FINGERING TECHNICS

What Is Piano Fingering?

Piano fingering refers to finger placement on the piano keyboard, and the hand techniques used to play the piano.

Fingered piano music marks each note with a number that corresponds to one of the five fingers.
Reading Fingered Piano Music

You will see numbers 1-5 written above or below notes in scales and songs. These numbers correspond to your five fingers, and tell you which finger presses which key. Finger numbering for both hands goes as follows:

Thumb: 1
Index Finger: 2
Middle Finger: 3
Ring Finger: 4
Pinky Finger: 5

When you begin playing with your left hand, you’ll notice that the fingering is often the same for both hands. Look at picture #2: The same fingers play the same notes in both triad scales, but the numbers are inverted.


Fingered Practice Scales

Good fingering is a valuable skill to have as a pianist. When you practice piano fingering, you’re enabling your fingers to execute new techniques, master awkward positions, and exercise speed and flexibility. Practicing fingering may seem tedious at first, but stick with it; your fingers will adjust quickly.
ASCENDING PIANO SCALES


The thumb (finger 1) slips under finger 3 in most ascending piano scales.
Image © Brandy Kraemer
Fingering for Ascending Piano Scales


Practicing certain piano finger techniques can improve speed, agility, and your relationship with the keyboard. Once you become comfortable with these techniques, you’ll be able to tailor them to suit whatever piano music you wish to play. For now, concentrate on making proper piano fingering second-nature.

In order to read the fingered scale above, you should get to know the piano fingering essentials.

How to Play Ascending Piano Scales:

On ascending piano scales beginning with a white key (or “natural”), start with your thumb (finger 1).

In the middle of a scale, your thumb should cross under your middle finger (finger 3). In the scale above, this happens between the E and the F.

Fingers 1 and 5 are ideal for use on the white keys. When playing in a key signature with few sharps or flats, try to keep them off of the black keys.

Look at the C major scale above. As you probably know, the key of C has no accidentals, so every note is played with a white key. Play the C major scale slowly – while paying attention to the fingering – and repeat it until it feels natural.

How to Play Descending Piano Scales


When playing descending piano scales, you should start with a higher finger (5 or 4) so that you have fingers to spare for the lower notes. However, since this scale is a continuation of the ascending C scale, we can simply reverse that fingering.

How to Play 5-Note Piano Scales


Play this 5-note (or “pentatonic”) scale beginning on each note — after you play the C scale, play it again starting with D, then E, etc. Remain in the key of C (don’t play any black keys) even if the scale sounds strange.


Tip: The last C in the scale is a half-note, which takes up two beats of the measure. It will last as long as four eighth notes, so count one-and-two-and. (Learn more about note lengths).
Pay attention to your wrist positions. Don’t bend your hand into the upper notes; keep your wrist fairly still and loose.

Playing Longer Piano Scales


When dealing with longer piano scales, your thumb will jump around and lead your higher fingers to the higher notes.

Begin this scale with a slow tempo to stay in rhythm; then adjust accordingly.

How to Play Accidentals on the Piano


When playing piano scales and warm-ups with accidentals, use the following techniques:


Keep thumb and pinky off black keys when playing scales.

Scales beginning with a black key begin with one of the long fingers (2-3-4).

The thumb may cross under finger 4 instead of finger 3, as suggested earlier in this lesson:

In the scale above, the B flat is played with the 4th finger, then the thumb crosses under to touch C.

In the second set of notes in the first measure, this technique is used in anticipation of touching the high G with finger 5.

How to the Play Black Piano Keys


The G-flat major scale has a flat on every note except F (see key signature for Gb).

Notice how the above scale begins with the index finger: the long fingers are best suited for the black piano keys, so avoid hitting the accidentals with your thumb or pinky.


Tip: When starting a scale with a long finger, try to place your thumb on the next white key possible. For example, in the G-flat major scale above, the thumb hits the fourth note (a Cb flat), which is a white key. *


* C flat and B are essentially the same note: Learn about the piano keyboard’s hidden accidentals.

How to Play Simple Piano Chords

Triad chords in root position are most often formed with fingers 1-3-5.

Tetrad (4-note) chords are formed with fingers 1-2-3-5, but the formation 1-2-4-5 is also acceptable.

Larger chords test the flexibility of your fingers, so hand formation is ultimately up to you. Use discretion; consider the notes or chords that follow, and make sure you’ll be able to strike them efficiently.

Play the above song slowly, using these fingering guidelines. Take your time, and practice until you are comfortable playing it with a steady tempo.

Tip: A 3/4 time signature holds 3 quarter-note beats per measure. To get the rhythm down, count one-two-three, one-two-three.