Going back to the man in the article a lot of people can relate to his experience. People would get a teacher and attend weekly lessons for a while. They learn the assigned pieces. The progress is slow so they eventually quit.

Like learning a foreign language. The people who go to class every week and do all the assignments would go so far. People who watch TV, videos & listen to music in a foreign language would go further. Some would find a language partner and talk to each other regularly become fluent much sooner. When it comes to learning music, there is a lot of listening to others’ recordings and comparing them. Learning different things off videos online by teachers. And download the pieces you like to get more fun during practice.

People like myself realized from the beginning not to practice like exercises. I started recording from day 1 not just to track my progress but to experiment with sound like a Rock band making soundtracks. I think of wrong notes as not getting the ideal sound than mistakes. After a while you start sounding better in recordings and your techniques improve.

The first year or 2 we’re beginners. Many struggle to read. Once we get passed the first stage playing gets a bit easier and we’re less likely to quit. People like myself can read sufficiently. The things to focus on include learning the beat patterns & finger sequences.

People who tried playing but quit not only due to talent. A large part has to do with efficient & effective practice to achieve results.

The nice thing is that people that did/do quit can have their chance to un-quit later. People definitely do make choices in life, and they say that with certain choices come 'consequences'. So basically - if somebody does quit for many many many many years, and then comes back to the piano (unquit) - there can then be a time-constraint consideration, and other considerations - such as what they intended to want to achieve (considerations). And that happens/happened due to choice. And that's a part of nature and life - because as we know -- there are many cases where in the future - at least some people will say that 'if I had known ...... then I wouldn't have made that choice ....'. That's a part of life/nature of course. This just means - if someone does quit for ages, then that's just what happens, regardless of what happens.

But on the other hand - once they do un-quit, they can certainly still keep progressing and/or enjoy what they do learn and apply. Beginners and resumers can and will and do make pianos sound nice - with whatever they are learning or playing. When somebody is at the controls - at the piano - the piano comes 'to life' - both piano player and piano - together - come 'to life' - and that is very special indeed.

Also - being 'good' at playing piano or even learning to play pianos is certainly not a requirement in life. So just un-quitting and continuing is nice already. And it is definitely not an issue if somebody doesn't want to learn piano. There are lots of things in life to keep people occupied and happy too of course.

    Pallas I think it's really important to support the notion that it's ok to try things and move on if it's not meeting your needs. I've tried and abandoned several activities, and it's but necessary or great to carry those things around as failures. That's just a bunch of baggage you can choose not to carry! (I loved the orchid photos!)

    So right and true Pallas! I couldn't have said the above any better. Actually - I could have --- but. No ... haha. I could not. Was only kidding. That is so true what you mentioned. If a person has trouble with particular burdens - that option for reducing the burden is always there. It can make their life more nicer or better etc. Excellent comment you made Pallas - and thanks so much for letting me know you like the orchid pics! Best regards.

      SouthPark
      Many people quit because of bad experiences either with the teacher, lack of progess or something else. They need to set realistic expectations what is achievable and track their progress according.

      When I learned violin with my sister in school, neither of us had expectations the different techniques we'd be learning and the repertoire. Everything was left to the teacher to decide. We're paying for the teacher and we need to be in the driver seat what we want to get out of the lessons.

      The people who quit because of a busy schedule or other commitments are more likely going to return later. The ones who had bad experiences are less likely going to un-quit unless they change their expectations.

          thepianoplayer416 The people who quit because of a busy schedule or other commitments are more likely going to return later. The ones who had bad experiences are less likely going to un-quit unless they change their expectations.

          Know what you mean there TPP416! Cue Piano Tell forum and get them to come to talk to us, and we'll see what we can do to inspire them to 'get back in the saddle' --- like in Top Gun hehe

          It is true that the statistics are always there - as in there really will be a number that won't get back in the saddle. But hopefully if some really want to resume, then they can join for example Piano Tell to start with. Or - even without joining anything - just sit down at a piano and begin - to start up again.

