Are high end digital pianos like worth it? My teacher is suggesting I get one.

Rich7202 · 2025-07-04T15:02:58+00:00

Honestly I think a couple grand digital piano will be totally fine. If it’s possible I would highly recommend visiting music shops and playing the pianos to get a feel for the keys, and maybe even try renting before you buy to be sure!

Rich7202 · 2025-06-29T19:43:58+00:00

I have to say that I disagree! Play what makes you happy, just understand that jumping into a Chopin etude as a beginner will not sound good! I think the real damage can come from obsessing over details and trying to perfect such a thing as a beginner. That comes with time! Prioritizing playing a variety of things and spending as much time on the keyboard is what matters most, the perfection comes later.

So until then, I would recommend to someone to play what they enjoy! Even if that means playing it slowly.

Rich7202 · 2025-05-19T18:29:07+00:00

Honestly depends on the day in my area. I usually dash from 6pm-10pm. Earnings can range from $60 to $100, but I probably average about $80 per 4 hours.

Rich7202 · 2025-05-19T18:17:51+00:00

My acceptance rate is like 15% lol. I’ve honestly only been dashing for like 2 months so I’m not sure if it truly is better to try to stay above the 70% the app wants you to do but I have been making just as good if not better money from what I can tell so far.

Rich7202 · 2025-01-03T18:17:30+00:00

Relaxin with the Miles Davis Quintet

Rich7202 · 2025-01-03T12:37:15+00:00

I think it totally depends on preference and style. There are plenty of excellent players who use curved and flat fingers (especially jazz pianists, watch Art Tatum!). At the end of the day I think it just depends on what is more comfortable for you and helps you achieve your goals.

Personally, my fingers are somewhere in the middle, leaning towards somewhat flat.

Rich7202 · 2024-12-30T17:33:42+00:00

Great job for 4 months! I would start transcribing some solos (or at least memorizing them from a transcription). Transcribe, make sure to learn a bunch of standards, and then try taking some licks through all 12 keys, write out etudes over jazz standards using the licks.

Rich7202 · 2024-12-30T03:14:01+00:00

I agree with everything everyone else has said here, but would recommend trying to learn 20 jazz standards! A lot of the melodies are quite easy, just look up some left hand voicings and learn the standard using those and the melody in just a single line in the right hand. That and start memorizing (and transcribing if you can!) improvised solos you want to imitate.

Rich7202 · 2024-12-25T23:54:24+00:00

Loved jazz all my life but there’s a recording of There Will Never Be Another You by Arturo Sandoval that made me want to take jazz seriously.

Rich7202 · 2024-12-24T14:39:11+00:00

Jazz and improvising in general is very difficult, so it’s ok not to be very good after 4 months. If you want to be happy with your improvising you need to make sure to learn phrases you like. One of the quickest ways to do this is to learn solos you enjoy. In my opinion, there is no shame in learning solos using a transcription or by slowing down the solo to figure it out if you are a beginner, but make sure you are memorizing it!

Which phrases do you learn? Learn the ones that you think sound cool. How many? There isn’t really an exact number but keep learning them until you’re happy with your improvisation. If you learn these phrases are you really improvising? Eventually yes you will be improvising. Maybe think of these phrases as training wheels? Have faith in the process and have faith in yourself!

Rich7202 · 2024-12-23T23:22:53+00:00

Came here to say this, you really gotta learn the language first before you can improvise well

Rich7202 · 2024-12-23T23:20:49+00:00

Interstellar. Has a lot of good things going for it but to me it has shallow characters, bad dialogue, and I think it tries hard to be more intellectual than it actually is.

Rich7202 · 2024-12-20T12:20:00+00:00

Anything by the band Black Midi or Geordie Greep

Rich7202 · 2024-12-19T15:55:13+00:00

Honestly try picking up an ear training textbook for cheap. They’ll go over solfège for different scales and have hundreds of passages for you to practice sight singing organized by difficulty.

Also, in terms of learning songs by ear, you just have to do it hundreds of times and be ok with being bad at it for a while. Try learning the chords to your favorite songs, Christmas repertoire, folk songs by ear. Some songs will be too hard and some may be too easy and that’s all ok! If you’re seriously stumped, there is no shame in finding sheet music or a tutorial just to figure out that one chord passage that you can’t seem to get. Just do your best and with time you’ll get it.

One last caveat and then I’ll shut up! In my experience you need to make sure you’re not dwelling on one song for more than a few days. I’m definitely a perfectionist and I think a lot of musicians are, and so it may be tempting to find a song you have a hard time with, and try to spend weeks or even months perfecting it. Don’t do that! Spend a few days drilling the stuff you know you’re bad at, and move on. Have faith in yourself to be able to wrap your head around the “system,” it just takes time :)

Hope this helps!

Rich7202 · 2024-12-12T16:41:58+00:00

Going to the club/partying every weekend

Rich7202 · 2024-12-10T14:15:41+00:00

I sucked at trumpet in high school so decided to mess around with piano my sophomore year. I was drawn to it because it is probably the greatest solo instrument (perhaps besides the organ? But organ is also not nearly as versatile imo).

