Hi. Im planning to learn Piano by my own. Here are some of the things that needs to be pointed out.

i ) Im not going to take piano classes (as in tuition classes or wtv u call them)
ii ) Im going to learn through video tutorials for example this one http://peecee.dk/uploads/052008/alfrteachtd.png
iii ) What should i buy? Obviously I cant afford a real sized piano. I thought keyboard will make up for it. Can i go with a mini size keyboard. I need more details on keyboard.
iv ) Suggestion on what to buy (Budget RM500, but u can also recommended below RM1000.. i might try to find sources )

Thanks in advance. I really hope you guys will guide me

buy any keyboard with at least 5 octaves(64keys) and with touch response.

casio being the cheapest. but the touch response kind of lousy if compare to yamaha and roland. others function like indicating light just ignore it. get urself a pedal extension also(some casio is not pedals compatible).

This post has been edited by alfred0304: Dec 20 2009, 05:47 PM

i see so i should take note - 64 keys at least. what do you mean by touch response sir?

i ) Hard work and determination is all you need
ii ) If you dont want lesson, you gotta really pay attention to every word they say in the video, but it is still recommended to get a teacher
iii ) Mini size for starter is ok, but few months or 1 year later, u gotta get a bigger one
iv ) with that kind of budget, you wont get much of a quality keyboard, try to increasing slightly more =D!

touch response= the sound response to touch
Some keyboard dont have
the meaning of touch response is when you press hard hard, the sound is loud.
when press lightly, the sound is soft.

without touch response, no matter how u press, the sound volume is the same, means no loudness or softness, no feel.~

good luck!

how much should be sufficient for a decent one with touch response? if possible can u give example of model

---

Added on December 21, 2009, 1:04 ami got an offer for ctk2100 for rm630. will that be ok?

This post has been edited by zeff: Dec 21 2009, 01:04 AM

better work harder and earn some money to pay a teacher.

a video and a teacher might be able to teach the same thing, but a video cannot troubleshoot your bad habits and problems. how you expect to ask question to the video?

haha.. where i live i dont think i can find a teacher, except for friends.. only internet access and friends i think..

btw guys i really need help on buying a keyboard.

+1

its like playing a violin, u learn from a video with determination, with never dying spirit, and full of passion.
After 10 years of practicing, u performed it to your frens!

And to ur horror, your fren who plays the violin comes up and tell you, "Dude you are holding the violin wrongly, and you are holding the bow wrongly too!"
And your intonation is all out!

where do u live???

it's a little awkward to say there's no piano teacher, unless you're studying at places like cyberjaya...

maybe you can learn some basic theories and simple keyboard playing, but you still need to find a teacher if possible.

tronoh.. its like a village

No wonder you say u can't find teacher. Studying at University Technology Petronas, Tronoh, Perak. It's really a small village place compared to cyberjaya.

for certain challenging instruments like violin of course u need a teacher... but piano i think is one of the easiest instruments to self-learn.

the notes are arranged neatly left to right, not like guitar or violin where its harder for beginners to make sense of the fretboard.

also i'd prefer that you get a keyboard with semi-weighted keys also. Semi weighted keys give you a more accurate feel of a real piano. When you press keys on a piano you feel a certain "resistance", or weight from the keys as you press down. It gives much better control over your playing and you are able to handle both keyboard and piano.

If you didn't train with semi-weighted keys you'd probably learn to use less strength to press down on the light, plasticky keys, and you might feel akward when facing a real piano.

Since you stated you wanted to learn piano, not keyboard right? XD

This post has been edited by Boolean: Dec 21 2009, 04:04 PM

TS, since u are in perak, how far is the distance between your asrama to a town or city?
Is ipoh near ur place? Or tambun? or anywhere? Within 30-1 hour distance?

is normal for ppl to travel 30-1hour every week to get music education.

in my music school, got ppl travel 1-2 hours to come our place to learn music every week.

to learn something,u gotta sacrifice~


Ajaran sesat

Piano is NOT the EASIEST instrument to self LEARN!

i know i know!

it's voice!!

ic. so i think i should take lessons and also learn myself. ok i think i can do that. ipoh is 30 minutes from my place of study.

