Dr Sera Smolen

Putting in your own Fingerings 

When we move our hand and arm to another position, it is a shift. A forward extension can be thought of as a shift! Shifts almost always occur when the bow is stopped, on the string. The exception to this are the “romantic shifts”, below. 

1.Always shift as little as possible
2. Always avoid shifting twice in a row (once in awhile there is no other solution....but, rarely)
3. Always know which finger you are shifting on, and which string you are shifting on. Sometimes we shift on the thumb, on the neck. 

Rules of Shifting 

We follow these rules depending on the context. Sometimes one rule is more important than another rule.... We combine these rules in different ways. 

When possible:
Choose to shift arriving on a beat
Choose to shift during a half step, rather than a whole step
Choose to use finger patterns which follow melodic patterns
Choose to use your diatonic knowledge: your knowledge of scale and arpeggio patterns 

When we shift on the “old” finger, it is called a Classical shift. These can be for more “instrumental” passages, where musical lines tend to cross strings more, with less going up and down one string. 

When we shift on the “new” finger, it is called a Romantic shift. Here, we shift during the up bow, or the down bow, so we can hear a “yah” sound as we shift. Romantic shifts are for “vocal”, lyrical melodic lines. Shifting will tend to be up and down one string with fewer string crossings. 

In the end, we all have different hands. Our hands are bigger or smaller.....and, in the end, we touch the cello in our own ways.... 

In orchestra—-If your preferred fingerings are different, try allowing the outside player to put fingerings above the notes, and inside player to put fingerings underneath the notes.