Posts Tagged learn to play music
Do You Need College To Learn To Play Music?
Music courses are a great way to learn about virtually any area of music; history, theory, and musical instrument
instruction — you name it and somewhere music courses specialize in it. Though generally found through colleges, universities or high school programs, courses are also offered via one-on-one instruction with a private teacher or community-based workshops. Some churches even offer courses as a complement to their choirs; the courses may be offered to the general public, but they’re often geared toward the choir members and congregation.
In the last few years, however, a new dimension to learning music has appeared in the form of the internet the world wide web. Now instead of being limited to classroom courses, students are free to create their own schedules and learn at their own pace. A quick search on Google or Yahoo will turn up online courses in:
- Chord Piano
- Classical Piano
- For Beginners
- Improvising on the Piano & Guitar
- Rock Guitar
- Praise & Worship Guitar
- Killer Drum Instuctions
- Black Gospel Piano
- Jazz Piano
- and many many more
Music courses offered by colleges are generally far more in-depth than other courses and are usually only available to degree-seeking students (though some colleges offer courses as part of their continuing education programs). Lower level college courses often focus on an amalgamation of music theory and history, teaching individual theory concepts based on the historical period to which they are particular. As the courses grow in skill level so too does the number of specialized topics. Advanced courses are available for nearly every historical music period and are sometimes based on one particular movement. Advanced courses for theory grow increasingly more difficult and slowly teach every detail found in modern theory; it’s during the theory courses that students intending to major in music have their skills challenged the most — some even refer to these music courses as a weeding out period.
Instrument-based courses are equally as tough at the college level, though they usually assume a working knowledge of the instrument before the class begins. Those wishing to learn an instrument, therefore, are better off with private courses or courses offered by a community orchestra or social group. These courses will focus on the basic details of learning an instrument, starting from the very beginning. Fingering, theory and music reading will be covered, in addition to the occasional bit of history. Students of these courses may then wish to move on to college-level courses after completing a few years of private instruction.
But for those more interested in recreational music in other words, music that is played for personal enjoyment or to entertain family and friends, college music classes are not at all necessary. The internet abounds with wonderful courses that will help you do everything from play at your church to accompany your child on their flute or trombone, or even play in a jazz or rock or fusion or country group.
Tags: education, guitar, high school, jazz piano, learn to play music, learning, learning music, music, music classes, music course, music courses, music theory, musical instrument, piano, play music, school, teacher, teachingRelated posts
Learning Music As an Adult
While we have all heard stories of child prodigies and the importance of learning music as a child, an adult can still learn to play an instrument quite well. Even with no prior experience, the right training can help an adult learn to play music just as well as a child. The main thing is to find the right way to learn, whether it’s through a tutor or self-study.
Adult learners come with their own baggage, often from childhood lessons. Adult piano students may have had bad experiences with music lessons as a child. These can range from scary instructors to endless exercises or abusive teacher-student relationships. Sometimes a teacher may have punished the student for not being skilled enough, while other times a teacher may have pushed a promising student too hard. This is one of the hurdles that come with learning music as an adult.
Accepting the teacher as an authority figure is another difficulty that comes with learning music as an adult. An adult has learned to be independent. An adult wants to take part in the development of curriculum and wants to be able to self-evaluate. It may be difficult for an adult to simply listen and take instruction from a music instructor. So the best avenue for learning music as an adult may be to self-tutor or to find an instructor who teaches by long distance via the internet. There are many wonderful piano courses available nowadays on the web: just type in something like “play piano” on any search engine, and you’ll find several.
Though the process of learning music as an adult is different from a child’s, it’s not necessarily harder. For a child, making music is magical, while an adult sees the work involved to get to the music making stage. It’s mainly a mental hurdle that must be overcome. Also, learning music as a child is part of the natural development process, while learning music as an adult is usually part of a larger goal. For example, an adult learns how to play an instrument to join the church worship team.
Learning music as an adult can also be difficult because of ingrained personality traits. Even the most outwardly confident adults get insecure when someone points out their flaws. So it goes with learning music. If a tutor is used, an adult can get embarrassed when the tutor corrects a mistaken note or technique. Some adults may have difficulty breathing and concentrating when they’re highly nervous. All of these can lead to a difficult learning environment.
Adults also demand comfort. This is why adults often learn an instrument in their own home. Children are less demanding about the hardness of a piano bench, for example. Adults may have back problems or other conditions that require a high comfort level.
So the basic ingredients for learning music as an adult are adaptable tutoring, reason for learning, confidence and comfort. By taking these key points and seeking the best method of learning for yourself, you can become an adult musical genius — well, maybe not a genius — maybe just a person who has more fun. Or maybe you’ll be the guy or gal at parties who knows how to play the latest song everyone is talking about. With the right teaching, grown ups can enjoy playing music wherever they go.
Tags: learn to play music, learning, learning music, lessons, making music, music, music lesson, music lessons, piano, piano course, piano courses, play music, play piano, teacher, teachingRelated posts
Learning Music As an Adult
While we have all heard stories of child prodigies and the importance of learning music as a child, an adult can still learn to play an instrument quite well. Even with no prior experience, the right training can help an adult learn to play music just as well as a child. The main thing is to find the right way to learn, whether it’s through a tutor or self-study.
Adult learners come with their own baggage, often from childhood lessons. Adult piano students may have had bad experiences with music lessons as a child. These can range from scary instructors to endless exercises or abusive teacher-student relationships. Sometimes a teacher may have punished the student for not being skilled enough, while other times a teacher may have pushed a promising student too hard. This is one of the hurdles that come with learning music as an adult.
Accepting the teacher as an authority figure is another difficulty that comes with learning music as an adult. An adult has learned to be independent. An adult wants to take part in the development of curriculum and wants to be able to self-evaluate. It may be difficult for an adult to simply listen and take instruction from a music instructor. So the best avenue for learning music as an adult may be to self-tutor or to find an instructor who teaches by long distance via the internet. There are many wonderful piano courses available nowadays on the web: just type in something like “play piano” on any search engine, and you’ll find several.
Though the process of learning music as an adult is different from a child’s, it’s not necessarily harder. For a child, making music is magical, while an adult sees the work involved to get to the music making stage. It’s mainly a mental hurdle that must be overcome. Also, learning music as a child is part of the natural development process, while learning music as an adult is usually part of a larger goal. For example, an adult learns how to play an instrument to join the church worship team.
Learning music as an adult can also be difficult because of ingrained personality traits. Even the most outwardly confident adults get insecure when someone points out their flaws. So it goes with learning music. If a tutor is used, an adult can get embarrassed when the tutor corrects a mistaken note or technique. Some adults may have difficulty breathing and concentrating when they’re highly nervous. All of these can lead to a difficult learning environment.
Adults also demand comfort. This is why adults often learn an instrument in their own home. Children are less demanding about the hardness of a piano bench, for example. Adults may have back problems or other conditions that require a high comfort level.
So the basic ingredients for learning music as an adult are adaptable tutoring, reason for learning, confidence and comfort. By taking these key points and seeking the best method of learning for yourself, you can become an adult musical genius — well, maybe not a genius — maybe just a person who has more fun. Or maybe you’ll be the guy or gal at parties who knows how to play the latest song everyone is talking about. With the right teaching, grown ups can enjoy playing music wherever they go.
Tags: learn to play music, learning, learning music, lessons, making music, music, music lesson, music lessons, piano, piano course, piano courses, play music, play piano, teacher, teachingRelated posts