I’m in love. This love predates both husbands and all of my dogs. It’s not a man. It’s a piano. Yes, I have been in love with the piano since I was a little girl. It was love at first listen.
I was not one of those kids forced into lessons. In fact, I never had a real piano lesson until I was in my 40s. And I didn’t stay with any teacher for long. Too expensive, and it was difficult to mesh what I had already taught myself, sometimes incorrectly, with what they had to teach. Plus I wasn’t a kid with free time after school. I was a grownup with a job, a house and a husband to take care of. But I started playing when I was seven years old, using my mother’s old piano books, and I have never stopped playing or wanting to learn how to play better. If there’s a piano in the room, I want to get my hands on it.
Enter Google, one of my best friends. I don’t know whether Google is male or female, but he/she/it is magic. Ask and be answered. What’s the capital of Maine? What does PCOS stand for? What animal is leaving those footprints where I walk in the woods? It’s all there. So, the other day I was singing at the piano, wishing I knew more about how to accompany myself, when I suddenly thought: Ask Google!
After all, I had found guitar, mandolin and piano lessons online before. Sure enough, I typed in “accompany singers on piano” and I got several listings. Having myself a little clickfest, I found videos, sheet music, and even a free e-book. All kinds of music lessons are offered for free on the Internet. Want to learn to read music? It’s there. Want a few new jazz licks? Yup, it’s there. Now, many of these online teachers will urge you to get on their mailing list and will eventually suggest you purchase their courses. Some of those courses are good values when you consider in-person lessons cost about $30 for a half hour. But you don’t have to buy the courses. The freebies are enough to keep you playing for days, and it’s fabulous to have somebody to play along with, especially if you live alone with a dog who can’t play any instruments and can’t even manage a respectable howl.
Try webpianoteacher.com . Also search Google and YouTube. Have fun!
Oops, I just stopped writing to read this one lesson and then I had to go to the piano and try it and oh, what can I say? I can’t resist a piano. I think I feel a song coming on. See you later.
Unleashed in Oregon 