Anyone who has learned to play the piano would likely agree that playing beautiful music is rewarding unto itself. But playing the piano is a skill that brings with it a myriad of benefits. Although some of these benefits apply to children in their developmental years, many of them also apply to adults. It’s never too late to learn—and learn from—playing the piano.
1. Physical Improvements
Children will develop better dexterity, ambidexterity and fine motor skills. It may also help with coordination and timing that will come in handy when the child learns other hobbies, such as dance or sports. Piano can also help adults as well, by maintaining coordination and strength in the hands.
2. Focus And Concentration
The challenging part of learning piano is coordinating your hands to play different things at the same time. By learning this type of split concentration, you’ll learn how to pay attention to more than one thing at a time—making the piano an ideal instrument for children with ADHD. For adults, learning split concentration will make you a better listener and help you with multi-tasking.
3. Self Esteem And Constructive Criticism
The process of learning piano from a teacher who gives gentle, encouraging feedback helps children to learn to accept constructive criticism without taking it personally. They learn that everyone has room for improvement, and that feedback will help them grow. Children and adults can both learn from presenting themselves in public by performing in front of others, which can give confidence, and help with public speaking.
4. Better Academics
Grade school students who learn piano will develop better spatial and general cognitive development than those who don’t. Learning to recognize notes, intervals, and other music theory will help children develop better mathematic skills.
5. Social Interaction
By playing piano in front of a group, children will learn social skills, how to network with others who share the same interests and abilities, and how to communicate.
6. Handling Stress, Success, and Disappointment
When performing in front of others, children will learn how to handle stress, and the practice leading up to the recital will teach self-discipline, patience, dedication, and how to set and achieve goals.
When a child performs well, they’ll learn how to accept compliments and that hard work can be rewarding. If a child doesn’t perform well, they’ll learn how to handle disappointment, and how moving forward and working harder will improve their results in the future.
By learning the piano, both children and adults can learn a new skill, enjoy the relaxing pastime of playing music, and gain many cognitive, social, physical, and social benefits that will help them for years to come. Consider using Playground Sessions’ music learning software to be able to learn from home.