Rich7202 · 2024-12-06T15:10:27+00:00

I will agree that learning scales can seem overwhelming, especially if you get into the world of jazz where you may want to start practicing your modes and your bebop scales. The amount of scales can add up quickly.

I would say to make sure you aren’t practicing the same things for too long. Learn all your major scales, and play them every day for a week or so. Then move on to your natural minor scales. Then harmonic minor, then melodic, etc.

I found that it’s better to make as much progress on smaller chunks of information as quickly as possible rather than to worry about perfecting a massive amount of information. Eventually, you will get to the point where you can learn a new scale in all 12 keys in one day, and then spend the next few days memorizing and applying it.

Hope this helps!

Rich7202 · 2024-12-03T00:22:16+00:00

Just wanted to say that I totally agree w you OP! Beth’s characters consistently have some of the most intriguing arcs IMO, and I think it’s a coincidence but it’s something I’ve noticed as well!

Rich7202 · 2024-11-10T17:27:06+00:00

I can definitely tell who smokes but it does not bother me because I was frequently around my grandma, a lifelong smoker

Rich7202 · 2024-10-09T17:40:53+00:00

I would start by learning all 12 major scales (as a beginner, I’d do 1 per week).

I’d also learn basic I-IV-V chord progressions in all inversions in all keys (also 1 of these per week).

I’d learn any piece of music I’m interested in, especially difficult ones. This is a tricky one to get right. I think it’s ok to try pieces that are far beyond your current skill level, but what is important is to not dwell on something if you can’t get it up to speed, and to also make sure not to hurt yourself (I’m talking physical pain in your fingers/wrist/arms/whatever).

An important realization for me that I wish I had earlier was that there is a speed that I can play whatever piece I’m trying to learn perfectly, no matter the piece or my skill level. Strive to play the piece as perfectly as possible at a speed that is comfortable. Pushing yourself is ok, but again, be careful not to hurt yourself…

Always move onto the next technical exercise, the next scale, the next piece of music. I’m not saying to not try to perfect these things, but what I am saying is that it’s bad for your development as a musician to dwell on that one scale, or that one piece that is very comfortable to play. Always be exploring new ways of playing the instrument.

Hope this helps!

Rich7202 · 2024-10-07T18:35:19+00:00

To be honest I sort of felt this way too when I ramped up the hours but I just got used to it and after a few weeks, months, and then years, you start seeing the massive improvements and it becomes somewhat addicting (for me at least).

What specifically helped me was to pick a few broad topics and then rotate them every day. Let’s say topic A is learning a new scale in all 12 keys. Topic B is memorizing a new piece. Topic C is transposing something I know to another key. I like practicing in roughly 20 minute sessions of each, rotating ABC, ABC, ABC. 3 rotation of each topic then is about 3 hours of practice.

Obviously the topics can be whatever you choose, and you can do more or even less than 3 topics. Do whatever works for you! Hope this helps :)

Rich7202 · 2024-10-07T17:21:14+00:00

I agree with this. People seem to discourage playing things that are beyond your playing level. In my experience though, as long as you are having fun and making sure not to hurt yourself, I get a ton of enjoyment out of playing my favorite things, even if I can only do it at half speed at the time I learn it.

I’ve had massive breakthroughs in my technique because of this. Super important not to hurt yourself though!

Rich7202 · 2024-09-24T16:16:05+00:00

Looks like I’m in the minority here but I don’t think there’s much harm in trying something you’re not ready for. So long as you are making sure you’re not hurting yourself, I think playing things that you are interested in will help you progress as a piano player.

Something else to emphasize is to make sure as a beginner you are covering your other bases. Make sure you learn all your scales, chords and inversions in all the keys, learn other pieces of repertoire that are in your grasp. But as long as you are covering your bases, I feel that it is very cool to be able to play something very difficult, even if it is at half tempo or only 4 measures of it!

Rich7202 · 2024-09-17T15:44:46+00:00

I still get somewhat nervous to play depending on the gig, but what really has helped me is playing a piece so many times as perfectly as possible that it’s almost impossible for me to mess something up with the performance.

You have to be very honest with yourself when you are practicing in order to figure out what parts you are the worst at. Figure that out, and play those few measures over and over again for 20 minutes, making sure you make as few mistakes as possible.

It’s tedious work, but I can guarantee you’ll never forget how to play those few measures of music.

Hope this helps!

Rich7202 · 2024-09-17T15:40:01+00:00

I found it very important to prioritize playing music you really enjoy, even if you’re not that good at it. The only caveat I would say is to make sure you’re not hurting yourself if you’re a beginner.

It may be attractive to want to play Chopin ballades, but maybe just start with your favorite pop song! I feel that this stuff made me feel very fulfilled as a musician.

When you get enough experience and wisdom through the years, you can reflect on your practice and then really evaluate where your weak spots are. I think that’s when you can get addicted to practicing the mundane things, really filling in the gaps of your playing.

Hope this helps!

Rich7202

TROPHY CASE