Home study courses can be great for learning piano and we review the best of them at www.playyourpiano.com . There may still be good reasons ‘though to find a personal piano teacher for one to one lessons.

Music lessons
Not all music teachers are created equal though! So what should you look for in good piano instruction?

1. First ask yourself, do you really like your teacher as a person? Taking lessons from someone you get on well with personally will make you much more likely to want to stick with the course. Beginners often find reasons to give up their quest without much struggle so. Don’t let indifference to your teacher be your first reason to throw in the towel.

2. Does he / she prepare music lesson plans? To be a good teacher you really have to think carefully about the exact needs of your student at every lesson. If you get the impression your piano lesson is ‘made up on the spot’ rather than carefully prepared then beware.

Piano Teacher
3. For How long have they been teaching music lessons? Teaching the piano lessons children need and comparing with giving lessons for adults counts for a lot. What’s his track record of success? You should always ask.

4. Does his / her style of piano teaching appeal to you? When you want to learn say jazz piano there is no point in taking lessons from a teacher who is only a great classical player. The piano lesson that suits you may not suit then next student. It’s really horses for courses.

Learn to play piano
5. Do they really teach you to play piano? Many piano teachers will only work ‘by the book’. They’ll teach you what you need to know to pass an exam but you’ll still not be able to play much of your own choice. When you learn to play piano from a teacher who shows you WHY you play certain notes togther as well as just HOW then you are really learning music, not just how to pass exams.

6. Can they show you how to improvise? Playing music off the written page is only half of the skill of being a musician. When you learn the apparent ‘miracle’ of instant composition that is improvisation then you can truly say you understand music. The truth is it is not a miracle at all but a skill that can be taught and learned like any other. The vast majority of classical piano teachers do not have the faintest idea about how to improvise even though the great composers such as Bach and Mozart considered this to be an essential skill. Ask your teacher to make up music on the spot and see what they can do.

However good your pesonal teacher, following a well thought out home study course can also be a great boost to your progress. You can find our comments on the best courses at www.playyourpiano.com