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This is an except from Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 by Liszt from John Thompson's Grade 3 (The key signature of this section is F Major):

I don't understand why it recommends playing the E and B♭ together using fingers 1 and 2, which is quite a stretch. It seems much easier to play it with 1 and 3. Is it because B♮ is played in the beginning of the bar with finger 3?

Luke_0
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iddober
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  • If it is "quite a stretch", either you have small hands (which might be the case for a young learner, of course) or your hand position is wrong. Turn your wrist towards the right, with your hand still horizontal. You should be able to stretch nearly as far with 1-2 as you can with 1-5, especially if the 2 is on a black key. –  Jun 06 '15 at 21:16

1 Answers1

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Using 2 instead of 3 allows your third finger to remain on the B-natural. Moving fingers from hovering over one key to another sets a player up for the possibility of more mistakes. While the stretch may be difficult, in the end, it will allow you to play the piece faster and more precisely.

Rey Abolofia
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