You have interest in piano but don’t quite want to commit to official lessons as of right now. I get it! I have taught piano for many years and I will share a little secret with you: the majority of learning the piano is self-taught!

You can teach yourself the piano just as many before you have done. You will need a piano, music, a resource to draw upon to ask questions (the internet, a friend, and/or a teacher), and self-motivation. You will also need to practice the piano on a consistent basis.

Before you begin this wonderful adventure of learning a totally new and completely amazing skill, let’s look at this from all angles to make sure you know what to expect. We certainly don’t want to throw in any surprises as you go along your journey. The know you more upfront, the more committed you will be and stick with it in the long run. Which will give you amazing results — you will actually learn how to play the piano and be totally self-taught!

What’s it going to cost to get started?

You may be wanting to teach yourself the piano for multiple reasons. Maybe you don’t have the time or the patience to work one-on-one with a teacher. Or maybe you don’t have the means or the desire to spend close to $1,000 per year in taking lessons (for more specifics on how much piano lessons cost, click on this link.) Teaching yourself will save you oodles of money in the end, but you will still have to make some investment into this desired talent.

Materials needed:

$500 estimated for a decent piano (or you may already have access to this — so make this item free!)
$30-$50 initial estimate for needed materials such as books, learning apps, etc.

Over time you may want to add to your repertoire of materials by purchasing additional music, online programs (such as for composing), or apps that will enhance your musical talent and enjoyment.

This truly is not a very expensive hobby. Compared to many other hobbies and extra curricular things out there, this will have very little investment of money into such a valuable skill. The returns are going to be fabulous.

How long will it take to learn the piano?

This is a valid question and one that you have complete control over. Being as you are totally self-taught, you are in the driver’s seat. Learning how to play the piano is like learning another language. The more you immerse yourself, the quicker you will pick up on it. Learn a word here or there and it will take your whole life to get a grip on the language. But with a little bit of commitment, you will advance quickly and master it.

I would suggest dedicating 30-60 minutes of practice and learning per day to begin with. Keep that pattern as consistent as possible, but do allow yourself a break and take off a day or two. Make a practice plan and stick with it. Just make practicing a habit, just like brushing your teeth. A good regime would be 30-60 minutes a day on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. You have a couple days off so you don’t get burned out, but the consistency of those days of practice will really pay off.

Of course, every person learns at different speeds, but I could safely say that if a person is putting in 30-60 minutes a day, a student will move from beginner to intermediate within the year. Give yourself a couple years of dedicated practice and you can seriously progress and move to more advanced material.

If you don’t have the time or the desire to put in as much effort into daily practice, then by all a means, take it at your own pace! It may take longer to progress, but don’t give up on it and keep at it, albeit slow and steady. Just don’t quit, or take long breaks, because you will forget fast.

How do I teach myself piano? Let’s get started!

Let’s walk you through step by step so you know right where to begin. There are dozens of famous musicians who were self-taught and let’s get you going so you can add your name to the list!

Step #1: Get a Piano

You will need a piano. I am sorry but there is absolutely no way of getting around this one. But don’t just give up if you haven’t got one already and can’t afford to get one. Check with your local church, a neighbor, friend, or relative to see if using their piano on a daily basis would be possible.

What won’t work is an app, or digital replacement of a real piano. It may help you learn notes, but it definitely will not be the same as playing on the real deal.

My favorite piano is the Casio PX-160 and I recommend this because it is portable, never needs tuning, has the feel and the “realness” of an acoustic piano, and is still affordable. Check out more by clicking on this link.

Step #2: Get to know your piano

One of the best things to do is to sit down and just explore your piano. Be the #1 expert on your particular piano. If you have an acoustic piano, take a look under the top. If you have an electric piano, try out all the settings and sounds. Push pedals and see what happens. Just play around. You will learn so much by just fully experimenting with your piano as you begin.

Step #3: Know the notes

Before you start pulling out your music, learn the basics of reading music. You don’t need to know all the correct terminology to get started. You just need to learn where things correlate on the sheet music to where it lives on the piano. So to get you started, download an app that will just drill you on the keys. My favorite app for this is Note Rush. It is less than $5 and will help you to play the notes as it shows up on your screen. Start with the easiest level and work your way up until you can get both the left hand and the right hand down.

Step #4: Start reading music

Take a method book and start from the very beginning. You can work yourself through any method book at your own pace. Faber has an excellent self-teaching piano book that you can find by clicking here. This book has all you need to know and is a textbook of sorts. It also includes online videos to supplement your learning. My favorite method books for younger students can be found by clicking on this link.

Step #5: Practice!

The best advice I could ever give a piano student (whether self-taught or not) is to PRACTICE! You must practice in order to progress. Practice will serve you best if you sit down at the piano every day. Ten minutes every day for a week will be way better than practicing 70 minutes in one day. Pace yourself and practice, practice, practice. Don’t give up on yourself for we all have to learn and the more you do it, the easier it will become.

Create a practice plan and stick to it every day. Find the time you will practice and the amount you are going to put into it and stick with the plan. There is some semblance of skill involved in piano, but more than anything it is the amount of effort you decide to put into it. There will be a direct correlation with practice and skill.

Step #6: Ask questions

When questions come up — as they surely will — then don’t let your ignorance stop you from progressing. You have amazing resources at your fingertips if you just google it. YouTube videos are full of advice and information as well. If you have a friend or a relative who plays piano, don’t be afraid to draw upon that resource. You are only limited to your knowledge by your own determination.

More to Learn: We are all self-taught.

