autodidact

[henrikhank]

Ave Maria!
How much autodidact can you be when learning the piano (or other keyboard instruments)?
I guess you could learn certain intelectual ideas of piano playing but not the real playing. What do you think and how have you dealt with this question?

[lostinidlewonder]

If you cannot teach yourself predominantly then you can't play at a high level. As for learning from scratch it is usually faster with a good teacher, some need to teach themselves as much as they can till they plateau in improvement then seek further training to expand their own self teaching.

[gleeok]

Although I do have some usual and expected difficulties learning alone, I have been improving without taking classes. But I can't comment on learning from scratch since I was introduced to keyboard instruments with proper teaching, for more or less 7 months, 2 times a week. But I do plan to study with a teacher at some point, as soon as school schedule makes it possible.

Autodidacticism varies from person to person, I'm sure one can learn a lot "alone" and become a renowned pianist (Didn't that happen before?) , while others might progress but then stop at a certain point and be stagnated at the technical field unless formal teaching takes place. While others might try learning alone but the difficulties are so many and the problems are so accumulative they can't progress without a teacher's instructions. In the end I guess its up to auto discipline, problem solving, persistence and advice seeking. Definitely, with the right intellectual tools and qualities one can progress a lot.

I say "alone" because as far as I am aware, autodidacts are always seeking advice from countless sources, ex; trough observation, direct (verbal) contact, books, social meetings, internet (...).

[ranniks]

He has taught himself mostly beside a few lessons. From his channel a quote:

Welcome to my channel!

I LOVE piano music. Most of all classical music, especially from Bach, Beethoven and Mozart but I also listen to other kinds of music.

I started playing the piano at the age of 35 with almost no musical experience before that. In 2010 I discovered YouTube and began playing more regularly. I am completely self-taught, except for a few piano lessons in 2010 (had to quit due to lack of time).

For me YouTube is an excellent place to find inspiration, and by watching more skilled pianists I am learning a lot, for which I´m very grateful.

I upload videos here on YouTube to learn from my mistakes and from comments from other youtubers. So please don´t hesitate to comment.

So there you go!

I'm finding having a teacher excellent though. He can gauge your level and correct mistakes.

[gleeok]

He has taught himself mostly beside a few lessons. From his channel a quote:

So there you go!

I'm finding having a teacher excellent though. He can gauge your level and correct mistakes.

I saw that guy before! I used his Canon in D arr lee galloway video as reference thorough my learning process, I even have it downloaded. I didn't knew he was self-taught!! He plays great considering he never had proper lessons and started from scratch, impressive.

Btw his piano sounds so nice, when I get a real piano I want one like that hahaha.