Question about fingering technique, "not hanon like".

[pianostudent]

I know that there are a lot of topics like this in this forum. I have been reading a few so far. However,  I am new to this forum and haven't had time to read the whole site. Please forgive me if the question is duplicated some in some sense.

I started learning piano two months ago. At first, my piano teacher asked me to do some kind of fingering exerciese and I would like to know how you think about this. Many people think hanon is not worth to try, so I am not really sure about this too.

First, he introduced me the concept of forearm rotation arm weight, and he asked me to explore that by playing with individual finger.  For example, for the right hand thumb, I had to do the rotation to the right, (he gave me the technical term but I forgot.) Then explored the sound that I could make ppp pp mp and so on also repeated the note a few times with different speed.

I have to explored this on every fingers. The purpose was not to gain strength but to practice how I can control and transfer my arm weight and also speed from one finger to another. Then, we move to practice with connected two notes for example playing with finger 1 and then 3. That would be totally 20 combinations of that. The exercise stopped at connected three notes (totally 60 combinations).

We wouldn't do anything furthur than that. He told me that was enough to know how to control my finger for beginner at that time. All the exercises were done in two weeks, and he never checked me on the exercises again. However, he encouraged me to practice the exercise on my own for three more months. He also told me that when I got stuck at any place in a pieces, I have to break that sopt down and do it in a small set as I did for two connected notes and three connected note.

Well, Is it healthy to do this kind exercise? Any comment and advice would be helpful.

Oh I forgot to tell that the hands position are at E F# G# A# B.

Thank you
(Sorry for my poor English.  )

[Rach3]

Sounds like a good method. A lot of student-level people I know don't know how to use the weight of their arms, they "hold" their arm in the air and play with their fingers, very tense. What you are learning is very correct and will make things much easier down the line.

(my $0.02)

-Rach3

[pianonut]

if you do a slight undulation with your wrist at the same time time as you flatten your hands to play, it's better.  you don't want to ONLY use rotation, but a combination of flatter fingers and hands at the same time as you play 2 - 3 notes.  it's kind of cat-like.  the more notes, the wider the crescent shape your wrist follows *middle, down, middle  you follow it backwards  *middle, up, middle (playing the notes or starting again on the same note) as you would an orbit around a planet.