Learn Piano
Piano lessons are very popular among young children starting out in music. I remember when I was in second grade about half a dozen of my classmates began taking piano lessons to learn piano, bragging to everyone. Six months later, only 2 were still playing, and by the next year, not one.
I began taking lessons that summer and began to learn piano myself. I played for about 2 years, stopped for 2 years, and then started up again with a new teacher with whom I continued to take lessons with until my sophomore year in college. I took piano lessons for 10 years because I was fortunate enough to have a generous aunt pay for them for me.
I learned a lot from my teacher, but I wonder sometimes if formal lessons are really needed to learn piano. Of course anyone can mess around at the piano and probably figure out how to play ‘Mary had a little Lamb’, but do you need a teacher to be classically trained or at least learn the basics? I know of many people who have taught themselves to play the piano. Being a self-taught pianist is hard work and takes a certain kind of person. If you want to teach yourself and learn piano, you need to:
- Be willing to learn, have drive, and a lot of self-discipline. When I took lessons, I went to my piano teacher’s house once a week for 30 minutes. During the week I practiced for 30 to 60 minutes each day. I needed the deadline of a lesson every week to make sure I practiced. To teach yourself, you need to force yourself to put in the time and stick with it.
- Have access to a piano. Whether you take lessons or not, you need access to a piano on a daily basis. It’s important to practice everyday because cramming in practice once a week will not help you learn or become a better pianist. If you need a piano, check out Shop for Guitars at GuitarCenter.com. If you can’t afford one, find out if there is one at a nearby church, school recreational center, or anywhere else that you can get permission to use. You can use a keyboard, but it’s good to try to use a real piano every once and a while because it has a different feel and much more dynamic use musically.
- Make a commitment. You can’t become Mozart in a week. Even 5 years of regular practice may not bring you to where you want to be. If you just want to be able to play simple chords, with enough practice you could be ready sooner than that, but if you want to play Claire de Lune by Debussy, it will take a bit longer. Talent will help you learn faster, but if you aren’t a musical genius, more practice will make you a better player.
- Know what you want to play. Someone might be able to play amazing chords but be completely lost with a classical piece. There are so many different types of piano music to play: classical, jazz, chords, or all of it. Some people just mess around with the piano and make up great songs, but reading music and understanding it will help you improve and be able to play with other people.
If you are going to teach yourself piano, you should get some sort of teach yourself course. You can get beginners books and work your way through them. You will also need a Hannon book for exercises. Here are some of my top recommendations.