As a pianist with a Master's degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy, this video is very informative and on point for lay people seeking a piano instructor. Thanks, Robert!
Thanks for reminding everyone that teaching isn’t a gift that every expert has. Explaining is different from doing. But you do have to know how to do stuff well before you teach it. And there is a mentorship tradition in music that has been forgotten in some professional areas.
I started piano as a young child in grammar school being taught by the lady next-door on her spinet piano. As an adult I am still reaping the benefits of being taught beginning piano by an excellent piano teacher.
My best and dearest friend was a pianist at concert level. He was a brilliant pianist. Yet he could not teach a brick to fall let alone teach a person to play the piano.
Unfortunately, many private piano teachers teach with the method they were taught and focus on young students. I'm a senior adult that just wanted to play easy piano pieces with no aspirations to be a concert pianist. I was learning on my own for 4 months but as I progressed I knew I needed a teacher. The teacher I have has me learning techniques from a syllabus geared to gifted young students. Good grief, I don't have the dexterity or the neural pathways to learn to play common tones for all the major and minor keys. Yeah, I make minor mistakes but she wants exactitude. I'm ready to give it up and find another pastime. I've looked at other teachers near me and all seem to want that child prodigy. There is no patience for the young student or adult that has other commitments.
You're response broke my heart! Please, please don't give up!! Keep looking. Eventually you'll find the teacher that will understand and work towards your goals. You are absolutely right as the majority of piano instructors out there want that prodigy student. I can confirm there is that diamond in the rough that's just waiting for you to sit on their piano bench! Follow your dreams and keep up with this hobby. Wish I could help you out more. ❤️
It doesn’t sound like your teacher is a good match for you and your goals. Not saying s/he is a bad teacher but just isn’t a good fit with you (it happens). I am a keyboardist and vocalist and I just started teaching keyboard. I was a singer first who learned keyboard as an adult to accompany my singing so I know how challenging it can be to learn as an adult! And I specifically want to teach adults although I teach only kids right now because that is where the money is, apparently. I have taken both traditional piano lessons (classical) and modern lessons (the song-first or chord-first approach). Traditional lessons will focus more on “exactitude” as you put it, or accuracy of hitting the right notes at the right time. The modern approach is more about listening, watching, and repeating what you see and hear, and emphasizes improvisation. Both approaches teach music theory and dynamics. You might want to look for a teacher that uses the modern approach. Also, in jazz there is no such thing as a wrong note. There the trick is to make the following notes match the “wrong note”. So maybe you are just a jazz musician and you don’t know it yet 😎
Robert is a cool cat! Shameful that people do not know how to teach the piano in a simple way. I can not tell you the number of books I had to throw away. Very few books are not helpful and actual hurt your progress and increase your temper. Getting a teacher is not ideal because of money and location. I live on 8 acres in the middle of nowhere. Good luck with that one. Books I keep, I have gone through 10 times. I am on my 12 times. Still learning every day at 61. I do my best! Also studying Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. I do it for the love! I do it every day!
When teaching, how do you account for people who play non standard instruments? Something I play on my own piano would sound muddy on a teacher's modern piano while having to change how I play on the spot with the heavier and less consistent action.
That was really helpful. Thank you for wonderful guidance. What to do if parents and students are not respecting you as a teacher every after seeing a good progress in the child
A timely video as teaching in the future has crossed my mind. Teaching children is scary I think - these little, unfocused, not-yet-developed people who show up just because Ma and Pa tell them they have to take lessons.
It is essential to have the support of parents when teaching children. However, starting piano lessons for children at the right age (which can vary from child to child, but is often in the 6-9 years range) can be an almost magical time for learning the piano.
@@LivingPianosVideos The worst prospective student I had was a young boy of about 8 years old. Came for a trial lesson. Painfully shy, to the point I found it somewhat worrying as he stared at the floor and wouldn't look at me. His father sat and played with his mobile phone (I'm in the UK, I believe you call them cell phones) and really it was obvious he was totally disinterested in the boy. Unfortunately, I didn't have an address for them otherwise I would have tipped off Social Services. They were foreign and I only had the first names. They never came back. Another reason I prefer adult beginners.
