a career in piano, what will it take?

[aerosolinvasion]

i'm sure a similar topic has been posted elsewhere, but i couldn't find it.
i am a us soldier, just returning from a year in iraq (on my way still, stuck in kuwait). after the year long depolyment, i realized that i need to do what i've always dreamed of doing.
that being said, i've been playing piano on and off with NO formal training whatsoever for several years. my goal is to be accepted into the manhattan school of music for the fall 2007 semester, but i need to know what steps to take into playing in order to achieve that. i can play just about anything i see (technical wise) after a few hours of practicing, so at least i have that.
lessons? for sure, but what else?
i've got two years.

[bernhard]

As a first step you should probably find out what are the requirements to enter the school of your choice (what previous degrees you will need, if there is an audition, and if there is what sort of pieces are you supposed to play).

Second step (assuming an audition will be required), you must select a number of pieces that are acceptable for the audition.

Since you say that you have no problems in mastering a piece after some practice on it, I would go ahead and prepare one of the pieces, and then I would look for a piano teacher that you trust and respect as a teacher/musician, and would request a single lesson in order for him/her to listen to the piece you have prepared and offer an evaluation on the following grounds:

1.   Was your technique appropriate and correct?
2.   Was your rendition (interpretation) of the piece up to standard?
3.   Was your knowledge of the piece adequate?
4.   Were your practice methods the best in terms of efficiency and results?
5.   Can s/he spot any obvious bad habits that need correction?

Then, according to his/her evaluation you should be in a better position to decide if you need the input of a teacher, or if you could just work on your own, perhaps having a few “master classes” for feedback.

It is very important that you truly respect the opinion of the teacher you will be enrolling for this task (first evaluation), since what s/he has to say may not be to your liking, or alternatively if you cannot quite believe the praise heaped on you .

Good luck.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[lostinidlewonder]

You should make a daily habit of reading sheet music. Sectioning it up and highlighting patterns you may observe even with pieces you are not planning to play yet. Use lots of colors to higlight your ideas. Work out ways which you could use patterns and repetition as an advantage to your memorisation. The logic behind memorisation should be closely examined, how do YOU see patterns in the music to aid your memory. Listen to lots of music while following with the sheet. Anticipate what you will hear by what you see on the sheet.

I would probably suggest at least one Beethoven Sonata, Chopin Etude, Bach Well Tempered Klavier mastered. Which direction you take is unlimited and personal and depending on many factors Berhard has already highlighted.

Take an interest in teaching piano as well, it is something which the majority of professional musicians fall back on to make a steady income.

[practicingnow]

Just get a teacher that knows what he or she is doing, and take weekly or bi-weekly lessons - they will guide you better than any online group

[prometheus]

Getting a degree in music and having a lot of luck will surely help.

If you are going for piano performance you do need to get a good teacher.