I'm 23 this coming November, I started learning the Piano on my 22nd birthday. After a year of self-teaching I have decided to get a teacher to furthur my progress. In a year of every-day practice I have managed to become a good sight reader (can play a piece very slowly with few mistakes) I have almost completely stopped looking at the keys when I play and I feel at home when I'm at the keyboard.

I think I'm doing okay, but I have some major frustrations.

Some days, I can play a piece perfectly, I've spent weeks practicing it and I'm totally happy and confident with it. Then... as soon as someone is watching me, or for no reason at all. I sit down and I lose all talent, like I've never played a note in my life.. Everything is wrong.

Is this normal? It doesn't happen often but when it does it's bizzare.

Also, I get to the stage where my head feels 'burned out' with practice and I have to stop. Sometimes it's after half an hour, sometimes closer to an hour. But I have to stop because I start making more and more mistakes, I know that's bad, obviously. I don't want to learn mistakes, so I just practice within my range of 'less mistakes' and then stop.

Should start proper lessons next week

Comments on any of this appreciated!

Hi Tomosiano.....

I would be interested in any replies you get.

I have also been having lessons for about a year and even though I am not self-taught....tried but gave up after 2 years of getting no where....I experience the same things as you.....

I practise a lot and will learn a peice and play it wonderfully on my piano at home...but as soon as I play for anyone including my teacher it is as if I had not bothered....I find it so frustrating as I believe she must think I am not trying...

At first I thought it was nerves but the weird thing is I do not feel nervous as I am not in a stressful environment.

I also feel bunred out a lot of the time and sometimes I am unable to play for days at a time...If I do I make really awful mistakes...very obvious ones for no reason, which is strange as I know the pieces that I am playing....

Would love to know if there is a solution to all this....

Maybe you could try doing more, shorter, practice sessions instead of one longer one, that might help you to keep your concentration for more time during a day. Always remember though if you're done a lot of concentrating on practising you do deserve a rest, so either take a break from piano or just play some of your favourite pieces.


Absolutely normal. Playing pieces in front of an audience or to another person is a completely different thing to playing on your own to yourself. Everyone gets nervous, so don't worry about that it's normal. What you have to do is, in the same way that you practise to learn to play, you have to practise playing in front of people although as you may have realised it's not always easy to get opportunities to do this. Teachers often hear the phrase 'I could play it at home but I can't do it now' in their lessons, it happens to almost everyone and teachers are aware of it. The only way, I think, to overcome this without the opportunity to gain a great deal of performance experience is to play pieces that you're really comfortable with when you do play for someone else. For example once I can survive through a piece with only myself listening, I probably would have to do as much work again before I would be comfortable playing it to an audience (well actually I'm never comfortable, but at least be willing to attempt it!).

Hope that sets your mind at ease, welcome to the forums, and enjoy your lessons .

It's worth trying to purposely put pressure on yourself in some practice sessions, using pressure games, or recording yourself, or pretending you are in fact playing in an exam or for an audience. If you can in some way replicate the nerves you feel when playing in a lesson, you can get used to playing despite them, which can really help!

Yes, these things are quite normal, Tomosiana. I'd like a pound for every time a student has said to me "but I could play it at home". Adults are more prone to this than children as they are more self-critical and anxious to show that they have been practising and can do it, but the more you think like that the more likely it is that you will screw things up. They are also more self conscious about being watched.



Playing any instrument takes up a lot of mental energy, and we all vary from day to day in the amount of energy we have available, therefore ability to concentrate also varies. How long do you practice for? It sounds as if you may be over-practising, which is counter-productive. Go off and do something completely different when this happens. Also remember that we all suffer from those off days when nothing seems to go right, no matter what our standard of playing.

It's great that you are confident with sight reading - keep up your practice with that.

If you have recording facilities, try recording yourself - there's nothing like trying to record a piece to induce mistakes! You also hear how you are really playing, rather than how you think you are playing, and that can come as a pleasant surprise or a shock!

It is a wise decision to go to a teacher as it is very easy to get into bad habits - particularly with regards to posture and hand position, and these habits can be very hard to break.

