Piano and AI

Klingomar

Good morning everyone. Let me introduce myself. My name is Mario, I am Italian, and I recently picked up the piano again."

Since I don't have the opportunity to attend in-person classes because I work in the merchant navy, and am therefore on board for several months a year, I relied on AI for a piano study program. What do you think?"

18-Month ProgramStarting Level"I consider you an intermediate student, but with one thing to fix: you have already touched upon major repertoire, but you probably need more order in your technical training. Therefore, I wouldn't rush you into harder pieces right away. I would have you firmly consolidate:scales and arpeggios over 3 octaves;different types of technical studies;Bach with true independence of voices;a clean classical sonata;a well-polished romantic/modern repertoire;constant sight-reading."

Saluti

rsl12

Klingomar Welcome! What kind of keyboard do you use while at sea?

ranjit

If you have a good AI model, I would ask it to combine the best internet resources it can find on learning the piano, and give you a detailed plan. It could be a good starting point.

pianoloverus

Without hearing you play and knowing what repertoire you studied, it's not possible to know if AI's recommendation makes sense. And just practicing scales or the like will not necessarily lead to improvement if you don't have a way of finding out what you're doing wrong. Did you submit some kind of performance to AI that allowed it to make the recommendation?

TulipAcid

Hi Klingomar and welcome!

Online piano lessons are out there. I find myself in the position of needing to find a teacher that way as the local reputable organization has a waiting list.

If your internet connection can’t handle in real-time online lessons, you might be able to find a teacher that will do it by video recording (the teacher gives assignments for a lesson/you video what you did and send it to them/they review it and send you a video back with comments and examples of correct technique…)

I have friends who took mandolin lessons that way from Mike Marshall and Katerina Licthenberg who are based in Germany…

Klingomar

"I'm bringing a Yamaha P85 on board with me. Nothing compared to the Fazioli I have at home!! I told the AI the repertoire I'm comfortable with, and it generated this schedule for me. An online teacher could actually be a solid option.The AI also made a detailed day-by-day daily routine for me. Here it is."

Monday — 120 minutes
0:00-0:15 ScalesC major, G major, A harmonic minor
0:15-0:25 ArpeggiosC major, G major, A minor, 2 octaves
0:25-0:30 Hanon No. 1Slow, steady, without forcing
0:30-0:50 Czerny Op. 299 No. 1Slow reading and section-by-section practice
0:50-1:10 Bach BWV 939Hands separate, then first few bars together
1:10-1:40 Clementi Op. 36 No. 3, 1st MovementExposition, slow practice
1:40-1:50 Schumann, “Melody”Tone, phrasing, bringing out the melody
1:50-2:00 Sight-reading + Harmony5 min sight-reading + 5 min I-IV-V-I progression

Saluti

pianoloverus

Klingomar AI the repertoire I'm comfortable with, and it generated this schedule for me. An online teacher could actually be a solid option.The AI also made a detailed day-by-day daily routine for me. Here it is."

AI's suggestion is very interesting quite fascinating. What repertoire did you tell AI you were comfortable with? If you can work it out I think a good online teacher is far superior to no teacher. Without a teacher It's very hard to know what you're doing wrong or right, which can make progress much slower or even nonexistent. For example, just practicing scales over and over may not be helpful unless your technical approach is correct.

TulipAcid

Klingomar

A nice variety of tunes there. I fondly recall the Kleine Präludien from my youth.

To this day I remember my piano teacher explaining some of the grammar of music in the Baroque era. Such as when to play detached versus legato (scalar passages, short jumps < a 5th for the most part … legato. Otherwise, when marked under a slur, legato. And we’d discuss those passages unmarked… She had a grasp of that era that I only ran into when taking a mandolin workshop with Katerina Lichtenberg (in this case, in ensemble, play repeated sections in drastically different volumes…or something to that effect…and this wasn’t Bach, so may not apply to his keyboard works…)

The point of that is I wouldn’t have known about the playing legato/detached bit and it has much to do with the nature of his instruments. No damper pedal on the organ or harpsichord!

Of course we weren’t using the damper pedal for Bach!

Anyway … yes, a teacher would help!

Stub

I guess I'd worry a bit that the AI told you WHAT to play, but nothing about HOW to play it. A teacher will be able to watch and listen to you and give you instruction.

Klingomar

Sure, I agree with you. A teacher is a teacher, there's no doubt about it. AI can suggest what to play, but it certainly cannot listen to me. I will look for one.But in your opinion, as a repertoire for now, is it okay? The AI made an 18-month program for me, later including other things, like Heller, Pozzoli, Cramer, Bach's Two-Part Inventions, then Three-Part Sinfonias, Mozart, Chopin...

ranjit

I reckon many of us here aren't interested in improving a fairly average AI's response. Why don't you tell us what YOU want to learn, and I'm sure many people would be willing to offer suggestions.

