Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Teachers Forum Can you actually "teach" someone to play the piano?

wow i call you gods gift..i wish i could wake up one day and magically know how to play...i got to put in work and go through all the bullshit just to be able to play...god dont like me

Maybe God has heard you play?

Obviously I have provoked the snobs into actually thinking instead of babbling so of course my comments are attacked.

I'll leave ya'll alone to fester in your educational superiority but I will depart with one last statement.

When was the last time you sat in the audience of a recital, high school or college talent show, one of your own "impress the parents" recitals, saw something on Youtube etc....and......said to yourself "wow! that person or persons" have talent....
When did that magical moment last happen to you?

Now listen to your own playing, compare it to the likes of real professionals who are working, recording etc and ask yourself "can I do that" and why am I not?

Here are a few really quick examples..
Your job is to spot the talent.
And sink the tone deaf.

Are you up to it?

1.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dD-5xiEnEik

2.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O04t4aJ2MJQ

3.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Amh4dfIrrd4

4.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_-CmjhV5fg

5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlViRd0fz9Y&feature=related

6. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWsi0IqoXB4&feature=related
Get your ear plugs...

So which one is best?

Steve you are indeed blessed with natural talent. Do you have any idea where it may have come from? Are your parents musical? Did you grow up with a piano in the house and with older siblings who played? Just curious.

Yes, blessed with natural talent. But who is Steve042? And where can we see and listen to this music? Don't be modest Steve. Please share.

My mother is tone deaf, she thinks country and western music are two different things

Her favorite songs are "Don't Fence Me in and Wolvertine Mountain"

My dad can play piano very well. He is self taught plays ragtime, Knuckles O'Toole and so forth.
He is very good even at 85 yo.

My great grandma played piano in Carnegie Hall accompanying vocalists so that is probably where I get it from.

My sister can't play.

One of my 3 children plays a decent flute but has decided to become a nurse.
Oh well.

It's just weird.

I literally woke up one morning around the age of 3 or 4 and was playing the piano.
My first song was "Popeye The Sailor Man"
My parents were in bed and looked at each other with amazement as to who was playing the piano??

Sadly, they encouraged me to become an EE but I put myself through engineering school doing gigs on the side.
Mostly TV commercials and shows.

Back in the 70's it was still the old "you're a musician you will starve" routine.

They seemed to forget about engineers selling apples back in the 60's <smile>....

I'm working on it....
Trying to put up a lame vid by the end of the week.

heck, I have to give you classical guys something to laugh at and believe me, you WILL laugh at my fingering and mechanical skills.

I break every rule in the book....

We still haven't seen a video of your proclaimed natural talent.

As to the letters behind some of our names, we didn't claim to be professional performers. They are merely recognitions of our paths.

Talent works both ways. You could be born a natural talent but if you don't put in the effort and work you still won't go anywhere. Conversely you may not be supremely blessed with talent but you can work hard to become good.

Look at sports, Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team. You better believe he worked his tail off to become the best.

I can think of tons of "talented" athletes who are lazy or don't give it their all, they float by on what they have but burn out or just do it for the money.

Speaking of tennis, I'm sure you know all those academies that take youngsters at 6-7 and train them year round.

They put in 5-6 hours of training a day, if that isn't work I don't know what it. Read Andre Agassi's story, his dad made him hit 1000's of balls by the time he was out of a crib.

So many tennis prodigies quit before they are 25, these are people who are the best and have played for and won Grand Slams.

Martina Hingis, Anna Kournikova, Jen Capriati, Kim Clisters, Justin Henin, Andrea Jaeger, all out.

Marat Safin, a total headcase. Ricky Williams from football.


Talent means nothing if you don't hone it and put in time. Oscar Peterson got to where he was because he decided he wanted to become to best jazz pianist in the world.


Michael Jordan, after his first comeback from winning 3 championships in a row, lost in the playoffs. He trained like a maniac after that summer and ended up winning another 3. But it wouldn't have happened if he didn't work for it. Even the greatest of all time did it.

Thinking from a different direction:

Can we teach anybody to type?

The mechanics of piano don't have to be much more difficult than that.

Can anyone who types write a best selling novel?

Now we come to goals. Most people who learn to type only need to meet job requirements, answer email, etc. A few want to become authors (like one of my kids.)

Most people who take piano lessons probably do it for other reasons than to become a performer.

