You Only Need 3 Piano Exercises For WAY Faster Technique

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[Kumquat_Lord]

I remember seeing an interview with Jordan Rudess where he said his teacher pushed his arms back and forth across the keyboard as he did scales, and it actually helped teach him to move his arms and play fluidly. And clearly it worked, because the man is an absolute wizard.

[mlvogh]

❤ The Hanon exercises are so focused! I love them. Thanks for highlighting them!

[lemonadeslices]

6:41 for anyone wondering: these are similar to the hanon exercises, which have been incredibly helpful. it's also incredibly difficult/frustrating, but once you get it, it really helps.

[Clasam]

Fun fact: The extensor muscle of your ring finger (the muscle that lifts your finger up before you strike a key) is SHARED with your pinky finger.

That's why it's so much harder to raise JUST your ring finger with your palm on a table.

Thats why dynamics and timing is generally more difficult with your ring finger than the others.

[AdamFrasca]

Warms my heart that my piano teacher taught my the exact same exercises back in the day

[lidianane]

Everyone knows the secret to play fast is: if you can play it slowly, you can play it quickly

[k_slyons]

Have played through the entire Hanon book and largely credit it with my ability to play quick and in control

[kylekennedy]

As I started through these, the second one threw me back in jazz ensemble from years ago.

The instructor/ bandleader/ conductor wanted us to work on our groove or timing or something so he just passed out a bunch of basic lines copied from different practice books. We went through the page at a moderate speed and would redo it straight, swing, and reverse swing.

It kinda locks in the brain and the fingers as far as how movement happens on the instrument.

[PenultimatePenPen]

One of the first things my teacher did was give me a hanon exercise book. Very helpful stuff in there, especially to warm up

[lawrencetaylor]

I was moved to tears as Charles played the Hanon. His fingers danced across the keys, and yet reached deep down into the bowels of the piano and it was raw emotional energy and yet with a heavenly sound like angels singing.
Maestro.
Merci.

[brandenryba]

I gotta say, the content you make has really helped me understand this incredible button box I have been casually poking at my whole life. I think about the music I've been listening to in a completely different way now and I've only gotten better at playing since I've found your channel. Thank you and keep up the good work.

[KeysPete]

Just thought I'd add my 2cents. Years ago (another lifetime), I studies at the RAoM in London. Some of the exercises were insane. I have one: chromatic in third apart for one hand. Then both hands playing thirds but in opposite directions, eventually keeping time to 160bpm. Exercises we had to do were of utmost importance including scales and arpeggios. These were the foundation of muscle memory for different keys. Timing though, don't forget. Thanks you for this upload

[mougliboi]

There are some great etudes by Czerny, for the 5 notes wich strenghten the individuality with 4-5 the first etude goes etc. These exercises sound and feel so much like the first 6 etudes in the virtuoso book. Hanon is great too still, but the Czerny etudes in my opinion is more "music", not just finger exercises, even though they are just etudes.

[SaadTheGlad]

I love how I recognize cause I did them years ago, great to know I was on the right track.

[lessefrost]

I was confused what you meant The Hanon exercises until you flashed the cover. Came back to me like a brain blast! Good memories of spending some time with my old piano instructor working on these! These are great dexterity exercises to do as warm ups and just to focus on the physical and technical skill needed to play!

[SnappBacc]

This cover of jumper from geometry dash by ace player pretty much taught me how maintain separate rhythms in left hand and right hand, it's a very tricky piece and I doubt the transcription was actually intended to be played, but after a lot cramps and having to hold my left hand down I finally was able to play it properly without wearing myself out and then fluidity

[kevinhayward]

This is wonderful. Very thorough and well explained. I hope you can do more of this type of video. My students respond well to video content and I love that they can rewatch a video to check for understanding. Thanks!

[IvoryMadness.]

As a (really) beginner pianist, The first exercise and the first of Hanon was literally one of the first things I did!

[ras]

Yes great exercise another one is I would say you can take this same exercise and put it to the black keys as well the reason I would do this is you realize a lot people don’t teach practicing on the black keys where you hit black keys is different form the white keys also your third finger coming down the scale has to jump, gone up your second finger has to jump. Whole octave scales help teach crossovers and as well good time to also practice slide/grace notes techniques from black to white keys. Working on scale techniques becomes one of the biggest challenges especially when your writing and composing your own music this is where you intervals, melodies and solos all come from getting ideas form other pieces of music is great but you also need to know why they add keys that are not in the scale which comes from understanding natural and harmonic notation or it’s based on theory. One of the greatest advice given was from Allen Toussaint which he said it’s not the notes you play that matter but the notes you don’t play that matter the most. He said just because a piece of music has note doesn’t mean you have to play that note. This is advanced understanding of music theory

[gretareinarsson]

I think five finger exercises are a daily must. For beginners Hanon (selected and in all keys) and some Czerny are great and Schmanns Album for the young and Bach Two and three part inventions are great for every day playing.