Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Returning player - need advice!

Hi all,

First post! Happy to have found this place as well. There’s a lot of information here!

So, to start off I am looking for recommendations on books or compilations of music to get me back into playing. I played piano for over 10 years but stopped at the tail end of high school. I started playing via the Suzuki method and slowly moved into more conventional classical and then eventually jazz/pop. I have to say I’m not sure if I’m a huge proponent of the Suzuki method as I feel it really hindered my sight reading ability. Regardless, I have lost virtually all my piano playing ability outside of basic technique and theory. I did however, keep up my singing. I CAN read music, I’m just slow at it. Bottom line, I don’t consider myself a beginner, moreso a low-intermediate.

That being said, I am looking for recommendations for learning materials to re-introduce myself. My far-reaching goal is to 1) be able to comfortably play a decent repertoire of songs on my own and 2) be able to improvise and jam with two friends who play bass and guitar. I always loved playing classical music but have a strong affinity towards classic rock (and therefore jazz and blues).

I’ve already got the ball rolling on a bi-weekly teacher. I’d like to do more lessons but my work schedule gets in the way. My idea is to take enough lessons (6-12 months or so) until I get back into the swing of things, and then take it from there.

Any thoughts or advice would be more than appreciated! Thank you!

Not ducking what you asked. But, I think a teacher who can hear you play and can get a sense of the level you are at, is the best source of where to go from here.

Also, why such a short period of lesson? I can understand if finances preclude taking lessons for a longer time. But, it's great to work with a teacher, especially if the fit is good.

This is my second year taking lessons with this particular teacher. And I'm enjoying lessons more and more. We laugh, swap insights, just generally have a very good time in my lessons. I'm getting a lot of work done too!! But, it's never been as enjoyable taking lessons as it is now for me.

Certainly, you can stop lessons whenever you want. You may just find that you like the perspective on your playing.

I agree that none of us can provide better recommendations than a teacher who meets with you in person once or twice a week. In the meantime, you can always explore music theory resources here and jazz improvisation lessons/tips here.

We have similar stories. I took piano lessons from ages 8 to 18, then stopped for college and grad school. I'm 27 now and I picked it back up because playing piano is a great hobby. The first thing I did was revisit my repertoire songs that I had played in high school. There were a few pieces where I had only performed the 1st movement of a sonata (Mozart K331, Mozart K265). I learned the portion of the songs I never played and picked up a few others concurrently just to keep it fresh. To make sure my interest in the new songs was high, I picked songs that I could listen to all day.

I'm just adapting my last piano teacher's pedagogical style though. Learning and progressing by fumbling through, and eventually performing, a particular song. Although I have to say now that I don't have my mom forcing me to play piano and I'm no longer a virgin in high school, learning piano under self-study has given me a much more open attitude about the piano compared to my childhood because I actually love playing the piano now. Thanks Mom I love you.