Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Myths about studying piano

I will be looking forward to watching it.

Some adults think that once you can read music you can play anything more or less immediately. Kind of like once you can read you can read any book on the spot. Someone once actually requested that I learn Rhapsody in Blue overnight and was surprised when I said I couldn't do that.

I think there's some truth to that statement. Probably not "harm" but limit one's technical progress to some degree if one intends to ever play on an acoustic piano. If that's not the case why would anyone ever bother to pay the considerable extra amount to buy a hybrid piano instead of a digital?

Ok this one, "Practising on an acoustic piano will harm your technique if you intend to play on a digital piano."

What?! That's the reason I signed up for lessons. I just want to play stuff immediately. I don't want to practice anymore, I'm tired.

Glad you overcame this hurdle in what you believe. It's amazing the things we tell ourselves without even realizing it - often to our own detriment.

That's very interesting what you thought lessons would be like with a teacher - the good ones go waaaay beyond the notes.

Haha, yes.

RE: need for teacher

I would be careful with this one. The case can easily be made that the necessity of a teacher is a myth.

Many of us ABFers are self taught, making notable progress, and enjoying the heck out our piano experiences. Careless treatment of this topic could discourage countless future, happy, self-taughts from ever starting.

A "hybrid" piano is still a digital...no strings attached.

Fortunately I never subscribed to any of these myths or had them tossed at me.

As for digitals, I do think making a distinction between a non-weighted, non-88 key digital and a weighted, 88-key digital is one that needs to be made. People have posted on PW with the idea of buying a cheap "starter" digital. I think they would be far ahead in the short, medium, and long run to get something that better approximates a piano (as opposed to a keyboard). Why throw another hurdle in your way?

Yes, I have owned several digital pianos, and I've played others as well. Some are a waste of money, some are good starter pianos that would last most people many years. Only those that end up playing advanced really need to worry about getting an acoustic grand or hybrid.

I have seen people go buy something for $200 and then start up lessons, only to find out that what they bought isn't going to last more than a few months because it lacks velocity sensitivity. That's the big one. 2nd is that they're usually not full weighted. And as you say, why make it harder than it already is?

I don't think it's a question of having a teacher or not, but more what people assume a teacher does that needs debunking. And even "self-teachers" learn from teachers who make method books and videos. It's just a different kind of learning, but that's valid.

Really?? I must have been behind the door when god was handing out rhythm, because it took me quite a while to get that part of my act together.

But hybrids are not called digitals because they have acoustic actions. Terminology has nothing to do with the idea behind my post.

LOL same here! Actually it was rhythm and reading in general that I struggled with as a child. Counting helped tremendously....when I did it

I'd group the adult beginner emphasis myths together.
To the ones you already have I'd add: adult beginners should focus on scales; should focus on exercises like Hanon, should use some particular method over all others.

and

Adult students can help (or replace) their teacher with internet research.

OK I wasn't *that* bad :P

Regarding not being musical, I have come to believe that musicality (and talent for that matter) is largely a myth. Hard work and time spent learning is what is required. Your final level may vary depending on intelligence, motivation, hours of education, quality of teaching and dedication but not due to innate musicality. Musicality can be taught, and learned.

Yes, mostly concerning false prerequisites.

1. Playing classical is essential for developing physical technique.
2. To play jazz it is essential to have a colossal vocabulary of complicated chords and to memorise their names.
3. Scales and other keyboard subsets must be practised in precisely the same traditional way every day.

There are dozens of others.