Sight-reading music is a common practice among piano players.  This is when you play a piece of music for the first time, even though it may be unfamiliar to you.  Though it is not common to play a song perfectly the first time through, here are 8 tips to make sight-reading music easier for you.

Tip # 1. Key Signature.  Pay close attention to the key signature of the piece you are about to play.  Try to remember the appropriate sharps and flats in that key signature so you will know to play those whenever they occur throughout the song. 

Tip # 2. Time Signature.  This is also important to look at before you start sight-reading the piece.  You will need to know what kind of note gets one beat. One question to always ask is “how many beats in a measure”.

Tip # 3. Key or Time Signatures Changes.  Check through your music for any changes to the key signature or time signature.  Not knowing about a transition will obviously affect the quality of your play. 

Tip # 4. Starting and Ending Notes.  It helps if you are familiar with the starting and ending note or chord of a song before you start playing.  These are good reference points to guide you during your sight-reading.

Tip # 5. Note the Rhythm.  Refer to tip # 6 as well. It is easy to play simple melody notes. What makes for a much more interesting sound is the addition of chords, or the rhythm.  As you look through the song, you usually can get an idea of how it will go.  This will ease you through when trying to play the correct rhythm during sight-reading.

Tip # 6.  Play the Melody First.  Also look through the right hand melody line. Play this through first.  This will help give you an idea of the sound of the song and then you can put it all together and you will be able to identify the unique melodic line.

Tip # 7.  Check for Other Markings.  You should know all about loudness/softness, speed, and other technical aspects of music. Check the printed sheets for these markings and make a mental note of them. 

Tip # 8. Relax and Focus. Finally, before you play it is important to take a deep breath and relax yourself.  Focus on what you are about to play.  Try to play the song all the way through for your first sight-reading.  This gives you a general idea of what the song will sound like.  Later you can break it down and work on each measure or group of measures as you see fit. Remember. We are playing music for the love of it, not as a chore.  

Maybe you are asking yourself why you should learn to sight-read music.  Why not just learn the song a little bit at a time?  Sight-reading forces you to move forward at a faster pace until you finish the song, ultimately helping you learn to play music faster.  This helps you get rid of the bad habits that lead to starts and stops when first playing a new piece of music.  Sight-reading is an important skill to learn if you wish to become a good piano player.

For more tips about learning to play piano, including a free mini-course, visit the Learning To Play Piano Today site.

There are many reasons to play an instrument.  Piano is no exception, but you may be wondering why you should play?  Mastering the piano requires a lot of patience and dedication, and you’ll find that within most of musical styles, there are massively talented musicians that take what seems to be such an ordinary instrument, and create audio masterpieces.

Fans of jazz music will have certainly heard of the mainstream greats, like Count Basie and Duke Ellington, alongside modern geniuses taking the latest charts by storm, like Jim Brickman, the artist of original piano pieces that make it onto major “smooth jazz” radio stations internationally, as well as the more popular inspiration, pop and new age stations.  There are also a variety of well known rock pianists from around the globe, like Elton John, Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Carole King, and Carly Simon. 

There are also a lot of classic and modern rock bands out there, and some of the best ones have included a fifth member on keyboards.  Dennis DeYoung, front man for the band Styx is one of the better known rock keyboardists.  Other exceptional artists include Tony Banks from Genesis, Rick Wakeman from Yes, and David Sancious, who has famously played alongside Carlos Santana, Sting and Bruce Springsteen.

Playing the piano can expand your musical knowledge and taste to include classical and other styles of music.  It may not currently be your desire to learn this style of music, but you’ll probably end up enjoying it as you begin to expand your piano playing to pieces by greats like Schubert, Mandelssohn, Bach, Beethoven, Brahms and Mozart.  As you hear the different works from the above mentioned classical artists, it becomes more tempting to try to play them.  This is sure to impress your friends and family, as well as yourself once you start to master them.  After a while, as you progress and become more natural, it is quite likely that you could end up playing solo or joining a band.  Being a professional performer can benefit you personally or financially.  Of course it depends how lucky you are to get a high paying job as a piano player, but it’s worth a try if it is something you love to do.

Learning to Play the Piano Today can benefit you in other ways too.

The piano can help you to release your tensions from a busy day, or clear your mind from a stressful situation.  Even when you feel sad, playing the piano can make you feel better as you focus your mind on the music and the sounds you are creating.  The other thing is that piano playing can enhance self-discipline.  It is an activity that requires daily concentration, and the rewards can be tremendous.  This keeps you motivated to work harder toward goals in all aspects of your life. 

Still not convinced? Well, there are a few more benefits as follows:. In some ways, it is easier to learn than becoming a vocalist because you don’t have to worry about being off pitch. That is, unless your piano is out of tune! One quick trip to the piano tuner, and problem fixed!.  Learning the guitar requires string replacements and daily tuning, whereas wind instruments may need new mouthpieces or reeds.  But the piano only requires two things – you and your fingers!  Lastly, one big reason of learning to play the piano is for personal gratification and achievement.  You can feel a sense of true happiness when you play a composition well.  Bringing music into your life will surely make you a stronger, more energetic person in your mind, body, and soul.

In the past if you needed to learn how to sing, play guitar, or play piano you had to hire a local musician for private lessons. This was definitely an expensive way to go about learning music! It was also not always particularly efficient because the sad fact is, many local music instructors are really bad at teaching and receiving music lessons from an instructor like this may be much worse than not receiving music lessons at all.

Now it’s the internet age and it’s much easier to get the musical lessons you need as you can download them on the web immediately. There’s nothing to wait for. These online lessons are also satisfaction guaranteed which means there’s no risk in trying them out.

Singorama online singing lessons are the recommended online singing lessons. Everything you need to learn how to sing like a real professional is included and you can actually be singing just like a pro in less than three months if you follow the program closely. As previously mentioned, the program is 100% satisfaction guaranteed and can be downloaded online immediately. You can start learning to sing exactly like your favorite singer whether it be Mariah Carey or Mick Jagger. These singing lessons also include a lot of great free bonuses such as a free “mini recording studio” which you will also get instant access to.

Jamorama online guitar lessons are the recommended online guitar lessons. You can learn to play like your favorite guitarists and also develop your own unique style with these extremely effective guitar lessons. As with Singorama, Jamorama can be downloaded online immediately. If you want to be a great guitarist, why should you wait? Start learning to play like Jimi Hendrix, Van Halen, and Clapton today!

Rocket Piano lessons are the recommended online piano lessons. Rocket Piano is just as effective for learning piano as Singorama is for learning to sing and Jamorama is for guitar. It is highly recommended that you learn to play piano even if it’s not to be your main instrument. It really helps you to understand music when you can play piano. With these online lessons you’ll learn how to play your favorite songs that feature piano whether they are by The Beatles or Beethoven.