Adult Piano Lessons

Evan Sachs, Credentialed Piano Instructor. e: Evan@MisterEvan.com

Adult Piano Lessons

"I am a 63 year old retired attorney who took up piano from Evan about eight months ago. I had never played before. Evan has helped me to really enjoy the piano. I use "fake books" primarily which allow me to play a great variety of music in what I consider a very short period of time. I am really having fun learning to play the piano. Evan is a joy to work with."

Tom Bryan, attorney, tennis competition player

The Different Goals of Adult Lessons

How do adult lessons differ from lessons for kids? Quite a bit.

An adult can learn piano far faster than any child, After all, the mind is fully developed by now.

For instance, an adult can learn chords instantly, whereas it takes your average young person 8 weeks to begin the concept and playing of their first chord.

Playing music can therefore begin immediately.

Some adults who play the piano roughly can smooth their skills, and start playing the songs that they have always envisioned themselves playing. Some adults want to develop their style: Popular, Rock and Roll, Jazz and Standard, and don't know where to find this instruction. The adults I teach usually want to play their classical favorites and more. They want to be creative and to find know those tools to embellish the songs they love. Most of us don't realize how much of a world of its own this is. Those who go through this door find the never ending world of beauty that seemed inaccessible before.

Are we having fun or what?! (this picture is not canned)

Playing from "Fake" Books

The art and science of playing from fakebooks is well worth a little consideration. An adult can learn to play in the right hand cleff, and play the accompaniment chords in the left hand sometimes lesson 1.

Guitar players use chords to accompany their singing...in the same way, piano students can use their left hand chords to accompany their right hand voice, and cut years off their piano lessons. (!)

Yes, it is a good idea to learn the classics and technic...however why not have a great time playing music first...then you can devote yourself to your concert career at Carnegie Hall on the side.

Are you trying to understand your chords from chord books still with no luck?

There is a disconnect that happens when we bring home "explanatory" books written to help us. Somehow the learning that they promised us never happens....after all, if it is explained in a book one should be able to read it, and understand it and apply it. Here is the good news...the way to learn all the different chords in the chord "manuals" is to attach them to what they mean emotionally to you. For instance, a major chord must elicit in you a happy feeling. On the other hand.minor is dark or serious. 7th chords are used for Blues and Rock and to add color, and major sevenths for a sophisticated Jazz sound. These are genuine learning nuggets for you in your quest to learn all of your chords (without having to think about it). It would be very useful for you to come to me to see how these chords are used within various styles of music, and then to go ahead and use them in songs that you have in mind to play. Using chords in this way is really the way to understanding the different chord forms (and their inversions). If that chord manual has been sitting on your music shelf too long, realize that you cannot learn your chords simply from a manual....the chords will never take on the meaning that will allow you to remember them and to use them creatively and expressively (which if you have read this far, you are interested in!) You will need to attach these chord forms ...each of them ....to a meaning inside you. Some of our most important things we learn don't come from books... our chords are one of those things.

Improvisation and Accompaniment Styles

Improvisation requires a knowledge of scales and left hand accompaniment patterns. Scales needed include major and minor, blues, and jazz scales. Helpful too are an understanding of trills, upper and lower neighbors and how they work with melody. A formula that I like to use is to start with learning the melody with its rhythm and chord changes, and then slowly change it with the use of scales to where it is recognizable, barely recognizable, and then... a completely new song with the same chord changes. An audience loves hearing their favorite melodies bent and shaped in new ways...if this is something that interests you there are many tools at our disposal that are great fun to learn!

Inspiration, Adult and Advanced Piano Lessons

One of the great privileges I have had in life is to teach my adult students. For one thing, they wouldn't be wasting their time if they thought there was little reason or the payoffs weren't there. Usually adults want a teacher far and away greater in expertise because they need the inspiration of what piano playing can be. They want a teacher to play the piano like it should be played. We all deserve that in a piano teacher.
Then at the same time, many adults are overwhelmingly critical of themselves. This can be crushing to their growth at the piano and musically. Most are afraid to play in front of people.

How do I get you over this?

First, we have a great time together. When you're getting what you want...the keys to the knowledge you have been seeking, there is great relief that these things can be taught and I think it just adds to the comraderie that happens adult to adult. If you have never experienced this with your piano teacher.... well now is the time to start! There are many actual physical principles at the keyboard. Do you believe that Martial Arts can be taught? Yes of course? Well piano is the same thing ( in many respects).

It must be admitted that confidence plays a part, and your confidence at the piano is everything to me and I will do everything in my power to increase it. That is my job until you do not need me anymore, you are playing like you want to and are happy with the result!

Adults need to have a very different approach. Adults can wind up bored with adult Method books and boredom usually comes when you are learning something useless (does it not?). I won't go so far as to say adult method books are useless, they just kill your interest, and tend to hold you down.

For this purpose then, I like learning to play from what is loosely termed "fakebooks" because they are extremely useful. In this way you can go almost immediately to begin to play all of the songs that you had envisioned. I might add that there is nothing embarrassing about the term "fake" because you still have to know chords, and how to read the right hand cleff...and that is a lot and is doable at the beginning. Doing this, we can learn all styles like Rock n Roll, Jazz, Country Western, Standards, Blues, Calypso, and of course..Classical Styles, immediately.

After studying jazz styles with you, just wanted to say thank you for the "keys" to playing the music I love.
With your simple, fun exercises I can feel the growth. Learning has finally become fun. I'm having a ball!

--Gerry Trafficanda, photographer

Do I teach tradtionally as well?

Yes. I teach traditionally, with traditional classical repertoire as well. I am very fond of teaching all the major composers...Bach, Beethoven, Mozart Chopin, Scriabin. Each with their unique musical gift they gave to the world. If you want to pursue the classics I couldn't be more delighted).