Piano Lessons
Sep. 30th, 2026 10:53 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bigmogBooks have been my preferred way to learn how to play the piano. I tried various apps and youtube instructors but they didn't help me much. What I'm missing most is feedback. I like to ask questions but private lessons are quite expensive. Instead, I enrolled in a music class to fill in some gaps in my knowledge.
Music theory was the class subject. On the first day, I asked what I considered to be a basic question - Why are there 7 white keys and only 5 black keys? Why isn't it split evenly 6 & 6? There is a mathematical explanation that the instructor did not know. His reply - "Because". That's hardly the answer I expect from a course on music theory so I dropped it for a refund.
Undeterred, I signed up for a piano specific class from a different teacher. He actually knew his stuff but the stuff he knew wasn't aligned with my learning objectives. His lessons were designed on how to play pop music in a band. My goals are: sight-reading sheet music, understanding theory, and playing instrumental songs solo. I can play "The Entertainer" but I'm not one.
It's back to the reliable books with the next step to invest in private instruction that will cater to me.
Music theory was the class subject. On the first day, I asked what I considered to be a basic question - Why are there 7 white keys and only 5 black keys? Why isn't it split evenly 6 & 6? There is a mathematical explanation that the instructor did not know. His reply - "Because". That's hardly the answer I expect from a course on music theory so I dropped it for a refund.
Undeterred, I signed up for a piano specific class from a different teacher. He actually knew his stuff but the stuff he knew wasn't aligned with my learning objectives. His lessons were designed on how to play pop music in a band. My goals are: sight-reading sheet music, understanding theory, and playing instrumental songs solo. I can play "The Entertainer" but I'm not one.
It's back to the reliable books with the next step to invest in private instruction that will cater to me.