How to Choose a Piano Teacher

Whether you’re looking to learn how to play the piano yourself or are seeking a teacher for your child or a loved one, who you trust to guide you in your journey is of utmost importance. Here’s how to make the decision.

Think about your aims

The Music Lesson by Jules-Alexis Muenier

Why are you hoping to learn to play the piano? If seeking a teacher for your child, what do you, and they, hope to gain from the experience?

Learning to play the piano can have a number of social and psychological benefits, helping to boost self-confidence, reduce stress, and create mindful flow-states. For children, learning an instrument can provide a valuable outlet for emotions and excess energy, stimulating their playfulness and creativity. Numeracy skills, pattern recognition, and logical thinking all play a role in musical literacy. In some sense, no matter what your goals at the piano are, learning an instrument will bestow all of these benefits and more.

As such, try to think about what kind of pieces you’d enjoy playing on the piano – what’s your dream piece? How much time, realistically, do you think, you can spend practicing? The more intrinsically and deeply motivated a student is to learn because of their own goals and curiosity, the more progress they will make.

Little Girl plays Mozart Sonata No 16, K. 545 at the Street Piano

Think about the practicalities

Do you have a specific budget in mind? Remember that piano teachers have often spent years receiving their qualifications, and as such, their fees reflect this. Depending on where you live, there may be a musician’s union or similar organisation you can consult for guidance on what you can expect to pay.

If you have a piano at home and prefer to have your teacher travel to you, this may raise costs slightly. Depending on your schedule and lifestyle, it may be easier for you to opt for a teacher with their own studio.

Start your search

Advantages from establishing a music practice routine

Having thought through your goals and some of the practical necessities, it’s time to start looking for a teacher! The piano is a perennially popular instrument, so don’t fret – you’ll find the perfect teacher, even if it takes some time.
You can begin by asking friends and family if they know anyone, as word of mouth can be very useful. Subsequently, consult the databases and listings of the musician’s union or other reputable musical institutions in your country, including schools and universities. You can also do a simple search online, but be wary of any large organisations that offer surprisingly low rates, as these often pay their freelance teachers poorly. If you have any specific requirements, such as wanting to work towards specific exams, you can include keywords to reflect this in your search.

Remember, a good teacher will list their qualifications and experience and show a genuine passion for teaching in the way that they present themselves. It’s a myth, however, that extensive qualifications or being a famous concert pianist guarantee that someone will be a great teacher. Alongside musicality, essential qualities include patience, empathy, and generosity. A sense of humour is an added bonus!

Start learning

As you schedule your first lesson with a new teacher, make sure you’re clear on how they operate – when and how they expect to be paid, what their cancellation policy is, and what materials you will need for the first lesson.

Are they the right fit?

If it’s your child taking the lessons, it’s a good idea to talk to them after the first session. Rather than expecting them to have learned a great deal, it’s more important to find out what they thought and felt on the whole. It’s a great sign if they said they had fun, found the lesson interesting, are excited to show you something they can now do, or say anything positive about their teacher. It’s impossible to cultivate a positive relationship to learning an instrument – and the associated high-quality practice and potential mastery – with a teacher who is negative, scary, or unnecessarily strict. Many adults who regret lapsing from music cite unpleasant experiences with a childhood teacher as the principal reason for having lost interest in their instrument.

If you were taking the lesson, I find that the most important question to ask yourself is: am I more or less excited to practice after having that lesson? How much you progress at an instrument is hugely dependent upon your own independent practice, so a teacher who motivates you in this regard is worth their weight in gold!

Continuing to learn

Whichever teacher you choose to continue to learn with, remember to stay flexible and adaptable in the process. Check in with yourself or your child regularly to review and celebrate progress, set new goals, and adjust expectations. It’s normal to experience ebbs and flows in learning an instrument, and your child may develop in any direction – whether discovering a passion for a certain kind of repertoire, enjoying performance or composition, or feeling most motivated by exams. Letting them pursue their natural inclinations to specialise, as well as encouraging the acquisition of foundational skills will result in a confident and proactive instrumentalist. It’s normal, also, to struggle in certain areas, such as with sight-reading or aural skills. Maintaining a supportive atmosphere and finding student-specific solutions is essential.

It’s a good idea to encourage social musicality outside of lessons, such as joining a choir, playing with a school or amateur orchestra, playing duets, accompanying singers, or even joining a jazz band – all of these contexts will confer real-life skills and experience that a teacher alone cannot.

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