I'm an adult amateur piano player wanting to return to studying the piano seriously. I stopped playing for a year here and a year there, but the bigger problem is that although I kept up with playing a few intermediate-difficulty pieces, I haven't done any scales or arpeggios or other technical practice for maybe 10 years. Therefore, I consider finding the right piano teacher to be of the utmost importance. Bearing this in mind, I am reminded of the advice I was once given regarding the proper etiquette when meeting a cat:

With cats, some say one rule is true:
Don't speak 'til you are spoken to.
Myself, I do not hold with that -
I say you should ad-dress a cat,
But always bear in mind that he
Resents familiarity.

You bow, and taking off your hat,
Address him in this form: "O! Cat!"

Before a cat will condescend
To treat you as a trusted friend,
Some little token of esteem
Is needed, like a dish of cream!

And you might now and then supply
Some caviar, or Strasbourg pie,
Some potted grouse or salmon paste,
He's sure to have his personal taste,
And so, in time you'll reach your aim
And call him by his name!

So this is this, and that is that
And that's how you address a cat!

A cat's entitled to expect
These evidences of respect!
So this is this, and that is that
And that's how you address a cat!


I am wondering what the proper etiquette would be for me to look for a suitable piano teacher. I have 2 special issues. One issue is that I intend to play on a Stuart & Sons piano, which is unusually different in its mechanism and sound to the normal piano. In addition, it has a 4th pedal which brings the hammers closer to the strings to produce a quieter sound, the tone of which differs somewhat from the sound that is produced from using the 'una corda' soft pedal. This 4th pedal can be used independently or in addition to the 'una corda' pedal. I guess what this adds up to, is that a Stuart & Sons piano is a different instrument to the usual piano, maybe in the sense that a pianoforte is a different instrument to a fortepiano. Of course, the extent of the difference is not the same as the extent of the difference between a piano and a harpsichord! I would imagine that one would need to find a harpsichord teacher, rather than a piano teacher, if one wanted to study the harpsichord seriously. But, for my situation, do you think that a piano teacher would take offence if I asked if he/she has had any experience on this particular make of piano?

My second issue is that the only piece of piano music I really want to learn is Medtner's Night Wind Sonata. Of course, if the piano teacher tells me I need to learn other works in the process of reaching my goal of playing the Night Wind, I will comply, but I do want to work on one or two specific difficulties posed by the Night Wind at any one time. I realize that learning the Night Wind will be a massive undertaking. I'm hoping to learn it over a period of perhaps 6 to 8 years. So, it is important for me to know that the piano teacher can teach the Night Wind Sonata. Do you think that it is proper form to ask a piano teacher if he/she has expertise in teaching a particular piece of music - in my case, Medtner's Night Wind?

Thanks for reading my very long post, and your opinions will be greatly appreciated.

Enjru

So you want to learn to play one piece. Your particular piano is not a problem, however, unless the teacher teaches you at home, they won't be able to guide you in how you are sounding on that particular piano. So it sounds like you will need to find a teacher who teaches out of your home. I would explain that when looking for a teacher.

As far as learning to play one piece, is it because that is your favorite piece and you don't care for anything else you've heard, or have you not listened to Chopin or Beethoven to know how wonderful their works are? What happens when you learn that piece? Will you just play that for the rest of your life? I encourage you to be open to other things, because there is so much more out there to enjoy about the piano.

You don't mention whether you are self-taught or not in your previous piano experience. There may be bad habits to undo and you will have to go through a lot of other repertoire which you seem to be willing to do.

These are all things you need to discuss with prospective teachers. Do a search on this forum for finding a teacher as it has been covered in lots of detail many times before. Best of luck!

In my experience with teachers of various instruments, they're all over the map in terms of how "eclectic" they are willing to be versus preferring to stick somewhat close to a standard progression or curriculum. I've had one wonderful teacher who was game for just about anything, although of course up front and honest when it came to genres or styles of which they had little knowledge. But honestly if I'd asked that teacher to help me learn the 1812 overture we'd have eventually come up with some sort of surprisingly musical and unique way to make it work without cannons!

My point being, seek and ye shall (eventually) find. Don't be shy about your musical goals. It may take a while but there is a teacher somewhere who can help if you're willing to put in the effort to make it work.