            WieWaldi
            You’re more in tune with the times as more adults like myself get into playing as a hobby.

            Many people in my family think we need to start an instrument at a young age to make progress. The instrument you learned as a child is the one you’re stuck with as an adult. My brother wouldn’t play anything except a guitar sort of thing.

                thepianoplayer416 As child I learned accordion. But I never got really into this instrument, nor did I like this kind of music I learned.

                • TC3 replied to this.
                • TC3 likes this.

                    WieWaldi Someday I intend to learn a bit of accordion, but it likely won't be the usual "classical" accordion repertoire. I like accordion as it shows up in folk music and such.

                    Enthusiastic but mediocre amateur.

                      ranjit

                      Mastery of a craft isn't all that it's cracked up to be.

                      Several decades ago I decided that I wanted to learn how to do high end custom woodworking. I started with the usual small stuff and progressed to bigger stuff, often from published plans, and eventually started designing and building stuff of my own. I got really good at it. I mean really, really, really good at it. All aspects of it.

                      One day I looked around and realized that none of it was a challenge anymore. I could wander out to my shop, grab some wood, and start cutting and assembling nearly anything that crossed my mind. No plans required and the end result would be as perfect as human hands can make it.

                      It wouldn't even take hardly any time to make something that once upon a time could have taken days or weeks. There literally wasn't any challenge at all and no purpose remained.

                      I quit. I still have all the tools and machines but haven't touched them in 15-20 years. Mastery of any craft has its desirable qualities. One of which is to teach. But mastery for the sake of mastery and nothing else is a dead end street.

                        Pallas Calling it a "fiddle" makes it easier to play, RIGHT!? 😄

                        LOL be careful with the discussions this might start... Is it still a "fiddle" if you are only into "classical"? Etc etc. Just like the never ending discussions whether we are still learning piano properly if classical is not our thing or when we're using a non approved method? Good for many hours and long messages where those nuances are dissected into atom sized particles - thankfully not in this forum though 🤣

                          thepianoplayer416 The instrument you learned as a child is the one you’re stuck with as an adult. My brother wouldn’t play anything except a guitar sort of thing.

                          TPP416 - but you learned violin as a child, and now you're also doing piano, so you have best of two or more worlds.
                          I'm now learning 'erhu' - as I had always wanted to play that - but had never got around to it. It's amazing to me. I love that one.

                            Pallas There's a busker who plays erhu here and there around Boston. Whenever I spot him (with my ears, natch!) I just get frozen with wonder. What an amazing instrument!

                            Thanks for mentioning that Pallas! Fully agree! While I haven't played a violin before, I heard that --- like an erhu (in some ways, and vice versa) - both the erhu and violin require the person using it to find their own reference position, and then play the notes relative to that reference position. Although - for erhu - as there are no standard/regular sizes/lengths etc for them, and no standard/regular setup lengths between the bridge and the other end of the string etc, it becomes an interesting problem for each person to solve for themselves - if they can solve it - for getting the right reference note position.

                            It's very interesting how the experienced erhu players can take their hands away from the erhu during a performance, and put down the erhu, and then put their hands back on it - seemingly without looking at where they need to put their hand (to get back to their reference position) - and they just resume and hit the correct pitch (in line with all the other difference sorts of instruments playing - concert pitch) first time - every time. I haven't learned how to do that yet hehehe ... but that's all part of the intrigue. It's a nice problem-solving thing that one.

                            Thanks for mentioning Boston! I have been there once before - but driving through there only (had not set foot in Boston itself though) - on the way to Woods Hole (and back through Boston again on the return trip). Big city!!! Boston that is. Amazing. The impressive buildings and history etc.

