I was forced to practice and take lessons and did not excel as a child learner(9 yrs total). now at nearly 50 yrs of age I have a year of practice and no teacher and can't believe how much I have exceeded my own expectations. Big difference.
Same here. I have been learning on my own and made more progress than I ever did with a teacher. But I am good at spotting mistakes and giving myself feedback. I take full advantage of all the pieces played by teachers on RUclips and when I can play along with them with no pauses and no mistakes, I consider that piece is learned to an acceptable level.
I understand that maybe not everyone can have a teacher for various reasons. But I really feel like they are missing out. When I started I binged on content about how best to start the piano and one overwhelming message was “get a teacher.” So after a couple of weeks with a Faber book I realised I was enjoying what I was doing and I searched for a teacher. It was the best decision I made. In hindsight, I don’t remember what I was expecting at the time. But it certainly wasn’t what I got. What I got was advice on musicality, music history, practice techniques, performance advice. Basically, I got a lot of answers to things that I didn’t even know were questions. And I feel this is the absolute main reason why it’s important to have a teacher. As you mention in the video, beginners don’t know what they are getting wrong until it’s pointed out. You can be playing all the right notes in the correct rhythm but your articulation can be completely wrong because you are playing a baroque piece which played in certain way. It’s not written in the score, it’s just knowledge you acquire. That happened to me. As well as countless other examples. I feel like such a piano teacher evangelist. But seriously, if you can, get the teacher you can find.
Thanks for that amazing argument. Although I never learnt piano without a teacher but I had lots of students coming to me for lessons after they had given up learning alone and they all had the same experience.
It all depends on the teacher. My first teacher was the best, but she was self taught. My third teacher was a concert pianist, but he wasn't much good at teaching.
I've only been playing for 11 months, but I never had a teacher. I wanted to play the Interstellar theme but at that point I was probably struggling with Chopsticks. But I ended up just pulling up the RUclips video and just started learning it. And come 6 months, I finished the piece. I know it's slow, but progress really feels rewarding, and especially when you can play it perfectly in the end. I never had any courses or apps or anything like that, I didn't even know anything about music theory, let alone reading sheets. I was learning it by watching the notes fall down onto the piano (Synthesia). My main advice for anyone scrolling aimlessly through the comments, is find a piece you really like and just start. Maybe get a teacher, maybe don't, but just get started. There's no point sitting here and debating with yourself if you need a teacher or not or other shit. Just get started, if you like piano you slave your life away to it, if you don't you get your soul back.
Very often people choose the piece of music they like, start learning it, and they don't even realize that their hands are not ready for it yet. In order not to get discouraged, it is important to start with some easy beautiful song.
It depends on your goals 100%, and a good teacher can figure that out and modify approach :) I play for fun, not to take an exam, so I don't want "mastery of a piece" being measured by "note-to-sound-transcription" - it leaves 0 room for creativity or exploration, and I'd rather be challenged there. If I can do "Moonlight Sonata" to a level that is very recognizable and sounds amazing, the only people who will care that there's an extra pause or rhythm is different are music teachers and people who play professionally. The same is true of things like cooking - where prof. chefs are adding all sorts of nuance to dishes that isn't discernible by most folks, so it isn't as appreciated
Thanks, I think it’s also depends on the experience with the teacher. I had a teacher that yawning while teaching me the piano lesson. So, I stopped taking the lesson after the end of that course. Now, I learn to play piano by myself. Watching your videos and many others on RUclips also helpful.😃🎼🎶🎵
It’s nit only a teacher but rather a pair of a student and a teacher. If student is dedicated and teacher feels that his time is rewarded, that’s a totally different story. It’s not about being paid but about that feeling of success. Thanks for the great video, man!
I have come to the conclusion that I have never had a good teacher (four bad ones). I am using Pam Wedgwood book Never Too Late to Learn Piano which is excellent. . It's a good tip to record yourself.
I'm 63 and I took the Piano Class 1 (for he beginners) at out local community college (I live in USA). It was a group class. Still, the teacher gave me good avice about my hands position, rhythm etc. Next semester I'm taking Piano Class 2. We use Alfred's Group Piano for Adults Student Book 1 (Second Edition). It has a disc (CD) with mp3 files which is very helpful.
