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For those looking for teachers, you should check out Music Teachers National Association (MTNA). Most states and cities have local chapters (i.e. https://www.oregonmta.org for Oregon, and https://www.omta-portland.org for Portland, as an example), where you can narrow down to teachers that work nearby. The local chapters usually have newsletters where you can see who is active in the music community. Some of the teachers are nationally certified, although there are plenty of fantastic teachers that are members who are not certified. I think local MTNA chapters are a good way to find high qualified teachers that are very serious about their teaching.
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Feb 1, 2008 21:58
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Bob Shadycharacter posted:Actually, I gave it some more though after I posted and realized - maybe new keyboards are better than the ones I knew. I haven't touched one in I don't know, seven or eight years (they had some in the theory classroom in college). And if you really can't tell the difference yet, it probably isn't harmful. I do hope you upgrade someday though! Yes, digital pianos have made huge improvements in the past few years. The important thing is whether you can transition between your digital and a real piano (since most of us don't need to perform for people in our bedrooms). I think the most practical solution is to have a digital piano at home, and regularly find a chance to play a real piano (at a school or your teacher's piano). Besides cost, weight, maintenance, you also can't forget that many of us live in condos or apartments where our neighbors would not tolerate a real piano, especially for those of us who like to practice before going to bed.
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Feb 1, 2008 22:11
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Resistance posted:I've been wanting to play the piano for a while now, and I've finally decided it's time to buy one and start learning. I have NO clue whatsoever on what to get, however. I have a budget of about $600 give-or-take. If anyone can help a newbie out, that would be great. Actually, if you are going to go Casio, the PX-200 or the new PX-320 would be better choices than the PX-110 or PX-310. Even for beginners, there is little point (unless you are really stretching your budget) in buying a 32-note polyphony when you can shell out another hundred bucks and get a superior keyboard with better features and 128-note polyphony. And the PX-200 is still within your price range ($500 at musiciansfriend, on sale right now, which might be worth jumping on).
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Feb 28, 2008 21:36
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davy jones posted:edit: Also have a question. Are there any exercises I can do to get better at playing different beats on each hand? By "beats" do you mean cross-rhythms like in Chopin's Fantasie-Impromptu? Or are you simply talking about learning to coordinate your left and right hands? If the latter, I love playing Bach's inventions and sinfonias. Play through enough of them, and your hand coordination will vastly improve.
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Apr 22, 2008 20:33
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greasygranny posted:honestly getting a used piano (+tuning, +moving) off of craigslist is going to be a hell of a lot cheaper than dropping $ on an electronic keyboard with weighted keys. There are piano moving services in the same section on craigslist and they won't cost you all that much. But you still have to maintain and regularly tune the piano, which has a significant annual cost. A digital piano is extremely useful to have around, as they can be lightweight and portable, not too expensive, and require no maintenance. It is, imo, far more suitable for a beginner than a used piano off of craigslist. chiyosdad, I'd recommend going to some local music shops and trying them out there. You also might see some decent used Yamaha digital pianos (like the P-90 or P-120) close to your price-range on craigslist. For lowest price, the Casio PX-200 or PX-320 is pretty good value. For medium-price (around a grand, or cheaper used), I'd be looking at the Yamaha's. For higher-price (over a grand), I'd look into the Rolands.
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May 1, 2008 17:44
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The guy that reviewed the P120 sounds like an idiot. The idea that it is impossible to play pianissimo is a nonsensical statement, since you can always turn the volume down. What he is trying to say is that he thinks it has a low dynamic range. Being unable to play piannissimo with the volume up is synonymous with not being able to play triple-forte when the volume is down, if the dynamic range is too low. At the medium or heavy setting, if you cannot access dynamic levels between piannissimo and double-forte, than you need to work on finger strength. Sure, it doesn't have the dynamic range of a concert grand (no digital instrument does), but for amateurs playing standard repertoire, it is more than sufficient. I owned the P120 for several years, and never had a problem with dynamic ranges. The P120 and the newer P140 uses Yamaha's GHE (Graded Hammer Effect) weighted keys which is a very respectable weighted key (significantly better than the GHS used on the lower end Yamaha models). The internal speakers are crap, but if you use decent monitors or headphones, that is not a problem. It doesn't hurt to go try out different brands at the store before you buy, even if you are a total noob, unless it is awfully inconvenient for you to do so.
