Thank you for this, and everything after.
It is refreshing to hear from someone who has worked with people, rather than read theoretical ideas about people.
Certainly I think actual experience with many people can give a different perspective. Many studies don't have a large sample space so you'll get bias, I'm sure if my sample space was different I might have come to different conclusions but I think that individuality in students remains quite consistent even as one ages. Sure I've taught older students who absolutely struggle, those have almost always been those who never had any music skills taught to them during their early childhood development like clapping beats, singing etc. Overall though I've seen older students thrive and enjoy the challenges faced, something all musicians face as well no matter the age.
Nice post!. So can we assume that someone who has been playing the piano for many years can still learn as fast in old age compared to when he was young?
This kind of question is relative to the individual. Personally I learn faster than when I was younger but that's because I've trained my learning skills and improved them over many years. I have several students I've taught 20+ years, most have improved their rate more so than those who have slowed down.
There are many factors that can contribute to this, one of my 70 year old students learns slower due to emotional challenges increasing, loss of spouse, family affairs etc. These of course all impact upon one's ability to learn with freedom of thought which I think is necessary for efficient learning.
It can be frustrating if one feels like they slow down. It is noticeable in disciplines such as chess that the huge amount time to study because difficult to maintain at older ages. We have to realise that our world view also changes as we age, being competitive at a younger age might fall away as you age, being content with what you have might become stronger as you age and realise what loss really is like.
I think those who study piano for most of their waking hours every day for their whole life really are missing out on what life really is about, that might sound strange coming from a professional musician but I really think we should live a balanced life and not be obsessed with one thing or the other. As one ages I think this becomes clearer and although it may seem we work slower it really is a life style choice.
One of my 70+ year old students studies piano at least 3 hours a day, that's quite an amount that even younger pianists might struggle to maintain. But he loves doing that, it's fine for him, he displays more discipline and focus than many younger than himself and thus learns at a good rate. I couldn't imagine doing 9 hours a day every day like I did when I was studying piano "seriosuly", it's a waste of life. There's a saying in chess, I forgot who said it but it runs along the lines of " A good chess player is a gentleman, a grandmaster of chess is a wasted life". I think the same holds true for masters of piano, when I look back at it probably I wasted much of my life sitting in front of the 88 keys, I'd likely do it again if I lived my life over but the opportunity cost when pondered over can be frightening.
Sure a dedication to something might be a personal choice in itself too! So those who really want to pour their entire life into one interest should do so. Personally I think life has more to offer than that.