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Posts Tagged ‘learn piano’

Well, since you’re here we imagine you already know the excitement that revolves around being able to play the piano. Maybe over the years you’ve listened to some of the greats like Count Basie or Duke Ellington. Then again, you might enjoy modern players of today who have won the hearts of many.

One piano player who crosses many genres is Jim Brickman, who often plays his own compositions. Along with smooth jazz stations, Brickman’s music is played on pop, inspirational, and new age stations.

If that isn’t you, and you prefer more of the rock keyboard players, there are plenty available. Whether it’s Rick Wakeman, Tony Banks, Dennis De Young or David Sancious, each one of them has played for popular artists. We’re pretty sure you’ve heard of Yes, Genesis, Styx, Springteen, Santana or Sting right? Oh, and let’s not forget the rock piano players like Elton John, Billy Joel, Carole King, Paul McCartney, and Carly Simon.

Once upon a time, these individuals probably played a little classical music at some point. Sure, it’s not the most exciting style of music to listen to for some, but when you actually play a piece it is simply unbelievable. Can you imagine being able to throw back a rendition from Bach, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schubert or Brahms?

If you are like many people who hear these great musical works of art, you will want to emulate them. You may learn well enough to play for a band or as a solo act if you are dedicated enough. You can certainly learn to play the piano well enough to entertain yourself, your friends, and your family.

There are other benefits to playing the piano as well. One is relaxation. When you feel upset, it is very therapeutic to play the piano for awhile. If you are angry, playing the piano can release your frustrations. Your playing will soothe your nerves if you are anxious. If you are feeling down, you can start with slow songs and build up to more up-tempo, happier-sounding songs. This will often lift your sad mood.

It’s possible though that this could become a secondary or even primary income for you. However, if you’re going to be playing for tips in some bar, chances are you aren’t going to strike it big, but it is possible to enjoy all kinds of financial success if you have the talent and are a little bit lucky.

You’re going to need discipline though, which playing the piano can help out with as well. See, it doesn’t matter what stage you’re in as far as playing, because every level will give you a sense of accomplishment and motivate you to work harder.

Most importantly, compared to playing vocal music, this is one of the easiest things to learn. You probably don’t want to have to deal with playing slightly above or below the singer, but if you work with the vocal kind you will. Instead, when you play the piano this will never happen unless it’s out of tune. This means you would need a new technician to come out and fix it.

What it comes down to is you should play the piano for your own personal fulfillments. You can take this as far as you want to go, but there will be a lot of work ahead of you. Don’t worry, even all the greats started right where you are at the present moment. Just remember to have fun, learn to enjoy what you do with a piano, and let the music into your life. It will definitely change you.

Before you jump head first into playing the piano, it’s important to get a better feel of how it works. First off you have to take a look at all the various forms of pianos that are out there. Upright pianos have a certain appeal that offers vertical options that are large, heavy, and even tall. They can be around 36″ to 51″ high. Now, if you’re looking for a shorter version like Spinets, these are 36″ to 39″. Studio vertical pianos are 44″ and higher.

If you have the opportunity to play on a grand piano, you will usually get a better sound and a more responsive touch. Grand pianos are the more horizontal pianos, ranging from 5 to 9 feet in length. In a grand piano, the strings are horizontal. In a vertical piano, the strings are, well, vertical.

When it’s time to play you will see a music rack right in front of you. It might be a fold down option or some actually slide into a slot, but you will find one or the other. Just sit down on the bench that the piano comes with and set your music in the rack. Just remember to sit at a comfortable distance so you can reach both ends of the piano during your play.

There will be pedals at the bottom of the piano where your feet are. These need not be used by beginners. Once you become more proficient at playing the piano, you can learn how to use these pedals to sustain sounds or cut them short.

The most important part though is the keyboard. You see a variety of white and black keys which run from left to right. Just remember they don’t necessarily alternate white and black throughout the entire keyboard.

Take a look close look at the keys. You will see that there is a consistent pattern that works with 7 white keys and 5 black. There will be an interval formed from the beginning of one set and ending on the beginning of the next. These are the musical distances between two sounds. You may know this to be called an octave.

If you hit each note from left to right you will see that the setup order is from lowest to highest. In order to reach a full step you have to go up or down two half steps. It sounds difficult now, but after a little practice you will notice that it comes very easy.

Try other intervals to hear their sounds. Always pay attention to how many half or full steps you are taking. Do the same intervals at several different places along the keyboard. Try octaves. You can do this by picking out a key and playing the next key up that is in the same position in the next pattern group. Soon, you will be playing octaves with ease. This is very important to all kinds of piano playing.

