Learn to Play Piano: Its easier than you think and can be done at Home. Here’s the how-to, various methods, techniques, & helpful resources.
There are various teaching methods available today to learn to play the Piano, so you really don’t have to be completely dependent on a teacher to play a piano.
How Does It Start?
So what is it that attracts someone towards this instrument? Well, there could be several reasons or several events that could trigger it.
It’s another thing if someone is forcing you to take piano lessons, and you despise it. In that case it is really not going to take you too far. For instance, you may want to play the guitar or drums, but your parents want you to play the piano, or just because your parents have read that learning to play the piano has a positive impact on the development of a child, they want you to play the piano.
But what i’m talking about is that event which triggers that desire in you to play this instrument. It could be a music sequence from any of your childhood favorite movie, or your favorite music track, or you just happen to see a great performer and you are just mesmerized by what you see.
And that is enough to get your attention and kindle that desire from within. It is then that you are ready to take on the challenge, and it is when learning really starts becoming fun.
You will sit down at the piano for hours practicing, memorizing, & honing your skills, and within weeks or few months the results will be here for you to see.
Does It Really Take Long?
So does it really take long for something like this to happen? It purely depends on the person and the circumstances. But for anything like that to happen, you need to get started on the piano at the earliest.
Because if you start taking lessons, it is very likely that you will hear more of music, you will see more youtube videos, you will see more performers playing the piano, you will go for concerts, and so on. And some of it is likely to trigger that very important event which will ignite that desire from within.
However, if you are expecting that as a novice you will just take a few days of lessons and then one fine day you will wake up with the ability to play all your favorite songs, that is definitely not going to happen. If you want to learn to play piano, you must be dedicated and willing to put in the hours. And most importantly, you need to begin today!
Everyone Deserves to Learn
There is no doubt that everybody deserves opportunities to learn to play this beautiful instrument! Besides the several benefits that it offers, it is such a wonderful skill to have. It is really an amazing investment of your time, and you’ll never regret it. It is one of the more fulfilling things that you will do in your life.
But the good thing is that there are so many resources available, some of them free, that in terms of having access to the materials, you should not face any problem learning to play a piano. Nowadays, you really don’t need a private teacher to show you how to learn to play. You can do it on your own (at home), and that way you can even save on the 30$/hour private teacher.
However, it is important to know that the first few months of learning and getting into a practice routine can be tough, and that is where you really need to be determined. Most of the time, it is within this duration that a lot of people quit.
How to Get Started?
Though we all want to learn to play the piano, it has to be approached in a different manner depending on the profile of the student.
The teaching method will vary depending on whether you are a kid or an adult who wants to get started, whether you are an intermediate level player who wants to improve his/her sight-reading or is looking for ear training.
Community College
It also depends on where you are taking the lessons from. You can definitely go to a community college and take a short term course, lasting about a few months. But then, it is quite possible that there could be many students there, which means that the pace of learning could be slow.
You will end up learning the basics, some triads and so on, but probably not much that you can play the songs on your own. It is also quite possible that may have already known how to play those basics. What you really need in that case is a method that teaches you how to play open position chords, more songs where you can use those chord positions, which will allow you to play modern sounding chords right away and that too with both hands.
Playing by Ear
Besides, there are also several ways to learn, one such way being to play the piano by ear. There are many musicians who can play the piano without knowing much of music theory. A bit of caution here! You really don’t have to take it literally. It is most likely that those musicians did not have access to proper learning resources and hence they figured out on their own how to play the instrument. With so much information available today, you at least need to know the basics of music theory before you decide to take the play be ear route to learning.
Classical Route
There are some teachers who take the classical route to teach, which means those courses for piano require years and years of study. That is a well documented fact. If you want to play the classics, you should expect to spend a few years learning. There are several students who go that route, mostly because they’re not aware of the alternatives. And the end result is that they either give up or feel that piano is a tough instrument to learn.
However, not everybody is interested in playing classical, though it is important to know how to play in that style. What is really required is a well rounded course that starts with the basics and gives you a basic idea of how to play in the various styles of music. There are definitely better alternative ways to play piano, some of them designed in such a way that you can just sit down and play off the top of your head.
Self Learning
Given the quality of learning courses available nowadays, you can even learn to play piano at home.
That’s right! You just need a good computer and you’re good to go!
The high-quality video lessons show you everything you need to know to start learning to play the piano. This is one of the most popular learning methods used by students nowadays.
The various online courses and programs available nowadays are packaged attractively, are fun to use and very interactive so that the piano lessons are easy to absorb.
Choices Can Add to Confusion
There is no doubt that learning to play the piano is an amazing skill to have, and it is a dream for many people. It’s just that very few people actually take the steps to start learning. Procrastination is definitely a factor for most people but the fact that there are several learning courses out there to woo you, with their “learn quickly” methods, adds to the confusion when it comes to choosing the right way to get started.
There is no doubt that learning to play music by ear is helpful and important for any current or inspiring musician, but then that should not be your only focus. There are many courses out there that will try to tell you that learning to play the piano by ear is the only way to get started. However, there are many who have learnt how to play the piano using sheet music, and play with good expressions.
Another thing to note – being able to play just the melody part is easier, but learning how to harmonize it with chords takes time. And that is an important aspect to learn, if you like the piano. After all, you have so many keys so that you can take a melody and make it sound much better by harmonizing it.
Buying a Piano
Though this is a different topic altogether, you really don’t have to invest in an expensive instrument right from the beginning. So forget that acoustic piano – its expensive and requires regular maintenance.
Its perfectly alright to learn to play a digital piano, or even a keyboard to begin with. Depending on how you progress with your skills, you should consider upgrading your keyboard instrument in a few years time.
Correct Technique is Important
It is important to remember that most beginners try to play things a lot faster, and their fingers keep slipping because of that. They easily get impressed by someone who is playing much faster, and fail to understand that it is better to play slowly with expressions, rather than play fast in a mechanical manner. Most children want to play the piano fast and that is definitely a bad move. You have to make them realize that and re-condition their fingering technique.
So if you are self-learning this is something to keep in mind as you practice. Using the suggested/correct fingering techniques is of utmost importance as a beginner.
To Conclude
Most beginners easily get discouraged, but it is important to keep going as it does get easier soon if you keep practicing. You will definitely be able to play songs and get there; it just takes time. Software courses, though very effective, will not be able to offer you this sort of encouragement that is needed initially. However, these programs can keep you engaged and challenged, and they are quite cost effective as well. If you consider what private teachers charge for the lessons, these pay for themselves in just a couple of lessons.
Your goal should be to learn as much as possible (am talking about the concepts here) so that you will be able to play music one day, all by yourself. That should really be your long term objective of learning to play the piano.
I firmly believe in the following philosophy, and would encourage you as well to do so.
“Give a man a fish, he will feed himself for a day.
Teach a man HOW to fish, and he will feed himself for a lifetime.”
All the best!
Don’t forget to read reviews of the various learning materials & piano methods, also go through the various piano techniques, and useful resources that you could use to become better at playing this instrument.
Learn to Play Piano the Right Way with this Piano Software
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