Want to take piano as a new hobby? Wondering what’s the best way to learn this awesome instrument nowadays? Is it even possible to learn piano by yourself? Let’s explore the various methods and there will be a few that’s right for you.
Why should you learn piano online?
The benefits that come along with learning piano online have contributed a lot towards its popularity. If you are curious to figure out whether you should learn piano online, here are three major reasons that you need to be aware of.
Comfort of home
Most people want to learn new things at the comfort of home. It can provide them with a relaxed environment to learn new things. On the other hand, they can easily learn at their own pace. In other words, people who learn piano online free will be able to have time as much as they want for the practice sessions.
Learn from the best
When you try to learn the piano in traditional way, you will need to go through a lot of difficulties when finding appropriate instructors. It is always recommended for you to learn the basics from the best. Then you will be able to make sure that you have a solid understanding on how to play the musical instrument. That’s why many people say that referring to the online sources is the best method. That’s because the online lessons that you can find on playing piano have been compiled by the best instructors. They have been able to prove their qualifications in teaching the musical instrument for the interested people. Due to this reason, you will be able to learn the musical instrument within a short period of time as well.
Your own schedule
If you are an adult who has a packed schedule, you simply can not go for a traditional class. Because you will need to adjust according to their schedule. This can bring in a lot of pain and frustration to you, especially with the tight work schedule that you are dealing with. Therefore, you can take a look at the online resources available. You can even find online courses, which are specifically designed for adult beginners. And don’t you worry, you are never too old to learn piano.
What is the best way to learn piano online?
With all the benefits we just talked about, it sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it? So you should go forward and figure out the best way to learn piano online. It is better if you can have a basic understanding about all those methods. Then you will be able to analyze the pros and cons associated with each method and go with the best.
How to learn piano online for free
It is obvious that you can take some digital courses about learning piano for a fee. But before we talk about that, I want to show you how to learn piano for free online. It is definitely possible. However like anything free, it would require more time and maybe more effort. If you want to learn piano online for free, here are three advice I can give you.
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Use YouTube
This one is obvious. It’s much more efficient to learn with a video than an e-book. However, take caution when you are on YouTube. People tend to drift off topic on YouTube and end up spending hours on it without learning anything useful. What you want is a channel that has a progressive list of videos that you can follow. And before you master this play list, do not get carried away by other related videos!
- Be hard on yourself
Learning piano online by yourself is already hard because there’s no one to pressure you to practice and follow your schedule. While you are doing this for free, that makes it even easier to skip practice and postpone your learning schedule. That’s why you need to off set this by pushing yourself harder!
- Correct your mistakes right away
One major advantage to have a piano teacher sit next to you is that he or she can point out your mistakes right away and ask you to repeat until that mistake is corrected. The worst you can do to your learning journey is to ignore your mistakes and keep make the same mistakes over and over again. Because that way, you are effectively forming muscle memory for these mistakes and making it harder and harder to correct them. If you are learning piano online for free by yourself, you need to monitor your practice rigorously and correct any mistake right away!
Learn piano online with paid programs
Now let’s talk about the ones that are not free. There are quite a few programs out there that can teach you how to play piano online with either a one time fee or a monthly subscription. I would divide them into two major types:
- Online video courses
This is somewhat similar to YouTube. But the videos are organized into a learning system that you can follow easily. They usually have several different genre included in the courses so that you can always find what you like and have fun learning. You would also want to look for a program that has a community built in so that you can learn with other students and have some mutual support.
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Interactive type courses
This type of courses has some sort of feedback system built into it. One way is that you shoot a video of your practice session and some instructor will look at that and give you feedback. A more advanced way is to utilize technology and use computers to pick up the notes you are playing and give you feedback right away. This is more often done in the form of mobile apps.
The benefit is obvious. You get feedback and there’s extra motivation for you to stick to the plan and practice. The disadvantage however, is that they don’t always work as intended. Shooting a video and upload it to your instructors can be a lot of work and eventually discouraging. The computers on the other hand, don’t always pick up the notes you play correctly and you better make sure there’s nobody at home making any kind of noise that would mess up the process.
Luckily, most of these program offer some sort of trail or free lessons. I would encourage you to try them out before paying and see if it would work for you.
Make sure that learning piano is a fun experience
Now you know about all the benefits that you will be able to experience by learning how to play the piano online. In addition, you also know where you should refer in order to get your hands on the lessons. Most importantly, you need to keep in mind that learning how to play the musical instrument should be a fun and an enjoyable experience to you. Then you will be able to go through the lessons and learn them effectively.
Some recent studies have shown that a lot of people who learn how to play guitar online tend to give up after a short period of time. If you make the process of learning a fun filled experience, you will be able to stay away from that frustration. That’s because you do something that you love. Motivation is everything in self-learning!
Hi Wei,
What do you think about The One Smart piano?
Is it better way to learn piano using “smart piano”?
If you please post a review of The One Smart piano, it would so great!
Thanks!
HI April,
I think it’s unique in its own way. I should have my One Smart piano review completed in a few days. Make sure to come back and check it out.
For modern busy people learning piano online is an efficient option. However, you need the right attitude and commitment to hard work, if you want to succeed. Do you have some suggestions for interactive type courses?
Hi Kari,
Thanks for dropping by. Interactive courses can be very useful but you need to choose the right one. Luckily they are all pretty cheap compare to a tutor. Come back for some course review here!
I had a piano tutor teach me as a child at home and although it was nice to learn in comfortable surroundings I did get flustered a few times with the teacher when I could not do what she explained straight away.
learning from home via an online course is a good idea as you can go back as many times as you like to master each step.
Hi Darren, it is probably a good thing that you had a tutor when you were a child. I do think it’s best for children to learn piano that way. I guess what I’m trying to convey here is that for buy adults, if learning online is the only possible way, do it right and you will succeed.
Great article, Wei. My daughter is a piano student and sometimes the teacher can make her feel a little less than adequate. You have offered some interesting options here and I will surely check them out. Thanks so much for sharing.
Michelle
Hi Michelle, Thank you for dropping by and for your kind words. I do think a teacher is necessary for kids. But maybe you can supplement some fun online courses or mobile app for your daughter, so that she can regain confidence and keep being motivated. Just my two cents. Best wishes to you and your daughter!
I think it is a great idea to learn online and for all the reasons you say.
I am the type that would get much more out of this way than in person lessons.
Hi Stewart, you and me both. I learned to play piano online and it’s slow progress but it definitely works. And I enjoyed it a lot more due to the stress free process.