Playing the keyboard is not as difficult as a lot of piano upstarts think. In fact, the piano is the perfect instrument for music beginners, as, unlike other instruments, its layout is straightforward and easy to understand. Plus, in contrast to instruments like the guitar, to play the keyboard doesn’t require a lot of unnatural hand contortions — at least until you get to more advanced pieces, but by then your fingers will be buff.

When learning how to play the keyboard, the basics are quite simple. Looking at the piano, there are two types of keys — white keys and black keys. As you may already know, the musical scale consists of the letters A through G with some sharps/flats mixed in. The first important fact to learn is that the white keys represent the letters, while the black keys represent the sharps and flats.

Before going any further, you must find your piano’s middle C. You will find it in the middle of the keyboard. Most pianos have the name of the company that made them printed above the keyboard. In many cases, the first letter of the name is directly above middle C. If you still can’t find the middle C, consult a diagram.

When starting out, you might as well tell yourself that you’re not going to touch the black keys for the first few lessons. For now, focus on the white keys, which make up the C major scale.

To play this scale, place your thumb on the middle C, with the rest of your fingers on the next four successive notes — D, E, F, and G. Essentially, you’re going to play eight notes, beginning with middle C, and ending with the C that is one octave higher.

When you play these eight notes in order, you’ll notice that it sounds quite familiar. Even though you may not know it, the C major scale is something that you’ve probably heard hundreds of times in your life, from various sources. If you do it correctly, to play your first scale should feel pretty satisfying. This is partly because the major scale is designed to musically resolve itself in a nice way.

Piano teachers have specific ways that they recommend playing scales. My teacher, for instance, taught me the standard way of playing the C major scale upwards, which was to play the first three notes with my first three fingers, then cross my thumb under and play the rest of the scale with all five fingers. Whether or not you use this particular method is up to you; the important thing is that you find natural ways to play the scales. As your ways of playing will soon be internalized, you want to find the best ways to play the keyboard.

Once you become good at playing the C major scale with your right hand — both up and down — it’s time to learn the same thing with your left hand. Essentially, the C major scale with your left hand is the mirror image of the one you’ve already learned; place your thumb on the middle C, and play all the white keys down to the next C, then go back up.

After you learn how to play the C major scale, it’s time to learn chords. Soon after that, it will be time to learn some other scales. For now, though, practice the C major scale as many times as it takes to sound smooth and even. It may be boring, but once you get this down, everything else in the future will be a little easier.

Basically, when learning how to play the keyboard, mastering the piano’s C major scale is the bridge toward bigger and more ambitious things. So, practice that scale until you can play it in your sleep.

Duane Shinn is the author of the popular DVD home study course on playing piano titled
“Crash Course In Exciting Piano Playing!”

If you play the organ then you are probably familiar with bass pedals. They are also available as separate units and are known as MIDI bass pedals and you can use them with any keyboard that has MIDI ports. Just connect a MIDI cable from the MIDI out on the keyboard to the MIDI in on the pedal board and you can play any of your keyboard sounds from the pedal board.

Playing the pedals can be a bit daunting at first. I remember when I first attempted to play the pedals when I started to play the organ. I had learned to play the piano for fifteen years before I started on organ so music ability wasn’t the problem, but I could not get the hang of these pedals. Part of the problem is playing style; with a piano, you have a moving right hand and left hand, so to suddenly expect your left foot to start playing a pedal keyboard is asking a lot.

Ideally, you want your bass foot to be an extension of your left hand. So when you play a chord with your left hand, you play the root of that chord on the bass pedal. For example, play a C chord with your left hand and play a C bass pedal with your left foot. Of course, this is the simplest method of playing the bass pedals but a necessary start. You will want to graduate towards playing alternating bass and walking bass.

So here are five simple exercises to help you play the bass pedals.

1. Play a C scale with your left foot. Starting with the bottom C pedal, play to the top C and down again. Make sure to start slowly. These exercises are teaching you distances between pedals. It’s more important to be slow and accurate to start with. Speed will come later.

2. Play this sequence of notes on the pedal board. Bottom C, G, top C, G, bottom C repeat a minimum of ten times.

3. Play this sequence of notes C, E, D, F, E, G, F, A, G, B, A, B, C repeat as above.

4. Play a chromatic scale starting with C, up and down the pedal board. (If you know it, play a section of flight of the bumblebee with your left foot)

5. Finally play a chromatic scale with chords and bass pedals, up and down.

With all the above exercises, you can look at the pedals your are playing when you first attempt the exercises. After a few weeks practice, you should be able to play the pedal board without looking at all.

