Are Piano Lessons Really Worth Your Time and Money?
If your walk by my house on any given evening, you can hear me annoy my neighbors with my piano playing. I can play just about anything I want to. From Bach to Billy Joel, it’s all so much fun! I can play at my church, with my friends, or just by myself. I don’t know how I would have survived the last couple of years without the 88 keys.
It’s the beginning of another school year and time to think about what extracurricular activities you want your kids to take on, continue with, or stop. Families are busier than ever, and things are getting expensive. You may be thinking, are piano lessons worth it? I say yes they are, and here’s why;
See the post “The Benefits of Piano Study”
It’s a well-known fact that learning to play a musical instrument boosts, memory, coordination, IQ, and test scores. Having to practice daily and perform teaches discipline, and resilience, and builds confidence. There is tons of research on this topic and lots of articles. Blah, blah, blah. Lol.
But let’s take a look at what I think really makes playing the piano…super-radically, awesome!
The piano is the king. The piano covers the entire spectrum of musical genres (styles) of music. Pop, Rock, Blues, Gospel, Jazz, Classical. Yes! we can play all these styles.
We don’t need anybody else. Sure, piano players can join in and play with others if they want to, but we don’t need other players to have a complete sound.
But they need us. We may not need other musicians, but they often need us. Singers and solo instrumentalists need an accompanist, and so do choirs, choruses, and other musical ensembles.
Piano players know what’s going on. Attend any rehearsal; choir, chorus, band, or ensemble. Who’s holding it all together? My money is on the gal behind the keyboard. She’s known to be found directing the group, transposing music, and playing everyone else’s parts so they can learn them.
Piano players are cool. Almost everyone I meet thinks it’s fascinating that I can play the piano My son Johnny is a guitar player, he thinks guitar players are way cooler than piano players. It’s true, we do get some competition from them. They have a certain amount of swag, and they can take their instrument with them, and even play lying down. So, let’s just call this one a draw. We’re both cool. If your kid can play, chances are his friends will think he’s cool too.
Check out his YouTube Channel
Piano players are rich. OK, so this one may be pushing it a bit. There are some rich piano players like Elton John but most of us…not rich. But you can make some good money if you have the skills. I tell my students; that I want them to be good enough to have the piano to fall back on playing professionally or teaching.
See the post. Learning the Piano = Serious Cash
We don’t have an expiration date. There are plenty of old piano players. I’m quickly becoming one of these geezers myself. I keep practicing, I keep learning, and I just keep getting better. If you learn to play correctly, that is with proper technique (this is why you need an actual teacher) and if you are mentally and physically healthy you can keep going. As a person of faith, I plan to have this job in the next life as well. I’m pretty sure there’s some good music up there.
I’m not trying to be a piano snob or anything like that. I know that all of the instruments are wonderful. And there are so many fantastic things for kids to explore.
So, what’s the point of this post? You may have gotten this post from your piano teacher. I just wanted to encourage you and thank you for keeping things going. If you are thinking of quitting lessons, you might want to give it some more time. If you are thinking of having your child start, give it a try. If you have always wanted to learn yourself, it’s never too late.
Thanks for reading!
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