Chang's 432143214321 chromatic fingering

[tunneller]

Do many of you use the 4321432143214321 fingering proposed by Chuan Chiang? <This for downward RH chromatic scales>. Every once in a while you'll need a thumb on a black note.

I'm trying to work out the best hand movement for the 1->4 transition after that... If you can imagine, my wrist is somewhat forward over the keyboard with thumb depressing black note, and I'm going to move my hand left, with rapidity, just like TO scales. No problem. But what should be the trajectory of the tip of the 4th finger??

I can simply translate the hand so that the 4th finger trajectory goes over the depressed key, or I can put some slight rotation in the hand and pull it back so that the tip of 4th finger never goes over the key.

I can do either one (still sounds not smooth yet) but not sure which I should be aiming for?

Maybe there's a video ?

Thanks.

[liszt1022]

Depends on the piece you're playing, if it necessarily needs to go that fast. I wouldn't use it for a slow / medium scale, but something like Liszt's Transcendental no. 8, I'd use 4 and maybe 5 on those.

[tunneller]

Ok, two months later.... I've decided I hate 4321-4321-4321-4321-4321-4321

(this is for a downward chromatic)

I'm tempted to stop. Sometimes I can get it to sound pretty good, but the "jump over" from the thumb on black to the 4 on white never sounds as clean as all the other transitions.

I'm pretty sure if I'd been practising a different fingering I'd be cleaner by now....

But maybe I should stick with it. Certainly forces me to keep hand balanced and be thinking "Thumb Over", etc, etc...

[ionian_tinnear]

Seems like it would be pretty rare to use the thumb on a black note in a chromatic scale. Not all that recommended at any time really, at least when I was taught (back in the dark ages I guess).

But, there are always exceptions to the rule.  I learned to avoid Thumb and Pinky on black keys for the most part, but to use them when you have to.  I can't recall ever using thumb on black keys in chromatics.