Sunday, May 28, 2017

Four is More


Four Fingers are Better than Three


Given the fingers (thumb as 1 and fingers 2, 3, 4, and 5), fingers 2, 3, and 4 are the primary fingers used.

Finger 5 becomes important for reaching down or across the keyboard.

For example:

  • Two-octave arpeggio – using finger 5 at the top
  • Tetrachord (half a scale, four notes) – using fingers 2, 3, 4, and 5
  • Ornaments (grace notes and turns) – adding notes below or above the main note

Eventually the use of the thumb (1) can be added to reach low notes.


Four Fingers Forward


Playing across the keyboard with fingers 2 through 5:

  • smooths out the fingering motions
  • takes advantage of the natural side-to-side roll of the hand
  • combines the 3 three-finger scale patterns (one based on finger 2, another based on finger 3, and a third based on finger 4) and adds in an alternate fingering using finger 5.


The Need for Speed


Adding finger 5 to the usual group of fingers 2, 3, and 4, increases the capability for speed and smoothness.



The Practice


In all keys:

Arpeggios

    Single octave (up and down) – fingers 2, 3, 4, and 5. 

    At first play octave notes in same button column.   

    Then later play the higher octave note three columns to the right (hand going across the keyboard).

  • Major   (C   E  G  C)
  • Minor   (C  Eb  G  C)
  • Dominant Seventh  (C   E   G  Bb)
  • Minor Seventh         (C  Eb  G  Bb)
  • Diminish Seventh    (C  Eb  F#  A)


   Double octave (up and down) – fingers 2, 3, 4, 2, 3, 4, and 5

   For Major and Minor chords, at first play the top octave note in same button column.   

   Then later play the top octave note three columns to the right (hand going across the keyboard).


  • Same series of chord types


Tetrachords (up and down) – fingers 2, 3, 4, and 5 (hand going across the keyboard).

  • Major (C D E F)
  • Minor (C D Eb F)
  • Harmonic Minor (raised 4th) (C D Eb F#)


Scales (two tetrachords – C tetrachord then G tetrachord) (up and down) – fingers 2, 3, 4, and 5 (going across the keyboard).


  • C Major tetrachord then G Major tetrachord
  • C Major tetrachord then G Minor tetrachord
  • C Minor tetrachord then G Major tetrachord
  • C Minor tetrachord then G Minor tetrachord
  • C Minor tetrachord then G Harmonic Minor tetrachord
  • C Harmonic Minor tetrachord then G Harmonic Minor tetrachord


Ornaments
         Scales (up and down) – scale note, then turn, then next scale note, then turn on that note.

         Use fingers 2, 3, 4, and 5 (going across the keyboard).

         For example:

          Note   (Turn)         Note   (Turn)

            C      (D  C  B  C)      D     (E  D  C  D)



The Music

Peter Grigorov (Grigpit on YouTube) has posted a performance video, a tutorial video, and sheet music of Stisko Kolo.  Note that his fingerings on the sheet music are for piano accordion.

Stisko Kolo performance video:
Stisko Kolo tutorial video:
Stisko Kolo sheet music:


The Result

Playing across the keyboard with fingers 2 through 5 smooths out the fingering motions and takes advantage of the natural side-to-side roll of the hand.
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)