Is it worth buying a Piano for my 7 year old

[L85A2]

So you weren't self taught in isolation. You had feedback. And I don't think as good comes into it at all to be fair. Technique and knowledge are tools to get a message across. You play 'better' than Kurt Cobain for example but that doesn't necessarily mean he was worse than you. For his message flawless technique would have really worked would it I suspect maybe half the attraction was someone who struggle to play and sing about songs about struggle.

My point I try to drive home is why limit yourself at the age of 7 keep all routes open. You can learn by ear and by sight reading.

Any decent musician is teaching themselves when they practice. Whether they get feedback from a teacher or a peer is just the icing on the cake.

Aged 7 is a bit too young to be hitting the pub circuit imo. Although I have seen it done and it ended in child protection issues so let's not go there! So the feedback needs to come from a mentor.

Maybe I am grumpy old git when it comes to players not getting feedback on mistakes but a little part of me dies every time a self taught 18 Yr old turns up and plays Satch Boogie without any swing.

 

[dowie]

Just a thought, if not getting a second hand piano (which are widely available and practically free), I wonder if spending a reasonable amount on a (second hand) electronic piano or keyboard with proper weighted keys etc.. is perhaps worthwhile.

A cheap one is just going to be junk if unused and there is the above point about the kid missing out by not having proper keys etc.. a good quality second hand one can always be sold on again and presumably (if looked after) won't depreciate too much if the kid is disinterested in pursuing lessons etc.. within a short period of time.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

That's great but it isn't piano playing.

A lot of people at my gig last night would disagree.
If piano playing is Chopin or Mozart then I agree.

 

[Raymond Lin]

Here we have a Piano teacher with experiences teaching children arguing the merits of learning piano with someone who is mostly self taught who doesn’t teach and the only qualifying argument is a bunch of punters thinks they can’t tell if he is good or bad?

I’m not sure that

1 - that is the metric we should use to measure anything.
2 - your own experience is not how everyone learns.
3 - what’s wrong starting with the best and most support and aiming for the highest?

Why aim for passable to a bunch of drunks when you can aim for the Royal Orchestra?

 

[Minusorange]

Do you think the tutorials out there currently will be enough to help her learn? Or can only a paid session work?

If you attempt learning from tutorials any bad habits they pick up will be much harder to unlearn if you decide in future to pay a professional to teach them and will make the (re)learning process take longer, I'd say pay a teacher to teach them right first time.

There's a good program called Synthesia which is aimed at teaching piano, works off midi and it's great at what it does but it's no replacement for a real human teacher

Buy them a cheap keyboard first, even 2nd hand and see if they actually show an interest in trying to play before getting anything more expensive and paying for lessons though

Also totally agree on weighted keys, yes you can learn to play on non weighted keys but then you're not teaching to play piano, you're just teaching how to play music on a synth

 

[McGray]

A lot of people at my gig last night would disagree.
If piano playing is Chopin or Mozart then I agree.

Wait, you play in a band? You should mention this more often.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

Why aim for passable to a bunch of drunks when you can aim for the Royal Orchestra?

I'm completely shocked that you haven't read the thread properly, you are better than that.
Go back, read it again and then come back

Clue
If all you want to play for is a few drunks in a pub there is also nothing wrong with that.
Why buy a Paul Reed Smith with a Marshall Stack when all you want to do is play in the bedroom with a cheaper kit.
That is my point.

Clue 2
The OP can't pay for piano lessons so why not just get a a £50 Casio and see what happens.
It seems nobody has read that bit.
Once again nobody reading what the OP wants but suggesting the opposite.

If money is no object get a decent piano, get a decent tutor and as long as the kids got talent watch that flower grow.

 

[Raymond Lin]

I'm completely shocked that you haven't read the thread properly, you are better than that.
Go back, read it again and then come back

Clue
If all you want to play for is a few drunks in a pub there is also nothing wrong with that.
Why buy a Paul Reed Smith with a Marshall Stack when all you want to do is play in the bedroom with a cheaper kit.
That is my point.

Clue 2
The OP can't pay for piano lessons so why not just get a a £50 Casio and see what happens.
It seems nobody has read that bit.

I have read the thread, you are basically arguing that playing in a pub is a level good enough. I know you can get away with a keyboard but I don’t understand why you keep pushing that agenda? Just go save money? It’s not even your money...