The first 10 or so Hanon exercises are great for strengthening your hands to prepare for working on scales and arpeggios which are also contained in Hanon 60 Selected Studies for the Virtuoso Pianist.
Careful with Hanon: I had a bad teacher start me on those as an adult student and I got tendinitis from bad form. Switched to a good teacher and I’ve now learned how to play without tension or pain (no Hanon was required)
I disagree. My teacher encourages his students to sight read. I have had two teachers, one from the age of 6 to 18, then I had a long break, bought a new piano and decided I needed to take lessons again. Found a wonderful teacher about 5 years ago (I am 64 now so sadly not a youngster anymore) and both, especially the one I have now encourage sight reading often pieces that I've never seen before or even heard of the composer. That said, I am good at sight reading but not everyone is. I have learned more in the last 5 years than I did the first time round. My teacher is definitely NOT a failure.
@@Pythonaria why do competitions play the same piano music? Why are composers neglected? Sight readi g is pointless if you don’t use it functionally. Why do pianists play the same music? Ppl would RESPECT me. aBRSM demonstrated the standard. I have uploaded 8000 sight read pieces. If musicians can not say thank you then music is not great for humans. Stephen Hough in the documentary about John Ogdon said musicians were JEALOUS. I have PROOF. Ppl do not change. i have been here 10 years and where is the courtesy i receive. Ironically i messaged stephen on twitter and he ignored me. He became what he hated with the ppl who resented john ogdon.
@@gjeacocke Competitions play the same music as it's really a case of who can play the piece best. The judges compare one pianist to another. My mother insisted I did the music festivals (competitions) as a kid. I hated it simply because the judges seemed to be biased towards one particular kid. Every year that particular kid would be in the top three and more likely would be in first place. As for ABRSM, they seem to have fallen out of favour and not surprisingly as they seem to go out of their way to pick the most tuneless dirge possible. I stopped doing ABRSM exams at Grade 5 when I was 15. I now do LCM as they have a much wider range of music including own choice. I'm doing Grade 7 this year. I think ABRSM are responsible for some people (kids mainly) not progressing and often giving up altogether. I haven't watched Stephen Hough's documentary so I can't comment on that. However, I will look at what you have uploaded later today. Unfortunately my central heating has broken down so I have to go and get coal and logs for my log burner - good job I have that as a backup as my house is freezing and we have snow forecast for tomorrow.
@@Pythonaria do they test SIGHTREADING skills? music teaches me that sight reading has a STANDARD? not one professional musician has honoured me with respect. by the way, Richter complained about ppl playing the same pieces over and over. they just do not like music like I do. I stand against my oppressors. I do what I chose. it is a pity your great pianists can not do this. they fear the puppet masters.
@@gjeacocke Sight reading skills are tested in standard exams. It was the one part of the exam I looked forward to. However, at least with the LCM, how you take an exam has changed. There is the usual standard exam that we're all familiar with but now there are performance only exams which involve playing four pieces of music and answering questions about the composer. The changes were brought in to cater for older people returning to music who play mainly for their own enjoyment but want some form of formal recognition. There is much more choice now than there was when I first started doing exams.
What the hell!? For as long as I follow this channel, only the last bar of the intro tune was (always) different. Now you're changing the bars in the beginning? I'm so confused! This channel is a scam! My entire life has been a lie! ;-)
![SAFEPLANET - ดาวเคราะห์ [ THE PLANET ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/4X1XL3I_k3c/mqdefault.jpg)
Patience is the fundamental attribute of a teacher.
Snow is cold
@@JustMe-999a or is it.
As a pianist with a Master's degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy, this video is very informative and on point for lay people seeking a piano instructor. Thanks, Robert!
Thanks for reminding everyone that teaching isn’t a gift that every expert has. Explaining is different from doing. But you do have to know how to do stuff well before you teach it. And there is a mentorship tradition in music that has been forgotten in some professional areas.
