Learn to play the piano, the 5 main myths
The piano is one of the most versatile instruments ever created, it has the ability to conjure up the full range of human emotions and can be played in almost any style, from classical to heavy rock! Unfortunately, people tend to think that learning to play the piano is a more difficult and painful process than learning something like, say, the guitar. Let’s take a look and dispel some of the common myths associated with learning to play the piano!
“You have to start young”
Wouldn’t it be great if our parents knew everything we could ever want to do in our lives and put us to learning when we were little kids? Fake! In fact, I would say that many people stop playing the piano because they are pushed to do so at too young an age, possibly even before they have developed an interest in music. Aggressive parents can leave a bad taste in someone’s mouth that turns someone off for the rest of their lives! So if you weren’t put into lessons as a baby, fear not, you’re in a great position!
“Requires hours of practice”
Sure, if you want to be a great concert pianist, quit your day job and start practicing, but for the average player, even a feeble 10 minutes a day will have you playing melodies in a few weeks! Playing a short amount of time each day is much better than one big practice session a week. Having a 10 minute practice session each day gives your brain plenty of time to take things in, your motor skills will develop and you will notice improvement day by day!
“You need a teacher to learn piano”
Again, this is one of those old-fashioned notions, teachers are essential to mastering something, but for casual enjoyment you’d probably do well to avoid a teacher. Having a rigid structured schedule can turn you off when all you want to do is learn to play your favorite song. When people normally learn to play the guitar, they do so without a teacher, at least initially, the same approach can be used to learn to play the piano.
“You need a piano”
This seems obvious, but it is not true!! Yes, you need some kind of keyboard, but it doesn’t have to be a full-size piano. The best way to start is to get a small keyboard with FULL SIZE KEYS. You only need 50-60 keys to start with (typical grand pianos have 88 keys or more). A small keyboard will be quite inexpensive and will allow you to develop your skills, interest, and confidence. The keyboards also give you the versatility to have other sounds that you can’t do with a typical acoustic piano.
“You have to read sheet music”
Unfortunately, most piano courses and teachers focus on learning to read and write sheet music, although this has some benefits, it is certainly not required. Your average guitarist learns to play without learning sheet music, why can’t pianists do it too? It is possible, it just requires a different approach, learning to play the piano with chords is a simple and easy way to learn without reading a note of the sheet music!