Archive for October, 2009
Some people are born musical. Some aspire to musicality. And some have musicality thrust upon them.
Being the middle child, I fall into the middle category. I was not born musical. And I never had musicality thrust upon me. Growing up, I had no musical education except the standard stuff we learned in music classes in the public school I went to. But when I was eleven, I decided to teach myself to play the guitar. And I have been aspiring to musicality ever since.
Several weeks ago, I decided to learn how to play piano songs. If you have been following these pages, you know that ever since then I have regaled you with my adventures in piano for beginners. I have been doing the free six-lesson course from Rocket Piano and blogging about it. I didn’t mean to be obnoxious. You know how some people brag about things that are not exactly brag-worthy? But I just kept getting a kick out of it. Hey, I could play Mary Had A Little Lamb! Hey, I could play Merrily We Roll Along!
Well, guess what? Hey, I can play Amazing Grace! How sweet the sound! Well, I’m not suggesting the neighbors think that it’s such a sweet sound.
But, man, I love knowing how to play piano songs. I learned Mary Had A Little Lamb in the first lesson. I went on to Merrily We Roll Along in the second lesson. Then I added Deck the Halls and wound up with Amazing Grace. Four songs in six lessons.
And notice what we didn’t learn how to play. We didn’t learn how to play scales. We didn’t learn how to play dull, boring exercises that could have been repeated by a metronome. We didn’t learn how to play one note with one finger over and over.
Now, I admit that I got bogged down with Lesson Three. We studied harmonic and melodic intervals and chords. It was . . . dry. But I attacked it just so that I could move along to Lesson Four, the lesson of Deck the Halls. (It reminds me of my good friend, Elaine, who as a child always ate the much-loathed lima beans first to get them off her plate so that she could enjoy the rest of her dinner. But I digress. . . )
And six lessons later, hey! I know how to play piano songs.
I also know how to read music now. When you sign up for the free six-lesson course with Rocket Piano, you get a free download called Jayde Musica. Jayde Musica is an interactive game designed to teach the video-game generation how to read music. I am not a member of the video-game generation, but I have to say that Jayde Musica is fun. And a great learning tool. Playing it helped me learn to read music fast.
This is how it works: When the game starts, you see notes on small portions of a musical staff that move from right to left across the screen. You need to identify the note and click on the right button on the screen before the moving staff completes the trip across the screen. Then you go on to the next note following right after it. You score points for correct responses and progress from beginner to more advanced levels as your scores improve. It’s just like a video game that way.
But this game is sneaky. You don’t waste time doing it. You learn to read music! You have to keep alert because you have to respond actively to the note as it passes in front of you.
You have to commit by pressing the button. None of this, “Let’s see, I guess it’s a G. Yeah, that’s right, I was going to say that it’s an A.” You have to know your stuff. And it continues to challenge you, because the patterns of notes will get more complicated and they will pass on the screen faster as you score higher.
Why, that free download alone is more than worth the price of the free six-lesson course! Hah!
So, having accomplished the free six-lesson course, I am now moving along to the full, paid course. And you needn’t worry. I’ll be blogging about it as I go on. Lucky you!
Do you want to learn how to play piano songs, too? If you do, you can start your own blog and brag about your progress. Just sign up with Rocket Piano. If you don’t want to commit, try out the free six-lesson course. But if you know you want to learn how to play piano songs, take the plunge and get the full course. This program is good.
You may be taking up piano for beginners simply for your own pleasure. It may be a strictly recreational pursuit. But for playing the piano to be truly rewarding, you will need to apply yourself so that you gain mastery and artistry. So, although I hope you will always have fun learning and playing piano, I certainly advise you not to treat your piano playing casually. On the contrary, you should apply yourself to learning how to play piano songs the same way you would to any learning experience: with a great attitude, determination, discipline, perseverance and passion. Applying those five habits to your piano playing will enhance your joy of music.
