Question Everything-Especially Musical Talent

You know those mainstream ideas that are accepted without question? Don’t where white shoes after Labor Day! No red wine with fish! Learning to play the piano has to be filled with angst, tedious exercises and scales! What???? Who made these rules and why should we follow them?

Another one of those overrated cultural norms is that “talent” in creating music is either of a born quality or not. Some people have ‘it’ and others don’t. We all need to realize that most of the finest athletes have been at it since toddlerhood. It isn’t a natural talent-it is cultivated through hard work and repetition. As a piano instructor, I live and breathe who has “talent” at creating music at the piano or keyboard. I have spent a lot of time observing what it takes to create music and the over riding truth is that almost all people, young/old, short/tall, fat/skinny, etc. has enough “talent” to make good music. There, I said it and I am standing by it.

The Five Qualities of Highly Effective Piano Students are:

1. General intelligence- An ability to comprehend relationships and look at life with a sense of humor.

2. Dexterity – An ability of the body to follow the brain’s commands.

3. Creativity – The “la-la” ability that led the Greeks and others to think that art is a “gift from the Gods.”

4. Interest – No amount of mental or physical application can occur with it.

5. Work Ethic –No amount of mental or physical application can occur without it.

These 5 items make up the "highly effective piano student.” All are necessary to some degree, but a person can make up for “low marks” in one with high marks in the others. There are very few students who demonstrate poor capacity in all of these areas(or such a low mark in one that the others cannot compensate.)

This blows the “conventional wisdom” that only a few can play piano out of the water! I’ve found such “wisdom” to be unfounded. That doesn’t mean that every person can be an Alicia Keys or Billy Joel. But most people have what it takes to make some good piano music. Their various strengths and weaknesses just need guidance, by a caring teacher – someone who will put the student’s interest ahead of their own agenda and make sure each student gets what they need and want.

So what do you do if you want to try your hand at making music? Decide if learning an instrument is worth some effort on your part. Perhaps listening to music on youtube video clips is all you care about. Fine-the world needs listeners.

But, if you do want to try it out, decide on an instrument that you believe you can stick with. It makes no sense to choose to learn to play the piano when you really have always been captivated by the banjo. What instrument really causes a stirring in you. Chances are that the instrument that gets your attention in that way is the one for you. Now, go and find a good teacher to help you reach your musical goals.

Finally, BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. My experience tells me that almost everyone can make good music, given some quality effort. Chances are you can, too!