This coronavirus crisis motivated a lot of people to learn new things, that they missed in the past, or didn’t have enough time and money to do that when they were young. But now, many of us have plenty of time to learn something new. Many people decided to start language lessons, DIY projects, or even to knit or learn to play some instrument.
Many people wrongly believe that if you want to learn the piano, you need to start at the age of 6 or 7, and if you are older than 20 it’s too late for you. But, the truth is that there is no wrong time to learn some new skills and the age shouldn’t limit you to do what you love to do.
Learning piano has a lot of benefits for you because it stimulates your brain to remember the patterns and to work on your fingers’ motor skills. Also, pianists have flexible hands and advanced psychological abilities. This is one of the many reasons why you need to start learning the piano, never mind if you are 6 or 66 years old.
Here are a few tips and trick on how to learn to play the piano:
Train your ear
Ear training is important for everyone who works in the music field. If you don’t have “an ear”, it will be difficult for you to accomplish the basics. But, that doesn’t mean that you won’t learn a thing. Many professional pianists have trained their ears during a long process of learning and exercising until they master the hearing and hand movements.
Be smooth
It may look like a good idea to hit random keys and see if any pleasant sound comes out. But, your approach needs to be smooth, flexible and soft. It may sound bizarre, but it will help you remember the keys and to reach them easily, instead of hitting them one by another.
Take an online course
Today, we are lucky to have everything we need on the Internet. That includes piano lessons too. You can also have a chance to learn from the masters in piano. Start with the basic lessons or check more of these platforms, to find the one that fits your needs. If you don’t know how to find them, instrumentalglobal.com listed the best online piano lessons for you. Online classes can also help you to see how much you improved since the first lesson and to compare the results.
Maintain a good hand position
It’s impossible to play with both hands in the first lessons, but you will improve soon. Most teachers teach the piano students to play with the dominant hand first and then to move to the other. After you learn the separate hand movements, it will be easier for you to combine both the hands in the future. Don’t try to play like a professional, so you can avoid disappointments. You can be the most intelligent person in the world, but every skill requires time and commitment, so you can be good at it.
Focus and memorize the patterns
You need to learn how to read the notes and chords. It will make the whole process easier for you. Some of the professional pianists will recommend you to play the part before you sleep, so your mind can set the information in your brain during the night. Try again in the morning, and you will see how you are getting better every day. If you focus and concentrate on the notes and keys, you can follow your intuition on which key you need to hit next. The playing speed will come after lots and lots of hours of practicing.
Divide the practicing
No one expects you that you will play a symphony or a requiem after one month, and you shouldn’t expect that too. Start with less complicated compositions and smaller musical pieces. Divide them into even smaller sections and practice every one of them, even if you need to repeat it 100 times. After a few tries, you will see how things go smoothly and every other try will be better. Then, move to the next one. After you finish the last one tries to play the whole piece, again and again.
Learn to read and play at the same time
This is maybe the most important skill all the professional musicians have. If you read the notes and then look at the keys, you will spend a lot of precious time for nothing. But as you practice, you’ll be able to look at the notes and play on the board successfully, without having to check if you do something wrong. And since you are (still) not a part of the national orchestra, you have enough space to make mistakes and to correct them. You just need to be consistent and to practice every day.
What if I don’t have a talent for piano?
You can practice, but the whole process can become frustrating and disturbing for you, especially if you can’t learn the basics. We don’t say that it’s impossible to learn the piano even if you’re not talented naturally, but it will be difficult and more stressful. So, if you want to avoid unnecessary stresses, you may consider learning something that you have talents for.
This period is also stressful for the whole planet, because of the coronavirus pandemic. People are anxious and nervous and live in a constant fear that they can be infected and spread the disease to the people they love. Some countries issued lockdowns for an extended period of time. Use this time to improve your current skills or to learn something new. Playing an instrument is a good way to stay calm and to relax. But if it’s hard for you to learn the basic things and if you don’t have a music talent, try with something else. The Internet offers you a lot of online courses, and you can find the best one for you, which will be also useful when the crisis ends.
