It Starts With a Piano: Why Every Home Should Have One
Many successful musicians, entertainers, doctors, and entrepreneurs all share something in common: They play the piano.
Having a piano in your home can dramatically increase your performance in other areas of music and in life.
Taking Piano Lessons Can Help You Succeed In Music
Most obviously, piano lessons have easily transferable skills to band, orchestra, choir, and other areas of music.
Here are some of the skills and knowledge you’d obtain learning the piano:
Learning note names and key signatures
A strong sense of rhythm and timing
Understanding the relationship between melody and harmony
A broader understanding of music theory in general
While you can learn these things independently, developing your skills on the piano can dramatically enhance your understanding of these musical concepts.
Anecdotally speaking, we work with lots of band and orchestra teachers throughout the state of Utah. Many of them actively seek out and recruit students with previous piano experience.
Teachers love these piano students because they often have a stronger musical foundation. As a result, they can focus on the music instead of learning and relearning the basics.
Oftentimes, these students also fill leadership and performance roles in their respective bands and orchestras.
Playing the Piano Helps With Academics
You’ve probably heard that classic one-liner from Pixar’s The Incredibles: “Mozart makes babies smarter.”
It’s played as a joke in the movie. But there is a kernel of truth to it.
In 2019, the Journal of Educational Psychology published a study that suggests a strong correlation between engagement with music and academic performance:
“Highly engaged instrumental music students were, on average, academically over 1 year ahead of their peers. The findings suggest that multi year engagement in music…may benefit high school academic achievement.”
The study goes on to say that students who participate in music during childhood and early adolescence, then participate in music during high school, performed strongly across all general subjects including English, math, and science.
Playing the Piano Has Other Cognitive and Social Benefits
Taking piano lessons and performing in recitals can teach us lots of other skills.
For starters, there are plenty of mental and cognitive benefits to consider:
Concentration & focus — Playing the piano requires paying attention to multiple tasks at once.
Improved memory — Research shows that playing piano enhances working memory in adults.
Reduced stress & anxiety — Playing the piano can help reduce feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression among individuals.
Aside from the mental and emotional benefits, playing piano helps with other life skills.
Like we mentioned earlier, the piano can be a gateway to learning other instruments. As such, it can result in joining band, orchestra, choir, or some other music group. As a result, it can help you meet other people and expand your social circle.
Piano can also help you practice other things such as overcoming stage fright or develop your problem-solving skills.
Most of All, Piano Is Just Plain Fun!
Even if you take out all the other musical, academic, and cognitive benefits, playing the piano is simply fun and enjoyable.
There’s nothing more satisfying than learning how to play your favorite song, or improvising your own melodies.
It’s also an instrument that isn’t boxed into any one genre of music — you can play everything from Bach to Taylor Swift and it won’t seem weird or out of place to do so.
Find the Perfect Piano at Summerhays Piano Source
It all starts with a piano, and there’s a piano for everyone!
There’s no better place in Utah to find a piano than Summerhays Music. If you’re ready to bring the joy of music into your home, stop by one of our locations or give us a call at (801) 264-9100
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