When I was a teenager, I took piano lessons. While I loved the idea of playing piano beautifully, I was, I must admit, lazy. I didn’t like the time it took to practice. So, after a year or two, I hadn’t progressed very far and quit my lessons.
As an adult, I’ve been looking for ways I can grow. I have thought for some time that it might be fun to pursue an instrument again. We bought a keyboard last year, so when the opportunity came up to review Easy Piano Basics by JazzEdge, I signed up for the review for myself.
About Easy Piano Basics
Easy Piano Basics is for the beginner, whether that be an adult or a child. However, the parent would probably want to sit with younger students to make sure that they are understanding the material.
The classes are taught by Willie Myette who also created HomeSchoolPiano, which we reviewed last year. Myette is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music and the CEO and President of JazzEdge. JazzEdge also has two other programs: PianoWithWillie and DrumsWithWillie.
Easy Piano Basics contains 32 lessons, most of which range from 4 to 10 minutes. The entire course is $59.95 (normally $69.95). This is a lifetime subscription and contains all of the lessons and downloads.
To take the course, you’ll need a keyboard or piano, a printer to print off sheet music, and internet access to get the lessons.
What the Lessons Cover
Easy Piano Basics is perfect for the beginner or someone like me who needs a serious brush up. (After the 25+ years it has been since my lessons, I only remembered where the middle C key was and how to read basic notes before I took this course.)
I covered the first 12 lessons during this review period. Topics included:
- The Notes of the Piano
- Low and High Notes
- The Musical Alphabet
- Finger Numbers
- How to Sit at the Piano
- The Grab Technique
- Five Finger Scale
- G Clef Guideposts
- Steps and Skips
- Half and Whole Steps
- Higher and Lower on the Staff
- The F Clef
Later in the course, topics advance to playing hands together, sharps and flats, major 5 finger scale, basic rhythms, and outro.
My Experience Using Easy Piano Basics
Myette is an excellent teacher. He uses a split screen so you can see his fingers on the keys as well as see his body when playing. He goes slowly enough that even I could follow along, and he infuses his lessons with humor.
Each lesson seemed to unlock what I had learned years earlier when I took piano in my teens. I enjoyed the refresher.
In the last week of my review, Bookworm decided to start the piano classes, and he enjoyed them and was also able to follow along. He liked that the lessons were gentle and not overwhelming.
However, I found a few disadvantages to taking lessons online.
As I said, I ended up dropping the lessons in my teens because I was lazy about practicing. An online course forces me to be completely accountable. I’d like to say that I’m completely self-motivated now, but that’s not the case. There were definitely days when I just wanted to chill, and I neglected my time at the piano. If I had to go see a teacher, I think I would have been more accountable. Still, I plan to finish this course, even if it might be at a slower pace than I would like.
The only other thing I disliked was that I was never sure if I was doing the technique right. Was I holding my hands the right way over the keys? Was I sitting the proper way at the keyboard? I think I am, but an in-person teacher could confirm that for me.
I was one of 80 people chosen to review JazzEdge products. Click on the link below to read other reviews for Easy Piano Basics, PianoWithWillie, and DrumsWithWillie.
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