Good luck with your playing - keep us posted as to how you get on.

Hey Charmie. Well, it's good to know there is someone with similar experiences. I start lessons soon and I am really worried that I will not progress quickly because of the problem you mentioned with looking as if you haven't bothered! I am worried the teacher will think I am a lower level than I am - or just incompetent!
Frustration is the perfect word!

I don't feel nervous either, it's as if the presence of someone else gives me a different mental state. Maybe I'm destined to play alone

Wanna know something EVEN weirder. I thought I could beat the problem by just recording the piece on my electronic keyboard then playing it back to people. But I screw up as soon as I press the Record button too.. as if someone else is listening.

This is such a dumb problem!

This is exactly what I mean with the pressure games earlier. Even if you don't "feel nervous" as such, it's obvious that the presence of someone listening, or even the fact that you are recording, cause nerves, or something with similar symptoms. Try recording at least once every time you practice, as it must be pretty simple with the facility on your keyboard. The more you practice playing "with someone watching" - even if that "someone" is your keyboard - the more you will learn to deal with it and play well anyway.

I'm exactly the same, as are many other people on here. I find it very hard to relax even if it's just that i know the computer is recording me, let alone if someone is watching. Practice helps.

I've just been reading a popular science book about modern physics, and this sounds just like the phenomenon in quantum mechanics called the uncertainty principle, i.e. the presence of an observer influences the result of an experiment... Hehe

Thanks for all your replies. I have been pondering all of this for a while and I have only recently decided to join a forum community (I frequent a few generally but none musically) I am doing everything in my power to remain at maximum enthusiasm!

I am SO excited about lessons I have turned into a complete child. I've had the desire to play an instrument for years. The tiniest spark of will power has turned into full blown love affair. After a year of slow improvement nothing has dented my interest.

Good suggestions, I will add recording myself to my regular practice, great idea!
I suppose it is just a case of getting used to playing in different situations.

The brain is an odd one. Quantum physics is weirder!

Thanks again everyone, I will keep you posted!

My old piano teacher didn't accept the excuse "but it was fine at home". Either it's fine in the lesson, or it needs more practice. I would definitely recommend getting a teacher, but it's worth shopping around first. Look on the internet for a good one near you. My Webpage is a good site if you live in london.
Good luck

Unbelievable... that's YOUR website? That's the one Google led me to weeks ago and I emailed all the teachers in my area, got a replies, whittled them down and have selected one to have trials with (and hopefully continue with)

Thanks!! Small world eh..

Try not to worry too much about appearing to the teacher to be a lower standard than you are: the truth is most people are a lower standard when it comes to performing in front of someone else than they are on their own. Generally when I do exams I won't do a grade until I can comfortably play repertoire at the next grade level up when not under pressure. That's one extreme, some people will say this is to severe/restricting, but I find it works for me as I like the confidence it gives me and am in no rush . You probably will find that your playing for your teacher isn't as good as it is at home, that's fine and normal, it's just that if you want to become good at playing in front of other people you have to practise playing in front of other people, or your record button . You may also find that in pieces that you feel you've mastered your teacher will want you to work on them for longer as they will be able to spot important things in the piece that you have missed, again don't let this get you down, you will still be progressing and learning important things from doing this .

Good luck with your playing, I'm sure you'll enjoy your lessons, things will become easier too once you've got used to your teacher .

Hello Tomasiano,

To echo what Sarah-Flute, Semele and Another Pianist have said, it is completely normal. My teacher tells me that only a minute proportion of people actually play better in front of an audience - for the rest of us, it can be a horrible experience of wrong notes and fingers that feel like blocks of wood. Don't worry, it does improve with practise. Well done for getting a teacher, a good one can make a fantastic difference.

I hope you enjoy the forum, there are lots of experienced and talented people here oozing good advice (I'm not one of them, though ). Best of luck with your lessons.

It is much harder to play in front of people than on your own in practise. I have found that it has got easier to play in front of my teacher - but still harder than when I am at home.

I recently played at the forum users concert - and found this a very helpful, if nerve racking, experience. I made some mistakes, but felt really pleased to have had a go. My advice is to seek opportunities to play in public, and hopefully you will find your confidence will increase.

