Learning piano

With many of us locked down at home, now seems like a good time to start learning piano. But where’s best to start and what kind of keyboard or digital piano is best?

he unprecedented situation of life under lockdown has led many of us to search for new ways to pass the time and learn new skills; learning a musical instrument could be just the antidote you need to these strange and uncertain times. In fact, many of us have always wanted to learn a new (or additional instrument) so now there’s really no excuse.

Whether it be drums, piano, keyboard, guitar or anything else you have always wanted to be able to play, there are lots of great resources out there to help, in the form of pre-recorded lessons or one to one tuition from professionals (on Zoom or Skype). Even famous musicians are now allowing you into their previously hidden worlds to pass on their secret recipes for becoming a great instrumentalist.

I’ve been playing piano since the age of five – so almost 40 years now! – and that one decision by my folks to start me off with piano lessons (despite my initial resistance!) was literally life changing and has

Tdefined my entire musical career. I meet many people who say to me “I wish I could play like you” or “I used to play a bit and wish I hadn’t stopped” and I have to admit my heart sinks when I hear this.

Having the ability to play any instrument is such a huge game changer for anyone’s mental health, cognitive abilities and general happiness at any age and it can help you through tough times, provide joy too and connect you to people and the world in ways you never thought possible. Along with all the people you meet through your connection with music and your instrument, whether that be other musicians in bands, or educators, dancers, artists and other creatives, there is no time like the present to start on – or rejoin – the path to learning an instrument.

WHY PICK PIANO?

But why go for a piano or keyboard and not another instrument? Well, firstly, the piano is a relatively easy instrument to learn with a pretty shallow learning curve – though of course, like anything, to be really great you need to really put in the hours. There’s also a ton of great learning resources out there for people of all ages/abilities, including books, apps and videos. Compared to string instruments where you have to contort your hands into all sorts of unnatural feeling positions (at first) and where you have to physically make contact with the string with your hands to create the sound, the piano keyboard does a lot of the ‘heavy lifting’ work for you. In the most basic way, all you have to you is press a lever (the key), which then triggers a hammer (real or virtual in software) that hits a string and hey presto you’re off. Essentially, the way a piano or keyboard works means that anyone from a toddler to a pensioner can make a decent sound by simply pressing a key and listening to the beautiful note that rings out.

Piano keys are also comfy and nicely spaced for our human hands (again unlike the guitar) and so as a starter instrument it’s ideal. The piano keyboard is a thing of absolute