The Naysayers

So you’ve decided that you are going to learn to play the piano now that you’re retired. Or maybe its a case of picking up where you left off so many years ago. You’re excited and you start telling family and friends. Many people are excited and pleased for you – others not quite so … Read more

6 Reasons Why Playing the Piano in Retirement is Good for Your Mental Health

There are physical health benefits to playing the piano as well as mental health benefits. While there are some overlaps with aspects of piano playing that are good for both physical and mental health, here is a list of six mental health benefits of playing the piano, particularly as a person ages. Most of the … Read more

An Interesting Conversation with a Former Professional Musician

Recently, I found myself having a very interesting conversation with someone I recently met. We are both school teachers and discussing how much we enjoyed working with children. When I expressed how much I enjoyed teaching music, she revealed to be that she used to be a classical musician who worked in various orchestras and … Read more

What Are Good Reasons for Learning to Play the Piano in Retirement

There are a number of perfectly valid reasons why someone would take up learning (or re-learning) to play the piano in retirement. The most obvious and I reckon the best reason is because they want to. Playing the piano can give so much joy to the one who plays, not just because of the music … Read more

So When is the Right Time to Quit?

This might seem like a strange article to have for a blog, where the aim is to encourage and give information to retirees who want to play the piano in their retirement, but I think it can be quite useful to discuss. There is actually two types of quitting I want to discuss. The first … Read more

Practicing is not Playing and Playing is not Practicing

So how can practicing the piano not be playing the piano and vice versa? The really simple answer is that both fulfil a completely different function. Playing a piece of music really happens once you have learned how to play the particular piece of music. You play a piece of music when you know it … Read more