Find private piano lessons in Cambridge

Why do people love the piano?

The piano is a beautiful instrument with a vast repertoire and a wide range of styles. The piano is also a great instrument to be introduced to music and music notation. Because of its layout, learning to read and play the notes on the page can be quite a pleasure since the instrument is so intuitive. Beyond that, the piano also gives you a range of levels, from the most simple and elegant pieces to the most complex piano concertos or jazz improvisations. This is why, when you want to learn to play the piano you need to look for the best instructor for you. Because everyone has different levels, different interests and a different relationship to the piano and music itself, finding a good match is imperative.

Superprof can be that link between your needs and desires and the teacher who can give you exactly what you are looking for. From level, style, personality, and access, Superprof has a wide catalog of teachers categorized by location, price, and experience. You can read the instructor’s profile and see if their background and experience matches the styles of music you would like to play and the technique and nuances you will need to learn. You can also have a trial lesson with them to see if their personality matches yours, so the sessions are enjoyable for you and your teacher. Learning to play the piano is an activity that can take on many forms, it all depends on what you are looking for and finding the perfect teacher for you.

What do beginner pianists learn?

Beginner pianists must learn different exercises for coordination when they are introduced to the piano. These exercises for training the independence of both hands or the coordination between them can take many forms. One is scales: scales are a sequence of notes, usually seven for what is known as the diatonic scale or five when we talk about pentatonic scales. One example of a diatonic scale is what you already know as the Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti, Do. This  is what we call an octave. The piano encompasses seven of these octaves. When learning a scale you have to learn the fingering for that scale, which is a type of sequence for the fingers, and each hand has a different fingering. You can also learn chords and arpeggios. Chords are constructions in music that involve two or more notes played at the same time. The most common chord is called triad, which is a three note chord, you have also heard this before probably, it is the Do, Mi, Sol singing you might have done in choir or heard from someone practicing singing.

These notes of the triad can be played at the same time, or in a sequence, one after another, this is what we call an arpeggio. You can train coordination then learn scales or arpeggios of chords. One last example of something a beginner pianist might learn at the beginning is music notation and how to read music. Learning to read music on the piano is very simple and intuitive, and every student should take advantage of this opportunity, because some other instruments, such as guitar or trombone are instruments that the link between what is on the page and how to play it is not as clear and logical as with the piano. Therefore, reading music on the piano is quite simple and very clear.

What are the easiest piano pieces to play?

There is a wide range of beginner pieces for beginner pianists. Ode to Joy by Beethoven, or Twinkle Twinkle Little Star by Mozart are some examples. The Minuet in G Major is another one and a great one to learn. Then the repertoire can become more involved such as Fur Elise, or Pachelbel’s Canon, or Gymnopedie No.1. All of these pieces are great starting points and a fun way to learn the instrument and music in general.