Finger notation - rag/stride style

[onkeltem]

Hi all!

Recently I started playing ragtimes and some stride piano songs. The question which troubles me - is the proper finger notation. I don't mean playing at turtle speed - then you may not care about fingers much, I mean playing at normal speed.

Please consider the following piece:
Maple Leaf Rag:


What fingers would you use?

Specifically:
A: 51 or 41?
B: 531 or 421?
C: 531 or 421?
D: 531 or 421?

Thoughts:
A: I incline to 51, though 4 is better for black key, no?
B: 531 seems to be more convenient to play but 5th finger becomes kinda busy, while it is needed for the next bass chord.
C: 421 is my choice.
D: The same as B.

Thanks.

[dcstudio]

been playing this for years.

I use those same fingerings for the most part... they work for me

[onkeltem]

I use those same fingerings for the most part... they work for me

Which - same?

[faulty_damper]

You choose the fingering that is easiest and most comfortable.  If you are having issues with this, then the real issue is probably how you move your arm.

[onkeltem]

You choose the fingering that is easiest and most comfortable. 

Let me narrow down the matters: 531 or 421 for "B" chord?

If you are having issues with this, then the real issue is probably how you move your arm.

Apart from shooting the video how I do this, any ideas how can I know possible issues with arm moving?

[bobert]

I, too, have played this for many years.

A: 51
B: 421
C: 421
D: 421

feels most comfortable to me.  I would always play the bass and up-beat this way unless the up-beat spanned an octave or more, in which case the bottom note of the up-beat would be fingered 5.  At bright tempos, I find the 4th finger is much better at grabbing the bottom of the chord rather than having to carefully position the 5th.   Isolated bass octaves are mostly 51, except when the bass plays a moving line as in the latter half of measures 2, 4, 6, & 8.  These I would generally finger 41, 51, 41.

I found it very helpful to work out a fingering strategy in advance to oom-pah bass that I can live with.  That way, I don't have to give it much additional thought, i.e., the fingerings are automatic and only certain exceptions require conscious attention.

[faulty_damper]

Let me narrow down the matters: 531 or 421 for "B" chord?

Depends on how you play/move the arm/apparatus.  It's not about fingering, but everything that connects to the fingers that determine which fingers touch the keys.  Change the way you move the apparatus and that can change which fingers feel most comfortable.

Apart from shooting the video how I do this, any ideas how can I know possible issues with arm moving?

It's about your own physical sensation that you need to be acutely aware of.  There are ways to make the stride movement easiest amongst the alternatives.  Also, a lot depends on seat height and where you center your body at the keyboard.  Both of these can make the stride easier if you get it right, or harder if you get it wrong.  Pay attention to the feedback your body gives and adjust so that you find the easiest way.

[indianajo]

I use the 5 finger on every note.  541 on the triads.
I'm not very big and my bones are very light, so doing 41 on octaves is uncomfortable.  My maximum stretch is a tenth, and that is playing on the front lip of the keys.  I have bones inherited from those of my ancestors that were Native American, so 2-3-4-5 fingers are the same width at the end. 
Ragtime takes strength, so I play Maple Leaf and two other Scott Joplin rags every night, to keep my strength and accuracy up.  I'm left handed, so I have more trouble with the right hand versus the left.  The second measure before the first ending (the first one) has been giving me memory problems lately with a 2-3 swap on the Bb prep to the Ab-F chord. I first learned it a clumsier way, and forget which finger to use sometimes and don't play the note at all.  I've been slowing this measure down again to embed the memory better.  

[dcstudio]

Which - same?

4-2-1    and always 5-1       

 it's a great tune. have fun

[pianoplunker]

Hi all!

Recently I started playing ragtimes and some stride piano songs. The question which troubles me - is the proper finger notation. I don't mean playing at turtle speed - then you may not care about fingers much, I mean playing at normal speed.

Please consider the following piece:
Maple Leaf Rag:


What fingers would you use?

Specifically:
A: 51 or 41?
B: 531 or 421?
C: 531 or 421?
D: 531 or 421?

Thoughts:
A: I incline to 51, though 4 is better for black key, no?
B: 531 seems to be more convenient to play but 5th finger becomes kinda busy, while it is needed for the next bass chord.
C: 421 is my choice.
D: The same as B.

Thanks.

One thing to consider is using 421 on the the top chords leaves 5 available and closer to its low bass destination of 5-1 . It cuts down on arm movement a little, thus making it slightly easier to execute the left hand. But if 421 is a stretch, might wanna do 531 and do an extra little leap.