Printed fingering often produces two opposite reactions in adult learners: every number is treated as an inviolable command, or any uncomfortable suggestion is changed immediately. Both responses overlook what fingering is. Apart from the relatively few cases where a composer supplied it, fingering in a modern edition is usually advice from an editor or performer. Henle describes fingering as a stimulus and starting point for the player's own study, while ABRSM explicitly permits alternatives that produce a successful musical outcome.
A fingering cannot be judged by whether one isolated note feels comfortable. The real question is how it carries motion from what comes before to what follows: whether a position change has enough time, whether legato requires finger substitution, whether an accent falls under a controllable finger, and whether greater speed forces the wrist to twist. A solution that feels easy slowly may create repeated interruptions within the full phrase. A locally unfamiliar choice may support the larger direction better.
This does not mean changing fingering on every repetition. Once a solution suits the hand and supports the musical line, mark it clearly and repeat it consistently in the same context so that motor memory receives stable material. Printed fingering deserves to be understood first because it may reveal phrasing, voicing or hand-position design. Respecting the suggestion, however, does not require surrendering judgement.
When testing a new fingering, <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scoreflow/id6796205656">ScoreFlow</a> can help keep the score connected with the practice process, so the chosen solution is assessed repeatedly within the complete phrase rather than only at one difficult note.
https://www.henle.de/What-is-Urtext/
https://www.abrsm.org/sites/default/files/2024-06/Piano%202025%20%26%202026%20Prac%20syllabus%2020240524_access.pdf
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