Why did you quit piano?

[countrymath]

I've been reading a lot of posts of people saying that they stoped playing for sometime (professionaly or not)

I want to know the reasons of why you have quit piano, and why you returned to it

[birba]

When you learn how (to quit) let me know...

[omar_roy]

I was 12.  I would rather have been playing basketball with my friends than inside practicing.

At 16 I had a musical awakening.

[pianisten1989]

I quit some hours ago. I got tired, I think I will start again tomorrow :D:D

[djealnla]

I stopped being ambitious as a pianist when I realized I would never have enough time or talent to reach the upper echelons of pianistic skill.

[musicluvr49]

I stopped playing much when I was around 8... Because I hated practicing, and I realized I was just wasting my teacher's time.
I started becoming more serious again at around 13.

[pianist1976]

I quit smoking a few years ago and I don't miss it at all but quitting piano is not computable for me

Of course, as many of us did, I think, I had some times when I hadn't too much will to study in detail (when I was so much younger) but I never stopped playing (I maybe stopped studying-practicing but I always loved to play ).

Since a few years I usually take one entire month a year resting from the keys but that's only a pause, that it's not "quitting".  

[thalbergmad]

I never really started so it would be difficult for me to quit.

Thal

[ch101]

why would you ever quit?

[stevebob]

Reasons for quitting (and, likewise, for resuming) might be quite personal (e.g., physical or psychological), so some people might not wish to explain them in a public forum.

And why is this topic in the Repertoire board?  I reported it as "miscategorized" earlier today; anybody else?

[m1469]

hmmm ... sorry, I deleted  

I WILL say that I've given your question a LOT of thought today, and I have concluded that I have never actually made the decision to actually quit playing the piano.  Any decisions that might have caused that, were very complex and more a matter of life circumstances than it being about the actual piano and whether or not I should play it.  But, I'm very happy to be at it and to be studying as I am.

[fleetfingers]

I was 16 and my parents weren't going to pay for my lessons anymore. Having a job, I could have afforded to pay for them myself but  ignorantly felt that it wasn't worth $22 each week for a 45-minute lesson. I had already reached an early advanced level and didn't think there was much more I could learn from my teacher - a very foolish thought, I know.  So, regrettably, I quit lessons.

I never "quit piano" though...still playing.

[danhuyle]

I quit from 2008-2011. Why? I learned a lot of things incorrectly and it was an arduous task to fix. Teachers made me feel guilty and ashamed. I'm back in it now.

[Derek]

I quit twice. Actually maybe three times. I tried to take lessons when I was about 7, and then at age 11, with my mom and sisters. I started with those silly kids pieces like pig in the barnyard and what not. And, I hated it. Just about the most boring music ever. I think my dad tried to teach me a tiny bit of boogie when I was little, too. That didn't catch on either cause I liked classical music (at the time, now I love boogie)

The third time I quit I tried to take lessons at age 15 with a paid piano teacher. I remember asking her if she could teach me how to "make up my own dark music like the moonlight sonata." I dunno what gave me that idea, maybe since my dad could improvise boogie, and I liked classical, I thought hey, why not IMPROVISATION + CLASSICAL? What's so crazy about that?

Her answer was that I should spend years learning technique and pieces before that would be remotely possible. Again, I hated practicing, even though she gave me reduced versions of some pieces I liked like fur elise and moonlight sonata.

...When I was about 17/18, I got back to it in a circuitous fashion. I started learning guitar with a paid guitar teacher. And he was totally different. He just gave me tabs, and in addition to tabs, a scale chart. Once I learned a scale or two, I remember him playing some chord progression or other and just telling me to "mess around."

WHAT!? I'm allowed to pick the notes to play? I'm not forced into precision and perfection? HOLY CRAP THIS RULES

and the rest is history. figured out scales on the piano...started improvising, met Ted here on pianostreet, and eventually became "that guy that made the improvisations index."  Somewhere in the middle I took actual classical lessons again and can play some classical pieces that I like, too, yay!  I guess for me playing piano just wasn't interesting unless I had a large role in the creation of the music I was playing, probably inspired by my dad being a boogie player. I learned boogie too and its a lot of fun!

[ted]

I stopped at ten because I loathed performance, display and comparisons with other children. There was a frightful row with my mother (not with my father though). It wasn't the teacher either. She was a wonderfully eccentric music lover who, without appearing to do anything, somehow got all her pupils to play pretty difficult pieces very quickly.

When I was about fourteen, my father brought home the score of Rhapsody In Blue (I can see now it was a ruse, and it worked.) I busted myself learning it and demanded a teacher. Luckily I struck gold for a second time and Llewelyn Jones knew just what to do with me. Anyone else and I dread to think what would have happened - probably wouldn't be playing at all.

