To have the right fingering is not very important......do whatever you want?

[sportsmonster]

lot of times it seems a lot easyer to not follow the fingering that is written down on the notepage. but will this cause problems for you later? what is the importance of trusting the fingering that is written? 

[maryruth]

If a different fingering seems easier for you then use it.  The most important thing about fingering is that once you choose it, don't play it any other way.

[sportsmonster]

the saying is that the fingering is rated and fixed by the best experts, and should not be doupted. 

we have all different hands with different sizes and different fingers. maybee that counts a little too? maybee someone have a loose littlefinger, or a wierd shape on their finger that makes the fingering hard to play.

im told by pianoteacher that you must follow the fingering. maybee that counts for the hardest pianopieces.

[xvimbi]

the saying is that the fingering is rated and fixed by the best experts, and should not be doupted. 

There is no such thing. Where did you get that? If you didn't have that impression, you would not have had this "problem". The most important thing is not to believe what anybody says without personally verifying it. Believe me!

we have all different hands with different sizes and different fingers. maybee that counts a little too? maybee someone have a loose littlefinger, or a wierd shape on their finger that makes the fingering hard to play.

Precisely!

im told by pianoteacher that you must follow the fingering. maybee that counts for the hardest pianopieces.

See above.

[Tash]

my teacher always told me to try the fingering written and if it doesn't work for me then find something better. however it's good just for a beginning reference, because i find that if i completely ignore it i end up doing crazy things that result in major issues and then my teacher narks at me and it's a pregnant dog to change. i find that some of the things written in my urtext editions are just a waste of time to do so i ignore them, but i remember reading like last week or something, was it bernhard or someone who said one editor just put in random fingering so to teach the student to go and sort it out for themselves?

[bernhard]

To add to xvimbi’s words (believe him! )

Fingering is like calligraphy. When you first learned how to write, your teacher gave you a special notebook with lines in it, and you had to copy the letters right on the lines, and following a model letter. However, after you learned how to write, you developed you own idiossincratic calligraphy. Some people’s calligraphy are more or less legible than others, showing a certain degree of sloppiness, but unless you are a profession calligrapher, your calligraphy will not be even remotely like the models of your childhood.

If you are just starting your piano studies, it is a good idea to follow fingerings – they have been put there to help you. But as soon as you get the general idea of how to move on the piano. You should feel free to change fingering to accommodate your own physicality.

Fingering always implies movement. Certain fingerings that seem impossibly uncomfortable can become very comfortable if you modify your movements.

So it is always interesting to explore printed fingerings. They tell (if you know how to listen) you which movements the person providing the fingerings used. They may even tell you something about that person’s technique. For instance, Chopin fingerings are always very interesting. One of his editors, Alfred Cortot, often modified Chopin’s fingerings, to accommodate his personal technique. Cortot’s fingerings are invariably less comfortable than Chopin’s: his technique was very labored – witness the many wrong notes in his CDs.

It is always good to give an editor’s fingerings a chance, and not dismiss them outright. However, I must say that I rarely use editor’s fingerings (although I always give them a fair opportunity). Most of the times I can come up with a fingering that suits me better, and many times a student will come up with a fingering that is even better than mine. Most times, my fingering is better for me, and a student’s fingering is better for him/her.

Spend as much time as necessary investigating fingering. It is an investment that will pay handsomely.

Have a look here for some criteria to choose fingering:

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,2458.msg21365.html#msg21365
(Mental practice – tips for fingering)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,4123.msg37829.html#msg37829
(How to investigate the best movement pattern: Example Scarlatti sonata K70 – How to work out the best fingering. Example: CPE Bach Allegro in A – Slow x slow motion practice – HS x HT – practising for only 5 – 10 minutes)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,2619.msg22756.html#msg22756
(unorthodox fingering for all major and minor scales plus an explanation)

https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php/topic,2619.msg104249.html#msg104249
(Scale fingering must be modified according to the piece – Godard op. 149 no.5 – yet another example of the folly of technical exercises)

And have a look here for applications of these ideas to actual pieces/passages:

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,2689.msg23132.html#msg23132
(Best fingering for Burgmuller op. 100 no. 14 - fingering is not sacred)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,5055.msg48120.html#msg48120
(fingering for J. S. Bach’s Sinfonia no. 9)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,4957.msg47444.html#msg47444
(Chopin etude Op. 10  no. 9 – discussion of fingering and description of movement)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,5090.msg48850.html#msg48850
(How to  figure out fingering for Chopin etude Op. 25 no. 11)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,3267.msg28857.html#msg28857
(Chopin Nocturne Op. 9 no.2 – fingering and LH movement)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,2934.msg25714.html#msg25714
(fingerings for Debussy’s Dr. gradus)

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,5354.msg50995.html#msg50995
(fingering for Grieg’s Arietta)

A related subject is how to distribute the notes between the hands. Have a look here:

https://www.pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,7310.msg72914.html#msg72914
(Fur elise : which hand to use – the score is a model – use whatever hand is comfortable – Scarlatti k 27 as another example)

Tip of the iceberg

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[bernhard]

but i remember reading like last week or something, was it bernhard or someone who said one editor just put in random fingering so to teach the student to go and sort it out for themselves?

Er... Not me. However, it would not suprise me in the least

[sportsmonster]

My dad played a pianopiece where you had to use your arms, fist, handpart, and fingers.
it was completely inzane to listen to. and the audience liked it.
The piece was called "Tiger".

i could just play pianopieces that didnt use fingers. then i would not have the problem

[happyface94]

It is important that you play the notes that are written in the partition but more importantly the phrase. Also, some dynamics are much easier to play depending on your fingering.

On repeated notes, it may seem foolish to alternate fingers on each repetition, but it is supposedly better sounding.

[sportsmonster]

On repeated notes, it may seem foolish to alternate fingers on each repetition, but it is supposedly better sounding.

yes, you can sometimes actually hear what fingering you have on the piano....specially with much repetitions. i can imagine playing fast and hard etudes with crazy and wrong fingering.

you would hear jumping spaces...were it is not supposed to be space. and it might have a different rythm too.  it could sound more unstabil (if the fingering is bad enough)