If you can get a better understanding for the piano in the beginning, it will be much easier to learn how to make music. In a short amount of time you will see yourself being able to play simple songs. All it takes is a little effort and drive on your part to make it all happen.

A scale on the piano consists of the eight notes that lay between one note and the same note but an entire octave higher.  The scales are all different.  There are minor scales as well as major scales.  The more upbeat and lighter sounding scales are known as the major scales.  The more melancholy or deep and gloomy sounding scales are what people refer to as the minor scales.

If you spend a part of your practice time playing scales, you build muscle memory in your hands. This means that, after much time practicing, your hands go more easily to notes in the scale you are playing at any given time. You only have to see the piano sheet music or think of the melody and your hands know what to do.

Anytime you mention scales you will most certainly also mention keys.  When a pianist hears the word keys, they think of either the ivory or wood keys on the keyboard or quite possibly the keys that a melody or scale is being played in.

You may hear a singer who is about to give their big performance lean over to the piano player and whisper “The key of C please”.  The singer is telling the piano player where he or she wants the pianist to being on the keyboard.  The keyboardist will know which keys to begin with as well as the chords that will need to be played to accompany the singer.  Playing in the correct key is a vital part of any good musical piece.

When you are learning scales, you can do it without learning all the key signatures. (Key signatures are the written notation of the keys, such as the key of C or the key of G.) You can begin by playing a C scale. A major C scale is all done on the white keys. Begin with your right hand in the Home Keys position. Remember that your fingers are numbered 1-5, with the thumb being 1.

Begin playing following the 1-2-3 pattern.  Once you have completed this pattern you have keyed the notes C, D, and E on the piano.  When you get to your ring finger in the count, place your thumb on the F key by sliding it under the other fingers.  Once your thumb is there, reposition your other fingers in order and begin the sequence again.  You will be playing 1-2-3-1-2-3-4-5, or C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C.  You have done it.  Your first scale has been played.  Be sure to take some time to practice what you have learned.

If you would like to learn to play the C scale using your left hand, begin by placing your little finger directly on the C that is below the middle C.  Place your other fingers in order from one to five traveling up the keyboard.  Push the keys in order, 5-4-3-2-1.  As you get to one, pull your middle finger over your pointer finger and put it on the next available key.  Begin again by playing 3-2-1 from that position on the keyboard.  When you are finished you have played C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C or 5-4-3-2-1-3-2-1.

Combining the functions of both hands at the same time is the next step once you have spent some time practicing with each individual hand.  You will be playing the C below middle C using your pinkie on your left hand just as you are using your right hand thumb to play the middle C.  Travel up the scale using both hands.  The task may seem a little challenging until you have gotten over having to maneuver one hand over and the other under to finish the scale.  After you practice you will find that it comes much easier.

Once you get the basic procedure down, it is easy to play other major scales. The only thing you have to remember is the sequence of steps and half steps in a major scale. The correct order up a major scale is: beginning note-step-step-half step-step-step-step-half step. You should be aware that, since there are no black keys between them, the intervals from B-C and from E-F are each half steps.

You can play a scale anywhere on the piano. Just pick a note to start on. It does not matter whether it is a white key or a black key. Use the given sequence of steps and half steps to go from there up an eight note scale. You can even start from the left of the keyboard and continue the scale all the way to the right. With a little practice, you will be proficient at playing major scales.

I often notice students using awkward fingering when playing piano. There is no doubt in my mind this is a topic that interests many beginners and intermediate piano players.

Contrary to what you may believe, this is actually quite a controversial subject.

There are people who strongly believe in proper fingering for piano pieces. There are also those who are firm believers in free-style fingering.

Here are my thoughts on the subject…

Though the length of fingers differ from person to person, we all have thumbs that are shorter than the rest of our fingers.

As a rule (or rule of thumb), the thumb is the strongest finger of all. Thumb, index finger (2nd), and long finger (3rd) are the most used fingers for piano playing. The fourth finger and fifth finger are weaker fingers.

Here are some tips concerning fingering which you should certainly consider:

1. Never use the thumb to play a black key. The exceptions are a) when you are playing a piece that has all black notes. b) when you are playing a group of keys where there are black and white keys. For example if your right hand is to play Bb, D, and F together in Bb major chord root position,your thumb will play Bb (black note) in this case.

The bottom line is; the thumb is not designed for playing black keys, simply because it’s too short. Instead, it’s the second and third fingers which should be used for playing black notes. In other words, if you find yourself playing a peace which starts with a black note such as Bb major for example, you should use your second or third finger rather than your thumb.