- Attitude. Know that you can do it. You can learn to play the piano. Beyond that, you can learn to sight read, play by ear and accompany other musicians if those things interest you. There are lots of piano players out there who aren’t as smart as you are. If they can do it, you can, too. And there are a lot of things that you have accomplished in your life that are harder than learning piano for beginners. If you did those things, you can learn how to play piano songs, too.
- Determination. You have decided to learn piano for beginners. So learn. Keep playing even if you don’t want to. Keep playing even if, at the moment, it’s not fun. Just keep doing it. And then do it again. You will succeed in learning what you are trying so hard to master. And then you will be able to go on to be determined about the next harder thing.
- Discipline. Discipline is a cycle. When you apply yourself to learning how to play piano songs, you increase your capacity for discipline. Your increased capacity for discipline allows you to apply yourself to a greater degree. Applying yourself to a greater degree increases your discipline even further. And so it goes. So get on the treadmill. Apply yourself, increase your discipline and succeed.
- Perseverance. If you encounter a difficulty, try another way. If something doesn’t work, do something else. But never lose sight of your goal of mastering piano for beginners. Keep practicing. And keep loving it.
- Passion. A great attitude, determination, discipline and perseverance will all fire up your passion. When you are doing something you love, well, you love it. But when you excel at something you love, you become truly passionate about it. And your passion for learning how to play piano songs will, in turn, fuel your attitude, determination, discipline and perseverance.
So use your best habits when it comes to learning piano for beginners. And you won’t be a beginner for long.
Do you want to learn to play keyboard online? I use and love Rocket Piano. Not convinced? Try the free six-lesson course.
And in other news . . . what will they think of next:
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virtual piano turns any surface into a keyboard – digital information development (did) has developed a highly portable virtual piano that is played with a keyboard consisting of projected laser beams. the box-shaped device measures about 10 x 3 x 3 cm (4 x 1 x 1 in. …
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still alive performed on gmod piano – stay with me here, i had to look a lot of this up myself: crazy emmer effer called fptje on youtube has used the valve source engine and gmod (yeah grandma, that’s like, a sort of sandbox add-on thingie built using the source …
“Mom, stop!” That’s what my kids say when I am practicing the piano, learning how to play piano songs.
Learning piano as an adult requires many things. Determination to fit your practice times into your busy schedule. An understanding that you don’t ever have to stop learning or growing, even as an adult. Oh, and a willingness to be humiliated.
You can’t learn anything without making mistakes. And you can never master any skill without going through a stage in which your lack of mastery is apparent. If you want to learn how to play piano songs, you have to be humble.
But it’s worth it.
First of all, if you abandon your sense of embarrassment, even the practice is fun. Learning to play the right notes, then to play them at the right tempo, then to play them like you mean it, is a great experience. During your practice sessions, who has the right to judge? Your kids? Your spouse? Let them live through the wrong notes. And learn that by making mistakes, you can learn to make music.
Secondly, you aren’t going to be making mistakes forever. Your playing will start to sound better with practice. If you practice a lot, it will sound better soon. So practice. Play.
Are you sitting in judgment of yourself? Forgive yourself. How many people do you know, adults with responsibilities, busy schedules and commitments, are endeavoring to learn an instrument? Just you? I thought so. If you are learning to play piano songs as an adult, you are already succeeding in a way that most folks don’t even attempt. Congratulate yourself on that. Then keep practicing.
You may never be a concert pianist. Maybe all you want to do is play Beatles songs or Christmas carols. You are already closer to that than ever before. Now go practice. And tell the kids to live with it.
And don’t forget to check out Rocket Piano for a great online course. You’ll learn to play keyboard fast!