but now i think i should start thinking about the keyboard right. u guys have any suggestion?
from what i've read up here
i should consider a
- touch responsive keyboard
- semi-weighted keys (for piano-like feel)
- at least 5 octaves

what is the cheapest i could get ? i read about ctk3000 by casio its rm999 :\ its gonna take me some time though to collect that much fund but its the cheapest so far i found fora touch response keyboard. or maybe i dont need that touch response to begin with? any ideas guys. money is abit problem for me as well

ya, kids can sing awesomely without a teacher

bring 1-2k to a shop, bring a fren who is good in keyboard, and ask him to help you pick.
cause sorry dude, i cant imagine how thsoe keyboard sound like without any reference

there is like a few keyboard pro here in lowyat, but they rarely replies.

And ur shop doesnt usually have the models you want =X

And ipoh is 30min away, verii near la.
I travel 20min to my music school also, so no big deal.

go there and get a teacher, they cost like 1-2hour a month, but it will help u progress faster!~

I would suggest finding a teacher, because having one would help you progress much much faster. :-)

Why not you try finding a teacher first, then ask if you can practice (say, you go 30 mins before each class and practice) there. I'm sure you can reach some kind of agreement with your teacher. I used to study in a place like yours, and before we (students) bought music instruments the teacher suggested that we try out lessons before making any (costly) decisions. For a small fee, we could actually sorta 'rent'/play the instrument for a length of time.

This will give you a chance to decide if you really want to take up playing the piano. And of course, a teacher will know best what to recommend.

Honestly speaking, if you wanna progress far, it may be wiser to save up and buy a better keyboard, than to rush and buy one right now. A cheap one won't help you in the long term. A good keyboard would be a cheaper choice than to buy one now, and to 'upgrade' later on.

Just my 2 cents.

:-) Hope you enjoy this new adventure into the musical world! Hehehe.

This post has been edited by JayLew: Dec 22 2009, 12:16 AM

i dun think casio have semi weighted keys la, i think u need to go for YAMAHA. but semi weighted keys is not crucial especially for beginners. upright piano from kawai were also soft like casio keys. 5 octave keys can last until somewhere grade 4/5 pieces.

but touch response is very important, u dun have it and u can appreciate it from the beginning and that's it.

and!!! u need to buy a extended pedal!!! dun forget this if u really wanna learn.

and yes, teacher is very important for ANY muscial instrument. as piano beginners there is so many thing u need a teacher to guide u like fingering, how to position ur finger and all sort of things. u got this wrong and it will be very difficult to learn harder pieces later.

instructor will make learning much easier!!
tronoh is it deeep...anyway,if there is a will there is a way

ok i think i get the solution already. i should just go to a music class and learn basics (AT LEAST) before i go any further and get their help on what keyboard to purchase. Thanks guys! really appreciate your help.

yup!

good choice

i remember music school usually rent rooms to their student who dont have piano for a small fee

so u can go negotiate an agreement!

Good luck in ur music journey!

anyone knows piano instructor who would teach a 25 year old??
haha..always wanted to learn keyboard..

you can go to any music school, they're willing to teach as long as you pay your fees v

my advice is based on 2 things.

1) If you want to be a really good piano player(professional) and who can read music sheet and played beautifully.

you have to attend classes so that you'll have a professional teacher that can teach you everything there is in playing piano. you have to be committed and have the determination, meaning that u don't mind putting loads of money and spending lots of money for it.


2) If you want to play piano just for your leisure and hobbies.

you can learn it by learning songs that you like by referring to the video on the youtube or use your own hearing. the more song that u can play, the more you'll know about the chord progression on the piano. this kind of technique maybe have steep learning curve but it tends to have limitations because sometime there are technique that u really need tutor that can correct u if u had it wrong.

p/s: u must have piano or at least keyboard. so that your can get your fingers to work.
p/ss: if u've played any instrument before it'll be easier because it'll give your more sense into playing the piano

Unless you've some super talent, you won't be able to play a piano well without a teacher. Trust what everyone has been saying here. Also, playing a piano is similar to playing a keyboard but different enough because of the weight of the keys and the feeling of the hammer striking the strings. Even expensive keyboard don't replicate this. So if you get a teacher, get one that can actually teach you how to play a keyboard on a keyboard.

keyboard =/= piano
The differences is just too big, even the types of music mean to play on them are so different, learning music is expensive.. fees, instrument etc...