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May 1, 2008 22:15
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Puck42 posted:Does anyone have any suggestions on how to find a good teacher? A very good place to start is the national Music Teacher's National Assocation (MTNA). From there, you can search for nationally certified teachers by zip code. Also, states, regions, and cities will have their own local chapters that are affiliated with MTNA (for instance, there is an Oregon one, and a Portland-area-specific chapter, for where I live). I just did a quick search, and there is VMTA: Virginia Music Teacher's Association which is affiliated with MTNA. Northern Music Teacher's Assocation, and Alington Music Teacher's Assocation. The Virginia chapter, and the Northern Virginia one look like legitimate MTNA-affiliated chapters, with good resources for finding teachers in Arlington. They both have a "find a teacher" link. Many of the teachers names will have "NCTM" after it, which means they are nationally certified (a good place to start, though there will definitely be many fantastic teachers that are not certified). You could start with those. Send out as many emails as you can to nearby teachers, and describe yourself and your goals as clearly as possible. You can generally do a first round of screening through email. If you are an adult student, ask them how much experience they have with adults. Also, most will offer a free first lesson, which is the best way to get to know their teaching style.
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May 12, 2008 06:06
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el Trentoro posted:I know it's something that just takes time, because it came to me eventually on the guitar, but I don't suppose you have any brilliant tips for playing-without-looking on a piano? Sight reading is pretty much the only kind of piano playing I do these days. Just force yourself not to look, and feel your way around the keys until you find the right ones. It's frustrating but if you keep at it, you'll get much better. I disagree with Alizee in that for some people, it does take effort to break the habit of looking at your hands. And I think it's absolutely worthwhile to try not to look at your hands.
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Jun 15, 2008 20:51
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Bob Shadycharacter, I love that partita; can you play the whole piece yet? Great job so far. I actually was going through the sinfonia movement of that partita this month. Really fun piece to play.
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Sep 22, 2008 18:56
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Alizee posted:I would play a rachmaninoff prelude but the only ones I really enjoy are the really famous ones and I'm trying to stay away from "greatest hits for piano" lol. Ever played the following?: Shostakovich Op. 87 Fugue no. 4 in E minor? Berg Piano Sonata Op. 1
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Oct 28, 2008 15:06
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Vezbot posted:where should I buy sheet music? I use Sheet Music Plus and Hutchins and Rea.
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Nov 22, 2008 09:15
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Cat Food posted:So I just bought a sustain pedal for my keyboard and I plugged it in but I'm having problems. The "Ped" icon lights up whenever I'm not pushing down on the pedal, and when I do push down, it goes away. Similarly, when I play keys and the pedal isn't being pressed down, they have the sustain effect, and to play normally I need to press down on the pedal. Anyone have any suggestions on how to fix this? look along the side or bottom of the pedal and look for a switch.
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Dec 31, 2008 01:24
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It's a common issue, so if there is no switch, you may be able to "correct" it with the keyboard itself. Check the manual of your keyboard, and look for the section that discusses the sustain pedal. It may tell you how to change a setting so that it can handle a sustain pedal with reverse polarity. Finally, if all else fails, are you handy with a soldering iron? you could open it up and reconnect the leads going to the switch.
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Dec 31, 2008 06:25
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crm posted:I took piano lessons for about 10 years, won all sorts of trophies and crap at some piano festival here in Charlotte. Then I just stopped. Yea, I had similar experience. Played pretty serious for most of my childhood, and then stopped and concentrated on other instruments. 15 years after I quit, I picked it up again by playing through some standard repertoire (Bach Inventions, some Mozart Sonatas, as well as some easier Chopin). Everything came back fairly quickly. I learned that: - Whereas I used to breeze through Mozart as a kid, some of the same pieces gave me difficulty as an adult. I still have trouble with doing a good alberti bass, which is kind of embarrassing. - Opposite experience with romantic/contemporary stuff. Debussy, Chopin, Ravel, and other contemporary composers were surprisingly easy to learn, despite remembering them as being very difficult when I was a kid. Also, it's very hard for me to relax my fingers as an adult. This requires a lot of focus. I did take some lessons and that helped.
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Apr 24, 2009 03:51
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OctaviusBeaver posted:I'm looking for a nice digital piano for my apartment. Do I need to hire a piano mover for a digital piano or can I just stick it in the back of a pickup (assuming I am careful with it)? You don't need a mover for stage pianos or upright ones with compact stands. You'd only need one for those digital grands (like from Roland), but you aren't looking at those. There is no real sweet spot... i think there are decent options for every price range. At sub-$500, Casios are surprisingly decent for beginners. Yamaha makes decent ones when you get closer to $1K. Their descriptions are confusing, as they talk about "graded hammer standard" or "graded hammer effect", which are two descriptions for two different classes of weighted keys. The GHE (graded hammer effect) is much better and worth paying more for, and is where the Yamaha quality starts to become noticeable and worth the extra price over Casios. The Yamaha P-140 fits the bill (stage form digital piano with graded hammer effect keys) and is in your price range (right at $1K). If you can spend another $500 or more, the Rolands are excellent. Check out the FP-7 for stage form or DP-990 for piano with stand. You were also asking about speakers. It's tough finding ones that will sound good with the full range of the keyboard. The best solution is a quality set of headphones, imo, if you don't need others to hear. Computer speakers will sound like crap. A good set of studio monitors is what you'd want. A mini-PA system would work too, if you have a need to hook up microphones as well.
