Is Learning The Piano Difficult?

Are you someone who is eager to learn a new talent or skill like playing playing piano? Whether you are still in the exploration phase, you may be think about it: is it difficult learning piano? Or, how hard is it to be able to play? The answer to these questions are not as simple as you might think, since numerous factors contribute to the ease with which you can master how to play the piano.

Similar to other musical instrument, piano is hard to master for someone with no musical history. Do not to think of the potential conflicts, but think of the outcome. Remember, learning music is a lifelong journey. It takes a lot of time to be a good piano performer. Even senior musicians still ensure practice time is never missed, because with practice, they get much better. Learning the piano never ceases.

Here’s a look at five factors that make it harder to learn to play piano, so you can avoid them if at all possible when piano playing.

1. Learning To Play Without Help From a Teacher

Learning to play the piano with the help of a piano teacher is the best way to learn and progress quickly. A piano teacher makes it easier to learn the instrument easier by…

• Establishing good habits: A large part of playing the piano successfully is learning the correct posture, hand position, and finger movement. While working under the instruction of a piano teacher doesn’t guarantee you will become a concert pianist, you certainly don’t need to pick up bad habits that are hard to break later on.
• Making stylistic corrections: Piano music sounds best when played at the proper volume, rhythm, and tempo. It’s also easiest to play if you incorporate the correct fingering and hand movement. You may not recognize your own mistakes without the help of a private teacher by your side to point them out. This one-on-one feedback is impossible to get from a textbook and is key to progressing to the next level.
• Providing teaching materials: If you’re having trouble reading music or comprehending other parts of music theory, it’s unlikely that you’ll assign yourself homework even though you need to learn. A private instructor, on the other hand, can recognize where you’re struggling and recommend extra exercises to help you improve. Without this extra push, you might struggle with music theory for much longer than necessary.
• Holding you accountable: How easy is it to set a New Year’s resolution… only to give up after two weeks? You’re much more likely to achieve your goals if you have someone to hold you accountable. In this case, that role is played by a piano teacher. Your teacher will set certain expectations and hold you accountable for them, making it more difficult for you to give in to the temptation to quit even if you feel like it.
• Teaching all the necessary notes and chords to the point where you can recognises them by ear.

2. Being Unwilling to Practice and Learn Piano

Is it hard to learn piano? Well, that all depends on how willing you are to practice! If you only practice something once or twice between your weekly lessons, you probably won’t progress at the pace you wish. It’s a waste of money to hire a teacher if you refuse to put in the time in between lessons. As a general rule of thumb, strive to practice for at least 30 minutes every day. You have to put in the time if you want to see improvement from week to week, it cannot be learnt in a day, some people can take years. It does take a long time to master, sometimes a really long time, but putting in the minutes and hours of practice and you will know it all and be able to tell what’s being played by ear.

3. Not Having Any Musical Background and Being Able to Play the Piano

It’s not impossible to learn the piano if you have no prior musical experience; just expect it to take you a little longer at the start to master the fundamentals of reading music. After all, everyone needs to start somewhere! Be patient with yourself, stay focused, and remain positive! Try many different things as it takes time and work to know all the chords and notes.

4. Attempting to Practice on a Cheap Keyboard

It may sound silly, but without a proper 88-key piano, you’re limiting yourself and making it really difficult to learn the instrument. The last thing you want is an extra element that could frustrate you as you attempt to master piano.

The best option to give you the most authentic playing experience possible is an upright piano. There’s nothing quite like playing on a concert grand, but an upright piano is more budget- and space-friendly. If you go to your piano teacher’s home or studio, it’s likely that they offer instruction on a real piano as opposed to a digital keyboard. Having an instrument at home consistent with the one you use in your practice can certainly help. The next best option is an electronic keyboard with weighted, touch-sensitive keys. If you opt for a digital piano, make sure it’s a high-quality keyboard with the full 88 keys and a sustain pedal. Without these features, you’ll be setting unnecessarily limitations on yourself from the very beginning.

5. Having Too High or Too Low of Expectations

Keep your expectations in check: don’t start piano lessons thinking you’ll be playing Rachmaninoff and other classical music pieces in a day! It’s important that you get the basics down first and build a strong foundation. That means beginning to learn songs that use one hand and basic melodies before you ever move to more complicated works and using two hands. If you jump into a piece that’s well above your skill level, you’ll likely get frustrated and have the urge to quit.

Let your teacher guide you in choosing songs that correspond with your skill level and may teach a new technique that takes you to another level. You would be surprised how impressive and fun “simple” songs can sound when you master tempo changes, dynamics, and other techniques that give the song more feeling. Another technique is to remember to keep your hands together, many people can try something different and it limits them in becoming a successful piano player. At the same time, you don’t want to let yourself plateau at your present skill level, fearing to try anything harder than your comfort zone, or you will never progress to the level you are after. A great way to progress and learn pieces at your skill level is to choose a good song book and master several songs at one level before moving onto the next one.

With these factors in mind, it’s easy to see the benefits of taking private lessons as opposed to learning on your own. Just about every factor that impacts the difficulty of learning the piano ties back into whether you have a private teacher at your side, helping you as you hone your new skills. In this way, finding a qualified teacher is the first step toward mastering a new musical instrument.

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