As I said above, I had problems with bass pedals when I changed from piano to organ. After using the above exercises, I was able to play bass pedals very naturally and without thinking about what pedal comes next. It’s a bit like learning to drive. Once you’re used to your cars pedals and gear stick you don’t think about it, you just drive.

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In this article, I will discuss what keyboard features that are not essential but can ease the learning process and operation of your keyboard.

The first feature you might find useful is the use of memory buttons. These normally range from four memory buttons to eight buttons, in your price range. The memory button remembers the complete set up of the keyboard, which might include the sound you are using plus the rhythm and speed and volumes of each part. This is especially useful if you have spent hours setting up your keyboard and you want to save your settings. There’s nothing worse than trying to find that perfect setting again, when you could have saved it. Also some keyboards will have a floppy drive which can save the entire settings of the keyboard including memory buttons just in case there is a power cut or your memory buttons get wiped, again not essential, but useful.

The next feature is reverb. This setting on a keyboard can dramatically transform the sound of any instrument sound on your keyboard. An example of natural reverb can be found in a church or a large hall or an underground cavern. If you have visited any of these places then you know the sound created is echo like. Of course, it is very difficult to describe the sound difference when adding reverb but again this is another advantage to visiting a music shop where you can actually listen to the keyboard sounds. The difference between reverb and no reverb is quite dramatic. If you haven’t heard the difference it is unlikely you will miss it but be warned once you have heard the difference between reverb and no reverb you will want reverb on your keyboard.

The next feature to look for is a recording facility. Recorders are built in to keyboard, they don’t use tape, they use memory chips to record actions made on a keyboard such as playing a piece of music. These recorders are referred to as music sequencers and can create very complex almost orchestral pieces of music although the features on a sequencer at your price range will be limited. As a beginner you will not get a lot of use from this feature however, it can be used as a teaching aid, for example a teacher can play a section of music in to the sequencer and the pupil can then listen and practice the sequence of music as many times as is needed. If this feature is pushing your budget, then I would say you don’t need it. The choice is yours.

Finally, most keyboards made today have two or three “MIDI” connections; these can normally be found on the back of the keyboard and look like five pin din sockets and are marked up as MIDI In, MIDI Out and MIDI Through. MIDI stands for “musical instrument digital interface” As a beginner you will not use these connections. These connections enable your keyboard to play and be played by other keyboards. They can also connect to a computer and music can be played and created using MIDI and computer programs. MIDI is a complex subject and if you wish to learn more about this subject, you can search the internet where you will find lots of information about MIDI. So if your keyboard does not have MIDI connections, its does not matter, if your keyboard does have MIDI connections it still doesn’t matter.

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When you first start to learn a piano, keyboard or organ, you have to be patient, because this is the only time in your playing life that you cant actually play anything, you can only practice. Like your playing ability, your practice should evolve. Therefore, for a beginner I recommend a minimum of half an hour practice a day. Using simple five-finger exercises for both hands and learning to read sheet music, you should be able to play, with both hands, one or two simple pieces of music within a month or less.

When you initially start to learn, your interest in playing the piano or organ is very heightened, so it is very likely you will practice a great deal more than half an hour a day and your progress will be a great deal faster. As the weeks and months go by the novelty will wear off and you may start to miss the odd days practice. This is the time you need to set a schedule for yourself, or maybe it’s your child that’s learning to play the piano. Now you need to be strict with yourself or your child.

Remember we started of with a minimum of half an hour a day, as a keyboard teacher I would still be asking for half an hour. Its very normal for the novelty to wear off, it’s probably more common in children. So here are some tips to get you through this brief negative stage.

1. Make sure you have a piano teacher or organ teacher. Your teacher will see and hear your progress more clearly than you will and can offer encouragement and remind you of what you have achieved so far.

2. Ask yourself if you want to carry on playing the keyboard, after all, you are paying for lessons, but paying for keyboard and piano lessons is not enough, you must do the practice. I have had pupils that don’t mind paying but don’t want to practice at all. As far as I am concerned, they are wasting my time and are politely asked to leave and never return. (That’s happened twice in thirty years as a music teacher)

3. After your half an hour practice, play the pieces of music you have already learned. This is now you’re playing time, your enjoyment of what you have achieved so far.

