What is the piano? 

Dating back to the 1700's, the piano was first invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori. Cristofori was a creative inventor. The predecessor of the piano was the harpsichord, which was only able to produce one volume of dynamic for music. The invention of the hammer piano and the double use of percussion and string in Cristofori's piano makes it a perfect beginner and foundation instrument. Piano is a brilliant instrument that combines technique, artistry, precision, and to date, has the most pieces of solo repertoire written for it. The piano is able to capture the essence of a wide variety of music including classical, baroque, film, twenty-first century, and the list goes on! 

Who should take piano lessons? What age is best to start?

It is highly recommended that parents wait until their child is at least six years old to start learning piano. This is because the piano requires dexterity in both fingers and ability to control them. Before the age of six, many children do not have ligaments and bones fully connected [see image below]. As you can see, the ligaments continue to develop and it is after year four that we find it to be easier to control the fingers. If you are wanting to get your child involved in music lessons, I would recommend group classes or the ukulele (you can visit that page here).

Which books should I purchase?

Depending on the age and assessment from the first lesson, I recommend these books choices:

My First Piano Lesson Book B 

My Piano Adventure Level 1 

Keith Snell Scale Skills 

What to expect:

The teachers at Level Up Music Academy are passionate about creating an atmosphere of learning and welcoming all skill levels. Generally, the lesson will consist of work with scales, chords, lesson and theory book. There is discussion on technique worked in, and we always make sure to include a song the student would want to learn. Do they love Minecraft? Mario? Great! We will include a song from something fun they enjoy in the lesson too.  Music lessons are not meant to be stressful. If the student at any point feels overwhelmed, we want them to feel comfortable discussing that with the instructor. We can always adjust the workload.