Booney makes a great point - any opportunity you have to play in front of an audience - or even to play duets with someone - will help you 1) get used to the affect of nerves and 2) lessen how nervous you're likely to feel. I played two of my exam pieces to a very friendly audience at chapel last year and was petrified... but it proved to me that I could do it without TOO many mistakes, and the video that was taken proved to me that I still sounded OK even when I felt like everything was going to pieces - not to mention that it stood me in good stead for nerves when I faced the examiner!

Playing worse in lessons that at home is something that happens to us all: no point using it as an excuse to your teacher, generally, but don't beat *yourself* over the head with it!

i've been playing piano for about 3 years now (well...lessons wise) and i know exactly how you feel. I seem to play pieces complete from memory, then when someone watches i forget half of it

lessons come in VERY VERY handy, i've learnt some valuable lessons in technique etc (and also how to play the Grave of the Pathetique without rushing )

also unlike other instruments, i believe Piano is much harder to teach yourself than say recorder or flute

good luck and happy playing

Frequently I find teachers are hardest of all to play to. Other audiences don't know how hard the piece is and I can believe they will not notice every shortcut or fudge. Teachers know exactly how well I played my show piece 2 years ago and how much progress I have (or haven't) made since, every technical problem, what the piece can sound like... Persuading myself that teachers exist to take problems to, rather than show off successes to, is harder than I would like it to be.

Very true, erard.... quite different playing for someone who will hear every little details and know what is good... and what isn't!!

I know from experience that while it's fairly easy to teach yourself, it's very hard to teach yourself really well....

Tomosiano,

I'm really glad that you posted this topic. It reminds me that I am normal. I too suffer from performance deterioration when playing for friends and family. Thinking back to my psychology degree days, I remember there being a theory of the relationship between arousal and performance. I think it was called the 'Yerkes-Dodson Law' or something. It argues that when our arousal increases (due to nerves) our performance also increases to a point, but if our arousal continues to increase then the performance starts to deteriorate. The law also argues that for fine-motor skills (playing an instrument) in contrast to gross-motor skills (kicking a football) the level of arousal needed for performance to deteriorate is much lower, ie. when we are playing an instrument we only need a small amount of nerves to hinder playing.

Like you, I also find that after a certain point I have had enough playing for the day. My limit is about 60-90 mins a day. I have no idea how professionals reportedly play for hours and hours every day. Perhaps it is because they have been playing for many, many years. If I were to play for more than 2 hours a day, I would be dead after a week.

Good luck and welcome to the forums.

Shelton

Why not come to the next web users concert, Tomosiano. It's in Egham Surrey, on 18 February. It doesn't matter what standard you are - the idea is to give people a performance opportunity. If you don't feel up to playing, come along and watch and meet all us other mad people who wonder what on earth we are doing there when it comes to the day. Seriously, though, it's a great experience to play in front of a sympathetic audience of other musicians.

Have a look at "It's getting closer..." in the General Forum (I think it's gone down to about page 3 now), where you can see something about the last one at Woodford Green the Saturday before last.

Whilst I remember, for some practical tips on overcoming nerves (or difficulty playing under pressure) try reading the 'Inner Game of Music'. It has lots of practical advice for overcoming performance anxiety.

What a co-incidence. I've just this minute recommended The Inner Game of Music to benson on Viva Strings - Dilemma

Glad there are so many others who practice, practice, practice only to get to their lessons and fingers seems to have a will of their own.

Thankfully it doesn't happen to me as much as it did, but sometimes lesson time comes around and it all goes out the window.

I practice about 1 1/2 - 2 hours a day and has someone else has noted, that is about my limit. I wonder how conservatory students and professionals put so many hours a day practicing.

Still, I enjoy the process and that I'm finally doing something that I've always wanted to do.

I do think I tend to feel comfortable to play to my teacher as she can point out at the right time during my playing where, what key / chord need improving. That is, what bugs are there with my playing at pieces, which, beyond my understanding or self-consciousness when I practice at home on my own. May be that I know she will always positively helping me to improve within my ability rather than discouraging me. That is what I find a teacher is beneficial to learn music than self-taught.