On the other hand, if you want to feel hopeless, read these blog posts about kids who do things better than you ever will:
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top 10 kids who prove we’re all pathetic – there is nothing to make you feel more pathetic than a kid that can kick your ass at something. and i’m not talking about the accidental “i win” in a game of soccer in the front yard. i’m talking about a good spanking from a kid who can …
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Top 10 Child Prodigies – Listverse – Throughout history the world has been blessed with the occasional appearance of children with great talents, many of whom go on to become some of the most important contributors in their field. This is a list of the ten greatest child …
Now that I have been studying piano for beginners online for several weeks, I would like to say a few words in appreciation of the internet. Because with the internet I have a chance to learn piano much more consistently and successfully than I would ever be able to learn with a teacher.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m all for full employment for piano teachers. I think piano teachers, like all teachers, should be paid more. And other people, like professional basketball players and bankers who send the global economy plummeting off a cliff, should be paid less. But that’s a discussion for a different blog.
As I was saying, I am fully in favor of learning piano, especially piano for beginners, from a real live teacher. But I would never be able to do it myself. There are two rather significant things standing between me and private piano lessons: time and money.
I am a self-employed single mother of two school-age kids. I juggle as much as I can as well as I can. During the school day, I work on my business. After school, we’ve got basketball practice and basketball games, speech therapy sessions, help with science projects and homework, the church youth group . . . well, you get the idea. Schedule a weekly piano lesson? Not for one of the kids, mind you, but for Mom? I just don’t see that happening.
But that great force of democracy, the internet, gives me the flexibility to study online. I can take my lessons when and as I can. I don’t have to make an appointment, reschedule an appointment, break an appointment or get frazzled trying to get to an appointment on time. I don’t have to cut into my work time to take an online piano lesson. Nor do I have to worry about how to take care of the kids during a lesson scheduled for an afternoon, evening or week-end. Some weeks, I have a little more time on my hands. I can practice as much as I want and progress with lessons as I go. Often, that’s in the evening after the kids are in bed. Other times, I have less time available. But even then I don’t experience the anxiety of staring down a piano teacher who gave me an “assignment” that I didn’t finish.
So the time factor is a definite reason to learn piano for beginners online instead of with a living, breathing teacher. Then there’s that other factor: money. As you know, I am studying with the Rocket Piano course. Well, the first six lessons are free. You can’t get more economical than free. Then, once I had finished with the free course, I purchased the premium course. The price was remarkably reasonable, considering everything you get. And it was a one-time fee, not a weekly or monthly stipend as with a private teacher. As I said before, I fully support fair wages for piano teachers. But, frankly, I wouldn’t be able to pay them right now, even if I had the time to take private lessons. Yet, by learning online with Rocket Piano, I have been able to handle both the time factor and the money factor. And here I am, learning to play the piano!
So I am adding yet another voice to the chorus in favor of the power and reach of the internet. And yet another reason: because of the internet, I’m learning how to play piano songs.
Read more about learning how to play piano songs:
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Teach Yourself Piano – Yes You Can! – I certainly do not believe there is anyway that someone could sit in front of a piano, and after a few hours become a major piano legend. Here is the original: Teach Yourself Piano – Yes You Can!
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teach yourself piano – why being unique is a good thing | Piano … – As a beginner, when you start to teach yourself piano, it becomes crucial to realise the importance of being unique. It is normal to be a rote learner.
When I need to alphabetize something, I have no problem with the beginning of the alphabet. But once I get to “M” or so, I revert to a trick I learned in first grade. I sing the Alphabet Song.
Music is an element of learning for kids even before they learn to read. In fact, recent studies show that kids who learn how to play piano songs have better grades and higher SAT scores. Schools that once were failing have improved their performance for their kids when they add a serious music program. In Hungary, under the influence of Zoltan Kodaly, kids are taught to sing in elementary school. By third grade, Hungarian pupils sing well and on pitch and throughout their academic careers, they score high in math and science.
Learning music has been shown to enhance abilities to learn both math and language. Researchers think this is due to improved spatial-temporal reasoning. In fact, when a student learns how to play piano songs, she engages both the left and the right hemispheres of the brain. When she hears a melody, or tries to replicate it by ear, she relies on the right hemisphere. When she learns to read music and follow the progression of notes, she uses the left hemisphere.
