Knowing How to Play the Piano gives you transferable skills!

For some children, taking piano lessons isn't by choice. For parents who are interested in getting their children started in music--piano is one of the first instruments of choice. They can enroll kids in group piano lessons or have a private teacher come to the house to teach. And no matter what level you decide to start and stop piano lessons--the music fundamentals that the piano can give you is just like the fundamentals of any language. With piano, you learn to read, listen and understand the language of western music.

With piano, you learn to read two different clefs: Treble Clef and Bass Clef. If you only started out playing the flute, you would only be familiar with one clef, the treble clef. If you only played the tuba, you would really only be familiar with one clef, the bass clef. With the piano, you learn how to read both clefs simultaneously. This is helpful if you decide to take up advanced study in music. This is also helpful if you decide to go and play a different instrument other than the piano--which often happens.

When deciding to take on another instrument when I got into elementary school, beginning band music theory came fairly easy for me. This was because I had the basic music fundamentals from piano. Piano can help to create an introduction to music as well as learning a musical instrument. You develop your ear, hand/eye coordination and it also teaches you discipline. Performing in recitals also gives students a chance to practice being in front of an audience--presentation skills that you definitely need in other aspects of life !

If you decide to further study music in college or in a conservatory setting--having a piano background will help you tremendously. All music theory classes focus on the piano and often times students have to take piano proficiency tests as part of their overall grades. All music majors (no matter what instrument one specializes in) typically need to take a piano proficiency exam in order to graduate.