2. In the event that you’re playing a piece with your right hand and you’re in a situation where some of the keys are out of reach, you should simply move your hand so that you can play the note. Of course, if the desired key is only one or two steps down from your thumb, then you can use the thumb as an anchor while are you cross your second finger over to the note in question. In this case, it wouldn’t be necessary to move to your hand, but instead, you simply move your second finger over.

Once the second finger plays the key, the thumb will soon follow to cross over to play other note left of the key. Suggestion: practice the scale well to know what finger to follow.

3. Same rule applies to left hand.

4. Watch other experienced pianists whenever possible, look at their fingering and imitate their movements. I suggest you watch those players who are well trained classically as they have spent many years going through the structured repertoire and virtuoso training that help built a firm foundation.

One important point: The function of good fingering is to ensure smoothness of musical passages.

If for example you want to play the work of Bach and other classical composers, then good fingering is crucial. In fact, even the slightest change in fingering can result in a complete disruption. On the other hand, strict fingering is less important for improvisational and accompaniment pieces.

You’ll also notice that musical pieces which have been edited by different editors tend to have changes in terms of fingering. For example, you’ll notice different fingering suggestions for the “Sonatina” piece composed by Clementi, depending on the different editors. While some prefer to use the second finger more often, others favor the third finger instead.

In conclusion: if you are improvising, pay less attention to which finger you are using. As long as you abide by the above rules and ensure a smooth flow of musical passage, you are fine.

If you get too critical about fingering, it distracts your musical thoughts and flow. After all, it is music that you are conveying. Piano playing gets rather complicated when you are trying to balance both hands, keep a steady tempo (rhythm), make sure the pedals are going in at the right time, listening to the music.

Though it seems difficult, the truth of the matter is that learning to play piano is simply a matter of time and persistence. One of the big reasons to love the piano is thanks to how versatile it is. For instance, if you want to learn how to play blues piano, you will find that it is simply a matter of learning how to control the style to your satisfaction!

In the first place, think about what blues piano is. It is essentially a music style, and once you have learned how it works, you will find that you have a great head start on learning other piano styles. What are the tips that you are going to help you?

To start with, you must know 12-bar blues. This is a very common progression if you want to do blues piano playing. To play this particular blues form, most pianists make use of seventh chords. A song is usually broken into 3 sets. Each of the sets consists of 4 bars. Start by playing the song on the C key. Use ‘I’ to illustrate the tone (C) in the C key. The IV tone is F and the V tone is G.

The initial set is played as I-I-I-I. The next set is played as IV-IV-I-I. The final set is V-IV-I-I. Use your right hand when playing these three sets on the piano. To come up with a sound that’s just like blues piano, try to master playing 7th chords.

As you start with your left hand, use the eight note pattern. This pattern uses I-III-V-VI-VIIb-VI-V-III. As you play the C chord with your right hand, you will be playing C-E-G-A-Bb-A-G-E. When you turn to the G chord, you will be using G-B-D-E-F-E-D-B, while the F chord uses F-A-C-D-Eb-D-C-A.

When you are looking into learning to play blues piano, make sure that you look at the chords and the notes that are played by your left and right hand. Consider the different piano chords and notes that you are learning and realize that blues piano is no where near as hard as you might think it is.

If you want to establish a good foundation in playing the piano, you must learn to play the blues first. Many successful pianists started out by playing blues and then they slowly made their way into playing the music style that they love. Once you develop a strong foundation, the new lessons will be so much easier. Learning the different music styles is challenging but if you can play them with elegance and grace, your audience will love and praise your performance.

Find a good teacher that can teach you all the things you need to know about blues piano. If you can’t find a piano teacher, you can use other methods like using DVD or CD programs, online piano lessons, and a piano guide book. The learning process will be solely determined by you. If you’re serious with playing piano and if you’re determined to master your lessons, you will soon learn to play blues piano.

When you want to make sure that you are going to be able to play the piano, you will find that time, effort and investment are necessary. Think about the styles that you want to conquer and what they might mean for you!

Not everyone agrees that there is a special age advantage for learning any musical instrument. What would be good advice for piano students would be different for guitar students.  So, is there such a condition as too old?

The quick answer is: Opinions vary widely on this topic.  

Young students – seem to have a natural attraction to music, especially the classics.  When to start training depends on each child’s physical capability. Age 7 is often preferred by some professionals, especially for the piano. However, age 4 is possible for the piano.  Obviously the child’s physical size factors in the decision. The instrument needs to be appropriately sized to fit the student. The training course must fit the student’s age. 

