Sold Out Fingering for Pianists with Julian Jacobson

Level: Advanced
Fee: £320

Fingering for Pianists

with Julian Jacobson

helping you find the best fingering in all your pieces for maximum security, control and comfort

Playing the piano is a “holistic” experience where, if we’re lucky and with patient work and analysis, we can achieve a perfect harmony of mind, body and heart. Yet when the chips are down it is the fingers that are the direct point of contact with the keyboard, the crucial point of delivery. A random, inconsistent or poorly assimilated fingering can spoil one’s best intentions and interfere with flow and self-expression. But what is good fingering, and how do we arrive at it? It depends on many factors including the individual shape and size of each pianist’s hands and the weight and firmness of the keyboard itself. Yet there are certain established techniques and principles that can be learnt and applied throughout your repertoire. A good system is also one that accurately conveys the composer’s slurs, dots and other articulation markings.

This course aims to help you gain more stability and control by focusing on the best fingering for your pieces. We will cover such matters as block and pattern fingering, glissando fingering, redistribution between the hands, using two or more fingers for a single note, and the vexed question of composers’ own fingerings where present. The aim in every case is to find methods which ensure maximum accuracy and reliability combined with – indeed inseparable from – maximum expressive truthfulness.

Bring two or three pieces or movements for a full exploration of this endlessly fascinating topic!

A £50 deposit is required to secure your place on this course. The balance of fees, including accommodation, is due 3 weeks before the course start date.