In addition to cognitive functions of the brain, learning music enhances emotional growth and interpersonal maturity. Music can be both an individual and a group activity. When you learn that you start to play when another instrument has gotten to a certain part of the score, you learn skills in collaboration that carry over into other activities. When you learn that playing all the right notes is only the first step of playing music, and that making the music beautiful requires an emotional contribution from the musician, you start to learn about the importance of emotional intelligence.
Music also enhances emotional maturity by teaching both discipline and reward. You learn discipline because you cannot fake it. You need to practice and prepare in order to play the right notes on the right beats. And, conversely, if you put in the practice and preparation, you will make progress and start to excel and will learn how to play piano songs, getting the right notes on the right beats.
Learning music also has the quality of providing cultural richness. You don’t need to be able to speak the same language in order to play music with someone or to enjoy a musician’s work. Music cuts across racial, educational, cultural and linguistic divides and offers the musician a glimpse of another period of history or another part of the world. Learning music can illuminate studies in literature, history and geography.
And lastly, learning music is beautiful. Music is an incomparable gift that we can give our children. We may wish to do so in order for them to excel in other areas. But the gift carries with it the unabashed gift of music itself.
Do you wish to learn to play piano? Or do you have a child who does? Find out more about Rocket Piano.
A piano is a costly investment. Even a modest piano can be the most expensive piece of furniture in the house. But it is more than furniture; it is a complex musical instrument. So any piano owner must be concerned with caring for her piano, both to enhance the beauty of her piece of furniture and to maintain the quality of her musical instrument. You should learn how to care for your piano just as you learn how to play piano songs.
The first and most important thing to do is to make sure the piano is located in an appropriate place in the house. For a piano, heat, moisture and light can all cause damage. Those conditions can damage the finish, cause the piano to go out of tune and even cause the wood to swell. Your piano should be located away from radiators or heating vents, fireplaces and air conditioning units. It’s also best not to place the piano against the outside wall of the house. Be sure not to expose it to sunlight for long periods of time. If the piano is located near a sunny window, keep the curtains drawn. Sunlight can damage the finish and affect the tuning. If at all possible, keep the humidity levels and the temperature even, to limit the expansion and contraction of the wood in the piano.
You paid a lot for your piano, and you work hard learning how to play piano songs, so don’t scrimp on care. A neglected piano never has a good sound. Have your piano tuned and regulated twice a year. “Regulating” a piano means that a piano technician will examine all the moving parts for breakage or wear and fix or adjust them as needed. You owe it to the piano as a piece of furniture and as a musical instrument. And you owe it to yourself as a musician.
Since moisture is an enemy of a well-kept piano, keep liquids away from it. Don’t bring a cup of tea or a glass of water to the piano when you play. Find another place for your potted plants or beautiful bouquets of flowers. Move the fish bowl. It is as crucial to keep spills away from a piano as it is to keep moisture in the air under control.
Use a feather duster to clean the cabinet. It will remove dust particles, so the dust won’t scratch the surface when you polish it with a cloth. And just use a soft cloth to polish it. Don’t use wood polish, because polishes can in fact damage wood. And use soft, slightly damp cloths to clean the keys, one cloth for the white keys and a different cloth for the black ones. Be sure to go back and remove any residual moisture with a clean, soft, dry cloth.
Your piano is too valuable for you not to treasure your investment. An important, even imposing piece of furniture as well as a complex and intricate musical instrument, you should take as much care in the maintenance of your piano as you do in your efforts to learn how to play piano songs well.
And are you working hard at learning how to play piano songs? Don’t overlook Rocket Piano, the best, most autoritative piano method course on the internet.
Want to read more about playing piano? Have a look at these blogs:
What Kind Of Learning Piano Is the Best – Do you want to learn how to play piano? If so, this article was written for you. Specifically, we are going to talk about how to teach yourself to play piano, whether you need a professional teacher, and how to use the Internet to teach … How can I learn to play piano by ear? | Learnin’ To Play Piano – Filed under: how to play piano. I’m not the best with sheet music and it’s so hard to find… To be completely honest, some people are able to play piano by ear, some people aren’t. If you’re a musical learner or play other instruments, …
