completely spontaneous reaction. I might have a static picture in my mind's eye of the distribution of a scale over the whole keyboard but where I start and finish within it, which finger pattern I use, which note I start on, which ones are accented, the desired musical effect - all these things are completely dynamic reflex.

For very rapid pentatonic figures I might consider things like using all five fingers and just jumping position, varying the starting note to suit key geography, leaving out or even adding in such notes as suit my grip.

In short I enjoy using completely spontaneous fingering for all grips these days. Of course, if you are using these scales solely as technical exercises rather than creative vocabulary, then that is an entirely diffent matter.

Much easier, and less stressful (resulting in far less tension) on the muscles responsible for lateral finger movement to use more lateral motion, a more active forearm to carry the fingers directly over the keys for a vertical strike. While working out these set fingerings might work at low velocity, at higher rates of speed, the extra lateral finger motion, added to the mandatory depression motion will slow down your ability to execute quickly and cause the residual buildup of tension in the hand and fingers. Don't be afraid to move the entire forearm lever rapidly at the wrist (with a flexible wrist), to carry the finger to key depression trajectory (a position directly over the key). Approaching the key from striking angles, rather than directly overhead, will slow you down drastically at moderate to higher speeds.

I see this alot in pianists. Most pianists "walk their forearms" around the keyboard by way of the fingers. The purpose of the wrist and forearm articulation in technical execution should be to carry the fingers to their needed position directly over and on (at the surface of) the keys to minimalize finger motion, especially lateral motion.

Hi Guys,

Thank you both for your detailed and differing replies. I find it odd that there doesn't appear to be a right way and a wrong way to play such scales but the principles outlined in both your replies will certainly help me find my feet.

The notion of moving the forearm to ensure that the fingers are striking from overhead does make perfect sense to me. It's easy to get caught up in the notion of piano playing being a finger-exercise so I appreciate being reminded of the use of arm movement.

For the record, my motivation is musical vocabulary as well as technique/strength.

Thanks again,

Rob.

Art Tatum, who could play more notes in less time than just about any other pianist that ever lived, primarily used thumb, 1st & 2nd fingers. Personally, althought I'm nowhere near the league Art was in, I prefer using 4 fingers, sometimes 5, because it allows for little 2-note chords by combining thumb+2, 1st+4th and can be played by passing over/under (at least partially) Look at Chopin Etude #2 and you'll see what I mean. Guess it depends on your style.

Most of what Tatum played was very pianistic and laid very well within the hand. The majority of his lines were vastly embellished with arpeggiations nominally configured to and dictated by the shape of the hand. That's not to say it's a bad thing, but it does lock you in to automatic, repetitive, and predictible stretches that sound more practiced than creatively, spontaneously inspired.

Personally, I view the 5 fingers of each hand equally as one unit, no one of any greater significane than the other. Becoming aware of playing with an active, moving forearm, wrist articulation that carries the fingers exactly over where they need to strike, will equalize the 3-4-5 finger articualtions to the pianistically favored 1-2-3 combinations.

Making the 3-4-5 unit equal partners to the 1-2-3 unit will also advance your technique in playing successions of 4, 5, 6, and even 7 note chords (thumb, pinky, or other on more than 1 note) with each hand. You'd be surprised to see how playing locked hands 10 to 15 note harmonically contrapuntal chords fattens up your sound!

The Chopin A- etude with chromatics in the 3-4-5 fingers is perfect for this purpose IF you transpose it through all 12 keys (it's real easy in A minor because in that key, it lies easily with and to the shape of the hand). Don't neglect the left hand. Play the right hand part in unison with the left hand temporarily setting aside the written left hand part, and see if your technique acheives greater finger equalization within a few short weeks.