Charles-Louis Hanon (2 July 181919 March 1900) was a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

pedagogue Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political, and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...

and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

. He is best known for his work ''

The Virtuoso Pianist in 60 Exercises The Virtuoso Pianist (''Le Pianiste virtuose'') by Charles-Louis Hanon (1819 – 1900), is a compilation of sixty exercises meant to train the pianist in speed, precision, agility, and strength of all of the fingers and flexibility in the wrists ...

'', which is still used today for modern piano teaching, but over the years the method has also faced criticisms. He was born in

Renescure Renescure (; ) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Philippe de Commines (1447–1511) was a writer and diplomat in the courts of Burgundy and France. He was born in Renescure which was then in the county of Flanders. It is ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in 1819, and died in

Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

in 1900.

Biography

Charles-Louis Hanon was born in northern France in the village of Renescure on July 2, 1819. Trained as an organist by a local teacher, it is not known if he received more advanced musical education. At age 27, he moved a short distance west from Renescure to Boulogne-sur-Mer where he lived with his brother François who was also a musician. Music was never the exclusive focus of Hanon's life: he was also a devout

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, a Third Order Franciscan and a member of the

Society of St. Vincent de Paul The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul (SVP or SVdP or SSVP) is an international voluntary organization in the Catholic Church, founded in 1833 for the service of the poor. Started by Frédéric Ozanam and Emmanuel-Joseph Bailly de Surcy and nam ...

. It is known from an 1869 article that Hanon was involved with a monastic order called the "Brothers of the Christian Schools". Founded in the 17th century by Saint John Baptist de la Salle, the schools run by the order provide free instruction to poor children. One such school was established in Boulogne-sur-Mer in approximately 1815 by Léon de Chanlaire and Father Benoît-Agathon Haffreingue; free music instruction was offered there by 1830.

''The Virtuoso Pianist''

Piano students all over the world know of Hanon's famous training exercises. Both

Sergei Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and Conducting, conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a compos ...

and

Josef Lhévinne Josef Lhévinne (13 December 18742 December 1944) was a Russian pianist and piano teacher. Lhévinne wrote a short book in 1924 that is considered a classic: ''Basic Principles in Pianoforte Playing''. Asked how to say his name, he told ''The L ...

claimed Hanon to be the secret of why the Russian piano school delivered an explosion of virtuosi in their time, for the Hanon exercises have been obligatory for a long time throughout Russian conservatories; there were special examinations at which one had to know all exercises by heart, to be played in all keys at high speed. Although most respected pedagogues and pianists acknowledge the value of Hanon's exercises, they have their detractors. Some critics have questioned the merits of the independent finger technique which the exercises seek to cultivate, with some pedagogues, such as

Abby Whiteside Abby Whiteside (Aug 27, 1881 Vermillion, South Dakota – Dec 10, 1956 Menlo Park, California) was an American piano teacher. She challenged the finger-centric approach of much classical piano teaching and instead advocated a holistic attitude i ...

, considering them to be actively harmful. It has become a custom in some music schools to hold a Hanon Marathon, in which the exercises are played competitively, the Church Street School for Music and Art being the first to have coined the term and hold the event.

Other works and derivatives

Hanon also wrote 50 instructional pieces, ''Méthode Élémentaire de Piano'', and a collection of ''50 Ecclesiastical Chants''. Charles Nunzio wrote ''Hanon for Accordion'', a two-volume set of exercises for

piano accordion A piano accordion is an accordion equipped with a right-hand keyboard similar to a piano or organ. Its acoustic mechanism is more that of an organ than a piano, as they are both aerophones, but the term "piano accordion"—coined by Guido Deir ...

based on a similar philosophy, which has recently been reissued in an updated edition. A ''Hanon'' for

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

and

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

have also been written.

Sources

*Josef Lhévinne - ''Basic Principles in Pianoforte Playing'' *

James Francis Cooke James Francis Cooke (November 14, 1875, Bay City, Michigan – March 3, 1960, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania) was an American music educator.''New York Times'' obituary, March 5, 1960, ''Dr. James Cook, 84, Ex-Editor of Etude'' He was a pianist, com ...

- ''Great pianists on piano playing'' (chapter - Rachmaninov)

References

External links