Who knows? Size of hands, finger length, state of mind, and lack of sleep, might be variables. But more often than not, it’s a booby trap, awkward fingering choice.
That’s why in despair, I called upon 3 fine pianists and an esteemed harpsichordist to dig myself and kindred spirits out of our endless pit of frustration.
To begin with, I uploaded a video segment that explored my initial fingering and practice routines, followed by Irina Morozova’s alternative, and lastly, Seymour Bernstein’s ideas which included an altered landscape of articulation, phrasing, and fingering.
In addition, harpsichordist, Elaine Comparone and pianist, Beth Levin, separately e-mailed me their contributions for which I am grateful.
Video 1–where I indicate my chosen fingering in the score. (You can see Irina Morozova’s Right Hand suggestion in the space between staves)
Video 2–I demonstrate Irina Morozova’s choice (RH only–The Left remained unchanged) Fingerings bunched together represent harmonic thirds.
RH 2-4-1-5-2-3-1-2-1-3-24-35-24-13-24-13
Morozova agreed with Seymour Bernstein that there was no fixed fingering to recommend for all pianists.
Video 3–Seymour Bernstein’s offering
“For starters, there cannot be a definitive fingering for everyone
since all hands are different. But there are some notational considerations
that will influence our fingering choices. In this case, nothing indicates
legato in M. 68. When there are no slurs, we assume that the tones are to
be played non legato. On the other hand, it is possible that Mozart forgot
to place slurs or other notational indications on particular passages. At
any rate, here are my fingerings, notational signs, and pedal indications.
Notice that on M. 68, the pedal releases are on the second tones of the
slurs, whereas on M. 69 the release is on the 3rds after the slurs. I just
happen to like it that way.”
Elaine Comparone concurred with Morozova, that “the 5 following the 1 works well.”
“for the thirds in the RH, I would
use …..1-2 42-54-42-31-42-31.”
Beth Levin
right hand:
meas. 68: 35152412
meas. 69: 1 2 4/2 5/3 5/3 4/2 3/1 4/2
meas. 70: same as 68
meas. 71: same as 69
meas. 72: 1 5/3/2 5/1 5/1
meas. 73 5/1
left hand:
meas. 68: 31514254
meas. 69: 1 5
meas. 70: same as 68
meas. 71: same as 69
meas. 72: all octaves with 1/5
final meas: 1/5
When all was said and done, this unorthodox fingering worked for me:
RH
2-4-1-5-2-3-1-2-1-2- 42 42 42 31 42 31 (same repeated to the end)
I never would have dreamed that my fingering choice would be a viable alternative, but for my hand, shape, and size, it was a life saver!
LINKS:
Irina Morozova:
https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/03/17/pianist-irina-morozova-blends-a-satisfying-career-of-teaching-and-performing-videos/
Elaine Comparone:
http://www.harpsichord.org
Aglow With Creative Fire
https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/10/17/aglow-with-creative-fire-my-nyc-visit-with-harpsichordist-elaine-comparone/
Seymour Bernstein:
http://www.youtube.com/user/seeless?feature=watch
https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/my-nyc-visit-with-seymour-bernstein-pianist-teacher-author-and-composer/
Beth Levin
http://www.bethlevinpiano.com