Fingering

Numbers with consequences

The page Études and Practice Studies points out a common mistake in Czerny: the fingering is improvised. In Czerny the numbers above the notes are the real teaching material, the sequence of notes is arbitrary, the fingering is not. If you do the thumb-under at a different place than intended, you practise a movement that no longer fits at the next scale.

The page Classical Guitar Sheet Music explains the markings for the guitar: the numbers 1 to 4 stand for the fingers of the fretting hand, p, i, m, a for the plucking hand, the circled numbers for the string. The second mistake, according to the page, is to ignore the fingering marking: if you work out fingerings of your own, you regularly end up in Sor in a position from which the next bar cannot be reached. The printed fingering is mostly not the most comfortable for the current bar, but the only one that still allows the bar after next.

Fingering in the score

Piano

• Achttaktige Übung Nr. 4 Carl Czerny, op. 821 No. 4 · piano · 1 page

  Numbers above the notes of the right hand and under those of the left, in the first bar for example 2 on the first eighth note and 5 under the lowest note of the left hand.

Guitar

• Gitarrenschule, Stück Nr. 9 Johann Kaspar Mertz · from: Guitar-Skole · guitar · 1 page

  Fingering numbers of the fretting hand on single notes and chord notes, “Adagio”, time signature C.

• Recuerdos de la Alhambra Francisco Tárrega · guitar · tremolo study · 4 pages

  Above the first system are the letters “a m i” of the plucking hand, plus circled string numbers ② and ③ and numbers for the fretting hand.

Common mistakes

• Ignoring the fingering: It plans the movement beyond the current bar.
• Doing the thumb-under at another place: Then you practise a movement that does not fit at the next scale.
• Confusing numbers with strings: The circled numbers mean the string, the plain ones the finger.