Any piano teachers? I have a question or two....

[KatyMan]

...if you don't mind?
Crossposted from the Musician's forum for more visibility. Also, maybe someone who has taken lessons can chime in?

I play guitar and have for 25 years; not professionally, but I'm good at it and know what I'm doing. I have a good grasp of theory, but can't sight read music. I am also self taught. Many years ago a friend of mine and I would get together and play, write songs, etc, and he showed me the rudiments of piano, and over the years I've had keyboards, etc that I've used to keep my chops up, so to speak. I know the notes, the chords, know about chord inversions, etc, but I have no technique at all--I sound like I know how to play, but if you hear me and you know how to play, you know I don't (if that makes sense?). Basically I have a right hand and a brick for a left hand. I've always wanted to expand my horizons and become a 'real' piano player, and have now reached a point where I can devote more time to it (basically, the kids are grown up now and I have more time ). To that end, I'm buying a digital piano (acoustic isn't an option) and would like to take lessons. What sort of things should I look for in a teacher? What questions should I ask? Are piano teachers used to teaching people like me, i.e., adults that come from another instrument? What might be some important things I would need to tell the teacher?

This is pretty long winded, and I apologize for that, but would appreciate any feedback anyone might have.

Thanks!

[Trillo]

1. I'm not a teacher. Definitely not.

This will help your friend's left hand, if he or she is self-motivated and the suggestions are taken seriously:
http://www.pianofundamentals.com/

[tanyev]

2. I used to teach piano lessons.

You would have been a dream student for me because you already understand chords and rhythm and really want to learn. Everything you mentioned in your post is good information for a teacher to know about you. Most of my students were beginners with no other musical experience. I would have welcomed students who knew other instruments because that will help you learn faster. Any piano teacher should be able to work with you, but one that has experience with intermediate students and/or adult students would probably be a plus. There are books out there specifically written for adult learners--ask what materials the teacher would have you use.

One thing you need to be prepared for is that you will have to go backwards before you can go forwards. In order to develop your sight-reading skills you will have to work on easy music first. Maybe even very easy music.

I went to college with a guy who could pick up music so well by ear that he took piano lessons for several months before the professor figured out that he wasn't reading the music, he was playing from memory what the professor had played for him the week before. If you can find a teacher who has worked with students who are already skilled at learning by ear, that would be the best for you, but those kind of students are pretty rare.

[pink-o]

5. Ha! That's how I fooled my piano teach for months.

I have really great tone memory, and what is now called "absolute pitch" which unfortunately never helped me sing on key (just let me know when I wasn't) and I would take my piano lesson home every week and struggle through the sight reading until I had it memorized. It never really took very long, and by the time I played it for the teacher, I could even turn the pages at just the right point!

Years later, I still regret that I didn't learn to sight read. But I've found there are 2 kinds of musicians, those that read and those that fake. And the fakers tend to be chord-oriented and are usually songwriters. I wrote for our band, and I loved mixing and producing. I was far better at that than I ever was at singing and playing guitar and piano. Should've gone into sound engineering.

[grasswire]

7. that was my downfall, too

I would ask my sister to play my piano lesson for me, and then I would play it by ear. I never learned to sight read with any competence. And lordy, lordy, lordy have I regretted that. I have the ear, the rhythm, the touch -- but I can't sight read worth a damn.

[momto3]

3. I have taken piano lessons and taught flute.

The previous poster had great advice. I would add that you may want to look for a teacher that works mainly with adults. They should be able to find "easy" beginner music to help you learn to sight read that does not include "Mary Had a Little Lamb" and etc..

Good luck and enjoy. If I ever find the time, I want to learn to play the cello.

:hi:

edit - poor spelling
:blush:

[Oldhat1970]

4. Not a teacher but could be

I've been playing instruments for about 25 years also. Only over the past 6 or 7 have I decided to get "good". Getting good is not being able to play a certain song, it's the abililty to play any damn song you want to play. I can typically take a song and work it out well enough in about 10 hours of time be it on a piano or guitar and after 20 hours I have no problem performing it. Now I am getting somewhere here, so bare with me. (I'm not talking about rhythm parts, I'm talking about a lead intrument part that last 2.5 -5 minutes).

To me, it comes from the fact that one actually "understands" music. I'm talking every damn "western civilization" scale known and every damn chord that goes with it (by the way that is not me). With this, it all passes onto the next intrument.

Just like when you started playing the guitar, you probably played all 5th chords and thought yuou were "da bomb". Then 25 years later you realize that you were not shit at the time. Now flash forward, have you put in the hours, the time and the over-all effort into music to really undederstand it? I think if you have then you should not even seek out a teacher, go to you tube, get the basics down on piano techniques (there are a ton of lessons there) and then do just like you did to get good on the guitar, hours and hours of practice.

After 25+ years of playing music myself, I'd say that over the past 6 or 7 years I have averaged dedicating 60+ hours a week to music. I can honestly say that I understand music now, I'm not just playing it. From this computer, I can turn my head left, right, and look back behind me and see at least 12 stringed instruments and a piano. I have never used a teacher in my life but I have used the shit out of youtube in my quest for things like techique and form.

Go to youtube, get the basics and run with it man, if you really know music like you think you do then you can run with it, it's abotu about discipline and repitition.

Me I am an Avid Golfer (played college golf) I am an engineer, I am a business owner, I'm married with 3 kids (1 of which I delivered on my bathroom floor), out of all of this the hardest damn thing I have ever done in my life has been my attempts to understand and proficiiently play music!
I've dedicated more effort into music than anything ever in my life.

Youtube man, save your cash.

[KatyMan]

6. Thanks, Oldhat

I seriously appreciate all the replies here, my fears about a piano teacher have been allayed: I feared having to play things I had no interest in, or being told that I wouldn't be "taught" a song because I haven't reached a certain level, but all of the posters here made me feel like I'd be in control should I decide to go for lessons.
But Oldhat's post seriously resonated with me: on the guitar, if I want to play a song, I learn it, simple as that, it doesn't matter what song it is, or if I know a certain technique or not. It's a song. I learn to play it; why can't I translate that attitude to another instrument, that I'm at least very familiar with? I'm not saying I've ruled out lessons, because I haven't, and would at least take a dozen or so to nail down techniques, etc. But I like Oldhat's approach because that's how I play guitar.
My dream songs to play on piano? Martha My Dear and Firth of Fifth (http://www.google.com/url?q=http://popup.lala.com/popup/360569458057772377&ei=yX1zS_67EIaWtgft25ztCQ&sa=X&oi=music_play_track&resnum=1&ct=result&cd=2&ved=0CAgQ0wQoADAA&usg=AFQjCNF0eBUw_dNS4-z5-04ZdnYdaouYbA). Only slightly ambitious, no?

[tanyev]

8. Yeah, well, color me skeptical on the "teach yourself" approach.

One day I decided I was going to teach myself how to play recorder. I had materials and I have all the musical knowledge I need to teach myself that skill. But I discovered that I am the kind of person who needs to pay for a weekly lesson in order to motivate myself to put in the work I need to do.

Maybe you would be able to do it yourself. It still might be a good idea to take some lessons to get the basics down and get some feedback on technique before you take off on your own.

Best of luck to you.