Many research projects have validated the multiple benefits of music training for young people. The piano is commonly the preferred starting instrument.   Mainly because no special fingering has to be learned (as compared to a violin or clarinet, etc.) just to play it. The piano fingering is, in comparison, fairly straight forward.

Naturally your youngster will practice with more enthusiasm on an instrument they like and have chosen. Vocal training should be considered also to enhance their education.

Many private teachers have minimum age requirements, for example – age seven.  Some will accept a pupil under certain situations such as already being obviously gifted.  Assuming you are seeking a private instructor for your child you may chose to interview more than one teacher.  Starting formal training at age three is very unusual for any student.

Sometimes a child knows what their preference is at a very early age, and you can’t seem to alter their choice.  Consider all the world class athletes and musicians who started as young children.

It appears to all boil down to your personal commitment as the parent.  How involved are you planning to be? Do you already have an instrument? Several options exist for you.

For the rest of us, of any age – any age is OK to begin, but your attitude is a very important consideration.  For example:

Preteens – perhaps the prime age to begin music lessons.

Teens – great learners, if interested.  Consider a guitar for maximum portable entertainment.

Young adults – less free time, perhaps, still great students – taking lessons deliberately.

Middle age adults – same situation, probably won’t desire to be performers.

Seniors – just do it.  It’s all about motivation. There may not be enough time left to learn and master advanced technical skills – but maybe – who cares? Click here for some additional free information about learning to play music.

Bottom line – if you wish to be a major instrumentist of any style, get started sooner rather than later.  But, it is never too late to learn to play an instrument and make music. And, most importantly – it’s fun. Don’t forget the singing…

Designed especially for home students of all ages, learn to play courses are available at reasonable prices on the Internet. Featured here some award winning choices  for your consideration.

Are you thinking about learning to play the piano?  Would you like to play sweet music just by hitting the magical combination of black and white keys?  Are you dying to tickle the ivories to the tunes of your favorite composers or pianists?  If this is what you dream about, you’ll be pleased to know there are several ways to learn piano.

One of the most traditional yet effective ways to learn how to play the piano is by finding a private teacher. Of course, you will also need to secure a piano before you learn piano. However, once you do that, here are some tips to help you find the perfect teacher:

1.  Select A Piano Teacher With Adequate Experience.

Okay, the teacher does not have to be a concert pianist or be the world’s best teacher, in order for you to learn piano well. That said, the teacher should not have too much to learn himself or herself. In particular, look for teachers who can address certain weaknesses that you may have as a piano student. One of the best ways to learn this information is to simply ask about how successful the teacher’s past students were.

2. Find Out Where The Lessons Will Take Place.

While some teachers make house calls so you can learn piano, others require you to travel to their music studios or to their own homes. While having lessons in your home can be very convenient for you to learn piano, sometimes it is beneficial to wander out of your comfort zone. In fact, playing on different pianos can also help to improve your piano-playing skills.

3. Determine How Long The Lessons Will Be.

Most piano lessons will last 30, 45, or 60 minutes while you learn piano.  For beginners, its highly recommended that you take lessons that are a little shorter.  This prevents becoming overwhelmed and giving up.  If you want intense lessons, you will have to enroll in longer sessions that last about an hour.

4. Find Out If The Teacher Hosts Recitals.

Once you have begun to learn piano, recitals can be the source of major stage fright.  Studies show that people are more afraid of public speaking than death.  Regardless, find out if the piano teacher requires mandatory participation in recitals or not.

As a rule, its recommended that you select a teacher that offers recitals.  Recitals are an excellent way to showcase your skills as you learn piano.  They are the ideal way to show your family and friends how much you’ve learned.  They are also a great way to boost your confidence.

However, as a piano student you may have no interest whatsoever in playing in public. Thus, you may want to avoid recitals and a possible coronary.

If your want to learn to play well, you will have to have a good teacher.  For this reason you should consider using Rocket Piano.  This program makes it a cinch to learn piano and is the best teacher around.

You may never be able to rival the best of the best as a pianist, but anybody with the real desire to learn the piano will be able to indulge their passion to some level that will satisfy them. All you need is time commitment and determination.

Here's a handy checklist of five key ingredients to keep in mind as you learn the piano:

1. You need to be able to practice whenever you feel like it. Restricting yourself to your teacher's piano at the weekly lesson, isn't going to be good enough. Plan to practice for at least thirty minutes per day because the piano is not an easy instrument to learn. This is not possible if you don't have easy access to a piano. It's ok to use an electronic keyboard with at least 61 keys if you can't get a real piano. And more sure you have a piano lamp, or another form of light, to illuminate the keys effectively.