However, the feeling is not the same when I play in the presence of someone who can play piano better than me. Cannot figure out why is there the nerves to feel intimidated.

O_L

Lover reading allthe replies I think they have helped me a lot...
I have decided to record myself playing and even the thought of that has made me a bit nervous...

I think Erard hit the nail on the head about playing to my teacher..I think more for the fact that I know she will know all the mistakes I make....

I guess it is just as someone said loads and loads of practise till you feel confident enough to play infront of anyone...

I also think my problem is that I have not yet taken an exam and am so worried about my playing...Hmmmm

I have found that over the 11 years I have been learning, I am now much better at not getting nervous in the lesson and can play the pieces I am learning reasonably in line with how I had been playing them at home. I have been getting more performance practice of late and this has helped enormously so, yes, it is a question of practice and experience so don’t despair! If there is a weak spot then it is sure to come out in the lesson and that is no bad thing because the pressure will bring out the bits that need more work.

Funnily enough, my problem at the moment is adjusting to the piano teacher’s piano after one week or so practising at home. Pedal mostly. A piece I seem to play with pedal OK at home often sounds blurred or too much or not enough pedal and somehow wrong on the teacher’s. But I am sure that will come with time as well.

I thought I understood nerves after 20 years of lecturing and several years of appearing on stage in various roles.

I still get very nervous about standing in front of a class of students, especially 200 - 300 of them lined up in a huge lecture theatre first thing in the morning! I've also given presentations to big conferences and I can usually control things so that people are very surprised when I say I was nervous. The only outward sign comes from the laser popinter - the audience can see that your hand's trembling when the red spot judders around! Similarly in drama, the feeling when you're waiting in the wings for your first cue on the first night is unbelievable, but usually I'm fine once I actually get out there.

However, playing the piano in front of people takes nervousness to a level that I never knew existed!

I had a bit of a mixed reaction to the Inner Game of Music. Whilst it was interesting, I also found it was quite repetitive and a lot of it seemed blindingly obvious. Bits of it read like a standard self help book that had been re-hashed with music in mind. I also thought it would have benefited greatly from an editor who was not affraid to really wield the blue pencil.

However, my main problem was that I actually had the "wrong" reaction to a lot of the exercises. I had particular difficulty about deliberately reproducing your mistakes. The idea is that by giving yourself "permission to fail" you relax and your playing (be it piano, tennis or golf) improves as if by magic. I can see where the authors are coming from - discarding the fear of making mistakes lets you play so well that you become unable to reproduce the mistake that you've been struggling to correct for ages.

All I can say is that it didn't work for me, I could sit there and give demonstartions of my mistakes all day long!

Glad it wasn't just me....

Some of the ideas seemed to work, and I definitely need to explore it more thoroughly, but that one didn't for me either!

I think sometimes I knew too well what they were trying to do, I was watching for it, so it didn't work, if you see what I mean.

I have tried listening to myself play rather than worrying how to do it seems to help sometimes....

A pro flautist who posts on the Yahoo group Flutenet says that she prefers the Tennis version, and that everyone should just buy that and replace "tennis" with "music" throughout the book

Maybe the 'mistakes' thing works better if you come to it cold, without having read the book.

I've tried it with students a couple of times, and it works like a dream. They say something like, 'I can never play this bit, it always goes wrong'.

I say, 'Just play it again for me, and tell me what's going wrong'.

They play it perfectly, frown, play it again, and say, 'But it's going all right now'.

I think for some people maybe it would be a good idea NOT to read the book but have all your music teachers read it... ie people like me! I think too much. So if I have read it, I think about how it works... and often when you overanalyse something, it doesn't work any more....

This is what I'm learning not to do in my singing lessons. I have to try and switch off my over-analytical brain, and my past singing experience, and the nagging voices on my shoulder telling me I can't sing, and my flautist's ingrained habit of listening to everything I play, and just sing.

It's so hard.

Yes - just listen to one nagging voice (mine) telling you to grin and go for it!

