I want to learn to play the piano on my own and I don’t want a teacher, so please don’t tell me to get a teacher.  I want to learn in my own time and have a few ideas on how to go about it.

I want to start by learning to read sheet music and the theory behind the process and then apply the theory to the actual playing part of the piano. This seems to be a logical way of doing this and I have taught myself many skills in this way. I am keen to hear from piano teachers and what they think of my method and if they think it will work. I am very determined, so whatever you say I won’t be put off.

Mikes answer

Well I have been a piano and keyboard teacher for over 30 years and my advice to you is GET A PIANO TEACHER (just kidding). I admire your determination to do this but I don’t agree with your method and I can pretty much guarantee that it won’t work. Let me tell you why.

From what I gather from your question you want to learn the theory first then simply apply that to playing the piano. Now while this method is used in many professions and I would argue that it’s done side by side, i.e. mixing theory with experience, when learning to play the piano we are talking about a lot of complex things that need to happen. First, your hand and finger muscles need to be developed in the correct way, using the correct hand position on the keyboard needs to be observed, using the correct fingers when playing music, hand to eye coordination and many more little but important things need to be realised right from the start or you will develop bad habits which will slow the whole process down to a snails pace.

So here my advice to you and its good advice but you can take it or leave it. First, don’t buy a piano lessons book and try to learn yourself; these books are designed to be used by piano teachers. There’s a lot more to be aware of than what’s in these books and that’s where a teacher comes in. Second, you have said you don’t want a teacher; well I have a compromise for you. Why don’t you buy a dedicated piano course on DVD, specifically Learn and Master Piano. This is going to be considerably cheaper than going to a private piano teacher but you will still have a teacher, albeit on DVD and you will avoid all the bad habits that I mentioned above and, you can still learn at your own pace.

Learn and Master Piano is taught by Will Barrow on 14 DVDs and he will teach you the theory with the help of the included lesson book and he will show you, as a piano teacher would, how to place your hands and fingers on the piano keyboard and how to practice.

This won’t take any of your determined spirit to do it on your own away, but will dramatically improve your chances of succeeding. As ever, the choice is yours.

Visit Learn and Master Piano Website

Good luck
Mike Shaw
Mikes Music Room