4. Have a goal, is there a piece of sheet music you really want to play? Is there a music exam you want to pass? When I took my Grade 4 Royal Schools of Music practical exam for piano, I practiced four hours a day for six months because I wanted to pass with distinction, and I did, just. I was twelve years of age and learned a valuable lesson at that time. If you have a goal, it drives you to success.

5. If you are a parent and your child is loosing interest you have to try to encourage your child with the above suggestions, but ultimately you must insist they practice every day. (I know some people out there will disagree) If your child wont practice every day then its time to call it a day. Now I can tell you that the threat of stopping the piano lessons has worked for the majority of my pupils. I have done this myself many times with pupils and it works like a charm.

Some of my pupils from years ago are now teaching me a thing or two. They have also become teachers themselves and because they, like all music teachers, have been pupils themselves, they are very aware of the minor problems that can occur when learning to play a musical instrument such as the piano, organ or keyboard, in fact any musical instrument.

So if you want to be a keyboard player for a hobby, half an hour a day should do you. If you want to be a concert pianist then ten hours a day should just about cover it, or just start at half an hour a day and gradually evolve your practice time to what you want to do with your new talent.

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Frederic Chopin was born March 1, 1810 in the Duchy of Warsaw in Poland. He was not very old when his potential was recognized. In fact, he was regarded as a child prodigy pianist. As early as seven, Frederic Chopin was performing in front of an audience and composed two of his first pieces in the same year. When he was a young man, he left Poland and would never return. He eventually made his way to Paris where he worked as a piano teacher and a composer. He did not perform very often as most of his time was put into his teaching and personal work, though he did perform in a few concerts from time to time.

The first instrument that Frederic Chopin learned to play was the piano. He was creative from the start, making up his own tunes, and received his first piano lessons from his older sister. He was six years of age when he received his first professional lessons and it was not long before his skill and talent surpassed that of his teacher. The same year that he first began performing in public, he composed G minor and B flat major, two polonaises. In 1926, he went to the Warsaw conservatory, which was a part of the Warsaw University and studied with Jozef Elsner for a period of three years. It was after this that he left Poland and would eventually make his way to Paris. When he first arrived in Paris, he was uncertain about whether he would remain there or not; however, it would soon become his home. He would remain there for some time and travel around while he performed. He eventually married and had two children. Later, his health deteriorated and he eventually past away from tuberculosis.

From the start, Frederic Chopin was different from other composers and musicians, such as Mozart and Beethoven. He was more innovative, more creative and more experimental with music than the great ones before him. In fact, he created new forms of music that was beautiful and was more of an emotional expression of Chopin’s. He made innovations in waltz, impromptu, prelude and many other existing forms of music. This particular musician and composer made an incredible impact on music. He introduced a change from the original forms that would greatly influence the future of music. He was the first composer to write ballads and pieces of music separately, and changed etudes, among other genres, into expressive and emotional pieces.

Much of his music was also thought to be influenced by his beloved homeland, Poland. Many of his pieces were an effort to celebrate the culture of his homeland. Even though he left Poland to grow in his musical career, his heart was always rooted there and much of his inspiration came from the home he loved so much. Even after Russia regained control of Poland, which was a main reason why he could never return home, he continued to show his love for Poland through his music in a number of compositions.

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for used CDs, autographed CDs, and used musical instruments. You can find the best marketplace for used CDs, autographed CDs, and used musical instruments at these sites for used Chopin CDs, autographed Chopin CDs, and used pianos .

Sharps and flats are normally associated with the black notes on a keyboard. A sharp or flat can be applied to any note on the keyboard. Sharps are always one semitone to the right of the note you want to sharpen and always one semitone to the left for flats. Sharps to the right and flats to the left. To sharpen or flatten a note you must move one semitone to the right or left of that note.

Each note can have a sharp or flat applied to it but not all sharps and flats are black notes. For example if you wanted to sharpen E to make E sharp, you would move one semitone to the right of E to play F. Now while you might know this note as F, depending in which key you are playing this note can also be called E sharp. Other examples of white notes as sharps and flats are F flat, B sharp and C flat. In modern written music, these type of sharps and flats are not very common and are sometimes replaced to make easy reading. So instead of B sharp you will see C. However, you will never see this replacement in examination music. So if you intend to take exams in piano playing, learn them.

Sharps and flats in written music are sometimes indicated at the beginning of a piece of music. This also tells the player what key the piece of music is written in. Sharps and flats can also appear in a bar and this occurrence is known as an accidental. When this happens, all instances of that sharp or flat remain until the end of the bar. For example, if a B is flattened in a bar, any other B’s that occurs in that bar will also be flat without the need to write the flat sign again. To cancel flats or sharps after the initial accidental a natural sign would be used. This naturalises the note back to the original. Therefore, B flat would become B again.

