Learn Piano From Home Tip Play With Others
Once you reach a certain level of ability, where you are pretty comfortable with a lot of the notes, chords and piano techniques, you should start to play with others. You can invite people to come and see you who know how to play the piano. If you have musical friends, this might just happen organically.
This can be great for a few reasons. Firstly, it acts as a bit of a reward. if youve played on your own for a while, learning a song with other musicians can be a fun way to use this new knowledge. Whether they are playing another instrument or even singing, it can be a fantastic thing to do for your own motivation.
It can also be a good way to work on timing. This is something that a lot of people who learn piano from home gloss over. Playing in time can be tough, especially with complex songs, but with other musicians there, you are more likely to learn how to keep up with them.
Playing piano with others there is also a way to get the elusive feedback so many people find difficult when self-teaching. It is best to play with another pianist present, as theyll be able to show you how to play things correctly and pick up on any errors in your technique.
The Discovery Of Learning Visually
Visual learning can take place with many different mediums. A common way to transcribe notes is to write the actual note letters long hand which is simply writing the notes of a piece of music alphabetically. You may do this if some showed you the notes on the keyboard or transcribed them for you.
Video is another visual learning tool for obvious reasons and YouTube is the most instantaneous and diverse library in the world for visual learning on any subject. But video is transitory, meaning that its constantly moving so there will definitely be some consistent pauses and rewinds when youre utilizing it as a learning tool.
However, the more knowledge you have about fundamentals and content that youre trying to learn, the less youll have to recycle though certain passages of the video to grasp what is being taught. This makes videos an excellent supplement to visual material that is stationary.
The most visual tool to learn notes and chords is keyboard diagrams because theres no translating whats to be played on the keyboard. What you see is what keys you press. Youll find these in a lot of chord encyclopedias and some course materials.
They dont show the rhythm of notes and chords but its a great start because you can add rhythms that you create as well as those you can decipher by ear.
What Age Can A Child Start To Play The Piano
We have all seen the YouTube videos of 4 year old prodigies playing complex classical pieces on the piano. Try to erase that from your mind. In other words, these children are very much the exception and their significant talent puts unnecessary expectations on your child.
For the rest of us, there are some natural hurdles that we should recognise. To begin with, the piano has 88 keys, and was designed for adults to play. Childrens hands and strength need time to grow.
It is recommended that a child have access to a piano several years before beginning to formally learn the piano. Very young children can enjoy playing with a parent or friend. Through this, they can become familiar with the instrument and gain confidence.
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There are many great games and learning exercises that can be lots of fun in these early years. Importantly, this also imparts the sense that piano is fun to play. Hopefully this will set the stage for wanting to get better at playing the instrument themselves.
As a guide, it is generally accepted that the ages between six and eight years old are the best to start formal lessons.
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Learn Piano From Home Getting The Right Equipment
Some people who learn piano in another location such as going to a teachers house, within an educational building or in a group, will be learning using someone elses equipment. Pianos, keyboards, and digital pianos might be provided for this purpose.
If you are going to learn piano from home you will need to get the right equipment to learn. There are a few ways to do this:
- An acoustic piano. Some of us are lucky enough to have full acoustic pianos within our homes, these can be used to learn how to play, and some people would much prefer this over learning by using a keyboard or digital piano. Of course, acoustic pianos need more maintenance such as tuning.
- Keyboards. Sometimes keyboards can have a bit of a cheap and flimsy feel to them and arent ideal for learning, but if you get a good keyboard that has weighted keys or at least touch sensitivity, you might be able to use it to learn piano.
- Digital pianos. This is arguably the most popular way for people to learn piano from home. They allow for the feel of an acoustic piano without the maintenance, and they dont cost as much as acoustic pianos. They are also portable. Finding a good digital piano can be a very good way of getting the majority of the equipment you need.
You shouldnt let the gear you have be what defines you as a piano player. If you dont have access to amazing equipment or your piano is just a tiny bit out of tune, you can still learn most of what you need to in order to get started.
What Are The Best Online Piano Lessons For Seniors
Flowkey offers online piano courses for all ages including the best online piano lessons for seniors. The app has gamification elements but its very well-designed and easy to use. Another good option is Playground Sessions. This versatile app offers a wide range of genres and guidance from famous musicians.
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Signs Your Child Is Ready To Learn The Piano:
When deciding what age to start piano lessons for your child, look for the following signs.