I started piano as a young child in grammar school being taught by the lady next-door on her spinet piano. As an adult I am still reaping the benefits of being taught beginning piano by an excellent piano teacher.
Being able to break things down to its simplest form also shows the person's mastery of the subject!!!;🙏🙏🙏
My best and dearest friend was a pianist at concert level. He was a brilliant pianist. Yet he could not teach a brick to fall let alone teach a person to play the piano.
An important ponder of what it takes to be a great teacher!
Being a good doesn't mean you will be a good teacher it's a skill 😊
Thanx, Maestro. 🌹🌹🌹
Unfortunately, many private piano teachers teach with the method they were taught and focus on young students. I'm a senior adult that just wanted to play easy piano pieces with no aspirations to be a concert pianist. I was learning on my own for 4 months but as I progressed I knew I needed a teacher. The teacher I have has me learning techniques from a syllabus geared to gifted young students. Good grief, I don't have the dexterity or the neural pathways to learn to play common tones for all the major and minor keys. Yeah, I make minor mistakes but she wants exactitude. I'm ready to give it up and find another pastime. I've looked at other teachers near me and all seem to want that child prodigy. There is no patience for the young student or adult that has other commitments.
You're response broke my heart! Please, please don't give up!!
Keep looking. Eventually you'll find the teacher that will understand and work towards your goals.
You are absolutely right as the majority of piano instructors out there want that prodigy student. I can confirm there is that diamond in the rough that's just waiting for you to sit on their piano bench!
Follow your dreams and keep up with this hobby. Wish I could help you out more. ❤️
It doesn’t sound like your teacher is a good match for you and your goals. Not saying s/he is a bad teacher but just isn’t a good fit with you (it happens). I am a keyboardist and vocalist and I just started teaching keyboard. I was a singer first who learned keyboard as an adult to accompany my singing so I know how challenging it can be to learn as an adult! And I specifically want to teach adults although I teach only kids right now because that is where the money is, apparently. I have taken both traditional piano lessons (classical) and modern lessons (the song-first or chord-first approach). Traditional lessons will focus more on “exactitude” as you put it, or accuracy of hitting the right notes at the right time. The modern approach is more about listening, watching, and repeating what you see and hear, and emphasizes improvisation. Both approaches teach music theory and dynamics. You might want to look for a teacher that uses the modern approach.
Also, in jazz there is no such thing as a wrong note. There the trick is to make the following notes match the “wrong note”. So maybe you are just a jazz musician and you don’t know it yet 😎
Robert is a cool cat! Shameful that people do not know how to teach the piano in a simple way. I can not tell you the number of books I had to throw away. Very few books are not helpful and actual hurt your progress and increase your temper. Getting a teacher is not ideal because of money and location. I live on 8 acres in the middle of nowhere. Good luck with that one. Books I keep, I have gone through 10 times. I am on my 12 times. Still learning every day at 61. I do my best! Also studying Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. I do it for the love! I do it every day!
When teaching, how do you account for people who play non standard instruments? Something I play on my own piano would sound muddy on a teacher's modern piano while having to change how I play on the spot with the heavier and less consistent action.
Very helpful video. Thank you 😊
That was really helpful. Thank you for wonderful guidance. What to do if parents and students are not respecting you as a teacher every after seeing a good progress in the child
This was super helpful, thank you!
thank you this is really helpful
A timely video as teaching in the future has crossed my mind. Teaching children is scary I think - these little, unfocused, not-yet-developed people who show up just because Ma and Pa tell them they have to take lessons.
It is essential to have the support of parents when teaching children. However, starting piano lessons for children at the right age (which can vary from child to child, but is often in the 6-9 years range) can be an almost magical time for learning the piano.
@@LivingPianosVideos The worst prospective student I had was a young boy of about 8 years old. Came for a trial lesson. Painfully shy, to the point I found it somewhat worrying as he stared at the floor and wouldn't look at me. His father sat and played with his mobile phone (I'm in the UK, I believe you call them cell phones) and really it was obvious he was totally disinterested in the boy. Unfortunately, I didn't have an address for them otherwise I would have tipped off Social Services. They were foreign and I only had the first names. They never came back. Another reason I prefer adult beginners.
