hanon 60 exercises

[liszmaninopin]

How useful are Hanon's exercises overall?  I am considering taking up learning them, but am mildly leery because I have heard that they can be dangerous.  

[PoSeiDoN]

I am probably one of the few people on here who will vouch for them.  Hanon is wonderful, no matter what level you're at technically.  Playing through Hanon (and not necessarily the entire book) each day will help you dramatically--you and your teacher will both notice significant changes, especially in finger agility and dexterity.  I know it may not be the most fun, but just keep in mind that you are gaining valuable technique that will help you GREATLY when it comes time to practice the stuff you enjoy.

I don't know about the dangerous part.  As long as you have good form, and as long as you don't do Hanon for four hours straight each day, I think you should be fine.  

[buck]

Hizz..

I think Hanon's 60 exercises are great too.  I started on them for 3 months playing 2-3 hours a day during my school holidays to regain the dexterity of my stiff fingers from 12 years of not playing the piano, ...and i's great workout.  

I think they're indispensible for the beginners who need to work on their fingers and basic techniques.  True, they don't impart much musicality, but then again, that's not the goal of the book.  

So, try it.. I think you'd like the wonders of the exercises making your fingers play better.    

[RiskyP]

So you guys think that hanon is useful because you will feel good once you can play it fast? I wonder how many of hanon's exercises actually appear in beginner-intermediate literature? I mean, I can play a few scales very-very fast, and that makes me feel good too, but even with the ability to be very agile, it doesn't help my control in new situations that do not involve scales.

If hanon's exercises occur often in literature (I don't know) than I think it would be useful, but if not, then why? What is the use of having fast fingers when you hit the wrong notes - for each new passage you encounter you will have to practice that one passage to gain control over it. You can gain finger agility by just practicing scales - which actually do occur often.

Tell me what you think?

[PoSeiDoN]

I don't play Hanon as a source that will teach me actual finger patterns that appear in pieces (although you'd be surprised how often it happens).  But it gets my fingers warm.  It helps them to be more precise and quick.  

So, all in all, I use it as a preparatory measure.  Not a direct vehicle to facility in a piece, but to ability, in general.

Kinda hard to explain...sorry!

[RiskyP]

If I was convinced that hanon actually made you more precise I would be doing it right now too. Unfortunately, I haven't heard anyone say something about hanon that they could back up with some sort of explanation. I am just a sceptical person by nature and I am not going to do hanon just because some people say it makes you more precise... please, someone tell me why hanon makes you more precise?!  

[PoSeiDoN]

Experiencing, not hearing or seeing, is believing.  

[allchopin]

what is the point of excercises when you can learn 'pieces'   instead? i mean, instead of using 30 minutes to learn the notes of a warm up excercise, learn a chopin etude, which is much more rewearding!

[BoliverAllmon]

My teacher uses Hanon for an entirely different reason than stated here. When she gets a new student she tells them to play the Hanon. We are required to play it every day and learn new exercises weekly. It does help to limber up the fingers, but the big thing it does is tell her how committed to the piano you are. If you are willing to work every day for 30 min. or so on something boring, then she realizes that you are going to do whatever it takes to beome better. Now, once she realizes this she moves you on to Bach's 2-part inventions or some other etudes.

Boliver

[bachopoven]

yes, actual pieces would be better than Hanon. But Hanon in my opinion is for speed and accuracy, as someone already mentioned here. So in that respect, Hanon is great.

Hanon is easy to familiarize oneself with, saving you a lot of study time. That takes much more time with actual pieces, for sight reading and memorizing the piece.

With Hanon, you can quickly understand the patten from the beginning, and you just go up and down the keyboard, concentarting FULLY on SPEED, FINGERING and ACCURACY.  

I admit, it's very mechanical, but we need that too!! Especially us beginners. It's also good for warm ups.

[rachfan]

In my time I learned the entire Hanon.  Now, I use it for only one purpose not mentioned here previously--eveness in playing.  Occasionally in playing repertoire, there'll be a day when my playing seems a bit ragged.  What I do then is play the entire Part II of Hanon.  Then when I return to regular practice, it's like magic!  My playing is even once again.  Probably not many people know this particular problem fix.

There is virtually no possibility of injury in playing Hanon.  These are 5-finger exercises playing simple patterns.  Where people are more apt to get into trouble is in "independence of the fingers" exercises, which figure into Hanon not at all.  Even a fine book for that particular purpose like Alloys Schmidt's exercises requires a careful and cautious approach to avoid the possibility of injury.  

[dj]

i actually don't play hanon for speed or accuracy. my teacher assigned hanon as a way to gain more control of the hands and to relax more especially in the left hand. also, racing through the exercises really doesn't accomplish a lot. i play slowly and in varying rythms, concentrating on keeping my wrists loose. remember also that hanon is not a piece of music, it is a warm up, it takes all of 2 seconds to learn an exercise, and playing them loosens up your hands for your more challenging pieces.

[Irock1ce]

i wanted to learn the hanon exercises.. then my teacher imposed the Brahm's 51 exercises on me instead.. and i like them a lot more and u get a lot more from them too!