Wouldn't it be better if she took her time and tried some possibilities out, and found which was best
Nice theory, but it can just as much lead to inflexibility since people start to use 1-2-3 fingering only wich keeps 4-5 untrained and weak.For 'Elegy' it probably works fine as with many of Rachmaninov's pieces because of his type of compositions. But for many other composers like Chopin, Bach, Schubert etc it is counter-productive and harmful for the technique on long term.
There is nothing wrong with only using fingers 1 2 3. If they are able to make music with just those fingers then they don't need to use 4 and 5.I must disagree that this strategy would be ineffective, especially regarding Chopin's compositions. His technique was unique and part of the reason was because he learned how to play be feel, not by rules. Think of his etudes: groundbreaking at the time because no one could play them. Except for Liszt. Both Liszt and Chopin had one thing in common: They learned how to play without any teacher. (Czerny was not the one who taught Liszt how to play. He already knew how to play. Czerny just made it more difficult for him.)The underlying reason for this strategy is body exploration. To play the piano well, one must explore how the body moves to achieve the best desired effect. Chopin and Liszt learned by exploring. This is why Chopin played the way he did, wrote music the way he did, and why Liszt was the only other pianist who could play Chopin's music.
Topic: Rachmaninovs Elegy 