I walked into this, knowing that it was going to be difficult. And I was wrong. It was mega difficult.

I can't seem to tell the difference between my left and right hand, much less my individual fingers.

It seems like it should be so simple. Play three notes with your right hand third finger, and follow that with fourth finger left hand, and then back to right for a few notes. I was actually embarrassed . Slightly irritated too.

But it was fun (aside from silently cursing myself) and I think my teacher may be the most patient person alive.

I'm looking forward to more...though my wallet isn't happy that it is going to have to buy a DP now. Ah well.

Keep at it! Every single person who plays the piano at one time could not play anything...do what Winston Churchill said in one of my favorite quotes:

"Never Give Up".

Daniel: Keep practicing, every day. Your brain actually rewires itself to coordinate your hands. You are retraining the neural coordination of your motor cortex and your cerebellum. It takes a bit longer in an adult than a child if you haven't played before, but it will happen. Practice a little before bed and you will be surprised after just a few days what has happened.

James Henderson, M.D.

Thanks Alpha Terminus for the professional expanation of what is going on when we learn to play the piano. Fascinating. Gaby Tu

Piano playing really is a mystery! I remember those feelings exactly. You get used to it, and you do improve, so have fun at that new DP!

Thank you Dr. Henderson for explaining why piano is so frustrating. While I'm not an expert on this, from my own experience I think daily practice is very important to develop this coordination, even if you only have a few minutes on certain days. Unless you are really burnt out or sick and then perhaps it's good to have a break.

Remember the first time you tried to ride a bike...........

It'll come Daniel M. Some days, the separation of what the two hands are doing still irks me. Bach anyone?

Teachers are paid to be patient. But I also know (from teaching tennis to kids, my wife some piano, and others some math) that there is joy for the teacher as well as the student when something clicks.

Hi Daniel,
Before you know it you will be thinking "I can't believe I thought that was hard"...

And remember...your teacher knows that you "play it better at home"...... They see the progress even when you don't. I think it took about 4 years for me not to feel nervous when playing for my teacher....

Just keep playing. Just move forward, period. It's like rock climbing -- don't look down. Up is what you're after.

I've not long started lessons, I've had 7 x 30 minute lessons so far. I absolutely know what you are experiencing. The embarrassment of something seemingly so simple, yet your brain just doesn't want to function even at a basic level. The embarrassment for me is when my brain totally disengages and i stare at a note, a note i do know, yet i just can't figure out what it is. My teacher knows I'm embarrassed, she tells me I don't have to be but i am regardless.

It is getting better though, the blank moments are becoming less and less. When i start a new piece of music, the first playing I'm still slow to the point of the tune not being recognizable but that's a big improvement on the brain freezes that were happening just a few short weeks ago. I mentioned to my teacher that i was frustrated at my slow progress and she looked surprised. She said i was improving very quickly, quicker than any of her other students. I've almost finished my first book in eight weeks.

So the point is, the perception and the reality are really very different. Stick with it, things will get better, the embarrassing moments will become less and less and you will start improving even if you are not totally aware of it. I just have to trust in my teacher now that this is true. Though I can now see some of it for myself.

Ain't it the truth. Sometimes I think my teacher is a sadist giving me, a beginner, all this Bach. But it is paying off.



Yes. I'm the only adult at the school where I'm taking lessons. My teacher constantly runs over on our lesson. I'll point out that we're running over and she says, "Never mind! They don't practice!"



Ha! It is indeed. Like climbing a Sierra peak, it involves a lot of plodding, then you reach the goal. Then you start learning a new piece!

Remember your teacher was a student once. He/She knows what it is like to be nervous playing for a teacher. Soon, you'll be comfortable together and the nervousness will go away. I look forward to my lessons, something new is learnt every week.

Hey Daniel -

Don't be nervous in front of your teacher. I know how you feel. We were all there at one time, and as a teacher I can tell you I can feel for all my students' awkwardness. I was a terrible sight reader as a child. My very young students very often get left and right confused. Believe me we were all there! But because of my teachers' patience, and our mutual commitment to learning, here I am with 20 years under my belt as a piano teacher.

Rule number one for me is to extend that same patience to my students. I would never dream of yelling at them or berating them. They are learning, and it is my job to guide them gently and steadily through the process. I feel equally rewarded and my patience pays off when I see their improvement.

Good luck, and enjoy the journey!

Hi Daniel,
Welcome to the club. I/we all know what you're going through. It only gets better.

I've been at this "game" for only a few months. I remember wondering in the first few weeks how I would ever remember which note was which, let alone have 2 hands playing together and reading the music at the same time. Having a relaxed, patient teacher is a great help, along with support from family and friends (it was a friend who encouraged me through her example to chase my dream of playing piano). My husband really enjoys listening to me practice, he'll lie down on the sofa to listen to me and falls asleep although I find it painful to hear myself practice. He often comments on how with each practice session I improve within some aspect of my playing. I am my worst own critic and my teacher keeps reminding me to stop demanding perfection and to let myself make mistakes. I always walk away from my class with a smile and am eager to practice what I was taught.

In a recent newspaper article about successful people, it stated that to become the top, you have to put in ~10,000 hours which is about 10 years! So, sit back and enjoy the ride; let your synapes link up and reshape your brain.

Was it Neil Diamond who sang about making a joyful noise? So let it be.

Glad to know that there are others out there who had a disconnect between brain and fingers.

It was such a simple looking exercise! My teacher gave me finger numbers, 1-5, thumb to pinky.

Then gave me 'music paper' that looked like this:

RH
--------------------------------------------------------------
LH


With numbers 1-5 going above and below the line.

Don't have the music on me, but that's the general idea. I think the hardest part was associating my thumb with the number 1. My index likes being number 1 and my thumb is trying usurp his position. Right -> Left hand was also an interesting experience.

What a wonderful collection of encouraging posts this is!

I'm enjoying all the nifty and positive responses to this young adult male beginner.

Have you ever seen the Victor Borge piano comedy videos?

There is one section where he pulls a seat belt out of the bench and connects it!

Then there's another where he is playing from a page of music - stops - and turns the music upside down and goes on his way.

And, then there's an old piano teachers joke, I heard this 30 years ago by an 80 year old teacher: "If they sit on the piano bench facing in the right direction, it's safe to take them on as a student."

I hope this little story is as amusing to an adult student as this is to piano teachers. It simply means that everyone is a candidate for piano lessons and should be encouraged to start for the enjoyment of it. As a teacher, I think of it as an adventure and a journey toward discovering your inner musician.

So, Dan, you've got a cheering section behind you!

Betty -

Love the joke! Never heard it before.

Joan

Well, as Larry the cable guy might say ...



Get er done!

The Victor Borge story reminds me of when my kids made the transition to our grand piano from the digital. They looked puzzled after practicing and asked how to switch it off.

Thanks for all the encouragement everyone!

SteveMac "The embarrassment for me is when my brain totally disengages and i stare at a note, a note i do know, yet i just can't figure out what it is."

Wow! I had my first lesson Wednesday and I did the exact same thing. I'm a photographer and sometimes the same thing happens to me; my brain freezes. I'm glad I'm not the only one.

After a new student has a few months of lessons, I often will show them how to play music that is upside down. (this only works w/folks who have a sense of humor).

It reads pretty much the same, but makes no musical sense at all.

I always take a simple pieces, usually "Mary had a little Lamb".

Most students love it, and it helps make piano fun.