Fingers Sticking out while practicing Hanon.

[u_chelva]

I have a problem with fingers tensing up and sticking out when I practice Hanon. Just wondering if anyone might be able to share some basic tips to overcome this? 

[dw4rn]

A basic tip would be to play the exercise extremely slowly, relaxing the hand between each note. Don't go on to the next note until all fingers are perfectly at rest. After a while you should be able to increase the tempo, still keeping the hand together and relaxed in between notes.
I am sure there are others here who have more tips, it's not an uncommon problem.

[adodd81802]

Also sounds like you could be hitting the keys too hard causing your fingers to tense.

There are so many debates and questions around Hanon that would open too much discussion to get into but in short, it's the sort of thing I'd actually recommend going to a teacher for better guidance, they can show you in 10 minutes 1 on 1 what it could take paragraphs to effectively explain to you.

my advice based on your complaint is this - play it as quiet as you can, rather than forte, still aim for a clear sound and start a tempo that gives you enough time to think about keeping your fingers low and relaxed

[anacrusis]

1. Can you place your hands over the keys you need to play without tensing your wrists/hands/fingers? If not, start there.

2. Once you know your hands are relaxed, can you press down a key, one finger at a time, without stiffening/cramping the other fingers? You might have to go very slowly and give yourself plenty of time - there is no hurry. Be gentle and soft with your hand in the beginning.

3. Once you can do this, start applying your newfound knowledge of controlling your body to slowly practising the hanon exercise again.

[roncesvalles]

What Hanon are you working on, and what fingers are sticking out?

I've some experience with this, and it's something I'm actively working on.  There are a lot of variables.  With me it's mostly the 5th finger.  There are different things that set it off (stretches, fourth finger on a black key and third on a white, changes of hand position, fast playing, lack of proper placement on the keys, lack of rotation).  It's good to pinpoint what is causing the issue.  Do you have a teacher?
Very slow practice is the best help.  First play it very slowly so there's no tension.  If you feel tension, raise your hand up off the keys and let your hand relax completely.  Repeat this process, and your hand eventually learns to relax, and the interval between sounding adjacent notes and your hand relaxing will become shorter.  Alternatively you can do what Josh Wright suggests and sound the notes, keeping your finger depressed on the key and give your hand a slight shake, encouraging your fingers to relax.  There's more involved in the playing mechanism than just fingers, but this is a start.