How to learn to play the piano
/Learning to play the piano is both challenging and rewarding. This guide explains how you can teach yourself to play the piano by creating a plan and having goals in mind. Today, online piano lessons are a popular way to learn the piano from the comfort of your own home.
How can I teach myself to play the piano?
Learning the piano solo is much like teaching yourself to achieve anything else - it requires dedication! When going to the gym, or learning a new language, one of the main things we are trying to achieve is to form a history of positive experiences. These are the result of trying, finding something suitably challenging, and then succeeding.
We all have days when the trials and tribulations of life become a bit much and we want some time off. Without the history of success and the dopamine boosts which come from that, a new learner won’t have the incentive to approach these new skills unless the majority of the list below is in place.
Appropriate materials
You may be cruising along playing some easy tune and you think to yourself ”I’ll try playing the moonlight sonata”. However, if the piece of music is too long and too difficult then the point at which you’d receive your dopamine hit by succeeding would perhaps be far off in the future. It is important for that reason to choose each step up in difficulty carefully.
Positive reinforcement
Although learning how to play the piano on your own is possible, it is important to understand the value of receiving positive feedback. If you are choosing to do this without the support of a teacher, perhaps you can achieve this by playing to your friends and family, posting on Facebook, or perhaps starting a Facebook group where other people who you know and trust will be able to offer you positive feedback.
A plan of action
We are all busy people and we are much more likely to be able to prepare for something which occurs at a regular time and day each week. Set yourself a schedule, both for your practice and for your theory, and stick to it.
How long does it take to learn to play the piano?
Understanding how long it takes to learn to play the piano is about understanding what you want to achieve. I have been playing the piano for 35 years and there are still many aspects of it which I am still discovering. Therefore it is a more useful approach to consider what your goals are.
Do you want to learn how to play the blues? Do you want to learn how to produce a piece of music? Write a symphony? Learn how to play Fur Elise? etc. Only then can you set a realistic time frame for yourself.
Set yourself learning goals
All learning should be broken up into short-term goals, encompassed by long-term ones. As a beginner, it can be tricky to know what you want to learn, which is where a teacher who knows you will come in handy.
As a beginner, a good place to start is a piano course, which can give you an insight into the different facets of piano music. The Beginners Piano Course, which I wrote, does just that. It is completable within 40 lessons and a minimum of 40 hours of practice. This piano course will enable you to be able to read, write, and improvise music. You’ll also learn how to play chords and play scales, whilst learning piano music which you’ll know and recognise.
Piano courses
A few other useful piano courses to consider are:
ABRSM syllabus
Although this is not a path that everyone wants to take, it is commonly used by many piano students. It is very thorough and the Grades go from 1-8. I have personal experience of taking a number of piano students from complete beginner to Grade 8 in 5 years.
They also have a Jazz option, as well as a classical one. The Jazz syllabus incorporates improvisation and the broad range of styles that you can find within that genre.
As previously said, there really is no better way to set these goals, other than having a piano teacher.
Written by Kevin Matthews - Director at PLUK