                              Pallas Because we're having this little moment, I know it won't shock you to hear that I built a theremin from a kit once. You have to find the pitch in mid air from the reference point of just your body and the xy space between two antennae. If I want to play it these days I have to check it out from the library, because I couldn't handle that much unknown, and donated it to their Library of Things. The only book I had on the instrument required that you already read music, and this was years ago before I realized I could, duh, learn that, so I guess I have to decide if I'm going to un-quit theremin now. 🤣

                              hahaha!!! Nice one Pallas!! Oh geez. I haven't ever used a theremin before. Wow --- yes indeed. I can see what you mean about getting a reference for that one. Thanks for mentioning theremin, and that you built one from a kit! That is indeed an amazing instrument - being able to pitch bend in real time to your own controlled/controllable profile.

                              That has got me thinking again - about theremin and our own voices.

                              You know how a lot of people in general - ones without perfect/absolute pitch - where they have to work on developing relative pitch/intervals abilities in order to become more at-one with the piano etc? I always think back to our own voice. The way in which we can think in our mind what pitch we want to 'sing' - and then a few seconds later - when we then physically sing what pitch we have in our mind --- it really does come out physically to that same particular pitch we had/have our mind.

                              So - basically - our body (brain/body etc) has somehow - however it did it - has perfectly tied 'mind/brain pitch/frequency' with physical pitch/frequency. That somewhat perfect link between mind pitch and physical pitch from our mouth --- has been mastered by our body - naturally mastered. As in - we have outstanding control of our own voice instrument pitch. It still amazes me. Astounding actually.

                              And I think that same sort of control is what a lot of people (playing and learning piano) want to achieve in the area of piano. They want to be able to think of what pitch (or pitches) they want to play - in their minds, and translate that directly to the piano - as if singing - like the way we use our own voice to sing what we want in our minds. That's one form of musical freedom. And when combined with music theory and composition techniques etc --- that builds on the musical freedom.

                                Pallas Yes, there needs to be a name for accordion that is analogous to "fiddle"!

                                Enthusiastic but mediocre amateur.

                                    Pallas But I do think I hear and note and try to sing it, and I can hear that I failed!

                                    Interesting! Thanks for mentioning that Pallas! I previously assumed that everybody has that particular natural ability. Or at least most people have that naturally --- as in if somebody else sings a particular pitch like 'laaaaAAAAAA', then usually another person can immediately and directly sing - with their voice - the same frequency 'laaaAAAAAA'. I will have to look more into this - as in getting some stats on that. But - in any case - as mentioned somewhere else in the forum - it's piano and music that got us all to here to Piano Tell. That is amazing in itself. Internet plus modern computing and digital audio power, piano plus music etc, got us all here.

                                    [update] - back again --- I just got this information here, and don't know how accurate it really is. I'll keep looking though. But I really and actually assumed that pretty much every body - toward the 100% mark - can/could naturally match somebody else's pitch immediately - right away. This article here reckons it's an approximate 50-50 split. Not that it actually matters. Just getting in there in any which way to play pianos is what it is all about.

                                    pitch matching link

                                      Pallas I think about that myself sometimes. I feel very lucky to have found piano friends who will come to this thread and tell us why they want to learn the piano. Interesting replies from top to bottom.

                                      Fully agree. For some reason - I have to think back to navindra as well, after he took initiative and effort to actually start up Piano Tell. And this thread here about why we play piano or want to play the piano, or wanted to learn and keep going etc --- is quite meaningful, and is certainly very interesting to read. I almost forgot to put in navindra - as he obviously plays a vital role in all of this. The timing etc ..... this is nature and history. A part of piano history - and human history itself. I think it is significant.

                                        TC3 Yes, there needs to be a name for accordion that is analogous to "fiddle"!

                                        The Dutch have a cozy name for it... "pull organ". Am I right @Josephine? 😁

                                            Sophia

                                            Actually I didn't know that 😂 I just googled it, trekorgel.

                                              @Josephine I fascinated myself into reading up on that. Apparently it's a word that's becoming rapidly obsolete (so is my knowledge of Dutch). But here's something interesting, according to this article, at some point the Dutch called it "pull piano" (trekpiano) too!