Cheers

Katyjay

I have similar problems - also being a linguist tends to encourage you to be analytical - if you spend hours a week for 4 years working out exactly what is being said in one language so you can render it in another, you get like that - and learning and understanding masses of grammar rules! So I sort of have a double whammy in that respect

What I'm trying to say is... I sympathise

lol. It's not my website. When i cut and pasted the link in, that's the default title it gave and i couldn't be bothered to change it.

Your situation sounds soo familiar!

Im 23 in november, I started teaching myself cello just before my 22nd birthday and now i feel like i have reached the stage where i need a teacher to help work on any bad habbits before they get too ingrained but im suffering from a severe case of stage fright as it were..

Im soo scared that the teacher will pick holes in my playing, i almost feel like a fraud. I know that i will probably have to take a few steps back to iron out any problems before moving forward but part of me thinks that maybe teachers could percieve self taught people as know it alls who wont accept help off others.

Generally the attitude towards self taught people seems to be that you must be very motivated and having a teacher will only help. Its just getting over those initial nerves of having someone listening to you who will criticise you. If your self taught you probably do enough criticism on your own without and outsider saying the same.

I think i just have to stop being a wimp and get on and phone them!

let me know how it goes?

pink
x

IMHO, pinkoi, the road to successful string playing is a long and narrow one. If you wander off this road, as you will almost certainly do as a self-taught player, you will end up in a dead end where further progress is impossible. However, you can have lessons occasionally rather than regularly if you don't want to be too tied down - this will probably be adequate, if not ideal.

Your playing was very musical at the Forums concerts and it would be a pity not to get a teacher to sort out any problem areas. It's a pity you don't live nearer my way as I would wholeheartedly recommend my cello teacher - she's a marvellous teacher and a lovely person, and certainly wouldn't criticize you for being self taught. Have some trial lessons with several teachers before you decide - and ask on the phone what their attitude to self taught students is before you book any lessons. I had to have an interview with my teacher to talk about musical experience and commitment before she would take me on, but you've obviously got that already.

Hello All ,
I am new to this site, I am a 50year old beginner of the piano... wanted to do it for years but felt too nervous being sure there wasn't anyway i'd be able to play with both hands together.

I have been reading all the replies addressing the problem of falling to pieces as
soon as somebody else is listening........ and AM I relieved to hear this, because although i realise i can't expect too much as i have only got my piano 18th march and started lessons April 11th 2005 I did hope that i'd stop falling to pieces everytime i played infront of my teacher what i could do with relative ease at home.

I have almost got used to my own family listening to me practice as long as they don't stand over me .

But I seem totally with out any musical knowledge at all, at times..when my teacher is watching... The theory i seem to have no problem with......about to sit the grade 1 theory in November2 and having done the mock test and got 100% i feel at least a little bit more easy with taking this exam, but what happens when i have to do the practical..... i asked my teacher if i could leave it until the spring....hoping to get over my nerves.

THIS weeks practice was going badly as i would play three notes correctly then play the next three totally without timing .....although i knew what the notes were and how long they should be held..... my teacher gave me a look which could be intepretted as are you thick or what

Well can you blame her when i can do it one second but not the next.

I'm babbling on here so to the point.......I got so angry with myself that asked if i could play some pieces that i'd learnt at home ......The first being 'At the skating rink', next, 'Fun in the sun' and finally 'The Birdling Serenade' all from Michael Aaron piano course Grade one.

I said out loud to myself " There is no need to be nervous " and she replied that indeed there was no need at all to be nervous..... Took a deep breath and started playing At the skating rink ..... i'm sure my knees were knocking and my heart was beating way too fast...... I got through it and didn't make a single mistake Unbelievable ..... She wrote on my book Excellent ..... this threw me a bit and i played the next Fun in the sun a bit too quickly which made me get the timing a little wrong when it came to the stacatto notes....but she said this was fine just realise that you still need to count the timing the same for staccato notes even though the are done abruptly....... So then to my next and final piece...... it went like a dream..... Once again she wrote Excellent...... Shocked and stunned and not a little amazed doesn't cover it. There the lesson ended...... so what happens next lesson is anyones guess..... But who knows maybe there is hope for me yet.....

