| The piano is probably the most popular and fun | | | | the piano. Basically the white keys are the natural |
| instrument to play but many believe that it can be | | | | notes and the black keys are the sharp and flat notes |
| difficult to learn without many years of practice. This is | | | | between them. |
| not true but some prior knowledge of notes and | | | | Invest in some good piano books so you can develop |
| chords may help. But if you are a complete beginner | | | | your knowledge further. A good book will develop your |
| then don't be put off. With regular practice there is no | | | | finger strength and give you a good grounding for |
| reason why you can't be playing good melody within | | | | further development. |
| the next month. It just takes practice, practice & | | | | Find Something to Play |
| practice! | | | | There are plenty of method books you can buy or |
| Finding a Piano to Use | | | | even take out at your local library. Look for books with |
| If you already have one then that's great but many | | | | songs you are familiar with such as children's songs,, |
| beginners may not have regular access to a piano. | | | | rhymes and holiday songs. You will find it much easier |
| Perhaps you can use a friends or perhaps one at a | | | | to learn the piano if you are already know the song. |
| church hall but this is still going to limit your practicing | | | | As you develop you can move onto more difficult |
| time. | | | | songs. You can also try using the other hand to play a |
| Here's a great tip for getting a cheap piano that I | | | | harmony or base line. This will feel odd to start but with |
| learned several years ago. Despite the piano being | | | | practice you will get better at it so you can use both |
| popular they can often be found at auctions and sale | | | | hands independently. |
| rooms. These pianos go for very little as they are | | | | Piano Lessons |
| incredibly difficult to move. Pianos weigh a ton and | | | | If you are looking to play piano as a career then you |
| generally need 4 men to lift. It's not unusual to see | | | | may need to consider getting a tutor. You can learn |
| upright pianos selling for less than $50! The sale rooms | | | | the basics yourself but it's very easy to pick up bad |
| get lumbered with them as part of a house clearance | | | | playing habits which are hard to undo later. Consider |
| and are willing to sell them cheap just to get rid of | | | | getting an online course from the internet. These can |
| them. All you need then is some transport and a few | | | | develop your skills further and are a lot cheaper than a |
| strong willing mates to help shift it. Some sale rooms | | | | teacher |
| offer a delivery service but this can be expensive. | | | | Practice Makes Perfect |
| If you can't find a piano or maybe have no room for | | | | There is no shortcut to practicing. The more you |
| one then a good electronic keyboard is a great | | | | practice the better you will get. Try practicing the |
| alternative and much easier to move and store. The | | | | scales this helps with finger dexterity. Resist playing |
| downside if this though is you can't practice any pedal | | | | the melody with both hands as it's a hard habit to |
| work. | | | | break. Keep practicing using both hands independently |
| Musical Knowledge | | | | and you will have far more success. |
| If you can read music then you will have a big | | | | Above all remember to have fun whilst learning. You |
| advantage when trying to teach yourself piano. If you | | | | need to have passion to learn piano and if it becomes |
| cannot then you are going to have to learn as there is | | | | a daily chore then your progress will be slow. Try and |
| no real shortcut to this but don't despair as there are | | | | set goals as your learn and tick them off as you |
| plenty of resources online that can help with this. | | | | achieve them. This makes the process of learning the |
| There are plenty of charts and books available online | | | | piano more fun. |
| to get you acquainted with which keys are which on | | | | |