+1000

And dont expect to play chopin, Liszt or Deubbsy in 2-3 years, Piano is a instrument that needs alot of love and time and determination.

Dont give up by it easily!

I think every pianist have experince the verge of giving up many times.

since TS is in somewhat big uni, wouldn't there at least be some club or somewhere in the whole campus w/ a keyboard or piano?
i checked UTP web, apparently ko-ku got pop&jazz under arts/cultural, might be a shitty not-in-tuned piano, but piano is still piano, ask student services and see

or if u non-muslim, can go attend churches with piano, then ask if they can teach u basic chords

many many moons ago i also no piano, so walk to nearest music school rent piano, back then was RM6 per hour

not yet, just no money to go for classes
in classical music, its mostly about technique, interpretation can only go so far
i want to attend classes

This post has been edited by ngwinnie: Dec 28 2009, 07:23 PM

where are you staying? I want to rent a piano too but I do realised most music center dont really bother about providing a playable piano, out of tune or badly leveled.. uneven keys.. usually super old recond pianos

Btw TS, keyboarding is really fun too, you can venture into pops and electrical music which is very modern and interesting too. Classical pieces are quite boring due to higher technical demand and you might easily give up due to the steep learning curve.

Keyboarding is kinda fun where you get to mix different sound, making songs out of simple chords, and also sing along. You get the 'awesome-ness' look from people around you xD.

This post has been edited by Sky.Live: Dec 28 2009, 10:59 PM

keyboard nice for making sound, and mixing, like start with vocals, then put in drums, then put in guitar, or play around sounds.

but classical piece is the best way to impress the ppl around you.
but as you said, due to the technically demanding style, u end up spending 3-6 months just to settle 1 piece.

i learn maksim - claudine around 2 weeks. with help of youtube.
i don't read music sheet, just memorized the notes.
cuz i can't sight-reading~

My grand father learned piano at 72 - so you can definitely get started with doing it now!

Below are best sites, resources to learn piano online in his humble opinion.

BEST 3 FREE AND PAID PIANO COURSES ONLINE:

=>1. LearnPianoIn30Days

LearnPianoIn30Days is a 30-day online piano lessons program instructed by singer and songwriter, Rachel James, who has got many years of piano playing on the scene, club around the world. She wants to share her experience as well as her piano playing skills for anyone who has the passion of piano.
Details:
Rated: 4.5* by 9600+ students
+ Online learning method: monthly membership site.
+ Free trial in 14 days
+ Refund policy: 60-Day Money-Back Guarantee
For more details, pls click here: LearnPianoIn30Days online course

=>2. PianoForAll

Details:
Rated: 4.6 by 16,000+ students
+ 138,203 students enrolled
+ Total time: 10 hours on-demand video
Here are detail: PianoForAll online course on Udemy

=>3. Free course on YouTube: Andrew Furmanczyk channel


This is a series of lessons that teach you how to play piano for yourself RIGHT from the VERY beginner all the way to the late intermediate/ early advanced stage of piano. These lessons have been RESHOT and these are the new lessons.
Here are the playlist: Learn How To Play Piano (NEW) - YouTube
=>AND BELOW ARE TOP 13 PIANO BOOKS ON AMAZON:
1) Adult All-In-1 Course: Level 1
2) Alfred’s Basic Piano Course for Adults
3) Piano Scales, Lessons with Elements of Basic Music Theory
4) Adult Piano Adventures All-in-One Piano Course Book 1
5) Modern Course for the Piano
6) John Thompson’s Easiest Piano Course
7) Alfred’s Self-Teaching Adult Piano Course
8) Primer Level – Lesson Book: Piano Adventures
9) Level 1 – Lesson Book: Piano Adventures
10) KP1B – Bastien Piano for Adults, 1 Book Only: A Beginning Course
11) Piano and Keyboard All-in-One for Dummies
12) Suzuki Piano School New International Edition Piano Book and CD, Volume 1
13) Piano Book for Adult Beginners