[thebuchertrain]

I was 14, and had gotten really into playing chess, so I didn't really practice for the next few years.

I never quit, I just only practiced an hour a week or so.

[gvans]

I quite around age thirteen because: A) the only piano I had access to was a crappy spinet
b) I learned guitar and joined a rock band.

In college there were beautiful pianos all over the place, I heard Bonnie Hampton play a Bach suite on solo cello, heard her trio (with Nathan Schwartz on the piano) play Beethoven, and I dove back into classical music.

[ongaku_oniko]

It's really funny after I learned of how much passion people had for the piano here.

For me, I was forced into learning the piano by my parents. I never practised, and naturally after exams, I stopped learning, and stopped playing.

I'm just not patient guy, and if I can't learn scarbo from gaspard de la nuit in an hour, I get bored. Of course, I wouldn't even think of putting in 1/100000th of the effort to actually learn the technicals to get to a level where learning scarbo is within the realm of reality.

I don't hate the piano, and I like classical music. What I really dislike is practise. For anything.

[lontano]

I quit piano about the age of 12 after some 5 years of lessons. This was around 1960. It broke my mother's heart and I regret it to this day. What was unknown back then was the nature of learning disabilities; in my case I believe it was ADHD. Over the years since I took up lessons off and on but was very frustrated with my inability to focus properly and progress was always very slow and I never really made much headway. Today I play easier pieces for pleasure and make attempts at more difficult ones from time to time, but the ADHD is still there impeding my progress and adding to my frustration. 

[geze]

I didn't quit the piano.  My journey started at the age of 6 when i passed my Grade 1 with Merit (1978).  The examiner handed the mark sheet immediately after the exam - this never happened since. Fast forward, I did Grade 8 at 13 years old and went to a to music conservatory as a Junior the same year.  The last two years I was there, 'A' levels, hip-hop and girls took a bit of an influence and I was getting tired of lessons and was not going to take up music professionally. I was aiming to go to uni to study engineering. So worked more towards that. Also, practice became less of a priority and that faded to a zero once uni started (ok I practiced the organ on Saturday mornings as I had a key to the church).  Since then I have been playing mainly hymns and contemporary christian songs until 1993 when I briefly started classical again begging the music department to give me a practice room - again Saturday mornings were best for this.  Engineering 'finals' kicked in and practicing stopped again.  Fast forward - got the degree - 2(ii) - went back home - continued with contempoary christian songs and hymns in church and did not do much classical practice at all.  Fast forward - got a steady job. moved out, got married, had kids. I went to the wholesalers with the family and noticed a digital piano for a reasonable price and I said I am going to reserve it. (continues)

[geze]

(from the last post)

I bought the piano and got all my old piano classical books frommy parent's house and bought some new ones too.  The piano came with 60 classical pieces most of them I have not learnt as a child (including "The entertainer" by Scott Joplin). Learnt  Chopin's Nocturne in E flat which took a lot longer than expected, onto the Fantaisie Impromptu (which I have put on hold - for now). I was not impressed by the digital pre-set performance of the pieces as they were played too mechanically for my liking - but my wife (a non-pianist) and my children think it is amazing.  So, I went onto You Tube and came across Yundi Li's rendition which was much better. I was hooked to find out more about Yundi Li and other famous contemporary pianists and to introduce my young children to them too.  I have also made a habit of waking up at early to practice as mch as possible.  I use dockyani (misspelt) and Hanon for finger exercises as I realised my fingers were really stiff have not used them extensively for so long and I am enjoying it very much.  Hence I am here now wantingto connect with fellow pianists.  I now practice more than when I was a child (no-one to fight over the piano with, no exams, concerts competitions or auditions to practice for - for now).

[fleetfingers]

Haha, your story sounds similar to mine: I also started at 6, got older, got married, had kids, didn't have a piano at home but played in church, went through a Scott Joplin phase, got back into classical. Fantasie-Impromptu was one of the first pieces I learned after I acquired a piano and got out my old piano books. I have also been scouring youtube and hearing pianists who are new to me. I hope you love getting back into things as much as I have. This forum is a great place to come to for advice and ideas. Happy playing!

[azupkatalina]

It seems like most of us tried to quit but never succeeded 
I also tried to quit when I moved out of town to college. It was a real impact to not play the piano. I tried to quit to stop the pain. Turns out it became even more painful to restrict myself from playing the piano.
I played again occasionally when I come home. Though I'm not learning something new, I still do play for self-enjoyment and for my well-being. 