You will find as you go along that there is always more to learn. Well, I have news for you. Even though I have been playing the piano for over 25 years, I am still learning new things all the time on the piano. Which is why I can comfortably say that we are all self-taught. We spend such a little amount of time with a teacher each week, and 90% of the rest of the time we are on our own. Be your own teacher and take the reigns! You are as good as you make yourself to be.

Tips for the beginner:

There are a few things that may or may not be found in your method books or in your online research. I want to make sure you don’t miss some of these important items as you begin.

Perform as often as possible.

You will find that your motivation increases drastically as the date of your performance grows closer. Performance increases the anxiety just enough to increase your skill level and help you perform better than you ever would on your own. Take advantage of the benefits of performing and get yourself out there, even if you feel you are a novice.

You can perform by playing at a nursing home or retirement center. Enter a talent show. Play for family or friends. Create your own YouTube channel with your music recorded. Volunteer to accompany for your local church, or for schools.

Practice smart.

Plan out your practices. Create goals throughout the practice of what you would like to accomplish in that lesson. You can make a goal to master a particular passage, or work on the flow of a song. You can work to increase the speed, or to find out certain things you may not know in your song. Make a goal to work on the hardest part first.

Once you have your goals, then list them in priority. Playing the piano is a brain exercise and you will want to utilize the brain while it is freshest — at the beginning. Your brain works optimally within the first 15 minutes, so don’t waste your brain on mindless activities. Place the most important tasks first and follow through with them.

Being deliberate in your practices and playing smart will go a long ways in making the most use out of your time.

Watch the music, not your hands.

The more you can look at the music and not the hands, the easier it will be for you in the long run. It’s hard at first and our natural reaction is to watch where your fingers go, but your lessons will gain muscle memory quickly and that’s the goal.

Use the right fingering and the right posture.

Make sure you are aware of the fingering. Trying to play the piano and tripping all over your fingers won’t get you very far and will make it hard to build that muscle memory we are seeking for. You also want to be able to utilize your fingers optimally which is why finger numbers are placed within the music anyway!

Also, be conscious of your posture. Sit up straight and keep 90 degree angles — with your knees, your hips, your elbows. Playing the piano is much more than just your fingers. You are using your whole body to play. Not only will this help in the sound quality, it will also be healthier for you as you sit at the piano. We want to make sure that you are keeping your back and shoulders safe from soreness as you sit at the bench.

Play it as right as possible, the first time you play it.

The first time you play your music, the brain logs it away in a unique place that takes precedence over the other times that you play it. For that reason, you want to make sure that you play a passage as correctly as possible the first time you play it. Start slow. Studies have shown that speed does not make the best piano players, but accuracy. So it’s fine crawling along the first time you play it. Just make sure you play it as correctly as possible from the very first time you play it.

Don’t worry too much about theory.

You may find certain people (or internet articles) saying you need to stress about theory. If your goal is to play the piano and simply just play it, then knowing the note names, the names of all the symbols, etc. will not necessarily help you reach that goal. Sure, it will help you speak the language when you are talking with others and that is needed to some extent. But don’t overly concern yourself with details that may not get you the skill you are looking for. Unless, of course, knowing all of the ins and outs of piano is your goal. The point is, you can decide just how much theory you want to worry about.

As a caveat, sometimes understanding the basics of music theory will help you in your piano playing. For example, it really helps to understand chords as they are the “why” of piano. If you have the chance to delve more into that, I would suggest it as it takes out a lot of the mystery of piano and makes playing the music more predictable.

Playing by ear.

You may know people who are self-taught pianists that still have no idea how to read music. I have known several people like this and they play beautifully! My brother is one who can go to a movie, listen to a song once, then come home and sit down and play it. To me and to you, this may seem like magic and if you possess this skill then consider yourself blessed!

Being able to sit down and play whatever music you want after only hearing it once or twice, is called playing by ear. If you don’t already possess the skill, you can learn it. It does come easier to some than to others but it doesn’t mean you can’t figure it out.

Every once in a while, take a song that you like, or a popular or traditional song (Happy Birthday, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, Oh When the Saints Go Marching In, etc) and see how much of it you can play on the piano. For the beginner, play this one handed. When you get comfortable with that, then add in some left hand by what sounds good to you.

Playing around and just making things up can really help you to figure out some things about piano that you may not catch otherwise. Experimenting with what sounds good together, how to imitate other music or beats, and playing songs by ear are a great way to learn more about the piano and how music works. Doing this is similar to a baby learning social cues without us having to really explain it. They get it the more they get out into social environments. Expose yourself to the environment of music and learn through play.

Should I get a teacher?

A teacher has its benefits. He/she can tell you things that you may not notice on your own. They will fill in the gaps to your learning and make sure you have what you need to succeed. Statistically, students who learn lessons through a teacher stick with it longer than those who don’t. But you don’t have to be a statistic!

We already covered how much this kind of skill will cost. It is not a very expensive investment. If you truly are dedicated to learning how to play the piano, then let me just tell you — find a good teacher, practice hard and use that resource for all its worth, and you will progress far faster and much greater than you will on your own.

Still treat your education as if you were your own teacher. Use the guidelines and all the advice and skill of your teacher to give you that boost up but still take full ownership of your skill level and advancement. It will be worth it in the long run. If you truly do stick with practicing faithfully and immersing yourself in order to learn the material, you can excel quickly, get to the level you desire, and then quit taking from your teacher and fly on your own. You won’t have holes into your education that you might get by not having the tutelage of a good teacher.

If you are interested in finding a teacher, then check out my article on how to choose the right teacher. Choose the wrong teacher and you may as well be self-taught. So choose wisely and take the time to really figure out what is best for you.

Teaching Yourself Piano: Your Complete Guide