Let me just state that if you are wanting to learn to play the piano, especially if you learned many years ago or you know how to play another instrument, then learning online can be a good option. Learning online can be a very economical way of learning to play the piano.
Maybe I am biased, but I do genuinely believe that having a piano teacher is superior to anything that you can find online.
Firstly, a piano teacher can tailor what they teach to the way you learn the best. Everyone can absorb and learn information in different ways and a piano teacher will make sure that you as a student will understand every concept or technique. The teacher will continue to correct and guide until the student gets it.
A teacher will help the student set goals, both the weekly goals of what to practice but also the long term goals. Piano teachers will offer ideas as to how to practice – it is not just sitting down and playing the pieces from the beginning until the end. A teacher will help a student find mistakes that they are oblivious to and work out a course of action to correct those mistakes. No matter how good an online course or YouTube channel may be, they will never be able to give you such precise and tailor made information.
A piano teacher is often encouraging. No matter what the pursuit, we all could do with a little encouraging from time to time and piano teachers do try to encourage and enthuse their students. I must admit that this is one of my favorite aspects of being a piano teacher. I love to encourage, particularly when a student is finding something tricky – I love to give them a different perspective and see their discouragement turn into positivity right in front of my eyes.
A piano teacher will give you choices as to what you are going to learn. They will help guide you towards your goals. They will help you select music that is applicable for your standard and they will also encourage you to learn pieces of music that are unfamiliar to you, to stretch and expand your skill level.
The last point I would like to make is that piano lessons with a teacher can be a very sociable time. I must admit that there have been several times when I have shared a cup ot tea with an adult student immediately after their lesson. Its not a requirement of the lessons as such, but over time you can get to know your piano teacher and find that you really enjoy their company.
As I said at the beginning, there are many online resources available to help a person learn to play the piano, but I think choosing a piano teacher to help you learn is a superior way to go.