Hanon exercise 8 — fingering and practice
- Part I
- 2/4
- 60–108 BPM
About this exercise
Hanon exercise 8 is in Part I of The Virtuoso Pianist, in 2/4. The right hand starts on C3; in 14 bars the figure climbs a step at a time up to G5, and 14 bars bring it back down. The left hand plays the same notes an octave lower. The way down is the climbing figure turned upside down.
Right-hand fingering in the first bar: 1 2 4 5 3 4 2 3. Left hand: 5 4 2 1 3 2 4 3. Keep the same fingers in every bar of the climb; the way down has its own fingering, written on its first bar.
Hanon groups exercises 6, 7, 8: once each one is secure, play them one after another without stopping.
Fingering, first bar
| Note | C3 | E3 | G3 | A3 | F3 | G3 | E3 | F3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Right hand | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| Left hand | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
What it trains
The bar climbs C–E–G–A with 1-2-4-5, skipping finger 3, then comes down in pairs F–G, E–F with 3-4 and 2-3. The skip from 2 to 4 over a third and the third between 5 and 4 in the left hand going up are the stretches.
Common mistakes
- Finger 3 catches a key it should skip on C–E–G.
- The pairs after the top note lose speed.
Tempo plan
Hanon asks for the metronome at 60 to begin with, raised gradually to 108. The player starts at 60; set the speed to 180% to play at 108.
A tempo ladder for this exercise: 60 → 72 → 84 → 96 → 108 BPM, moving up a step only after two clean runs. Say the fingers aloud (1-2-4-5, 3-4, 2-3) for the first few bars; the skipped finger is the trap.
Questions and answers
What does Hanon exercise 8 train?
It trains a broken chord up to finger 5, then the pairs 3-4 and 2-3 coming down.
What is the fingering for Hanon exercise 8?
In the first bar the right hand plays 1 2 4 5 3 4 2 3 and the left hand 5 4 2 1 3 2 4 3. The same fingers repeat in every bar of the climb.