[costicina]

This topic is a very interesting.  I’d like to share with you  my experience (as worthless as it can be)…
I had private piano lessons when I was 10 years old, quitted abruptly at 17. Perhaps it’s not fair to give the blame only on  the teachers, but my first one,  along with serious psychic problems, had an utterly antiquated approach;  the second one didn’t care a bit. Both of them, in different ways,  instilled into me the idea that I was “very musical”, but lacking of  the “talent” (i.e. the technical capabilities I was supposed to attain by myself) to be a “good” pianist.

After almost three decades of silence, about two years ago, I had again a piano in my house. I decided to introduce my daughter into music, and to restart myself from scratch.

I’m better now  than I was when I quitted. My daughter (not particularly talented, or  interested in piano playing),  is making  astonishing progresses.

This forum has helped us very much in this endeavour (please, don’t take it as a kind of obsequiousness)..
In short, please, don’t give up!!!!

Margherita

[sujit]

Maybe because they lost interest or discovered a new musical instrument which they would like to try. Also maybe because of the time. Their schedule must also be appropriate to play piano.

[nataliethepianist]

I first played piano when I was 5, and it was with my sister and a few friends. We all hated it, and I mean hated. I remember standing in the bathroom before our lesson and talking about how bad it was (it actually wasn't bad at all). So, we made up an excuse and quit about 2 years later.

When I was around 8 or 9, I started again with my sister and we had a weird teacher. We quit after only a few months.

My first a serious dream was to become a pop singer, and when I was 11 I started guitar lessons. The guy I took lessons from also taught piano (not classical, it was poorly taught piano). I realized how much I like piano and quit guitar. I never realized how little he was teaching me. He never taught me how to sight read, and he expected me to know how. After about 3 years I quit.

I started with this other woman who was more familiar with teaching little kids. She wasn't challenging me at all, and I had not really realized it. When I did, I quit. Somewhere in between that and getting a new teacher I realize that me true love was classical music, and I was determined to make a career of it. I quit with that piano teacher, and although he was a good pianist, he wouldn't push me and I knew I was ready for a great challenge.

Now, at 15, I have a true passion for piano, and continue to have one. I am starting with a new teacher, and I have been told that she has very high expectations, and is "no nonsense". It seems like a great match.

We quit piano for a number of reasons. Depending on the age, it could be just for the fact of it doesn't come naturally, and at an age like 5 we want to be the best of the best. As we continue to grow, we form more theoretical likes and dislikes, and soon we find out why and can back up our reasons for quiting. It could be purely that we find it time consuming, and not consuming for the right reasons. We could never realize our potential and the love we have for piano if we are not given the opportunity or we don't find a musical connection with out teachers.

[faa2010]

I quited when I was 9 years old because I wasn't so interested in, I'd have rather prefered watching TV and getting good grades at school.

However, I returned when I was 16 years old despite not being a professional (meaning that I don't play the piano as a professional career, a major).

I am 25 years old and sometimes I would like to study deeper on playing piano, but because I take school grades and study so seriously, I am afraid that one of my favourite hobbies would turn into a burden that I wouldn't play it as I want.

[sspiano]

i was maybe 5 or 6 and my parents got me a private music teacher.. i quit after few weeks because i thought it was stupid.. i started liking music but never had the chance to start learning.. few months ago i said why not? now i am a 20 something year old starting to play piano. i realized parents are always right...

[bellywelly]

reading everyone's story makes me emotional    especailly the ones who are older. i wonder if piano would stay with me for the rest of my life.

anyways, my story now i remember very clearly when i begged my first piano teacher to teach me piano when i was 4/5 years old. she was a very respectable piano teacher (for little kids) at my area. she told me+my mum that i was too young and that my hands were too small, and it would be a waste of time to teach me. i pestered her for around half a year, and finally she gave in and taught me piano

she ended up being the worst piano teacher i ever had. six years of exams exams exams (all of which i passed with As and Bs sucessfully) i found another teacher. she was a new piano teacher, and was very young. we bonded well (probably coz of the lack of age gap), and she was the one who gave me an insight of what piano is all about. i was 11 years old at the time. for 4 years she taught me loads of stuff, espcailly with putting emotion when im playing (which i lacked)

so, i sucessfully passed (with good scores) all my grades and dipABRSM (when i was 15). she refused to teach me any longer, and told me to find another teacher. this was because she felt incapable of teaching me, only having a dipABRSM qualification herself. i was quite depressed because of this, and i 'quitted' piano. but not touching the piano was so unbearable, even more unbareable than leaving my awesome piano teacher.

so i decided to move on (after a year of 'quitting'), and i found another piano teacher (a very respectable teacher who performs frequently in my area) and now it's been around 4 months since i've have lessons with this teacher. hopefully we can make happy memories together  i do sometimes have nightmares of my piano teacher leaving me like my old one did, but one can only worry about stupid things like these in their dreams.

wow. that was totally my whole life (until this moment) typed up. hope i didnt bore anyone.