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Jun 12, 2009 16:41
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Eli Cash posted:I like this advice. I like to figure out the most logical fingering, though it is time consuming. I usually write in numbers corresponding to fingers so my time isn't wasted (like in beginner pieces). Is this common among advanced players? Also, sometimes I feel like there's no great way to finger a sequence and have to bite the bullet and just slide my hand or have an akward move. Is this common? Writing in fingering is necessary, and imo, you can never write too many. I write them in even if it's obvious. Sliding fingers is extremely common... like off a sharp and onto a natural. It's comfortable and totally acceptable practice to do that when it makes sense. Fingering should also match the passage so that your hand is not lifted in an area that needs a smooth legato. Don't be afraid to repeat the same finger in consecutive notes, particularly the thumb. A good thumb should be accustomed to moving around very fast, and there is no reason why you can't play a note with your thumb and then play the next note (which is an interval up or down) with the same thumb and then come right back to the original note. Sometimes thumb-thumb-thumb is surprisingly easier and more natural than other fingerings. Fingerings should hardly ever feel awkward with most standard repertoire, even for those with smaller hands. If it is awkward, chances are you can improve it with a little creativity.
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Jun 24, 2009 20:03
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I think you should play the music you love, regardless. However, I agree with your professor to a degree. Back when I was serious into violin, everyone was playing either the Mozart or Mendelssohn concertos. One music director told me that he is far more interested in auditionists who choose more obscure pieces, as it shows that they have a deeper interest in music (compared to those who play because their parents wanted them to, and have just gotten into the habit). This was important to them because they wanted their orchestra members to be willing to get into and explore new music with the conductor. But since that doesn't matter to you, it's sort of a moot point. I just see where she is coming from.
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Jul 28, 2009 17:08
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I agree that even 64 note polyphony is on the low side. I would occasionally notice its limits on my old Yamaha P-120. I think Yamaha's GHE (Graded Hammer Effect) is very good (different from Yamaha's GHS Graded Hammer Standard which is subpar) and you can get used Yamahas with those keys for about $500 range. Personally, I think Roland's PHA-II and PHA-III keyboards are the best feeling keys I have played in the digital piano world. It is worth shelling for a newer model just for the keys, as the oldest keyboards you can find with Roland's PHA-II would only be 2-3 years old, IIRC.
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Nov 20, 2009 19:56
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websterandwebster posted:So are these 'graded hammer effect' and 'progressive hammer effect-II/I' just the same thing but each company has a different name for them? If not, is there a difference and how do they work/feel different? They are different in that they are developed by different companies and will have different feels. But the goal is the same... to make a weighted key that feels great. Like I said, the Yamahas are not bad, but the Rolands are my favorite. I listed the name they use for the keys (like PHA-II for Roland or GHE for Yamaha) as they are important distinctions within their product line.
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Nov 21, 2009 17:53
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FatCow posted:Nothing popped up on a few quick searches so I hope this isn't a recent repeat. My daughter went through "My First Piano Adventure" Books A through C by Faber when she was 5-6. She's now on the main numbered levels 2B at almost 7 years old. They have been pretty good and the songs are fun to play with her if you can read music and stumble along (lots of duets). Don't worry about full scales for awhile. Their hands really need to build a lot of strength, and we spent most of our exploration time on theory with regard to major and minor 2nds and 3rds, chords (3 notes, one note at a time), and five finger patterns (first 5 notes of a major or minor chord). She still hasn't done a full octave scale, but is doing very well with reading music, sightreading, playing with two hands, etc. She finally got a real teacher half a year ago (I taught her for about a year and a half) and it has been going really well.
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Jan 10, 2022 17:19
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OneSizeFitsAll posted:Kawai's "Grand Feel" instruments have great touch - about as close to an acoustic piano as I've encountered on a pure electric. The Kawai Novus action indeed is amazing. In fact, I believe it is the same action as on their baby grands, including the fantastic Japanese made GX series baby grands. I have a GX-2 myself, and I love the Millenium III action and last time I touched a Novus at a store, the action felt very similar.
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May 18, 2023 01:45
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oh no computer posted:The functionality you want (if you need something to search for) is bass sustain. I don't think I've ever seen it on a digital piano, for the ones I've looked at the middle pedal (if there is one) has always been sostenuto. Yep, never seen Bass Sustain on a digital, which makes sense since Bass Sustain is sort of regarded as a less-expensive version of the Sostenuto (even though they are quite different), used on some uprights, which might actually be considered a more desirable feature over the mute rail, which is the most common middle pedal on uprights these days. So it just makes sense to digitally model a sostenuto pedal.
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Jul 7, 2023 19:50
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