Learning to play the piano.

[Adam]

A friend of mine at work is selling her piano. I've always had an interest to learn the piano, but I've never started because a) I don't have a piano, and b) I'm not sure if I have the dicepline to learn it. However, as there is one available from a friend I thought why not, buy it and give it a go, and if I don't like it I could always sell it on right? So what I want to know is. Is it possible to learn to play the piano via the internet - so could I look at tutorials online and learn to play? lessons here are quite expensive so not sure if I would want to pay someone to teach me when I could learn on my own. Although if buying a piano I might as well pay to learn... Thoughts?

[kichu]

It's POSSIBLE, I'm sure. But you mentioned not having discipline, so finding a teacher who you sort of have an obligation to meet because you've paid them, might be the better way to go. Having said that, I played piano for 7 years when I was younger, and have been meaning to get back to it for a while. My plan was to get back into it with online tutorials. From what I remember, its not rocket science or anything. Learn the notes, practice, devote time to it......you should be fine.

[sol]

I had lessons for quite a while and now just learn the occasional song that takes my fancy by downloading sheet music or checking out tutorials. Theres some good tutorials on youtube that teach you how to play without needing to know how to read music. It would definitely be better if you had lessons first but if you're dedicated you should be able to teach yourself some songs with the help of a tutorial.

[Rozzy]

It's true, I have learned to play some songs off of the internet. I had to memorize them and then run to the piano room to play it.. lol that's only because My laptop is stupid, but it is very possible. You can start with just learning chords, or go straight into learning songs.

[Adam]

Cool thanks guys - I think I will give it a shot

[Lëzen]

Let me just say that you can teach yourself to play almost any instrument without a teacher breathing down your neck. The only things you really, really need to know - things the Internet can teach you - are nitpicky (but important) things like posture, the correct hand positions, etc. [Or in a guitarist's case, how to correctly hold the plectrum, what angle you should tilt the guitar during play, etc.] These things may seem unimportant at first, but holy shit, do they make an difference. (I actually learned to play bass holding the plectrum wrong, so I had to "re-learn" to play the right way...and my playing improved like fivefold.) And then there's basic scale exercises, but once you've got all that down, you're pretty much set to start experimenting on your own. You can then start making up your own exercises to help teach yourself how to play with both hands simultaneously. Good luck.

[Kuhnada29]

Learn to play by ear. Forget learning anything, just play it, in time you'll be able to just listen to a song and be able to replicate the melody on the piano. Also, when you first start off, play only the black keys...anything you play with the black keys only is always harmonious.

[Vampyre]

You can also get a keyboard for like $100 that'll have lessons on it. Or at least the one I have does and it's really easy to follow.

[no-Name]

Also, when you first start off, play only the black keys...anything you play with the black keys only is always harmonious. What. Not at all. Have you ever heard a scale in C sharp? It sounds terrible. If you can't pay for lessons, I'd go with Vampyre and get a keyboard that has built in teaching steps. Very useful, when you can find them.

[Kuhnada29]

I didn't say a C# scale, i said only the black keys. C# includes white keys

[Lëzen]

Learn to play by ear. Forget learning anything, just play it, in time you'll be able to just listen to a song and be able to replicate the melody on the piano. Maybe that'd be a good thing at first, but somewhere down the line, it will become necessary to learn how to read (and by extension, write) sheet music. I believe that's a skill every pianist - hell, every musician in general - should really know. What. Not at all. Have you ever heard a scale in C sharp? It sounds terrible. C# doesn't sound bad at all. What scale are YOU thinking of?

[Xei]

lol at music theory fail. The base note makes no difference to the sound of the scale. And of course don't just play black keys, unless you're exclusively into oriental music. It's bad practice anyway if you just smash them randomly. I'd suggest playing stuff you like. Pop rock, classical, jazz, whatever, as long as you want to play it. Try and work out melodies for modern music, or if that's a bit hard then you can get tabs and sheets online for quite a bit of stuff (though sheets are actually quite hard to come by; if you have a particular famous band which you worship they tend to make sheet music books for them).

[DeeryTheDeer]

If you're just starting to learn the piano, or you need to stop playing by ear and go back and learn it properly (like me), this guy is the PERFECT YouTube teacher. Look no further for inexpensive lessons.

[no-Name]

I apologize. That was my bad.

[guitarboy]

I find the sharps and flats(black keys) are used in Asian music more... I find it incredibly hard to read music for piano, youtube has good tutorials. Every song I know on the piano I learned by ear or from watching someone on youtube play it.

[Lëzen]

I find the sharps and flats(black keys) are used in Asian music more... It seems that way, but that's only because the black keys by themselves happen to form a perfect pentatonic scale (minor from D# to D#, major from F# to F#), which is common in many kinds of Asian music. Whether sharp or natural has little to do with it...

[guitarboy]

It seems that way, but that's only because the black keys by themselves happen to form a perfect pentatonic scale (minor from D# to D#, major from F# to F#), which is common in many kinds of Asian music. Whether sharp or natural has little to do with it... Okay. Another thing I suggest is to learn the right hands role in a song first, then the left(or vice versa when the left hand carries the melody) Of course, this is more for simpler songs, but it's good to start with.

[Xei]

The black keys are only the 'sharps and flats' (incedentals) in C, and there's nothing special about C. Incedentals are white notes just as often, for example E# is F. It just depends what key you're in whether you write them as incedentals or not.

[Lëzen]

^...Do you mean "accidentals"? Not trying to be a nitpicky dick, I've just never heard them called "incidentals" before. Okay. So glad you agree.

[guitarboy]

^...Do you mean "accidentals"? Not trying to be a nitpicky dick, I've just never heard them called "incidentals" before. So glad you agree. It was a more dignified way of saying that I know nothing and I'm just making guesses.

[Xei]

^...Do you mean "accidentals"? Not trying to be a nitpicky dick, I've just never heard them called "incidentals" before. Eck, yeah that's the one. And I got a distinction in my music theory exam... hah. :l

[Lëzen]

^For a minute it had me thinking that it was like...some Commonwealth way of saying it. It was a more dignified way of saying that I know nothing and I'm just making guesses. Hey, not faulting you for it. I mean, it does, in fact, sound quite Asian. Just explaining why it sounds Asian. Knowledge is power, right? That's the thing with me. It's not enough for me to know that something sounds a certain way. I have to find out why it sounds that way. Some say that analyzing music and picking it apart in this way makes it less magical, but...

[guitarboy]

^For a minute it had me thinking that it was like...some Commonwealth way of saying it. Hey, not faulting you for it. I mean, it does, in fact, sound quite Asian. Just explaining why it sounds Asian. Knowledge is power, right? That's the thing with me. It's not enough for me to know that something sounds a certain way. I have to find out why it sounds that way. Some say that analyzing music and picking it apart in this way makes it less magical, but... People have told me I do that when I say that the bass part is good but the piano part is better... I can only imagined what they'd say to you.

[Adam]

What. Not at all. Have you ever heard a scale in C sharp? It sounds terrible. If you can't pay for lessons, I'd go with Vampyre and get a keyboard that has built in teaching steps. Very useful, when you can find them. It's not that I can't pay for lessons. I don't mind doing so if you think it's going to be better for me. However, I'm open to new ways of doing things, and youtube looks like a good source for info/lessons

[Vampyre]

I took lessons for guitar and piano for a couple months each. Other than that, I just learned the rest on my own, from tabs, or from writing music, specifically with Guitar Pro. If you're interested in writing music at all, I definitely recommend Guitar Pro or something similar.