One of the most versatile musical instruments you will find is the piano. It is a critical component to a variety of musical styles. Of course, mastering the piano will require you to spend many years studying and practicing.
However, it’s true that a beginner could learn the basics of playing- such as learning the locations of the keys and reading sheet music- through studying resources on his/her own. Here is a quick and easy piano tutorial to help you be well on your way to becoming a master.
Learn Basic Music Notation
You will quickly learn that all western music is played on a staff. A staff is a series of 5 horizontal, parallel lines that are used to indicate pitch. The pitch is decided by the line or space the note is sitting on.
The higher the note is placed on the staff, the higher the pitch will be.
You will also see that some pitches are just below or just above the staff. When this happens, they typically have a small line drawn through or below the head of the note. This is known as a ledger line and basically extends the staff.
Be sure that you take the time to become familiar with the grand staff. This is 2 staves (a treble and a bass) that are played together- one with left hand and one with right.
The treble is typically played with the right hand- the notes are E, G, B, D, F (lines) and F, A, C, E (spaces). The bass clef will be played with your left hand- the notes are E, G, B, D, F (lines) and A, C, E, G (spaces).
If you do have leger lines, the lines/spaces follow the alphabet pattern up or down. Keep in mind that the letters used in music go up to G and then start back at A.
Practice Proper Posture
When you are sitting at the piano, you will need to sit upright, yet relaxed. You should place yourself at the center of your keyboard. You will lift your hands, resting them on the keyboard with your elbows hanging down.
You always need to have a sense of weight in your arms, lifting them only as much as you need in order to play the notes. Your shoulders should remain relaxed and your fingers should be curled just so that your thumbs are able to reach the keys comfortably.
Learn Locations of Notes
In order to learn how to properly play the piano, you’ll need to tke the time to learn where the notes are on the piano. If you have a full piano keyboard, you will have 88 keys. The very first note on the left-hand side will be A.
No matter what type of piano you have, the most important note is the one at the center of the keyboard. This is known as middle C.
Middle C is one of the white keys that sits to the left of the center set 2 black keys. Keep in mind that every other key following this same pattern on the keyboard is also “C” but will be a different octave.
That is, it will sound very similar but will be lower or higher.
When you’re reading music, you’ll see that middle C is located at the firs leger line just below the treble staff and just above the bass staff.
Use Right Foot to Operate Pedals
Your left foot will rest on the floor. You will press the heel of your right foot into the floor and use your foot as a hinge to press the pedals. Typically, a piano has 3 pedals- but an electric piano may have fewer.
The pedals are used to create various musical effects. The pedal on the far right is known as the damper pedal- and provides a more sustained, echo-type sound.
The middle pedal is known as the sustain pedal and is used to sustain pitches that are played when the pedal is pressed but not any of the others. The pedal on the far left is known as the soft pedal and is used for softening the overall volume of the piano.
If you want to learn to play the piano, you should know that it is best if you hire a piano teacher so that you have someone that will keep you accountable.
However, it is possible to teach yourself to play. You just need to keep some of the basics of this easy piano tutorial in mind.