As an adult learner, I find it difficult to respond to teacher’s expectations. Yes, you learn from them but at the same time we don’t necessarily learn according to a specific curve. Adults have learning disabilities just as kids. The reason we stopped lessons when were kids are often the same as adults. I enjoy playing even if it is totally imperfect but I understand that it is annoying for a trained musician unfortunately . Lessons with a teacher reached a limit for me and I am glad for the online ressources because I am still improving.
You're making a very good point. And teachers don't work the same way for everyone. However, maybe a different teacher might have been a better fit. Also, I have some adult students who I only see once a month or once every 3 months. They can learn very well in their own pace alone but every time they come I pick up on mistakes that they just wouldn't notice otherwise. Like playing a rhythm continuously wrong or having tension in certain passages, or unevenness. I don't have expectations, I just point out things for them that they would not otherwise notice and it's up to them whether they take the advice or not.
The answer without watching the video: yes, if you are that kind of person. When I was a kid there wasn't internet and I learned to play piano from a total simple elementary school music book (some of them were 2 handed!). But... because I didn't practice (for decades), of course I forgot it.
In addition to not receiving immediate one-to-one feedback from an App, Apps also don't teach musicality, technique, tone, articulation, musicianship, applications of theory and the million & one other "pearls of wisdom" the teacher has gained over the sometimes decades of experience from years of teaching & training. You have to find the right teacher for you. One that you feel comfortable with and one that is willing to work with you to reach your musical goals. You can't build a house without a solid foundation.
So true. My kid has a good teacher now, but I did not have a good teacher and feel like I wasted so much time making little progress after I reached late beginner-ish level 'cause my teacher skipped some really basic skills that I should've been practicing daily.
So, I'm a teenager and I started piano literally a month ago and my biggest thing was an app didn't give the same feedback a real person can and so I often turned to a friend who played piano for at least a few years, and that gave me a lot of feedback that I needed and because of my friends, I'm able to improve in a way an app can't teach me.
my main problem is, i live in a quite small area so theres not any teachers here and the next bigger town is an hour away from mine, since i work in a full time job i dont really have the time to drive an hour to the teacher and then an hour back home every week O.O
It never occurred to me that you could have lessons periodically as I always had weekly lessons when young, but when you are self teaching I think it could be a good idea if you can find a teacher willing to do that. I am not sure I would know how to find a suitable teacher though.
Thanks for the video. I know it's been a long time since you put this video out, can you make a follow-up video about how to get a teacher that suit you the best, especially for adults. Thank you.
Thank you for your channel, I like your channel very much. I'm a piano player and guitar player, down side is I've learned myself to play on hearing. So every song I do is on hearing. I bought myself piano adventures adult as well as John Thompson and I also have like the Alfred All in one method book so I combine these with assistance on you tube and so on. With popular songs, luckily for me I can hear when I play too fast or too long. I'm a new beginner with notes notation and music theory, and sight reading so I hope I will be ok without a teacher. Thank you for all your videos
I'd rather looking for an experience teacher rather than study for long term the same piece alone without someone to support me. The results come up faster than you can imagine.
I had a few piano lessons when I was in my 20s. I tried to play songs on my own, and sure, they did sound 'good'....to me... Until I showed my teacher how I played the songs.... Wrong notes, wrong hand positions, wrong rhythm... So... I'd say definitely yes, you need a teacher. It's like learning to drive a car. You can get into a car and start driving, but you're not going to get expert advice to correct your mistakes which might not seem mistakes to you.
