Question:
How hard is piano to play?
Tyler Howard
2013-08-08 22:13:37 UTC
I am very interested in playing piano however I'm 18 years old and feel like it's too late for me to learn really. But right now I'm extremely dedicated to playing and I've purchased a 54 key, keyboard and plan on playing it for like hours a day. How long would it take me to be like good enough to play intremediate level songs? For example the only song I'm really excited to learn which is, Tony Dancer by Elton John.
Six answers:
heart
2013-08-09 10:01:20 UTC
Hello! I never asked myself if it was too late when I started playing at 17. I wanted to learn for only me and my enjoyment and enrichment (and if I were able to share that, even better) so where does this question come from? You are only competing with yourself really! It's never too late to do anything in life ever. You aren't in a race or contest with anyone. Always believe that and you'll do everything you want to.



Anyway I wanted to play pieces I'd heard that I thought were so beautiful. Actually one piece that really was the catalyst to get me learning is Pas De Deux from Tchaikovsky's nutcracker. It's advanced, but I thought "ok I can play others" but honestly I know people jump right into Fur Elise or moonlight sonata (not sure why those seem most common) but it really pays to learn from the beginning and not jump into any piece or song you love sooner than you're ready. The result will be played sloppy and it won't sound right even if you play the right notes, which could also be discouraging.



My advice is if it isn't too painful return the 54 keyboard and wait to save up a couple hundred or so more for a full digital piano with weighted and touch sensitive keys. You can learn on your keyboard but after 6 months to a year you'll really want something better to take you to the level and skill you'll be wanting to play at by then. That is if you seriously want to learn piano. If you only want to fiddle and play a few songs with no desire to learn properly (no disrespect meant) then stick with that keyboard. How fast you learn really depends. Pianos open a whole world of music and learning you might be surprised how Much more you find you want to learn besides Elton John.
2013-08-09 05:21:39 UTC
It's not too late. Try to have fun with it and play songs you like. Lots of popular songs at musicnotes.com that have different arrangements, from simple to more complex.



I used to play some classical, note for note. These days though... I often just go by the chords. Learn the chords and scales, it helps to have a basic understanding. Practice a bit each day and you'll learn. It's better to do a bit each day than try to have one big lesson per week...



I like Elton John's songs but they tend to be complex piano arrangements for a beginner. Unless you can find simplified versions. I've found at musicnotes they are decent arrangements that sound true to originals even if simplified a bit.



http://www.musicnotes.com/sheetmusic/mtdFPE.asp?ppn=MN0075415& that's Tiny Dancer easy piano. It's C major. You will have to understand the timing of the notes, otherwise not that hard. You'll see in the bass you start usually on the low E, not much hand movement.
swell and well to the MAX
2013-08-09 15:53:09 UTC
It isn't too late. The piano is the basis for other instruments because the keys are laid out. Music theory or learning the notes on paper and the piano becomes easier with practice. As my teacher said after about 3 and a half years of playing, it all becomes natural after a while, and he was right. Despite playing many notes at once and having two clefs to play with, the piano is generally easier in many ways than most other instruments.



For stringed instruments like a violin, you might have trouble even hitting the correct note in an exact place, and ones like the guitar, the same notes can be on different strings, so finger positions and moving your fingers up and down the guitar can be hard. And for any other instrument like a tuba, for example, the notes are not laid out, except for things like an organ or harpsichord.



When I first started piano, I practiced for about 3 hours a day, and now I do it for an hour. It's definitely important to practice longer and keep playing when you first start so you can continue to develop the musical experiences in your head. After about 6 and a half years I was playing some of Frederic Chopin's Easier works, and at 7 years I could play some of his more difficult works such as is his etudes also decently well. After 8 years of experience, I could finally play some of Chopin's technically demanding works very well, such as some of his etudes, polonaises, and one of his concertos.



I don't know how fast you will learn, but it is a common myth that you can't learn any faster when you're older. It's just a mentality thing, because younger people are not as exposed to what goes on in the real world, so they want to focus on their music. If you really have dedication to practice getting better and correcting wrong habits, you should learn pretty quickly. On average it takes people about 3 to 5 years to play intermediate level songs. It took me about 3 years. I am guessing it will take you 4 years because you do seem like you have a lot of responsibilities, yet you also seem very intelligent and motivated to learn music.



Standard pianos are 88 keys, and before you know it certain notes you play will need to be much higher or lower than middle C on the piano. So you can get a feel of the octaves, it will help to get a feel of where to put your fingers in certain places. Simply moving your hands up and down the keys and doing finger exercises can help with note memorization and musical understanding. I used to do this all the time after I practised certain pieces as a beginner. Lessons would also be good to avoid developing bad habits that can be extremely hard to break.



I wish you the best, and hope you do well starting the piano!



Maxwell



P.S.- I have always had lessons every Saturday, and the times have changed over the years. But I have stayed with the same teacher. He was born in Paris France in 1950 and was the only one in the world that had permission to record certain Sorabji piano music for publishing, which is very difficult.



It's good to practice what you have learned and try to correct habits yourself each day, and then finally learn more, instead of learning too much each day. My piano teacher didn't let me move onto other pieces most of the time unless I played the pieces at least decently well.
?
2013-08-11 14:14:55 UTC
I think it depends on how determined one is, and how much time one has available for practice. Last year I met a lady, who works as a nuclear physicist full time with 2 sons. She started learning piano on her own when she turned 40 and she can handle intermediate pieces, but it did take her a couple of years to get there. She improved further once she hired a piano teacher.
supertop
2013-08-09 19:10:55 UTC
What do you want to play on the piano? It is easy to play the Happy Birthday song or Mary Had A Little Lamb; it is a lot harder to play the 3rd movement of the Moonlight Sonata. "Tiny Dancer" is somewhere in between.
?
2013-08-09 09:23:23 UTC
It's NEVER too late. Plus you say you wanna play soft piano pieces, so it's way easier than playing classical music.


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