Learning keyboard should be fun and you are likely to accomplish the best results if you always make sure that you learn in a way that is a pleasure for you. It is also important to celebrate your victories. When you teach yourself piano you have total freedom to decide how and what you want to achieve. you can select any style or a mixture. you can study and practice hard or just now and again. rather than learn music theory and practice scales at the beginning it is much easier and better fun to just choose a few simple songs that you enjoy and learn them one after another. This is usually plenty to impress your friends and to give you a real sense of achievement.
At the other end of the learning piano scale is the serious concert pianist. if you are going this way it is arguably best to get some outside help from the start rather than teach yourself piano because small habits can make a gigantic difference at this level and habits once learned can be nearly impossible to break.
My initial experience of learning to play piano was just pressing my fingers on a desk to make them stronger. Then I progressed to an electronic keyboard, then a keyboard that was touch sensitive and then the full glory of my current piano – a very rare 100 year old iron frame that speaks directly to my soul. so I reiterate the best approach to anyone starting out to teach themselves to play the piano is to just have fun and enjoy it, progress will come.
April 19th, 2011