2. You're going to need some form of lessons. In an ideal world you would take private lessons from an experienced teacher. If this isn’t possible, there are plenty of excellent multimedia tuition materials available these days and even interactive computer software such as Rocket Piano.

3. Don't try to learn a song that is too hard. Don't try to take on a piece of music that is too hard for you at your current skill level. It's crucial that you stay motivated and nothing will hurt this more than taking on too much and becoming frustrated.

4. Try to get advice from people that are experienced with the piano. Try to go along to piano recitals and such. in your local area and speak to the musicians and ask them for any tips that helped them get started. This shouldn't be too hard because musicians are friendly people more often or not.

5. Practice, practice, practice. It's important you practice and practice often. Repetition is key to being able to play the piano very well. There really is no substitute for daily practice.

So that's the five steps. 5 things to keep in mind as you learn the piano. Playing the piano is a great skill so make sure you keep practicing.

What is the pentatonic way of playing piano? As defined, penta means five and tonic means the principal tone in a scale.So when you hear the word again, put in mind that it refers to the scale that contains five notes.

The pentatonic way of playing piano concentrates only on hitting the five notes. Thes efive notes conforms to the piano’s five black keys.

The pentatonic music scale is the basis of many distinguished music. They maybe hymns and folksongs or even classical or rock.

Learning this method enables new learners to improve their skills in the technical aspect. Hand and finger positions as well as mastering some songs are being learned first instead of several notes because the five notes are the main focus.

The chords and melodic patterns will help enhance the skills of the learner in using both hands efficiently.

This way of learning promotes the artistic experimentationwith the five notes both accompaniment and melody arrangements. It is a great benefit for beginners to learn this method since they are not yet aware of the music concepts as well as the reading the notes. It will give them the chance to enhance their abilities in creating unique passages and original pieces.

A beginner can start on playing right away and make awesome music immediately as well. Getting to know the method more will increase the ability of playing popular pieces with great accompaniments.

learning to play by ear is also being developed. As the student progress in learning the pentatonic method, they can easily hear what accompaniment will suit best to an existing piece.

The music is pleasing to the ears. Various combinations of the five notes will sound great to the listeners even from the beginning of the learner’s study. Further discoveries and experimentationin the music world is being encouraged. Learning the piano using the pentatonic method is a very nice experience. The domain of music reading and notation will be conquered easily by the students if the mastered the method.

If you are new on the keys, you can have more experience to learn piano by visiting an online course piano. Play like Elton John, Alicia Keys,Sarah Mclachlan and many others by clicking on to wwwrocketpianocom. A course offered by the famous Grammy Winner Will Barrow will be suitable for aspiring adults who wants to play piano superbly.

Almost all piano teachers require their students to buy or at least be interested in acoustic piano. This happens when teachers are so serious in making their students learn to play the piano. But there are also many reasons why an authentic handmade instrument may not be your best choice. There are several things that you have to consider when buying a certain instrument and these are quality, portability, and of course affordability. With this in your mind, you might want to change to digital piano. It is important that you buy an instrument that will suit you in the long run.

In terms of volume control and the convenience of transferring your music into computer and other devices, acoustic piano is lacking in this features. The most recent version of digital piano includes onboard functions such as the electronic metronome as well as mixing features. When compared  to the Acoustic piano, the making of a Digital piano drawn in the velocity calculating of each key, making this an assortment of high quality recordings possible. The artistic quality of the sound created is of high quality.

An Acoustic piano is made of a complex assortment of hammers, strings as well as other operational parts which function as a group. In an acoustic piano, when a note is played is not played entirely on its own instead is affected by the surrounding mechanisms of the piano.

Digital pianos have a limited noise level that can be reached, meaning that you would not be able to play a note as loud or as soft as you wish; an acoustic piano has no limit of loudness or softness as to when a note is being played.

On the other hand, when you play a chord on a Digital piano, the result would be the combination of three notes being played and the sound of each note can be recognized as though it has been recorded independently. While in acoustic piano, the three notes cannot be recognized independently. Rather you will hear a sound that resulted from a combination of the three notes. When you play using acoustic piano, there is no limit to the loudness or softness in terms of notes. Digital pianos has limited level which means that you can’t play a note as soft or as loud as you wish.

When it comes to price, acoustic pianos are more expensive than digital ones. So if you’re in a tight budget you may opt to buy digital piano.

In terms of genuineness of the sound, digital pianos will always fall short to acoustic piano. But the choice really depends on you. There are a lot of factors to consider, so you must be able to take into consideration the most important factor that you think can influence your buying decision.You can also try to search piano lessons online so that you will have an idea of what to buy.  You should have the interest to learn and you can also take piano courses to enhance your skills more.