From the numerous people that have spoken to me over the years about wanting to be able to play the piano, I would say that at least half of those people did in fact start learning to play the piano when they were younger. I have heard all sorts of reasons why this happened and amongst the reasons include parents no longer being able to afford piano lessons, families moving and access to a piano teacher just not able to happen anymore. The biggest reason for quitting piano lessons as a kid and then living to regret that decision is from people who quit because they wanted to spend more time with their friends.
It happens that many people quit learning to play the piano as kids or teenagers simply because they really couldn’t be bothered anymore. I’m not saying this as a judgement, I’m saying this because it is a fact. Actually, I can’t be judgemental about because as a kid, I quit doing calisthenics (which was quite a popular activity for girls to do in Australia and it was seen as an alternative to taking traditional dance classes). It was something I enjoyed and something I was really good at because I am double jointed. Because I had a teacher that yelled a lot, I just quit. So my point here is that we all can make stupid mistakes as kids, which we end up regretting, but we were just kids at the time and didn’t have the required maturity to see the bigger picture.
Believe me when I say that there are many, many people who once took piano lessons and never truly appreciated them at the time and many years later, live to regret quitting. So if this is your story, then you are not the only one.
If you have decided to have another go at learning to play the piano, many years later – good on you! Don’t waste time on regretting what you should or should not have done years ago. What’s done is done. Focus now on starting again and enjoying the journey. Don’t be in a hurry to make up for lost time – this will only cause you to feel frustrated because you aren’t progressing as fast as what you thought you would.
The next step is to decide whether you have retained enough information from years ago, or not. If you really can’t remember much, then I would recommend finding a piano teacher to get you started again. If you don’t want to take this option, then maybe try an online piano learning app – there are many to choose from.
If you can remember quite a lot, then you can still get a piano teacher to get you playing the piano again more or less from the level you can remember. If you can remember the basics, a piano teacher won’t get you to start again from the beginning.
Another option for those who have retained their knowledge, is to try and get themselves started again. For some this might be a really good option and the way I would encourage you to get started is by finding your old music books, if you can, or buying new copies and take yourself through all the old stuff. By going through the stuff you once learned, it might bring back memories and bring dormant knowledge to the fore. You also have the advantage of muscle memory, where your fingers and hands seem to automatically remember how to play certain pieces. Once you have completed this stage, which would take at least a few weeks to many months, you can then start tackling new music.
If you are returning to playing the piano after a gap of many years, remember not to give yourself a hard time in the first place for stopping before and secondly, take your time in trying to remember what you once knew. If it is possible, try to get the assistance of a piano teacher, as they will help with focus and motivation, as well as expanding your knowledge and skills.
You can do this.