Fingering in the score, is it a must ?

[kghayesh]

I just changed teachers recently. My new teacher insists that i should use the fingering written in the score and not any other fingering even if i feel it's ok for me.

She made me re-learn all the music i am playing to use the fingering indicated in the score. Although i must admit that i have seen some improvement in the quality of sound, but in many parts i think my former fingering was fine and produced the required sound.

We just today had a big quarrel about the fingering of some chord in the Pathetique 2nd movement. She was just saying that my fingering produced another sound than the fingering indicated in the score.

I just wanted to ask about the fingering in the score, is it a must to use it or can i devise my own fingering ??

[zheer]

LOL, your teacher would shoot me, i often rewrite a composition by Beethoven. Well slightly.

[_tyro]

I think you should try it her way for a while.  Don't know what you're practicing, other than the Beethoven, but sometimes  -- very often in Chopin, for example -- you can tell what is being asked for by the fingering.  It's hard to generalize, because fingering means different things in different places, but if someone insists you play a phrase with only 345, s/he's probably trying to get  some delicacy from you.  In one of the Op. post. etudes Chopin wrote three successive alto/tenor notes all to be played with the thumb.  Probably asking for emphasis, don't you think? 

Eventually you'll figure out what the fingering is supposed to indicate, and can decide whether to use it or not.  I personally avoid all those finger-slipping techniques that are supposed to make a piano sound like an organ or harpsichord in old music. It doesn't and it's not a goal I care to aim for.

[quantum]

You did one thing right, you did not blindly follow your teachers instructions without thinking about them first. 

It is true that certain fingerings are needed to produce a certain type of tone, but when the teacher insists on fingerings in the manner that your's has I highly quesiton her teaching.  Fingering is independent to physilology, and the shape of your hand and body.  You have to use a fingering that is most natural to your hand, and helps you to control the passage to the best of your ability. 

The fingerings printed in books are only suggestions, and if any particular one doesn't fit it is wise to change it to one that does. 

It seems as your teacher relying to heavily on fingering to produce a certain sound.  There are many other elements that go into producing a particular tone, and you should be able to prodce that sound with whatever fingering works for you. 

Following fingerings in the books has the advantage of teaching you a new fingering for a specific pattern.  So yes it is good to try those suggested fingerings, as you may learn something from them (maybe even better than what fingering you would have used).  But after trying after a few days, if you still don't feel comfortable, you should consider changing the fingering. 

[jamie_liszt]

I think you would find there is different fingerings in different editions, so does it really matter ? theres no set fingerings for each piece. but you should listen to your teacher possibly!

[kghayesh]

I personally avoid all those finger-slipping techniques that are supposed to make a piano sound like an organ or harpsichord in old music. It doesn't and it's not a goal I care to aim for.

What are these finger-slipping techniques ?

[_tyro]

What are these finger-slipping techniques ?

Changing fingers on a single note.  Also some really odd awkward fingerings (e.g., that never, ever let you put a thumb on a black key).  They are designed for instruments that have no natural sustain, and are useful if you have a principle objection to ever using the pedal in a particular work.

BTW, I'm all for slipping fingers when you're trying to produce a legato, and don't want to lean on the pedal -- lots of places in Chopin or Brahms, for example.  But not all the time, for heaven's sake. 

[fingernail]

historical moment my first post ever
fingering is always a subject of discussion. personally i think the only fingering you MUST pay attention to is the one suggested by the composer. further i think the anatomy of every hand is slightly different so THE correct fingering doesnt exist. you can study some principles and you always have to be very coherent. i like very much the del pueyo way of fingering...

[alzado]

Sometimes when I am having difficulty with a run, or a series of thirds, I have to stop and very patiently work with the fingering.

When I have a fingering that successfully gets me through that passage, I write the fingering in pencil into the score.

I don't know what I would do if I didn't have this option, and the fingering were rigid.

I must say, I doubt I would be very comfortable with your teacher.

[_tyro]

I think we all agree that you need to adapt fingering to suit your hands.  But it is just plain stubborn to refuse to try out the recommended fingering on the score (or several recommended fingerings in several additions).  In the final analysis, if you can play it better with your toes or your nose, then by all means do so.