Piano Practice - Practice makes perfect!

Piano Practice - There is a saying that "If you do not practice for one day, you will know it. If you do not practice for two days, your family members will know it and if you do not practice for three days, the audience will know it.

How much piano practice you need depends on various factors. Are you aiming to be one of the top players, are you learning on your own without the help of a teacher or are you doing it for fun? As with learning anything, the more you put in the better you become.

No time to practice?
This is a genuine concern for a lot of people, especially if you are working. There would already be so many things in your to-do list that finding time for anything else may be difficult. Fortunately for you, as a beginner piano player, all you would need to spare would be around 15 minutes. Yes, 15 minutes of daily piano practice is what you need to start with.

With a little time management, that should be easy but the difficult part will be to practice consistently. You will need to practice regularly if you want to become good at the piano. With your hectic schedule, practicing regularly could get a bit challenging. This is where you need patience, dedication and a bit of planning.

Your piano practice sessions
It is important that you schedule your piano practice session at the same time every day. Choose a time which you can stick to regularly and when you are not likely to be disturbed easily. You will have to do some trial and error to find out what time suits you best.

Students can have there keyboard practice session when they get back home from school. Choose a time which does not collide with their play time or which is not very close to their play time. They will be eager to get through their piano lessons quickly and so will not be able to concentrate well.

Working full time?
If you are working, practicing after coming back from work may not be a great idea. You will be tired and besides, you will have to spend some time with your family members. The ideal time for you to practice would be early in the morning. Yes, you will have to push yourself to get up early (only about 15 minutes) but it is the best time to practice if you work full time.

Though a teacher is highly recommended, for some reason if you want to learn on your own, method books would be an excellent resource. A method book basically teaches you how to learn from scratch. It may come in a series of books – from beginners to advanced.

Most of the books nowadays come with a CD. All the songs and exercises mentioned in the book are recorded for your listening purpose. It is easier to play something if you know the melody and then look at the written notes.

How long to learn?
How long does it take to learn the piano? This is an important question for a lot of people as depending on the answer they may or may not take the plunge. But as mentioned earlier, fifteen minutes a day of piano practice is all you need to get started. If you are regular, in a matter of 6 months to a year you should be able to play basic piano well. Of course, you may even learn earlier depending on your natural ability and how much you practice.

Intermediate level?
If you want to become a better player, expect to put around 3 to 5 years. Yes, you will need some time to develop into a better player. You will need time to develop your left hand skills, sight reading skills, and you should be able to play in different styles of music.

But wait, after the first year it becomes easier and piano lessons do not seem to be much of a chore. Yes, it is because by this time you will start enjoying playing the piano and your confidence will also be on a high. So, no problems for a couple of years!

The only way to learn and become better is to play as much as possible. You can play on your own, with your friends or in a band. Also look out for opportunities to watch other people play. To form a band find friends who can play drums, guitar and sing. Once you form a band, meet a few times in a week and practice regularly. Playing in a band is fun as well as good learning. It can turn rewarding as well if you all become good at it.

As you all improve, invite your friends to hear your band play. Take suggestions, play their favorite songs. With a little planning you can get gigs at bars, restaurant, hotels, and clubs. Hmmm, this is already sounding so interesting :)

Going further
Going further means you will have to be clear about your goals and what you want to achieve. You will have to be clear about what style of music you enjoy and would like to play. If you want to be a performer then you should be ready to put in hours and hours practicing.

You can even think of becoming a teacher, in which case, you will have to appear for exams and get a diploma/degree. This will increase your credibility as a teacher. So you will have to decide what your aspirations are and accordingly plan and work towards achieving it. Of course, it is going to be hard work but it is worth putting the effort.

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