This might sound a bit nuts but as i'm going through the menopause i thought that maybe this was the reason for my totally forgetting as i do suffer from memory loss on the stupidest things..at the moment.....After reading all the posts on here I feel sure there is a more understandable reason for it.

So anybody who feels there is no hope ..... Just get really mad at yourself... and who knows......

Well done lorrie, that sounds much like my worst nightmare overcome! I have my first lesson in 10 years in less than a day and I am worried everything I have practiced will fall apart. We shall see.. what was it that made you relax? Did you just ignore your surroundings, get into a 'zone' or what? I am very nervours this weekend

Hi Lorrie, well done you for starting - we mature adults can do anything if we put our mind to it!
As for why the difference in teacher-set pieces and 'played for fun' peices..... Maybe it's the pressure you feel to get it right cos the teacher set it and teacher is boss? Perhaps you need to think of all pieces as 'for fun' to relax more playing them?
After all, at our age we are our own boss.... we don't have to do anything we don't want to. So if you want to go for exams, you're the only one you're answerable to. The teacher is there as a tool to help you achieve what you want. Now would you be nervous of a washer? Perhaps the best thing would to have chat to your teacher and explain how you feel, or take a copy of what you wrote here, and ask that you be treated not as a child/student, but as an adult that asks for guidance in a less formal way.
Of course I may be reading you completely wrong, in which case ignore everything I said

Hi Lorrie
Congratulations on taking the plunge and starting the piano. I hope you gain a great deal of enjoyment from your playing.

Congratulations also to Tomosiano on going back to lessons - I'm sure you'll be fine.

I re-started piano this summer after over a quarter of a century without lessons, and with memories of a horrible teacher before. But my current teacher is great, and I'm beginning to enjoy playing again.

Snuglivixen is right that you need to sort out your relationship with your teacher straight away. It's a professional partnership, in which you have as much input as your teacher does. Yes, they will tell you what you need to do to accomplish your goals, and will suggest what your next goals will be, but YOU are the one who makes the final decision on whether you try something or what your ultimate aim is.

Don't worry that you can't do everything you want to straight away. We all have to start somewhere, and we all get a bit frustrated from time to time at the progress we aren't making. Part of the satisfaction comes from playing a work in time that's been beyond you until now. And don't worry about the fact that you play things less well in a lesson than you did at home - it's a pretty normal happening!

And don't worry about exam nerves - they are totally normal as well. A little adrenaline does actually help the performance, you know.

And you can always share your experiences here - we're all going through the same thing - just some of us are a fraction further into the journey!

Good luck

Cheers

Katyjay

Yes, nerves are terrible things, and also not very amenable to logical thinking! I'm a reasonably experienced performer (am-dram for 20 years, competitions, charity concerts...) and a logical person, but the dreaded nerves still strike with far more frequency than they should.

Those posters who complain that it still strikes even when they don't feel nervous are quite right. I can get to the point where my mind is completely calm (all those positive thinking things - you know "I CAN do well"...) yet my body is in a state of panic. Pure adrenaline - clammy hands, and - worst of all for a singer - tight wobbly voice.

Over the years, though, I've worked out those situations that make it worse. Basically it's when you put pressure on yourself.

Chief culprit - being unprepared. If there is the slightest nagging doubt that the piece isn't learnt as well as it could be, your body will make you pay for it.

Next is the pressure you put on yourself that this is important. That covers exams ("if I fail I won't be able to progress to the next level/get a college place") as well as well as the more insidious "this is the only chance I'll get to impress my teacher/family/friend/colleague". (That's my personal killer).

Best way of dealing with it - practice, practice, practice, and perform, perform, perform. Again, as has been suggested before, recording yourself gives quite a good substitute for performing if you don't have the opportunities to play in public. I've also found that it helps in a more subtle way. If you record yourself a lot, sooner or later you end up with something half-decent, where you didn't make mistakes every bar. I keep these little snippets as a comfort and support - how ever much I foul up in any performance, here on my minidisc is evidence that I CAN do reasonably well. It goes surprisingly far to relieving all those self imposed pressures!!

