Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum The benefits of having a teacher.

Apropos of nothing, I'm going to jump into this discussion. I'm married to someone who has a great desire for music, a background in music as a DJ and karaoke singer in the 1960s- 1980s, and can't, won't, refuses to learn the first thing about music.

<rant>

If I could go back in time, I would give a piece of my mind to the people that taught him to love music without giving him the basics of how to navigate the waters of Western music. He sang as a boy soprano in a church choir, it wasn't a cathedral, but it was the foremost Anglican church in a major town near London - name withheld to protect the guilty. They paid the kids a princely sum (for kids) to turn up and sing. BUT. They taught them everything by rote, no reading, no solfege, no theory. NOTHING. Just turn up and sing the notes we tell you, and here's your sixpence.

Result: A 63 year old man that loves music but doesn't want to be a beginner and has hands injured from years of cricket and being a goalie at football. I tried getting him into an a capella choir once, where everything was learned by rote (with solfege and recordings) but no reading music. The five guys in the choir welcomed him, thought he was brilliant. BUT. He wouldn't do it. In fact he broke into tears when telling me that he wouldn't do it. Somehow it was all too much.

I tried to teach him just a little bit of piano (play a triad) but his hands wouldn't go into a 1-3-5 position (see above about sport injuries) and that was the end of that. I thought that was the beginning, very basic stuff, but I was wrong.

He loves what I do, he thinks it's great that my playing is improving. I'm going to make it a priority to play something that he can sing along to, one of the pop songs that he loves.

But these are the crimes that are committed against people that hold them back in later life. It's getting worse, I think. Only the privileged have access to early music lessons, now. Try telling someone who didn't grow up in the right family that they can do music, and see what happens.

</rant>

Ghosthand: Blessed be.

Ghosthand and elenmirie - you both tell such touching stories! I really feel for both.

Ghosthand, have you considered a video teacher who gives you feedback?

I felt privileged to hear both ghosthand tale of herself and elenmirie's tale her husband. Very moving. A virtual hug to both of you and elenmirie's husband.

I'd like to reiterate what serge mentioned in the first post and add one thing. I find the social pressure of a teacher is actually very important. You have to perform for someone else and that alone is an aspect of piano performance that is a skill. I'm about 10 months into lessons, raw beginner when I started, and I still get nervous when I go and make more mistakes. But, I've come to believe this is useful. Learning to have a calm, relaxed mind and hands when playing for the teacher is a skill itself I have been working on because I want to perform the piano for others in the future as my ultimate goal.

Hugs back, Tyrone! Thanks.

Thanks Animisha! We go onward, through the fog...

+1, at 7 months in I am much better at performing for my teacher. The other thing, whenever I describe to her a technical problem she has the answer. Whether fingering, or counting, or marking the score, or even just how to think about something.....She tells me how to think! Love my Teacher

I deeply agree with the fact that the need for a teacher vary from person to person. And sometimes, you could want lessons but can't, for many reasons, and I think that shouldn't refrain anyone to start an instrument.

But it is also important to know that starting learning music on your own will surely result in bad habits that you'll have to work on later (ideally) and will lead to slower progress.

Also, every teacher is not suited for any student. You have to find the one that fits your goals and personality. It can be challenging for some (depending on your region and availabilities).


As for myself, I know I wouldn't have pursue the piano without a teacher. I wouldn't have known how to address some of my problems and would have been discouraged by my lack of progress. In a way, I admire those who can learn by themselves. But I don't envy them, because what my teacher brings me is invaluable and I wouldn't want to go without it.

Finding the right teacher is important.

When I started I didn't know anything about classical music, I was more interested in pop rock music. My teacher was a classical piano teacher so I discovered Mozart, Bach and Beethoven but at one point I had enough of classical and I quit.

My new teacher studied classical and she just graduated from university in piano jazz. She also play keyboard in a metal band, she a perfect match for me, we do classical and non classical piano.

Wow. Your teacher sounds a little bit like Viktoriya Yermolyeva!

Yes she does.

Yes she does or yes she is?