{"id":1228,"date":"2020-09-19T16:42:55","date_gmt":"2020-09-19T21:42:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/soundadventurer.com\/?p=1228"},"modified":"2020-09-19T16:43:13","modified_gmt":"2020-09-19T21:43:13","slug":"can-i-learn-piano-at-30","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/soundadventurer.com\/can-i-learn-piano-at-30\/","title":{"rendered":"Can I Learn Piano At 30? Worth It? Or a Waste Of Time?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I love this question because I recently spent a couple months learning the piano as a 32 year old. I learned so<\/strong> much about this experience–I totally understand you might ask this question. With the advent of YouTube, it’s even hard to start learning piano because it already feels too late! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 30-year old person is capable of learning advanced piano within 2 years. While it’s advantageous to learn as a youth, adults have significant learning advantages that can accelerate learning<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I had piano lessons when I was a kid (I mean… who didn’t), and like all kids I squandered this time in a big way. It wasn’t until I was older when I realized what opportunity I missed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a 32 year old<\/strong> I decided to study the piano in a focused way for a short period of time to see if I can make significant progress. I learned three big things. <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. I could<\/span> learn to play piano and sound good<\/span> if I put the time in<\/strong><\/li>
  2. Adults have huge advantages of learning over kids–to the point where adults can learn the piano much faster.<\/strong><\/li>
  3. It’s critical to set the right goals if you want to achieve them. <\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    So, how does this work? I’ll share my lessons learned in a way (hopefully) that will be helpful for all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    How To Learn the Piano As a 30-Year-Old<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    A 30-year old is completely capable of learning to play the piano. There’s no window of time as a kid where if you don’t get in, you have no chance for the rest of your life. Our minds are approaching the top condition they will be in for our entire lives. <\/strong>If anything, if you are going to learn piano, this is the time. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The first step is to really understand what you want and create the right goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    “Remember, goals are stars to steer by, not sticks with which to beat ourselves.\u201d<\/p>Barbara Smith<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    1. Adults Are Way Better At Learning Than Kids<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    We hear all the time how kids are like sponges–they just learn what’s in front of them and seem to absorb it all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This is especially true for languages. Kids just seem to absorb words so quickly. Does that mean that you missed the window if you try and learn the piano when you’re 30 years old?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There are some key things to note here that I’d like to point out–you are, in fact, set up better than you think.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    First: Language is not a fair comparison. Kids don’t learn how to build rocketships, they learn how to talk because they have strong motivation to communicate. <\/strong>Learning musical instruments such as the piano often doesn’t fall into the strong motivation category for most kids. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you feel intimidated, it makes sense why we feel this way… we see some of these young whippersnappers on YouTube and they are amazing. It seems kind of unfair because they got to the piano or whatever instrument when they have tons of free time, unlike adults who have so little. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Second: The thing that’s important to remember that these young whippersnappers on YouTube who are amazing at a particular instrument are the exception to the rule because most kids aren’t interested in very productive hobbies.<\/strong> Most kids (like me) took piano lessons, thought it was boring, and our parents got tired of fighting us. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You on the other hand have something that most kids haven’t learned at this time, and that’s the value of diligent hard work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    All the good things in life don’t come to you magically. If you want things, you have to work diligently to get them.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    As an adult, you’ve learned this lesson or perhaps you’re starting to learn this lesson. This is the secret to true musicianship. The oddball prodigy does pop up now and again who seems to be good at everything, but for the most part, it’s those who are willing to put the time and diligent effort in <\/strong>that reach their goals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Adults make fantastic learners of instruments. If you put in time consistently, you’ll learn faster than you could have thought possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    2. Creating Goals That Won’t Ruin Your Life<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    When you say learn <\/strong>the piano, what do you mean by learn<\/strong>? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The first question really is: Do you want to learn songs verbatim? <\/strong> That is… note for note? Or, do you want to play the piano in a way that fits a song really well <\/strong>but isn’t note for note?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In shorter terms, do you want to play piano with sheet music? <\/strong>Or with chords? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This is an important decision and can impact whether you love and enjoy playing the piano or if you drop it within a few months. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Learning Piano With Sheet Music<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    If your goal is to be able to play arrangements of your favorite Coldplay songs, or to play the beautiful classical pieces than you may be more interested in learning how to play piano sheet music<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Learning to play piano with sheet music is the traditional way to learn to play piano. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In this method, you learn the basic technique of the piano through very simple songs that are in sheet music form. You learn to read sheet music and play the instrument at the same time.<\/strong> The books get harder and the technique gets trickier. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The teacher is there to introduce foreign concepts and help you internalize good technique and rhythm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This is the basic approach that millions of people go through to learn the piano. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The key to success in this approach is to set proper expectations of yourself. <\/strong> Especially as an adult learner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You are not going to be able to have piano lessons for 6 months and be able to play your favorite songs the way your favorite players play. <\/strong>You should expect 2 years <\/strong>of regular practice before you can play advanced sheet music. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You’ll definitely be able to play many contemporary pieces that are really fun in between then–but again, expectations are key here. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I think this video is AMAZING<\/strong> because someone documented their progress throughout their entire learning journey for 2 years<\/strong>. This is invaluable because it can help you set proper expectations. This person says they practiced 20 minutes a day on average for the 2 years they played. This video starts on month 13. <\/p>\n\n\n

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    Second year of learning piano<\/div><\/div>
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