Nothing soothes the soul like the sound of a gentle piano. For this reason, millions of people around the world dedicate hours of their time to learning how to play this beautiful instrument.
Whether you are just getting your feet wet with piano music notes or you have been playing for several years, there is always room for improvement. If you need some advice for taking your piano skills to the next level, then check out these tips.
1. Set Aside Time To Practice… and Actually Practice
Mastering an instrument takes time, and most importantly, it requires practice. Not only that, but piano learners need to practice consistently. With this in mind, you need to set aside time each day to practice if you want to step up your musical game. When you pick a practice time, write it down in your agenda, set a timer on your phone or stick a Post-It note to your mirror. Then, put in the work and practice at that time every day.
2. Practice Something New
After many learners master a new song, they continue practicing the same tunes. While it may be tempting to practice what you know, this can be a costly mistake because doing so all the time can prevent you from learning new piano music. Instead of always turning to the same old collection that you feel comfortable with, make a point to keep things fresh by regularly practicing something new.
3. Learn To Read Sheet Music
Some people have a natural gift for playing instruments without ever knowing how to read music, but that is not the case for most individuals. If you really want to get a handle on the keys of your beloved instrument, it is wise to put the time and effort into learning how to read piano sheet music as you move forward with practice. By following along with the annotations, you can feel more in control of your fingers’ movements, and your confidence will grow.
4. Practice Building Chords
While you can never rush art, sometimes impatience can set in. For one of the fastest ways to hone your piano skills, focus on building chords. As a group of three notes, there are 24 basic chords to learn. When it comes to playing the piano, chord progressions work exactly the same. If you have been listening to the likes of Grażyna Bacewicz, you may have recently found inspiration to write your own piano music. In this case, building chords is the perfect place to start.
5. Use Correct Fingers
6. Start From Somewhere Other Than the Beginning
Even though most piano students make a habit of starting to play the piano from the beginning of a song, always doing this inhibits the mastery of other parts of each piece. Instead, try targeting weaker sections of a song that you may be less familiar with. For example, you could change things up by starting with the last line of a song and playing it until you feel comfortable. Then, try other under practiced sections.