It should certainly be possible to teach them all the basic mechanics, like we do with typists. If not, then yes something is wrong.

Great post Wizard and I agree with you...My only addition is that these people, like Oscar whom I had the pleasure to meet during a master class, had super talent all along.
A high school coach, music teacher etc rejecting people is no indication of raw talent.
Sometimes it's an indication of an inept coach etc.

Speaking of Oscar, RIP, he shook my hand and his fingers went half way up my arm!!!
I will never forget it!
Wonder no more how he played 10ths like they were going out of style.
Oscar is one of the greatest, some say greatest, pianists to ever live.
I give Art Tatum that title, but Oscar is neck and neck with Art and if versatility is considered, Oscar wins.

BTW the overture to the Wizard of Oz is one of my favorite pieces and I have incorporated some of it into all kinds of tunes.
It's very sinister sounding in the beginning.

Of course Over The Rainbow is one of the best tunes ever written.
There is no place like Nome....ooops, you don't live in Alaska? hahahah!

Speaking as one who had to take typing in Jr High School in 1972, all I can say is...........

FFF....space.....JJJ...SPace....repeat a zillion times. I can still hear Ms. Tanner barking the commands.

Any idiot can be taught to type, including me.
To play piano at the professional level requires emotion, feeling and inner thinking for lack of a better term.
That is what separates some from others.

I agree with you regarding piano teaching however.
Most people are not looking to become professionals, and that is fine.
I probably should have qualified my subject line with "professional" in it.

Oscar is indeed one of the best, and coming from my home country to boot!! Greatest ever, that is such a subjective phrase. He had great command of the instrument, I found he used too many runs and fill-in's for my liking.

Bill Evans, Keith Jarrett, Herbie Hancock, all greats as well.

I find in music, "talent" encompasses such a wide spectrum. People often mistake technical virtuosity for musicality hence the label for "prodigies" and such.

Some pianists have astounding technical facility, but their music is superficial, or they haven't lived enough to bring true depth to their playing.


If you list some of the musicians who have become famous, their talent is often only a small part of their appeal.

Norah Jones, Alicia Keys, Sarah Maclaughlin, great entertainers but their actual piano skills would be considered average or even mediocre. Same with Yanni or John Tesh.

Taylor Swift sings so out of key it's laughable, yet she's popular as heck. What about the Spice Girls, manufactured to the hilt.

This is the realm of the music industry now, where American Idol can make a star out of anyone.

Another one of these threads? Underneath the seeming arrogance, is insecurity. It's just not necessary. You can play beautiful music, and so can the naturally unmusical people who study and work hard with a teacher.

Another excellent post!!!!!
Yes, yes I agree!!!

Best, world's greatest etc really has to be qualified.
Excellent point!

Even with Tatum...
Sure he has the technical ability, which can in no way be denied, but after a few tunes, I "personally" get a little tired.

The pyrotechnics get annoying after a while no matter how great.
For more melodic stuff listen to Teddy Wilson, George Shearing and Oscar as well!
I can't deal with Keith Jarret recordings due to his moaning.
Saw him live once and almost walked out, it was awful. Others actually did walk out.
Even Andre Previn plays a mean jazz piano.
Jess Stacy, Bob Smeil (Lawrence Welk) Nat Cole and others play very melodic piano.

Re:Wavelength

To a point yes they can.
However it's the same as art.
If one invented a paint by number Mona Lisa we could all be Da Vinci.....Hey, they sell those in Macy's.
So why isn't my rendition priceless?

You don't have to put other people down to demonstrate your worth.

Didn't mean it that way...sorry...apologies... I edited the message to better reflect my point.

As for "worth" it comes in 2 flavors.
First, how you feel about yourself and your craft.
This is most important IMHO.

Second. what people will pay for you.
It's up to the individual to determine what their own "worth" is.
Some will sell their soul.
Others will not.
Most are in the middle.

Sometimes I think the public, including Steve, can only handle so many performers. It seems the public feels they need to reduce the pool of musicians and only give the time of day to the "best".

However, I actually agree with Steve that only a small percentage of people really play well. I'm not sure yet if Steve fits in that group. If he's smart, he won't post a video here. But I do wonder why he wouldn't want to play a score as the composer intended. I also know he'd be a better performer, and perhaps famous, if he had nurtured his natural talent in a more traditional manner.

In any field, there are precious few who excel.