Hi Tom,

Thanks for your message. As to what happened i think the fact that the teacher had seen me at my worse possible, just made me think to ###### with it i'm not useless so i can and will do this...... if i get it wrong well so what..... The roof isn't going to cave in ...... that sort of attitude... I'm here because i love music and want to create some of my own. One thing she did tell me which i took on board that lesson was that playing a piece of music is like telling your children a bedtime story.... Yes reading back through my letter and yours and yes i think i did just say pretend you are at home , you know you do okay there and a bubble seems to surround you... sounds crazy but its the only way i can explain.

Also i am working on become more assertive and i have been having little successes which would mean nothing to most people but a step forward for me.

Just take a deep breath and ask yourself what is the worst thing that can happen to you if you play it wrong...... So she /he might..... think you are a hopeless case/ unlikely they would think this but lets say they did. Well you know you are not, so .... what the teacher thinks is not as important as what you know about yourself.

Look forward to hearing all about your lesson soon. When you face your fears they really do start to diminish .. the first time is always the hardest.

Bye for now.

I suppose what i'm asking is is there a set order of things?

Hope to hear from you soon.

Thanks Katyjay,
for your message it all helps to make things a little clearer.
Its nice to hear you have gone back to lessons and are getting so much out of them.

Well done, Lorrie50, for taking the plunge to learn to play the piano. Here are some thoughts on your problems.



Anyone who has had problems going through the menopause will sympathise with your apparent memory loss - probably one of a number of symptoms, and this may well be affecting your learning. I personally suffered from hot flushes and night sweats which kept disturbing my sleep patterns, with similar effects. Fortunately I wasn't trying to start to learn the piano at the time, though it did affect my work and made me feel like a zombie (I wasn't a piano teacher then). This on top of other stresses would contribute to making you feel nervous at your lessons. PM me if you want any support on menopause problems.

Don't take yourself too seriously, and regard mistakes as a learning curve - as the saying goes "the person who never made a mistake never made anything". Keep a metaphorical waste paper bin beside the piano into which you "throw" your discarded efforts after being aware of why you made them (do a physical throw as well). Practice slowly (counting all the while!) and gradually build up speed with confidence.

If you don't like the pieces your teacher suggests, tell her so and try something else. Do you have a repertoire book as well as a tutor book? Something like Piano Time Pieces book 1 by Pauline Hall would give you some quite easy but more interesting pieces than the average tutor book. With Christmas coming up you might like to try an easy carol s book. Go and look in your local music shop for suitable material - ask at the shop for advice if need be.

Playing for your teacher can be scary - I know my adult students suffer from it, even though I'm quite non-threatening and encouraging (I think .... ) I take lessons myself and suffered from this until comparatively recently, funnily enough with the same teacher that Katyjay has, who is a really lovely lady, very supportive and encouraging, but I never felt I played my best in front of her. Since then I've done a lot more performing in front of people and that has helped enormously, as has having a cello teacher who is an AB examiner. Examiners don't worry me now either - I've met quite a few and have discovered they are human!

I love teaching adults because, like you, they are so committed. Progress may be slow, but that doesn't matter - though you may think it does. I have two students who started more or less at the same time, over 60s and complete beginners to any sort of music making. To start with one was a "hare" and couldn't wait to get on to the next thing, skipping all over the tutor book and not reading the instructions, the other a "tortoise", assimilating each new step steadily and making slow but steady progress. After ten months they are now at about the same place and standard and both really enjoy their playing, which is what is important.

Best of luck with your progress.

Hi again Lorrie!

There isn't a "set order" for lessons - it depends both on the teacher and the pupil. If you are confused about how your piano lessons should go, then you need to talk to your teacher.

As I said before, you are working with her in a partnership, so you need to make sure you and she both understand what to expect. If you want to play something to her that she set you last week, tell her this, and play it to her. If there's something you want her to explain or demonstrate for you, ask for it.

Chances are that it hasn't occurred to her that you are confused. You need to take charge a bit and stop it happening again.

And check before the end of a lesson that you understand what she wants you to do before the next lesson.

Good luck

Cheers

Katyjay