Hanon Finger Exercises

What is the difference between the simplified and original version of Hanon exercises?

The simplified version of Hanon exercises simplify the rhythms and shorten the range used on the piano, making them more accessible to younger or less experienced pianists. The original Hanon exercises include 60 exercises, some of which are quite technically challenging. The simplified versions normally limit their exercises to around 20 to 30 in order to practice foundational technical skills, but not exhaust the students with the more challenging exercises.

How fast should I be able to play Hanon exercises?

Playing the Hanon exercises is not about speed, but cleanliness and the development of technique. These two factors will determine the correct speed for the student. It’s always recommended for the student to practice slower first to gain technical understanding and proper execution. Then, when a student feels ready, they can speed up to a faster tempo.

Who is the target audience for Hanon exercises?

Anyone in the late elementary level and above who would like to play piano can use Hanon exercises. They are great exercises to warm up the hand, wrist and fingers, and to practice proper metronomic execution. They also provide good physical workouts and can increase dexterity, and they are now available in simplified and full versions!

How long should I practice Hanon daily?

This largely depends on your piano skill level. If you are a late elementary piano student or early intermediate piano student, Hanon exercise practice can take roughly 5 to 15 minutes. If you are a more skilled pianist, you will want to devote more time to practicing technique, which can certainly include Hanon. It’s important to remember that an exhausting amount of practice can cause tension or injury if improper technique is used, so be wise in your practice.

Are Hanon exercises still relevant?

There is a difference in opinion as to whether piano students should practice Hanon exercises or not. The argument comes from the fact that Hanon exercises can be unmusical and repetitive, they can cause tension or injury if done poorly, and there are other ways to practice necessary piano skills. This author believes that with good practice habits, Hanon is a great exercise that can help improve your technique and get your fingers ready to be their most musical. My advice is: don’t practice them too much, make sure you are using proper posture and not letting tension creep into your body, and have fun!  

Hello and welcome back I'm Joseph Hoffman, and in this lesson we're going to revisit a collection of famous finger power exercises
by C.L. Hanon.
These are finger exercises that I have used for years, ever since I was a child,
and I highly recommend them as a way to build finger strength and speed,
and also as a way to develop a clear and even tone.
Let's come to the piano to get started.
Let's start by reviewing our piano posture checklist.
Whenever you're doing finger power, it's super important that you're establishing really great piano posture.
Actually, anytime you play, but especially when you're working on finger power.
Number one on the checklist is your bench.
Make sure that you're not sitting too close. That will lead to really tight elbows and some tension.
So pull your bench out where your elbows can float just barely comfortably in front of you.
Make sure that the bench is high enough
that from your elbow to your knuckles is about parallel with the floor.
It should look level.
Next is to have a tall back with relaxed shoulders.
And number three is arm weight.
So remember this.
Take one of your arms and just pick it up with your other hand, or you could ask a friend or someone at home to do this for you.
And then drop it and just see if it can just plop on your lap.
So you can feel the weight
of your arm,
and gravity is going to do a lot of the work for you as you play the piano. instead of thinking of playing with your fingers,
like this, think of letting just gravity help you drop into each key.
That's playing with arm weight.
And the last one is hand and finger shape.
Remember that you want your fingers to just have a naturally curved shape. Not overly curved,
not straight, but just this natural kind of relaxed curve.
And then as you play, make sure that the joints of your fingers stay in this curved shape, not bending backward like that.
This means your finger has collapsed. I call that hula fingers.
You want to keep the joints in this outwardly curved shape for maximum art ...