Playing The Piano With Both Hands
Its Show Time!
In this lesson, we will combine everything we have learned so far. But dont worry we will carefully explain each step we take together.
First, look at the notation. The notes for your right hand are shown on the upper staff, those for your left hand are on the staff below:
So, you will play the first bar with your left hand, the second with your right, and the third and fourth bars with both hands together. To get an idea of what the song sounds like, listen to the audio sample:
Your browser doesn’t support HTML5 audio. Here is a link to the audio instead.
Place finger #5 of your left hand on the low C of your keyboard. The low C is 7 white keys below middle C. If you dont find low C immediately, look at the keyboard in the picture above it is marked with the number 5.
Now, place the finger #1 of your right hand on middle C, which is also marked with the number 1. Your hands are now in the correct starting position.
In the third bar, you will have to adjust your finger positions. Finger #1 of the left hand changes to the note A, below middle C. Finger #3 of the right hand is on the note A above middle C. If you had left your fingers in their starting position, you wouldnt have enough fingers left to play the notes beyond the third bar. Try it out for yourself!
A lesson on music stems and beams
First lets take a look at the song shown. What do you notice?
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Yousician Best For Budding Multi
Yousician learning app found a place among the best online piano lessons because of its well-structured content, exciting features, and gamified format.
Its based on video lessons that are interactive and focused on a wide range of topics. They will teach you how to play the piano in a fun and easy way.
Yousician Features
The app is available on all devices. Once you subscribe, youll get unlimited lesson time, while Premium+ offers more features and songs.
Yousician works similar to some apps we described earlier it listens to you play the piano and gives you feedback and rating.
However, you can choose between three learning paths: Classical, Knowledge, and Pop Path. Its best to go through the courses simultaneously in order to get a well-rounded musical knowledge.
You can also play songs in the Practice mode, try exercises in the Workout section, and even participate in Challenges where you can compete against other Yousician students.
The app offers plenty of features that make the piano learning process interesting.
Content and Benefits
If you complete all learning Paths, youll gain basic piano skills and a good knowledge of a number of songs.
The apps song library is quite rich in songs and genres so youll enjoy searching for what it has to offer.
Unlike some other apps, Yousician will coach you in sight-reading so youll be able to read sheet music and learn any song you want afterward.
What Sets Yousician Apart From Other Platforms?
Who is Yousician Best For?
How To Learn To Play Piano At Home: What You Really Need To Know
First of all, playing piano isnt about playing notes. This is one of the aspects of piano playing that was causing me a lot of frustration. I was trying to read and play every note on the page and it was overwhelming me. I then discovered the concept of chords.
When youre playing a group of notes in unison, they belong to a family. This makes life a whole lot easier because youre now identifying members of a familiar group instead of just random notes.
I also started looking at scales much differently than I had in the past. I read a sentence in a book that changed my life. It simply stated: Scales are the raw materials for chords.
Learning those seven different note patterns took on a new meaning so much that I quickly learned all of them because they had a new purpose and a new meaning.I later discovered that the number system is everything. Every chord has a number assigned to it and those chords are built upon numbers. They dont teach this stuff with traditional piano lessons. Its very liberating with you grasp this concept.
Taking what Ive just mentioned into consideration, it led me into being able to use standard sheet music as a guide instead of something that dictates to me every note that I must play. I didnt have to play all of those notes and could change anything I wish and it wasnt going to break the piece of music I was playing.
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Fingering Where To Put All Your Fingers
Please note the hints on the keyboard that show you which finger plays the first note. They will make it easier to play.
Fingerings help you to play music more easily. Fingering lets you know which fingers belong on which keys. Your hands will move more comfortably and more fluidly across the keyboard.
Imagine youre sitting in front of the piano. Hold your hands stretched out in front of you palms down and spread your fingers. Look to your left hand. Each finger is assigned a number between 1 and 5, with #5 assigned to the little finger, and the number #1 representing the thumb:
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What number do you think your index finger has? Right, #2!
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And whats your ring fingers number? Right, #4!
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Whats your middle fingers number? #3!
Learning the piano takes practice. At first, it is not easy to control each finger individually and to make it clear to your brain that only the muscles of one finger should be addressed. But, with a little practice, it will become second nature and you wont have to think about it at all.
