Improve? Well, I certainly don't think I can get much worse, which leaves only two directions, straight ahead and up.

Gyro's laughing.

The best think about turning 60 is you become a...
sexygenarian.

Come on, PLUS, surely you can do better than that!

I'm really happy to hear so many 50's and 60's who say they are continuing to improve. It's very inspiring.

Clearly my comments are not scientific, just another old guy who, although over 60, is still improving my piano playing. I know that I play better today than I did when I was 20 or 40 or even 50. That's in spite of arthritis in my fingers! There is no reason one cannot continue to improve as long as one is physically and mentally able!

And, of course, there's no reason to think one has to scrap all the developmental materials and jump into years of "grueling" work to learn how to play a piece at 75t% speed bar-by-bar. Play what you like and enjoy it!

Ed

I restarted a year ago at 59, having stopped lessons at around age 12. I would definitely say I have improved a lot in the past year. Mind you, that means I'm about to move beyond Grade 2 material into Grade 3 materials, not the major works that you're contemplating. I find that I now have a lot more patience and will to practice than I did as a kid. I still work full-time, so don't have much more than a hour a day for the piano, and it's not unusual for me to spend that hour practicing scales and Hanon. I'm also happy to repeat the same problematic measure over and over two dozen times it I have to. When I do take an hour to work on repertoire, I do notice that the time devoted to technique has made a difference.

I have the same problem as another poster with memorization, however. I used to have a wonderful memory as a kid. Can't retain a page of music for more than a day anymore, unless it was a piece I played back in the day, and even those are getting iffy.

Some have an incandescent thirst for knowledge that travels with them for the extent of their lives. Providing this is coupled with a zest for the discovery tour, no limitations through value assumptions and no physical restrictions, there is no reason why the journey would not be progressive 'til death.

Hello everyone,

Once again thanks for many interesting thoughts.

Personally I believe that it is possible to improve even at higher ages. I depends, of course, on many factors like your present level, and the time available as well as the ambitions.

I have made a few actions the last couple of years which seem to pay off:
- Memorising as much as possible of the music I play
- Concentrating the effort on a limited (not too small) repertoire.
- Splitting up the task when studying difficult sections (Practicing 8, 4 or maybe just 1 or 2 bars at a time).
- Being much more consistent with details (e.g. ornaments)
- Being much more consistent with fingering.

Indeed this has lifted my ability somewhat, but I still think there is more to gain. What I don't do is using finger exercises like Hanon or similar. Maybe I should. What do you think? Other good ideas?

I am around your age, and all I can say is that Hanon and Dohnanyi have really helped me, and there's no end yet in sight in what that exercise regime will do for me. But then, I was very much in need of that kind of work since I'd never done much of it in the past. You may not need it as much.

One other thing I think has helped me improve my playing is playing Bach and Scarlatti with no pedal at all, and doing some every day.

I'm 53, and have only seriously returned to piano in the past several years after being mostly disengaged from it since I was a teenager. (I had brief periods of trying to reconnect with piano during that long lapse, but they didn't take. )

Count me among those who are quite satisfied with their progress. I think that advancement is obviously possible with advancing age, but agree with Ganddalf that it's dependent on certain factors.

While I did revisit Hanon briefly on the occasions when I was back at the piano after a hiatus of months, years or even a decade, I don't do any kind of purely technical exercises at all. I have no plans to start, but I'm open-minded about it, too; others here whose opinions I respect highly do find value in them.

Regarding such exercises, I have written in the past that "if you need them, they will benefit you; if they benefit you, then you needed them." I still stand by that, though I do recognize that we may not know if we need them. Nor can we really know the difference between the progress we make if we don't do technical exercises versus if we do (and vice versa); there's no control group for such an experiment!

I can't imagine any real downside to technical exercises, though even in retirement none of us has unlimited time to devote to our daily practice. We all have to prioritize and structure our routines accordingly if we want to use our time profitably and productively; the older we get, the more important that becomes.

Steven

I am a 56 yr old re-starter. Never made it past intermediate stage pieces. After my kid's moved on, I took over their lessons. For me, there is no way that I could have progressed without a teacher, and I am very much a "get a book, do-it-yourself" kind of guy.
I am to the point now where I can play the vast majority of piano literature, taking on pieces that were previously beyond my realm.
As mature adults, our biggest assets are patience, perserverence and perspective.

There's a possibly apocryphal story about Pablo Casals - when asked by an interviewer why, at the age of 92, did he still feel the need to practice for several hours every day, Casals replied, "I'm beginning to see some improvement."

I think it is certainly possible to improve, only maybe at a somewhat slower speed than at 20 for example...
Don't give up!

Not at all. I found that after a 35 year hiatus, I was ever more ready to put in the practice. Hey, I'm not chasing boys anymore, I don't work, and I love being home. I have a ton more self-discipline and time now now than I did when playing as a teenager - I rushed thru everything, disappointing my teacher and fooling myself. I'm so glad I was able to retrieve all my old music, plus a friend mailed me a ton more from a yard sale.

Have at it and enjoy.

Your "mission" is not impossible at all. After 60 it is an easy ride, your speed improves quite considerably, you don`t have to make any effort at all, all is done for you, just let yourself go...............DOWNHILL TO THE GRAVE FAST!!!!

