Ask the Piano Teacher

Older person Wants to Learn Piano and Trouble Reading Bass Clef Notes

  by  Georgia Zoe Schohl

Q. I would like to learn piano as I have always wanted to play all my life.  Now that I am disabled and retired, I would like to learn.   My wife thinks it's too late and I'm too old (70 years old) but I'm stubborn. I used to play violin as a youngster so I can read the treble clef. 

I've already have an old piano so I want to give it a try.  I cannot walk around like I used to so what shall I do?  Piano teachers that will go to my home to teach are too expensive because I've called several.   I know that there are piano lessons online but how do they work?  

Charles L., Email


A. Congratulations on deciding to learn piano now.  I have several senior citizen students and they are quite good as they practice a quite a bit despite being very busy.  Older students are often very dedicated and determined to learn, so I don't think that it's too late.

It's true that piano teachers that go to your home to teach may cost more but there are more options than that.  First of all, do you have a friend or relative that is moderately good and is interested in giving you some lessons?  Ask,because you never know. 
 
Next, you can consider buying an online piano course.  If you read some of the reviews of several of the courses you know that there are some good ones.   Do you want to play piano by ear?  Or learn how to read bass and treble clef piano? 

Either way, several of the online piano lesson courses are very thorough and contain many lessons using video and some audio.   You will probably have access to email support for at least one of the courses.  Best of all, there's a money back guarantee up to 56 to 60 days if you don't think the format works for you.

Get a friend or your wife to learn along with you to make it more fun and you can help each other. Try first with some of the free piano courses online.  Although they may not be as detailed and complete as many steps to learn piano are left out compared to the courses you can buy online, it's a start.



Q.  I'm having a lot of trouble reading the bass clef when I play both hands together.  I'm a 38 year old adult student who is very frustrated as I can't progress as fast I'd like.   I'm embarrassed  during my lesson when I play so badly in front of my teacher.  My teacher is very strict so she doesn't say much to me about it but I want learn the bass clef notes faster. 

Frustrated Student,  Chicago, IL

A. First of all, you didn't tell me how long you have been taking lessons.  Are you a beginner?  If so it takes awhile to learn the notes and both clefs.  Traditionally, it is more difficult for most students to learn the bass clef.  Because of the way the notes are placed on the clef they are more difficult to remember.

Next, did you ask your teacher about this?  Don't be shy that's what the teacher is there for---ask away!  You might ask if she has any tips to read the bass clef notes faster. 

What I like to do with some of my beginning students is to get them to sing the name of the bass and treble clef notes they are playing.  They are associating the key they are playing with the name of the note that they are reading.  If they say the name of the note aloud as they play frequently, note reading will improve.  But don't just do it for a couple of weeks then stop. Keep doing it as you practice each hand alone on a piece you are learning.  It does help and make it a habit.

There are notespellers available for both treble and bass that is like a theory book at music stores and probably online.  There's an assignment on each page and you can learn the names of the notes by filling out answers.  Then try playing them on the piano.  It is not a complete solution, so don't just do the workbook alone. 

Also, if you do an online search on Google for learning the bass clef you can find many 'how to learn the bass clef' websites.  But as I said earlier check with your teacher and ask if she has any ideas.  Just because she is strict doesn't mean she won't help you---she'll probably be glad to help.