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F-sharp major arpeggio

The notes are played with the left hand in the bass clef. My current fingering is: (5,1)-5-2-1-2-1 The octave jump feels strange not matter what fingers I use. I'd appreciate the help.

If the picture doesn't show, these are the notes; they are all ascending: F3#-F4# (octave), F4#, C3#, F5#, A, C4#

Edit: The key is A major, so there were typos above (fixed). F and C have sharps. The piece is around 50 beats per minute for a quarter note, and it is in 4/4 time.

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  • Hard for me to test viability without a keyboard in front of me, and I don't know the tempo or style... but does (51)-1-4-3-2-1 work?
    – MattPutnam
    Commented Mar 30, 2016 at 19:13
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    I think (51)-1-4-2-1-2 works better because it's hard to stretch the 4 and the 3rd fingers. I think jumping with the 4th fingers feels more comfortable too. Thanks for your input. The tempo for the quarter note is around 90-100 beats per minute.
    – Aaron
    Commented Mar 30, 2016 at 19:24
  • There's going to be some kind of jump after the octave — that's unavoidable. I'm more concerned about the 1-2-1 at the end for a ♯-♮-♯ sequence.
    – 200_success
    Commented Mar 30, 2016 at 19:56
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    I'm confused about the notation. You say the first two notes are F, then there are F# and C#? How can this be without accidentals (whether we assume a 2 sharps key signature or not?
    – Laurence
    Commented Mar 31, 2016 at 0:20
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    Asking the inernet for fingerings is a bad idea, since everyone's hands, training and habits are very different. I wouldn't even think about playing this any other way than 51-1-5-3-2-1, but that doesn't mean that you should play it this way at all.
    – Kilian Foth
    Commented Mar 31, 2016 at 6:31

2 Answers 2

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There is never a "correct" answer for fingering, but I suggest:

(51)-5-3-2-1-2 (but the last finger depends rather on what comes next)

At the beginning: it is usually better to avoid repeating a finger on a key, and the thinking behind the perhaps surprising initial jump is that your hand "knows" where the second F# is, because your thumb is sitting on it. So it is very easy for 5 to land on it -- and particularly because it is a black note. Then you are ready to move up smoothly, instead of having to start with a hand over movement.

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We don't know the tempo, but since the 16-notes are marked as two triplets, not one sextuplet, it might be better to move your hand on the (half)-beat, i.e. something like 51-3-1 4-2-1 or 51-2-1 5-2-1.

There's nothing obviously "wrong" with your 51-5-2 1-2-1 (or 51-5-3 1-3-1), if that works for you.

A fingering like 51-1-5-3-2-1 might tend to put a false accent on the second or third note, if the notation of two triplets not one sextuplet is significant.

If all the notes are really on the black keys (either because your description in the OP has some typos, or because you don't understand what key signatures mean) then somebody with big hands might prefer 51-5-4-3-2-1, letting your hand move up as you play the arpeggio. With big hands you might prefer 41 or even 31 on the low octave, with your wrist turned to the left so your hand moves less distance than with 51. The black keys are easier to hit cleanly than the white ones!

Whatever fingering you use, don't squirm around trying to play the notes legato. That's what the sustain pedal is for!

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