Yo he tomado clases con varios maestros y maestras. Y también lo he intentado por mi cuenta. Lo que descubrí es que una cosa es aprender a tocar el piano (o cualquier otro instrumento), y otra muy distinta sólo aprender a tocar piezas en el piano (o cualquier otro instrumento). Mi experiencia con los maestros fue la segunda: aprender mecánicamente a tocar piezas en el piano. Yo intuía que había algo más. Que el pastel tiene más rebanadas, y no solo una. Pero la visión de esos maestros era sólo tocar piezas. Nada de improvisar, nada de hacer modificaciones a la armonización de la pieza. Nada de analizar lo que se toca. Sólo memorizar y repetir como robot. Para mí fue una experiencia muy rígida y frustrante. Ahora estoy más enfocado en "aprender a tocar mis instrumentos" y no solo en tocar piezas. Son dos universos diferentes. Algunos videos en youtube me han dado la razón. Yo, en particular, soy más compositor que solo instrumentista (player). Así que necesito otro enfoque para desarrollarme. Creo que en este canal pueden haber buenos tis para seguir desarrollándome. Gracias por tu trabajo y por compartirlo.
The statement "music instruction is a luxury still" is CORRECT! it doesn't give the security of a financial return like spending money on STEM or Business/Finance instruction.
If you're learning on your own, or with an instructor, it must be what you want it to be. If you want to play jazz piano , but the instructor keeps pushing Behtoven, then you need not continue that instruction. Learn what you first were inspired by then as you learn the manipulation of theory you will naturally pursue other styles. My goal at music was to create ,because a true master creates and performs not just read other pieces and perform.
I’m worried I’ll get stuck with a teacher who isn’t very good or doesn’t match me and then I will have guilt about firing them. Instead, I want to bring in a lot of personal experience and let them work out my learned bad behavior.
Isn’t this totally biased coming from a piano teacher? It depends on what your goals are. Not everyone needs to be a RCM level 10 or a concert pianist. For some the piano might just be a toy, just like gaming or a sports car (depending on how much you spend on it). I would think for more (if not most) beginner adults like me we just want to learn our favorite songs.
If piano for you is just a toy or a nice furniture, then this channel is not for you. My target audience is eager beginners who want to develop solid skills. Nothing wrong with having fun at the keys but that's not my territory of expertise
I was forced to practice and take lessons and did not excel as a child learner(9 yrs total). now at nearly 50 yrs of age I have a year of practice and no teacher and can't believe how much I have exceeded my own expectations. Big difference.
Same here. I have been learning on my own and made more progress than I ever did with a teacher. But I am good at spotting mistakes and giving myself feedback. I take full advantage of all the pieces played by teachers on RUclips and when I can play along with them with no pauses and no mistakes, I consider that piece is learned to an acceptable level.
I understand that maybe not everyone can have a teacher for various reasons. But I really feel like they are missing out. When I started I binged on content about how best to start the piano and one overwhelming message was “get a teacher.” So after a couple of weeks with a Faber book I realised I was enjoying what I was doing and I searched for a teacher. It was the best decision I made.
In hindsight, I don’t remember what I was expecting at the time. But it certainly wasn’t what I got. What I got was advice on musicality, music history, practice techniques, performance advice. Basically, I got a lot of answers to things that I didn’t even know were questions. And I feel this is the absolute main reason why it’s important to have a teacher.
As you mention in the video, beginners don’t know what they are getting wrong until it’s pointed out. You can be playing all the right notes in the correct rhythm but your articulation can be completely wrong because you are playing a baroque piece which played in certain way. It’s not written in the score, it’s just knowledge you acquire. That happened to me. As well as countless other examples.
I feel like such a piano teacher evangelist. But seriously, if you can, get the teacher you can find.
Thanks for that amazing argument. Although I never learnt piano without a teacher but I had lots of students coming to me for lessons after they had given up learning alone and they all had the same experience.
It all depends on the teacher. My first teacher was the best, but she was self taught. My third teacher was a concert pianist, but he wasn't much good at teaching.
I've only been playing for 11 months, but I never had a teacher. I wanted to play the Interstellar theme but at that point I was probably struggling with Chopsticks. But I ended up just pulling up the RUclips video and just started learning it. And come 6 months, I finished the piece. I know it's slow, but progress really feels rewarding, and especially when you can play it perfectly in the end. I never had any courses or apps or anything like that, I didn't even know anything about music theory, let alone reading sheets. I was learning it by watching the notes fall down onto the piano (Synthesia).