Here is a list of keys using sharps and flats.
The key of C major is known as open key and has no sharps of flats.
D flat major has five flats.
D major has two sharps.
E flat major has three flats.
E major has four sharps
F major has one flat.
F sharp major has six sharps.
G major has one sharp.
A flat major has four flats.
A major has three sharps.
B flat major has two flats.
B major has five sharps.

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It is considered the cousin of the piano, and the keyboard is a great instrument in its own right, but not to the level of its more famous cousin. The keyboard is the instrument that has found its way into rock music, especially in the 1980s, through rock bands like Duran Duran and REO Speedwagon.

If you are hoping to help teach your child how to play the keyboard, which can help them later in life if they decide to play the piano, then you need to find them a keyboard, and you need to find it for them at the right price. The thing with keyboards, especially the higher end ones, is that they are expensive and they can run hundreds, if not a thousand dollars or more at times. That is a lot of money to spend on your child when you can not guarantee they will stay interested in the keyboards for a long period of time.

They may say they will, but it is a very different story when they have to learn to play the keyboard for an hour or so every day. At that point, it is no longer something fun and it becomes a chore. If they stop playing, you have an expensive piece of furniture that no one uses. As a result, what can you do to keep costs down but allow your child to find out if the keyboard is right for them.

Well, the best option is simply to buy a used keyboard. Used keyboards can actually be found in more locations than used pianos, because they are much smaller and easier to move. Therefore, do not be surprised if you find a used keyboard in a pawn shop for much less than it is worth.
This is the scenario you want to be in because it means you can get a keyboard, a nice one, for a cheap price and if your child does not take to it, you can simply have the keyboard sold to another pawn shop.

Instead of losing money like you would if you sold a high cost keyboard, you could end up gaining money in the sale of a used keyboard if you find the right pawn shop who is willing to pay for it. As a result, when you want your child to nurture their musical gift, without pressure from you to succeed, then you need to get a used keyboard.

Used keyboards are used by many musicians, and many of them got their starts on it because they were much cheaper to buy than pianos. As a result, you need to nurture a musical child through items like used keyboards so you can find out if they have a gift for playing the piano or keyboard, without having to spend thousands of dollars on the item. Keyboards are a great fixture in the home, and if you child begins to love playing, then you can worry about buying a better keyboard in the future.

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for used CDs, autographed CDs, and used musical instruments. You can find the best marketplace for used CDs, autographed CDs, and used musical instruments at these sites for used keyboard CDs, autographed keyboard CDs, and used keyboards .

The first thing to consider when choosing the instrument you want to learn is which one do you like the best. If you like them all, then we can move onto which one is the most practical for you.

The easiest and cheapest option is the keyboard. You can buy a keyboard for less then 100 pounds and you only need to learn to read music for the right hand. The left hand is made easy because you just learn left hand chords as you need them. Typically, you would start with C chord and G chord. With a keyboard, you should be playing a simple tune within a day, it’s that easy.

The piano is a more expensive option. If you buy a real piano (not electric) then you need the room, if you go for the electric option then you really should be looking at an 88 note keyboard especially if you intend taking exams. With piano sheet music, you will need to learn to read right hand (treble clef) and left hand (bass clef). You can expect to play a simple tune within a week, based on at least half an hour practice a day.

The electric organ can be a very expensive option if bought new, fortunately, there is a healthy second hand market and you can pick up a bargain. Like the piano, you need room for the organ because they are big and heavy. At the moment, there are no portable options available in the UK. However, you can import the Yamaha D-Deck organ or the Yamaha Electone Stagea organ, which are portable and very modern looking. The organ has two keyboards and a pedal board. The right hand plays the top keyboard the left hand plays the lower keyboard and your left foot plays the pedal board. It is initially more the most difficult to learn because you need to learn to play the bass pedals however when starting to learn the organ, like the keyboard you just need to learn to read music for the right hand and use chord symbols for the left hand and bass pedals.

I personally started on piano then moved to organ and I prefer the organ because of the vast amount of sounds. With a piano, you will only ever have a piano. If I had to answer the question for you then I would say start with a cheap keyboard. If you like it, move on to a bigger keyboard, a piano, or an organ, if not, it’s not cost you a lot of money to find out that this music lark is not for you.

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