Thanks for the information
Very helpful. Thank you
NO THE INTRO WAS DIFFERENT
rengar mains after their champ was changed 12310293071087 times
Im.not a teacher but that was interesting to know. Can i ask you something? Do you recomend Hannon's exercise book?
The first 10 or so Hanon exercises are great for strengthening your hands to prepare for working on scales and arpeggios which are also contained in Hanon 60 Selected Studies for the Virtuoso Pianist.
@@LivingPianosVideos thank you very much. Im a long follower from Venezuela. I will work on those exercises! 🖐👏
Careful with Hanon: I had a bad teacher start me on those as an adult student and I got tendinitis from bad form. Switched to a good teacher and I’ve now learned how to play without tension or pain (no Hanon was required)
@@christinacrawford3376 thanks for the advice, ill be carefull to see how i feel practicing them.
Why do u dont use ur old grand piano anymore ?
Life is complicated. You may see other settings for my videos coming soon!
From Pakistan
Nice
All teachers fail because they do not sight read neglected composers. Musicians rejected me. Therefore they are worthless
I disagree. My teacher encourages his students to sight read. I have had two teachers, one from the age of 6 to 18, then I had a long break, bought a new piano and decided I needed to take lessons again. Found a wonderful teacher about 5 years ago (I am 64 now so sadly not a youngster anymore) and both, especially the one I have now encourage sight reading often pieces that I've never seen before or even heard of the composer. That said, I am good at sight reading but not everyone is. I have learned more in the last 5 years than I did the first time round. My teacher is definitely NOT a failure.
@@Pythonaria why do competitions play the same piano music? Why are composers neglected? Sight readi g is pointless if you don’t use it functionally. Why do pianists play the same music? Ppl would RESPECT me. aBRSM demonstrated the standard. I have uploaded 8000 sight read pieces. If musicians can not say thank you then music is not great for humans. Stephen Hough in the documentary about John Ogdon said musicians were JEALOUS. I have PROOF. Ppl do not change. i have been here 10 years and where is the courtesy i receive. Ironically i messaged stephen on twitter and he ignored me. He became what he hated with the ppl who resented john ogdon.
@@gjeacocke Competitions play the same music as it's really a case of who can play the piece best. The judges compare one pianist to another. My mother insisted I did the music festivals (competitions) as a kid. I hated it simply because the judges seemed to be biased towards one particular kid. Every year that particular kid would be in the top three and more likely would be in first place. As for ABRSM, they seem to have fallen out of favour and not surprisingly as they seem to go out of their way to pick the most tuneless dirge possible. I stopped doing ABRSM exams at Grade 5 when I was 15. I now do LCM as they have a much wider range of music including own choice. I'm doing Grade 7 this year. I think ABRSM are responsible for some people (kids mainly) not progressing and often giving up altogether. I haven't watched Stephen Hough's documentary so I can't comment on that. However, I will look at what you have uploaded later today. Unfortunately my central heating has broken down so I have to go and get coal and logs for my log burner - good job I have that as a backup as my house is freezing and we have snow forecast for tomorrow.
@@Pythonaria do they test SIGHTREADING skills? music teaches me that sight reading has a STANDARD? not one professional musician has honoured me with respect. by the way, Richter complained about ppl playing the same pieces over and over. they just do not like music like I do. I stand against my oppressors. I do what I chose. it is a pity your great pianists can not do this. they fear the puppet masters.
@@gjeacocke Sight reading skills are tested in standard exams. It was the one part of the exam I looked forward to. However, at least with the LCM, how you take an exam has changed. There is the usual standard exam that we're all familiar with but now there are performance only exams which involve playing four pieces of music and answering questions about the composer. The changes were brought in to cater for older people returning to music who play mainly for their own enjoyment but want some form of formal recognition. There is much more choice now than there was when I first started doing exams.
What the hell!? For as long as I follow this channel, only the last bar of the intro tune was (always) different. Now you're changing the bars in the beginning? I'm so confused! This channel is a scam! My entire life has been a lie! ;-)