Now look at your right hand its fingers are numbered the same way as those of the left hand before:
Here, you can see the numbering of both hands again:
Now repeat the above exercise with your right hand.
Shake it!
As a final exercise in this lesson, we will improve the movement of your fingers by typing on the computer keyboard.
Put your fingers on your keyboard and place the fingers of your left hand on the keys as follows:
Lets go!
And Stop!
I Want To Compose My Own Music
Learning to compose and mastering the fundamentals simultaneously can help students think of music as a language, which it is. Students at Blue Balloon Songwriting School, says founder Rachel Lipson, often start by talking about their musical taste, then learning chunks of songs they like or trying to find similarities between songs to imitate in their own way. They may write a poem for lyrics or start with the music.
A mom we taught years ago came to us with a poem she had written for her daughter, Lipson says. We worked together to change lines around, talked about rhyme schemes and how to avoid some of the really predictable cliché rhymes. We taught her some basic chords and discussed chord voicings from there, she sang a melody over it, and we helped her craft the song structure. The song turned out beautifully, and she performed it for her daughter.
One Great Teacher: Lauren Balthrop, Blue Balloon Songwriting SchoolA folk-pop singer-songwriter, Balthrop has many years of experience teaching people of all ages. She worked with one mom who wanted to write a poppy duet to sing with her daughter the mom was reportedly beaming when she succeeded.
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Practicing On A Cheap Keyboard
Without a proper 88-key piano, or at the very least an 88 key weighted keyboard, youre limiting yourself and making it harder to learn the instrument. Why add an extra element that could frustrate you as you attempt to learn piano?
The best option to give you the most authentic playing experience possible as a beginner is an upright piano. Theres nothing quite like the sound of a concert grand, but an upright piano is more economical for your budget and space. If you travel to your piano teachers home or studio, its likely that they give lessons on an acoustic piano as opposed to a digital keyboard. Having an instrument at home consistent with the one you use in your lessons can certainly help.
Train Your Arms And Hands With Proper Positioning
Its the same position you need to keep when you put your arms and hands on top of the keys. While doing this, ensure your wrist and forearms remain straight.
Play five-finger patterns all over the keyboard, and in many different keys. Use a lot of black keys! First without notes to learn the geography of the keyboard, and then with notes using landmark notes to find your way.
Its crucial to follow the proper hand and finger positioning since it helps prevent repetitive stress injury. Also, we understand that youd like to learn how to learn piano fast, but know your limits and dont over-practice.
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I Want To Play Songs I Hear On The Radio
I learned by audio rather than reading sheet music, says Marcy Bosco, 33. I literally would have my laptop next to my keyboard and play the same loop on Spotify just to try to suss out the chords. She would often Google the word chords with the name of the song to look for sheet music that could lead her in the right direction.
Ear training like this is easier with the help of a professional. Adrian Cohen, the director of Keylab in Carroll Gardens, teaches it to students who want to learn, say, Sorry, by Justin Bieber, or Rocket Man, by Elton John. For most of my adult students, we do two kinds of ear training. One is called intervallic ear training, hearing the distance between two notes the other one is harmonic ear training, learning how to hear chords and harmony, Cohen says.
One Great Teacher: Adrian Cohen, KeylabIn addition to his course on music theory for beginners, Cohen has a coaching package, for which hell curate a personalized set of videos, audio files, recordings, sheet music, method books, and links to apps so independent-minded students can teach themselves.
Proceeding With How To Learn To Play Piano At Home
Now that Ive covered some of the essential and not so essential items to help you get started, theres some things you should know about how to learn to play piano at home. What Im essentially talking about is the process.
When you know what to expect, it can help you through times that are more difficult than others and also times when youre unsure what direction to go when you get stuck.
First of all, the study of piano playing is a daily endeavor. Notice I didnt phrase my last statement by saying: You need to practice your piano every day. First of all, I hate the word practice and this statement alone has been responsible for many of aspiring piano players to get frustrated and just quit. I know this because Im one of them.
Dont view learning how to play piano this way. Youre not practicing the piano. Youre playing the piano. When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change. Its not practice that makes the difference, its repetition. You may think that Im just talking semantics here and if you think thats the case, you need to change the way you look at things.
Earlier, I covered some specifics about fitting your piano study into your family/home life and I touched on the quantity of time you should spend. Beyond that, I want to give you some insight into how to fit it into your time schedule.
Until next time, Go Play!
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