If you are being forced to learn the piano or only learning it for some other reason other than that you genuinely love it, it makes no sense to continue. Learning the piano takes years and years of practice in order for your brain and hands to function as a unit effectively. Here are some piano practice tips that has worked for me over the years:
Identify a mentor- This is a very important step. You need to identify a piano player that you can imitate. This is just to get a level of focus. The aim is to listen to as much of their music as you can so that it can become apart of you. Over time you will naturally start to play like them. Initially you may not sound exactly like them but close enough.After you have mastered your mentor's style , you will then need to create your own style around it. You really don't want to be a carbon copy. They key to a great piano player is being able to combine a variety of styles of music in order to sound unique.
Practice in all Keys - A great piano player is one who can play fluently in all 12 keys. If you practice in only one key you will then be limited to that key. Let me give you an example of this. A majority of us usually start out playing in the Key of C. When a singer starts a song in B, we know that we are in trouble.What would we usually do? We would force the singer a semi -tone up to C. That has always been funny. I must say that I was guilty of this.
It's better to be safe by transferring all the advanced chords and progressions that we know in C to the other keys.
Identify unusual alternatives - When I am practicing I don't spend a lot of time focusing on just chords ,scales or playing a song ( unless I need to practice a specific song for an event). What I usually do is to take songs that I know and figure out different ways to play them. What I mean by this is to find different chords or progressions that would change the vibe of the song while keeping the main melody noticeable. This is where you tap into your creativity. Anyone can play back a song how they hear it but not anyone can make a song theirs. This is another attribute of a great piano player.
Play without Peeking - You should practice to play without looking at the keys. Play by using your mind not your eyes.When I play I don't consciously think about what to play next as playing has become a natural part of me. This helps to build your playing confidence. When I play on a public stage I am never afraid that I may mess us because, through my many years of practice I am confident in what my mind can do.