My main advice for anyone scrolling aimlessly through the comments, is find a piece you really like and just start. Maybe get a teacher, maybe don't, but just get started. There's no point sitting here and debating with yourself if you need a teacher or not or other shit. Just get started, if you like piano you slave your life away to it, if you don't you get your soul back.
Very often people choose the piece of music they like, start learning it, and they don't even realize that their hands are not ready for it yet. In order not to get discouraged, it is important to start with some easy beautiful song.
It depends on your goals 100%, and a good teacher can figure that out and modify approach :) I play for fun, not to take an exam, so I don't want "mastery of a piece" being measured by "note-to-sound-transcription" - it leaves 0 room for creativity or exploration, and I'd rather be challenged there. If I can do "Moonlight Sonata" to a level that is very recognizable and sounds amazing, the only people who will care that there's an extra pause or rhythm is different are music teachers and people who play professionally. The same is true of things like cooking - where prof. chefs are adding all sorts of nuance to dishes that isn't discernible by most folks, so it isn't as appreciated
Very true!
Totally agree.
Thanks, I think it’s also depends on the experience with the teacher. I had a teacher that yawning while teaching me the piano lesson. So, I stopped taking the lesson after the end of that course. Now, I learn to play piano by myself. Watching your videos and many others on RUclips also helpful.😃🎼🎶🎵
It’s nit only a teacher but rather a pair of a student and a teacher. If student is dedicated and teacher feels that his time is rewarded, that’s a totally different story. It’s not about being paid but about that feeling of success. Thanks for the great video, man!
I have come to the conclusion that I have never had a good teacher (four bad ones). I am using Pam Wedgwood book Never Too Late to Learn Piano which is excellent. . It's a good tip to record yourself.
I'm 63 and I took the Piano Class 1 (for he beginners) at out local community college (I live in USA). It was a group class. Still, the teacher gave me good avice about my hands position, rhythm etc. Next semester I'm taking Piano Class 2. We use Alfred's Group Piano for Adults Student Book 1 (Second Edition). It has a disc (CD) with mp3 files which is very helpful.
As an adult learner, I find it difficult to respond to teacher’s expectations. Yes, you learn from them but at the same time we don’t necessarily learn according to a specific curve. Adults have learning disabilities just as kids. The reason we stopped lessons when were kids are often the same as adults. I enjoy playing even if it is totally imperfect but I understand that it is annoying for a trained musician unfortunately . Lessons with a teacher reached a limit for me and I am glad for the online ressources because I am still improving.
You're making a very good point. And teachers don't work the same way for everyone. However, maybe a different teacher might have been a better fit. Also, I have some adult students who I only see once a month or once every 3 months. They can learn very well in their own pace alone but every time they come I pick up on mistakes that they just wouldn't notice otherwise. Like playing a rhythm continuously wrong or having tension in certain passages, or unevenness. I don't have expectations, I just point out things for them that they would not otherwise notice and it's up to them whether they take the advice or not.
The answer without watching the video: yes, if you are that kind of person. When I was a kid there wasn't internet and I learned to play piano from a total simple elementary school music book (some of them were 2 handed!). But... because I didn't practice (for decades), of course I forgot it.
In addition to not receiving immediate one-to-one feedback from an App, Apps also don't teach musicality, technique, tone, articulation, musicianship, applications of theory and the million & one other "pearls of wisdom" the teacher has gained over the sometimes decades of experience from years of teaching & training. You have to find the right teacher for you. One that you feel comfortable with and one that is willing to work with you to reach your musical goals. You can't build a house without a solid foundation.
The key is “good” teacher. I just had one who was really grumpy when I played wrong note
So true. My kid has a good teacher now, but I did not have a good teacher and feel like I wasted so much time making little progress after I reached late beginner-ish level 'cause my teacher skipped some really basic skills that I should've been practicing daily.
So, I'm a teenager and I started piano literally a month ago and my biggest thing was an app didn't give the same feedback a real person can and so I often turned to a friend who played piano for at least a few years, and that gave me a lot of feedback that I needed and because of my friends, I'm able to improve in a way an app can't teach me.