Animisha

Klingomar But in your opinion, as a repertoire for now, is it okay?

I think you are the only one who can know. There is nothing wrong with the pieces you mention, but only you can tell if they are too easy or too difficult for you. And, if you enjoy learning those pieces!

Klingomar

Intanto vi ringrazio per le vostre risposte molto chiare e utili. Beh, dopo due settimane sono molto soddisfatto. L'AI mi ha fatto tornare un passettino indietro rispetto al mio livello, lo sapeva perché mi aveva chiesto i pezzi con cui ero "comodo". Mi ha assegnato i nuovi pezzi di cui vi ho parlato, dicendomi come suonarli e a cosa stare attento e soprattutto quali errori non fare. I pezzi mi piacciono, li suono con piacere. Bisogna davvero dirlo, ci ha azzeccato. Mi ha proposto difficoltà alla mia portata. Certo, ripeto, ci vuole un insegnante, ma.. intanto mi sia meglio di andare da solo senza una traccia valida.

thepianoplayer416

The end of the day the point of learning to play piano or any instrument is to be able to play pieces you like. In the beginning you rely on AI or a teacher to pick your pieces. After a while you get good at reading sheet music you can pick your own pieces.

Of course AI can't see you playing and tell you about your posture, your hand positions. During COViD my in-person lessons stopped. The teacher switched to teaching through Zoom. In your case maybe you can find a teacher willing to connect this way so the teacher can see what you're doing but at the same time you don't have to go to the teacher every week.

Nightowl

Klingomar Benvenuto. 🙂 I think perhaps you forgot to translate your post into English - or maybe you posted that as a way to draw other Italian speakers into the conversation? Anyway, it reminded me what a beautiful language Italian is. I always wanted to learn it - maybe now I'm retired I will do it.

I'm not keen on using AI to guide my piano practice so I won't comment further, but I recommend Alfred's method books to get a good grasp of the basics and fill in any gaps in your knowledge. When did you start playing?

Cordiali saluti.

TC3

Nightowl ... or maybe you posted that as a way to draw other Italian speakers into the conversation?

Hmm, I took Latin through high school, maybe I can give it a shot! 😃

TulipAcid

TC3

In Duck Duck Go, I selected @Klingomar’s text and right clicked it and asked for a translation and … vóila… there it was!

TulipAcid

Just heard I was assigned a teacher at MacPhail in my town (don’t have to drive 25 miles to their downtown or other suburban location!)

So, on this note, like @Klingomar, I’m returning to playing the piano after a long hiatus. And I considered online classes, which, had this not come through, I would DEFINITELY have gone that route. If it’s even possible for him given constraints on ship…if he comes to find AI less helpful, it would be an option.

It’s come back like riding a bike did when I came back to it in my 40’s… a bit shaky at first.

That being said, it’s very clear that teaching has come a long way since the 60’s/70’s in terms of biomechanics and what people destined to remain amateurs are taught.

The main question is: what should I change about my posture, my hand and arm positions, how I play scales and arpeggios, pedaling technique. This will be like auto mechanics … take apart the engine, polish and clean what works, replace what doesn’t.

For that reason, I’m looking forward to my 15 weekly 30 minute lessons.

September 15th is the start and coming up soon!

ZigZagStory

Hi @Klingomar
I’m an adult returner. I learned piano for a few years as a teen and then started playing after many years. I thought I was really doing great.
I decided to take face to face lessons to help me tackle problematic bars. I was lucky enough to find a truly wonderful teacher.
I quickly found out that “you don’t know what you don’t know”. My technique wasn’t good - I didn’t use arm weight at all, and this was only the tip of the iceberg. I’m still learning - I consider myself as an advanced level pianist now, and only feel I have even more to learn.

In my opinion - feedback is crucial to make progress. More important than the specific repertoire you choose.
I don’t think AI can currently give you relevant feedback. It doesn’t have to be a formal teacher , I sometimes give feedback my friend who is a pianist.

I hope you enjoy your piano journey!

Klingomar

So sorry, here is the translated message.
In the meantime, thank you for your very clear and helpful answers. Well, after two weeks, I am very satisfied. The AI took me a little step back from my current level; it knew this because it had asked me which pieces I was 'comfortable' with. It assigned me the new pieces I told you about, telling me how to play them, what to look out for, and especially which mistakes to avoid. I like the pieces, and I enjoy playing them. It really must be said, it nailed it. It offered me challenges well within my reach. Of course, I repeat, a teacher is necessary, but... in the meantime, this is better than going at it alone without a proper guide. I studied in my youth. Now I have started again, a few months ago. Oh... I am very glad you like Italian.