Protect My House

I was one of those people who always dreamed of playing the piano but never thought I could. At least I was until I came across some short, simple lessons on the basics of piano playing. I decided to give it a try, and I have been practicing ever since.

The first lesson that really opened my eyes to how accessible the piano actually is was a simple explanation of how the piano keys make a very important pattern. It turns out those white and black keys are separated into sections which makes it much easier to learn how to play them correctly. I never really thought about the piano in this manner before.

I began with the lessons that were in the material I had. After each section, I had to try out the concepts I had found out about. I had to try to play the notes, write the notes, clap the rhythms, or play lines of melody. In awhile, I began to test myself. I went back over the lessons and tried each concept. I did this several times, always getting better and better.

What struck me immediately was how quickly I was actually improving. It’s true that many children are taught in a very slow, methodic manner, but I found it quite rewarding to see and hear my own progress happening so quickly. After all, I was making time for my self-taught lessons between a busy work schedule and active home life. I didn’t have time for slow!

As I improved I had a craving to play music that was not presented in my lessons. I wanted to play something familiar and recognizable. That is when I followed suggestions in my lessons and purchased my first music books. I brought home an Easy Piano Book and a Fake Book.

I recognized many of the songs in my Easy Piano Book because they were familiar Broadway musical songs, and I was completely ecstatic to hear myself playing them rather easily. I had to start with sight reading from the Easy Book, but to my astonishment I found that rather easy to catch onto.

My Fake Book on the other hand was filled with modern tunes that I heard a lot on the radio, and I found it more difficult to master these songs. I had to look up new chords before attempting each song because I didn’t know them all yet, so it was a new challenge to learn from the Fake Book.

Soon I was playing songs that I had heard on the radio. This was just as fun as the Broadway songs, and my friends seemed to like it even better. It was a lot of fun for everyone, me included.

Now that I know the basics of the piano I am a much happier person. I set out to learn something new and I accomplished it much faster than I imagined it would be possible. I will never be a professional performer and I am definitely not an expert on the piano, but I am a very content player who has taught herself something quite remarkable.