Exactly. No app can substitute for a real teacher, at least for now. Who knows what AI brings in the future.
my main problem is, i live in a quite small area so theres not any teachers here and the next bigger town is an hour away from mine, since i work in a full time job i dont really have the time to drive an hour to the teacher and then an hour back home every week O.O
It never occurred to me that you could have lessons periodically as I always had weekly lessons when young, but when you are self teaching I think it could be a good idea if you can find a teacher willing to do that. I am not sure I would know how to find a suitable teacher though.
Thanks for the video. I know it's been a long time since you put this video out, can you make a follow-up video about how to get a teacher that suit you the best, especially for adults. Thank you.
Thank you for your channel, I like your channel very much. I'm a piano player and guitar player, down side is I've learned myself to play on hearing. So every song I do is on hearing. I bought myself piano adventures adult as well as John Thompson and I also have like the Alfred All in one method book so I combine these with assistance on you tube and so on. With popular songs, luckily for me I can hear when I play too fast or too long. I'm a new beginner with notes notation and music theory, and sight reading so I hope I will be ok without a teacher. Thank you for all your videos
The Lord is my teacher.
We are living in God’s Country.
I'd rather looking for an experience teacher rather than study for long term the same piece alone without someone to support me. The results come up faster than you can imagine.
I had a few piano lessons when I was in my 20s. I tried to play songs on my own, and sure, they did sound 'good'....to me... Until I showed my teacher how I played the songs.... Wrong notes, wrong hand positions, wrong rhythm... So... I'd say definitely yes, you need a teacher. It's like learning to drive a car. You can get into a car and start driving, but you're not going to get expert advice to correct your mistakes which might not seem mistakes to you.
I was going to say something but you covered everything...damned!
Yo he tomado clases con varios maestros y maestras. Y también lo he intentado por mi cuenta. Lo que descubrí es que una cosa es aprender a tocar el piano (o cualquier otro instrumento), y otra muy distinta sólo aprender a tocar piezas en el piano (o cualquier otro instrumento). Mi experiencia con los maestros fue la segunda: aprender mecánicamente a tocar piezas en el piano. Yo intuía que había algo más. Que el pastel tiene más rebanadas, y no solo una. Pero la visión de esos maestros era sólo tocar piezas. Nada de improvisar, nada de hacer modificaciones a la armonización de la pieza. Nada de analizar lo que se toca. Sólo memorizar y repetir como robot. Para mí fue una experiencia muy rígida y frustrante. Ahora estoy más enfocado en "aprender a tocar mis instrumentos" y no solo en tocar piezas. Son dos universos diferentes. Algunos videos en youtube me han dado la razón. Yo, en particular, soy más compositor que solo instrumentista (player). Así que necesito otro enfoque para desarrollarme. Creo que en este canal pueden haber buenos tis para seguir desarrollándome. Gracias por tu trabajo y por compartirlo.
Classical musicians are just cover "bands". They just want you to be robotic copying what others do, instead of teaching how to express yourself.
The statement "music instruction is a luxury still" is CORRECT! it doesn't give the security of a financial return like spending money on STEM or Business/Finance instruction.
If you're learning on your own, or with an instructor, it must be what you want it to be. If you want to play jazz piano , but the instructor keeps pushing Behtoven, then you need not continue that instruction. Learn what you first were inspired by then as you learn the manipulation of theory you will naturally pursue other styles. My goal at music was to create ,because a true master creates and performs not just read other pieces and perform.
I’m worried I’ll get stuck with a teacher who isn’t very good or doesn’t match me and then I will have guilt about firing them. Instead, I want to bring in a lot of personal experience and let them work out my learned bad behavior.
Hi, can you recommend a method book for piano? My major is Guitar and am looking for a book for minor.
Isn’t this totally biased coming from a piano teacher? It depends on what your goals are. Not everyone needs to be a RCM level 10 or a concert pianist. For some the piano might just be a toy, just like gaming or a sports car (depending on how much you spend on it). I would think for more (if not most) beginner adults like me we just want to learn our favorite songs.
If piano for you is just a toy or a nice furniture, then this channel is not for you. My target audience is eager beginners who want to develop solid skills. Nothing wrong with having fun at the keys but that's not my territory of expertise