How to learn to play piano really fast? Use Piano Marvel
How do you learn piano quickly? I’ve found PianoMarvel.com to jump-start my playing and I’m hooked. Through the piano keyboard/computer interface and classic piano lesson methodology, Piano Marvel has hit a home-run in effective teaching and learning. The lessons start from absolute beginner to advanced playering. If you or your kids want to learn the piano, try this app(click here for special offer).
A little over six months ago, I started playing piano with no previous ability. Piano Marvel asserts that its method allows a piano learner to learn at a rate 8 to 10 times faster than traditional piano teaching methods. While I have no way to prove that advanced rate, I can show you what I learned to play by month five:
I have not created any videos since but I will when I finish a song that I feel showcases my next level of playing. I am a much better player in just the month since this video. In this blog post I will share six habits that will supercharge your piano learning curve.
Play every day! This is the most important thing you can do to learn to play really fast. Piano Marvel even has an info-graphic day streak box on the homepage to keep you motivated. There is also a report that lists all of the Piano Marvel learners and their streaks. Can you reach the top and be number 1?
It isn’t always possible to play absolutely every day. I started on Piano Marvel 201 days ago. Because of travel I have only played 189 days. I do play the day I leave on a trip and the day I come home. I play as little as 20 minutes in a day when I know I have almost no time to play that day and play as much as 2 hours when I have the whole day to myself.
Get adequate rest and sleep! Playing and practicing is just part of the learning process. When one is starting to learn to play, I am not sure you want to play all day to try and learn quickly. First, if you search the internet, you can find recommendations for amount of practice for beginners. Very young learners, should only play 10 to 15 minutes a day. This amount increases by age. I don’t play anymore than hour and a half to two hours at most on any given day. I worry that I will injure myself if I play too long.
Rest and sleep play an important role in your practice. Although, I have not researched this, I believe that your brain forms connections at rest and especially during sleep that helps with the brain / body connection to playing hands together. Donald Hebb, a neuropsychologist, said, “neurons that fire together wire together (Hebbian Theory)”. And I believe the brain and the subconscious continue this connective process at rest and sleep. It is really important to get adequate rest. Only you can judge what is adequate. I have noted often that I am immediately better at playing the song or exercise the next day.
Make every minute of play count! Anders Ericsson, the author of “Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise” is the scientist that Malcolm Gladwell refers to when he famously notes that to become an expert at something you need 10,000 hours of practice.
Ericsson points out that time isn’t the most important factor of achieving excellence. Excellence is achieved through “deliberate practice”. Deliberate practice is achieved by finding a knowledgeable teacher, in this case it is Piano Marvel, and the students ability to take those teachings and challenge him or herself every session.
Make every minute count and you will see your playing improve dramatically. The way one gets better and make every minute count is to take oneself out of their comfort zone, a little bit every time you play. It is this constant pushing of ones learning envelope that allows the student to reach excellence.
Time is clearly a factor. To be the best at something requires a lot of time but you can spend that time “in your comfort zone” only playing things you are comfortable with and not progress. Piano Marvel is set up so that each lesson typically takes you out of your comfort zone. It isn’t always fun, especially when starting the lesson. It is fun and exhilarating when you finish what you first thought to be extremely hard.
Be confident in your ability! It is important that you channel confidence in your new found abilities. When I start a new song, be it in the Method or Technique section of Piano Marvel; I truly believe I am going to be able to finish the piece at a score of 100% and it’s not going to take weeks to accomplish it. Right now I am at level 4 d in method and finishing level 4 c in technique. I don’t think any piece has taken more than 7 days to finish completely. For example, 4 c method has Carol of the Bells as an extended song to learn. Each level of method and technique has 20 songs / exercises. Carol of the Bells takes 12 lessons to teach the entire song at the fast speed.
It took me about 7 days to go through all of the lessons and finish the song. It probably took about 10 hours to get through these lessons to play this song. When I started it, there was a flash of doubt that I will not be able to play it. You will note in the video I played this level 4 c song after only 120 days! I just physically finished level 4 c last week. I am not a prodigy, I just am confident I can play these pieces.
Many pieces per level initially inspire doubt in me because they are just beyond my current level of ability; but I settle down and get to work knowing I will get a 100% score. That is the beauty of Piano Marvel, it is crafted exactly as Anders Ericsson describes as to how to reach one’s peak potential. Be confident that you are going to accomplish each task. You will! as long as you put in the effort and time. I do not have the luxury of unlimited time but I am still progressing fairly quickly even though I am reaching the higher Piano Marvel levels because I am confident I am going to succeed. Here is the finished product:
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Use the Piano Marvel tools of hands separate then hands together to learn songs quickly! Piano Marvel has a feature called “Practice Mode” that can be accessed at the bottom right-hand corner of the interface. Use it! It should be available for any song in method. As songs get more difficult and longer, use Practice Mode to speed up the learning process. Practice Mode breaks the song up into manageable small chunks. Practice Mode uses the revolutionary piano learning approach of systematically learning a line or two hands separate then learning that chunk hands-together.
How it works is simple: you first learn the line(s) with right hand only; then you learn the lines left hand only; then you learn hands together. You then learn the next line or two in the same manner. Once the two chunks are learned hands-together, you practice both chunks combined hands-together. You proceed throughout the song in this manner until you’ve learned the whole thing. This is a really efficient way to learn a new song.
One thing I do to save time ( I think) is to learn a song without Practice Mode but using the same technique. Please use this technique only after extensively using Practice Mode and then see if you think this is faster. It’s very simple. At the point where I am, songs are usually between 8 to 12 lines of music. This is not very long. What I do is play the song normally in Piano Marvel but learn the song first with the right hand (treble clef) then I learn with the left hand (bass clef). Once I am one hundred percent accurate for hands-separate then I learn the song hands together.
I then use the chunk mode to learn hands together. I typically learn two lines at a time and then combine them. I noticed that Practice Mode may be too systematic in its process and learning the whole piece hands-separate saves a little time.
When I am running through the song in its entiretyhands-together, I am making sure to practice the chunks where I make the mistakes. I think it is human nature to get the beginning perfect and not play the middle and end enough. Make sure to focus on the toughest parts and not just the parts you’re good at. Here is a video of the process:
Video tape your playing! Use video in place of the recital. Don’t worry about video quality too much. Prop up a smart phone or have someone hold it while you play. If you have a GoPro type camera use that. The accessories often include a stand. I ski and have even mounted the gopro on my ski helmet and set that on a shelf to video myself.
Video simulates a recital as there are other distractions and pressures involved. These pressures include thinking about starting and stopping the video before and after you play, the sound quality of your playing and how you look while playing. Video is a great tool to assess your technique. Do your wrists look too high or do they look like your typing on a keyboard? Does something look awkward about your playing? And it’s also fun to show friends and family your moves. People will always be very positive and encouraging. You can take your videos and post them online on YouTube, Instagram or any social media platform you like for friends and family to view long distance.
Use these tips to learn to play piano in a very short time. If you follow these recommendations, you will be shocked by what you can play in the first month. If you have any questions or comments, leave them below.
If you haven’t already, create a Piano Marvel account and use the link below. If you already have a Piano Marvel account, add my discount code “chris” to get the monthly discount below. I am a devoted student and proud affiliate of pianomarvel.com. Good Playing!
How to create account:
- Go to Link: https://pianomarvel.com/create-account/chris/
- Create your account, leaving “chris” code so you receive a free month trial to start then $3 off $15.99 regular monthly price. You will be glad you did!