Just to add my penny and a half as another adult restarter, in my case age 58. Rest assured you can and no doubt will improve if you put in the time. I'm now playing music I'd never have been able to play when I was a kid taking lessons, and it's only been a year and a half.

My sight reading is vastly improved and more importantly as far as I'm concerned, my technique is much better. I'll also add, for what it's worth, this is all without benefit of a teacher.

I'm pushing 60 as I said, but I just don't feel old, certainly not in the cognitive realm. Barring something unfortunate, and of course one never knows life being what it is, I have every expectation of continued improvement. The day I feel I can't get any better will be the day I consider hanging it up, as much of the enjoyment I derive has to do with the challenge the piano provides.

This post has been reported, so for the benefit all our members, I'd like to take a moment to state what I thought would be obvious to anyone over the age of 8:

It is *NEVER* funny, amusing, or appropriate to joke about the death of someone on an internet forum, regardless of age, reputation, or context.

No further comment on Carldee's reply is necessary and will be deleted.

No further comment on this reply is necessary and will be deleted.

I played well enough as a teenager to get into a major conservatory as a piano performance major. I was immature, young and reckless. I started a second instrument out of pure curiosity (harp). Low and behold, I had a "knack" that was natural. I had a very successful career with the harp, management with Columbia Artists in NYC and lots of great concerts and recitals. Unfortunately, for physical health reasons, I had to end that part of my life July 3rd, 2006. The harp is with a good friend and harpist. After a year, I had to find some outlet for my musical soul. Tried guitar......didn't work. 2 years ago, I played an old upright piano at a friends house for a weekend. I wondered, would it come back? Bought a good digital piano, dug out the dusty music and started. End of story, my partner bought me a gorgeous Yamaha Grand with a great sound. Started with a great teacher at the University of Texas, and practiced and pushed. I now can play for my great enjoyment and she thinks I am making great progress.. Currently working on: Chopin Ballade #1, Finished Schubert Impromptus op. 90 and working on some Debussy Preludes to record on a CD. Life is good................I am 59. Jim

I think I'm going to repeat this gem to myself daily for encouragement.

I'm 62 and just recently retired. Trying to establish a daily practice routine. Earned a MM in piano performance when I was 26, taught piano for four years, and since then have been playing as a hobby. Looking forward to learning and recording several new works. Because I read well, I find that I learn quickly. Now its just a matter of discipline. I have no doubt that I will improve - but if not - who cares? I'm having a great time !

[quote=Kreisler
No further comment on this reply is necessary and will be deleted. [/quote]

Just wondering if the arbitrary power to delete posts in an arrogant and semi-dictatorial manner while completely forbidding commentary/questioning of such action is not worse than the original offense?

JF

+1
Richard (65yo)

Okay, I'll allow comments. I was simply responding to the desires of some who reported the post and didn't want to see this discussion stray from the original topic.

I was just trying to avoid what happens so often - something goes bad in a topic, and the whole thing gets derailed with meta-discussion on board policy, moderator powers, ethics, etc...

I guess I failed.

I don't think you failed at all, just trying to be sensitive to to everyone and thank you for caring.
The post could certainly be judged as tasteless but could also be taken as a kinda funny side of the topic.
A little over the top but I'd like to think it was made with tongue in cheek.
Richard

Thanks. It gets tough sometimes. I can pretty much expect criticism no matter what I do. I get as many complaints for being too heavy-handed with moderation as I do for going too easy on people. Everybody has a different opinion...

Originally, I was going to comment on the offending post ... but decided that it spoke for itself and needn't be dignified with an acknowledgement. I thought you made the right decision in the first place here, Kreisler.

Steven

"I can pretty much expect criticism no matter what I do."

Don't I know that one!

I don't mind so much if carldee wants to be edgy (we have an Ignore feature if it gets bad enough--- and I'm not afraid to use it), but saving the topic from going into a death spiral over a juvenile remark was worth a try. We've certainly tried it the other way. Moderation saves us from being immoderate. If a person wants to go over the edge, it's kind of up to them; if they drag the whole topic over...

Not easy to moderate. The Internet's a messy place, to state the obvious. I think you do a great job Kreisler. But you're right, whatever you do will probably invite criticism.

I also thought the comment spoke for itself. My thought process when I see something that tasteless and juvenile is usually, "Man, this guy's a moron and I'm going to point it out to him (natually in a very clever way so all the other sympatico members can see what a smart guy I am.)

This first impulse is generally followed by a pang of painful self-awareness along the lines of "Man, you're 58 years old. Haven't you matured out of the need to impress a bunch of strangers in an Internet forum? The original poster already knows he's a moron on some level, why do you want to cause him additional pain?"

Not easy being me, as you can see. :>)

Kreisler You do an excellent job as a moderator (in my opinion). Bear in mind the number of times you feel the need to intercede is rather small in relation to the numbers of posts on the forum. As our society moves more and more into internet space for almost everything, new manners and guidelines will always be needed. Most of us know when a potential problem develops in a thread due to some shallow or immature responses, but someone needs to keep an eye out. Some problems on the internet can become quite dangerous and legally troubling. You do a good job. Thank you. Jim