My argument is why are you aiming that low when the potential for a 7 year old is basically unlimited, why put in all these road blocks with bad habits and learn on a keyboard when they want to learn piano. You keep mentioning some punters can’t tell, seriously, is this how you measure skill and knowledge in music? Learning piano and getting a teacher teaches more than how to hit a key and playing in a pub is not the pinnacle of piano playing.

I am not sure you even understand the word piano.

Piano, piano, piano.

They want to teach the child piano.

Not keyboard.

This is a massive clue, and one you forgot, ignore and refuse to accept.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

I have read the thread, you are basically arguing that playing in a pub is a level good enough. I know you can get away with a keyboard but I don’t understand why you keep pushing that agenda? Just go save money? It’s not even your money...

My argument is why are you aiming that low when the potential for a 7 year old is basically unlimited, why put in all these road blocks and learn on a keyboard when they want to learn piano.

I am not sure you even understand the word piano.

Piano l, piano l, piano.

They want to teach the child piano.

Not keyboard.

This is a massive clue, and one you forgot, ignore and refuse to accept.

The massive clue is "I have no money for lessons", if there's no money for lessons then there's no money for a high quality piano.
Yes scour the ads, hire a van and you may get something for free but you will more than likely need it tuning which doesn't come cheap.
If you've got money then get a decent piano, get a decent tutor and proper lessons will make a proper player which I'm not.
That is why I'm pushing that agenda - NO MONEY

 

[Raymond Lin]

The massive clue is "I have no money for lessons", if there's no money for lessons then there's no money for a high quality piano.
Yes scour the ads, hire a van and you may get something for free but you will more than likely need it tuning which doesn't come cheap.
If you've got money then get a decent piano, get a decent tutor and proper lessons will make a proper player which I'm not.
That is why I'm pushing that agenda - NO MONEY

A digital piano can be had for the price of a Xbox, less if you buy used. 6 months until Christmas, put away £50 a month and they can buy one.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

A digital piano can be had for the price of a Xbox, less if you buy used. 6 months until Christmas, put away £50 a month and they can buy one.

Excellent idea if he's got the money but a digital piano isn't a piano either.
I know that students have to have proper piano's to get through their grades properly or that is what I've been told by several people, perhaps L85A2 can confirm that.

 

[L85A2]

Well my final comment would be if the OPs child did music then research indicates they wouldnt need the maths tutoring so they could put that towards to lessons!

 

[SexyGreyFox]

Well my final comment would be if the OPs child did music then research indicates they wouldnt need the maths tutoring so they could put that towards to lessons!

Winner

Now funnily enough part of my autism is that I see music has maths.
When I learn a song it suddenly becomes mathematical and I compare it to other maths (songs).
I can often be heard to say "I've learned the maths for it".

 

[SexyGreyFox]

Wait, you play in a band? You should mention this more often.

Well I don't blame you for not knowing.
The vast majority of my posts are in GD where it doesn't get mentioned unless it's a "What hobby have you got" thread and if you don't read them you won't know.
If this is the first Musician type thread you have come into in this Section, then you wouldn't also know that Musicians have threads in here where we talk about such things.
Anything you want to know just ask, we have loads of members in bands or sitting in their bedrooms and most of them are far better and more knowledgeable than me.

 

[McGray]

Woosh!

 

[SexyGreyFox]

Woosh!

No it was a stupid statement.
Fancy talking about playing in a band in musician related topics, who would have thought it?

 

[McGray]

Lol easy now.

Shouldn't you be doing the maths to Eye of the Tiger?

 

[SexyGreyFox]

Lol easy now.

Shouldn't you be doing the maths to Eye of the Tiger?

That's dead easy:

7 767 767 734

 

[Siver74]

Would be worth it for any child or any adult to learn any instrument, but if you're unsure how committed you'll in be in a few months or years to learning, then going second-hand or opting for the cheapest instrument there is should be okay. I learned how to play as an adult and I don't regret it, even if it did not end up as one of my biggest passions. Not sure how Yamaha is received although from what I gather it is one of the more popular choices. As stated on here, some you can even find portable and cheap and already have preset songs you can follow.

 

[MookJong]

Funny this thread came up again I can make music by ear but want to formally teach myself so gone right back to basics and learning music theory via this book:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1684125529/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_image_o01_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It is extremely good so far. Modern and punchy, I don't want or need to be a classical pianist I mainly want to be able to improvise for song writing. The book has been cracking so far, also using YouTube as well when I have offshoot ideas and to check certain things as I suddenly stumble over songs I recognise as I learn more chords.