Reasons to Learn Piano
I want to say, “Because music is wonderful and playing the piano is fun and rewarding!”
While I truly feel that way, there are many less subjective reasons for learning to play the piano and that’s what this page is about. The benefits of learning to play the piano for kids are truly immense, but as you’ll learn below, it has great value for adults, as well.
From the time they are born until they are well into their teens, children are establishing all sorts of foundations that will shape the rest of their lives. This is occurs in all aspects of what and who they are. Learning to play the piano establishes some very beneficial foundations and this is a huge area of benefit for kids.
Concentration
Music requires very focused concentration, whether one is performing, practicing or listening. The piano takes this to another level relative to other instruments due to the immense complexity of using eyes, ears, two arms and 10 fingers to play multiple parts simultaneously.
Practice —Analysis, Strategy, Repetition
The best definition of practice that I know is “repetition with a goal.” Practicing doesn’t have good results without that goal. In music, practice has the wonderful result of being able to play something you and others deeply enjoy. But hidden in the benefit of practice are the skills of analysis and strategy. Effective practice requires analyzing how to negotiate the music with finger on the keyboard and developing a strategy for mastering a whole piece of music one part at a time. This is useful for any sort of project one may undertake.
Patience, Discipline & Perseverance
Once you have a strategy, you have to have the patience to work through it. As the saying goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” As the Tao Te Ching proverb says, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” In learning to play the piano, one learns that with patience, the long process of mastering a given piece or all of the scales happens a little at a time—and no single step has to be difficult or stressful. A good strategy is built on this. Additionally, taking these steps regularly and sticking with the process to the end are essential to success.
Coordination & Agility
Sports are great for developing whole body and large muscle strength and coordination, but playing the piano develops the same thing on a smaller scale—and arguably on a higher level. In my opinion, only full court basketball requires an equivalent level of coordination, especially when one is improvising on the piano. No other sport requires so much variety of coordinated movement. In the process of learning the piano, one learns how muscles, nerves and the brain establish habits and build skills. This knowledge is transferable to any physical activity one wants to do, for all physical activities require developing habits and skills with muscles, nerves and the brain.
Mental Abilities
Playing piano uses the analytical abilities of the brain a great deal. All of those movements and coordinations draw up on those, while learning music theory uses them directly as one does in math and science. Learning the piano helps kids to develop these abilities.
Like muscles, the brain and nervous system are subject to the “use it or lose it” principle. For adults, playing piano exercises those abilities. Many who continue playing piano in old age play until they are simply physically unable to anymore. I’ve met a number of amateur piano players in their late 90s who still played regularly and know of many professional pianists who continued performing up to and beyond 100. It is rare that someone who regularly plays piano in old age develops senility, Alzheimers or other forms of mental decline.
Creativity & Expression
Piano playing is a dynamic method of self-expression. Whether you’re improvising or interpreting a composer’s work, you’re engaging in creative thinking. As you become more adept at understanding and playing various pieces, your ability to express yourself through music expands, enriching your creative life.
Musical Joy & Interest
Learning to play the piano exposes one to many varieties of musical styles, what gives them their identities and the depths of interesting things about them. As with anything, the more one knows of it and about it, the more joy one can find in it. Music has been a part of humanity since long before civilization, and the amount and variety of music really began to explode in 1700s. It’s simply not possible that one could run out of music or things about music to learn and enjoy
History
The history of music is intertwined with its many musical styles and also with the history of humanity. Every piece of music one learns can be a jumping off point for learning about its style and composer and the historical context in which they developed. One of the deeply eye opening things I learned was the powerful connections between the music of the Renaissance & Baroque periods and the development of American jazz. Many jazz pianists have developed a great interest in the music of J.S. Bach, the greatest master of the Baroque style, and there are solid musical reasons for that!
Presentation & Performance
Music isn’t really fully alive until it’s performed, and nothing beats live performance. Consequently, this is an important part of kids’ piano education. In the process they learn about nerves and how to deal with them, the important of preparation for that, how to present themselves to an audience, an audience’s point of view and, over time, develop confidence getting up in front of people and performing for them.
Musical Foundation
Learning the piano provides the very best foundation for any musical endeavor. Many piano students go on to play a band or orchestra instrument or to sing in the choir in middle and high school. Playing piano makes this easier to do and, for singers, enables them to accompany themselves in practice or performance, as many professional singers do. And since a pianist is playing all the music, not just a melody, those who have learned piano have a much greater awareness of the music they are a part of when they play or sing one part in an ensemble.
Conclusion
Although this has been a pretty extensive list of reasons, I could go on! Music is an extremely valuable part of human being’s individual and social lives. And learning to play the piano is by far the best way to open the door to the world of music and the ways it enriches the lives of human beings.