Online or book piano learning resources

dern

I fancy doing something in addition to the guitar and always fancied learning piano or keyboards. Can anyone recommend any books or online courses that are worth doing?

The difficulty is that a lot of the paths lead to classical music or popular music which is all fine but different from my end goal. I'd like to get to the point where I'm able to play stuff like...

Nick Cave - In to my arms - 
Tori Amos - Happy phantom - 

I'm not suggesting that I start there but that's more along the lines of where I want to end up.

Any suggestions welcome. Lessons are an option but I just want to have a go first.

Cheers,

Mark

axisus

To learn in an intelligent structured way can be hard work by yourself, and it's not something I can help with, however, I know of two other approaches.

I got all the way up to Grade 2 (ie not very far!) as a kid. I picked up a different way of playing when I got older, I bought a book of piano chords and memorised quite a lot of them. I found this to be an amazing way to play piano accompaniment to most songs that I could find the chords to. I play the chord with my right hand and root note only (& sometimes octave) with the left. With that as a basis, then 'noodling' a bit with the chord, it proved to be an incredibly easy way to play a song and sing along. It works superbly with stuff like the Nick Cave song.  

The Tori Amos track would be harder to be convincing as it has lots more going on - walking basslines etc. However, there is also a way to tackle this sort of thing as well without 'traditional' learning to play: One of my daughters decided that she wanted to play piano at 13 when she figured out a simple 3 note ABBA melody. We couldn't afford lessons then, but undeterred she took to youtube and started using videos posted by people using 'Synthesia'. It is an app that shows you how to play songs by using 'falling notes'. If that doesn't make sense look up the name on Youtube, there's tons of stuff done with it. She never bought the app, just used videos. She does seem to have a gift for music, but quite frankly I was blown away by her progress, first tackling Anime themes, and then moving on to complex stuff like Fur Elise. Two years down the line and she plays very well indeed, and it's a strange thought that I am not the best piano player in the house any more!

dern

Thanks very much indeed, that's really useful. It's amazing how quickly kids pick up stuff. My eldest is only 14 and I can safely say that I'm not the best guitarist in the house any more... at least not in any technical sense. My youngest plays piano (started by being self-taught from books and you-tube) and she's only 12. She's also taking saxophone lessons at school and is already pretty good at that. Pretty glad she dropped the violin lessons though... dreadful noise

I'll check out your recommendations, thanks. I have also done a lot of googling and think in this instance lessons may well be the way to go. My daughter has an excellent teacher and I think I may ask him for some taster lessons. I know my daughter will want to try and teach me stuff too... which will be trying

TheOtherDennis

www.rocketpiano.com is supposed to be excellent. They do free lessons, or you can pay for the full course. (It's $40, but I'd hate to say what that is in sterling the way things are going right now.) They ive you 60 days on the paid-for course in which to get your money back. I paid for the course on the basis that I was intending to get myself a keyboard or piano, but I never did (thanks to domestic events overtaking me), so I've no idea if you actually do get your money back.

Be warned, though, the home page for the site is pretty awful - sales-speak a-go-go. :-S

dern

Quick follow up... decided just to do lessons to give myself a leg up. Had my first lesson last week and the next is tomorrow. Have been practicing since the last one and it's a load easier than guitar... all the notes are in a straight line! Doesn't get any easier than that

The family are heartily sick of my stilting repeated renditions of Eleanor Rigby but I'm enjoying myself.

blobb

For general 'music for musicians who can't read music' go for this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Musicians-Guide-Reading-Writing-Music/dp/0879302739

and this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Inside-Music-Musicians-Composition-Improvisation/dp/0879305711/ref=pd_sim_14_1/251-0502038-2375909?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=VTDC1AXP2EMZCHPQDA1B

Dave Stewart gets it spot on.

Not really a how to play piano book but he is quite accomplished on the keys. You may have heard of him....

bingefeller

Scribd is worth the money each month as they have loads of instructional books on how to play piano. 

JayGee

blobb said:

For general 'music for musicians who can't read music' go for this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Musicians-Guide-Reading-Writing-Music/dp/0879302739

and this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Inside-Music-Musicians-Composition-Improvisation/dp/0879305711/ref=pd_sim_14_1/251-0502038-2375909?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=VTDC1AXP2EMZCHPQDA1B

Dave Stewart gets it spot on.

Not really a how to play piano book but he is quite accomplished on the keys. You may have heard of him....

I just nipped over to Amazon for a quick look at those and I've ordered used copies of both of them as they look like exactly the sort of thing I've been looking for but not finding for years.

Thanks for that!

Iamnobody

I'm starting to learn as well - here's my book of choice!



As recommended by my daughter's piano teacher! For my daughter...

Once I've got my head round this book for 5 year olds I might look at something more challenging.