Piano lessons - teach myself or find a teacher?

[Dancergirl]

Dd3 is nearly 8 and has shown an interest in learning the piano. We have a piano at home and I play myself.

I have a couple of the basic books from when my older dds learnt (they've both stopped now) which explain the basics and I've been doing them with her when we have time.

But I'm wondering if she have a proper teacher? I'm familiar with music but I'm not a teacher and also doing it at home is a bit as and when rather than a regular weekly lesson.

Also she gets frustrated quite easily but part of that is she can let go with me, she'd have to behave better with a teacher!

WWYD?

[Ferguson]

I have written many replies to similar queries, so for now, if you search on MN, my name, and piano, keyboard, music theory, etc you should find a few things.

I'll come back when I can with more detailed advice.

[MomOfTwoGirls2]

I would get a teacher, and then help her with practice. She'll get best of both worlds then.

[iwaly]

My experience for what it is worth is that it depends a bit on your finances and your own abilities and also on your child's personality.

Ideally independent lessons work better (assuming a good teacher) BUT in reality you pay quite a bit for them (£15 a week is the going rate here and this can soon add up). At the beginning you are paying for some quite simple stuff. If finances aren't such an issue then fair enough. But it was an issue for me.

So if you are confident you know enough of the basics (not just the notes but to make sure they develop good fingering, hand position etc) then I personally found that by at least getting them started myself I could save quite a lot. But my children were cooperative.

I really only got them started. When I reached the point where they were about Grade 1 level (which is still fairly early stages) then I found a good teacher. (Who was pleasantly surprised at the level they had reached and is quite happy with my approach).

[Ferguson]

Provided your knowledge and skills are accurate, and DD is happy to be guided by you, I think it is perfectly feasible to start her off yourself. There are many tutor books, often with a CD illustrating what the music should sound like, for an outlay probably less than the cost of one hour with a private teacher.

Precision and accuracy are important aspects, and just because early pieces might be easy, they should still be played with as much feeling and sensitivity as later difficult pieces.

Also listening to as wide a range of piano and other music, thinking constructively about the piece, its rhythm, speed, phrasing and overall 'feeling' of the music, is useful.

Is your piano acoustic (and in reasonable condition and in tune) or an electronic instrument?