Can someone explain to me the mechanics of Hannon exercises on the hand?
You are on the right track with what you are already thinking. I think of “Hannon” as calysthenics for the fingers, hands, and forearms. They function in a way not only to teach you the various scales, but build up the muscles in your hands and arms that you will use A LOT when playing piano for long periods of time. Yeah, playing scales over and over again to try and build up the muscles in your fingers/hand/arms may be a drag, but how much different is that from lifting a barbell up and down over and over again? Pretty boring stuff – but you’re building muscle. You may not realize it when you are first starting out, but the exercises will also help your speed. And playing in general, will become physically easier. The only way I can descirbe it is to go find the heaviest baseball bat you can find and swing it around a few times. Now go find a real light weight one (or even one of those plastic “Whiffle Ball” bats) and start swinging that around. See how much faster you can do it? Fee
