When should your child start piano lessons?

“When should my child start piano lessons?”

For many parents who love music, this is the big question. And it’s different for different families. The recommendations I give depend on a lot of factors, including:

The parents’ goals for their child
The child’s musical interest
The child’s musical talent
The child’s personality and learning style
The family’s lifestyle and daily schedule
The family’s budget

To help you make this decision for yourself, here are a few of my thoughts about each of these:

The parents’ goals for their child
Do you want your child to become a virtuoso pianist by the time they reach their teens? This is entirely valid, but will require that they forego some other activities and spend a lot of daily time at the piano, for years. If this is your goal, I would start them at a very young age (3-4?), maybe in a good Suzuki piano program or with a qualified local teacher, and supplement the piano lessons with group singing classes such as Music Together or whatever is offered in your area. Choose 4-5 pieces of great piano music and play those recordings a lot at home and in the car, etc.
You can also encourage them to improvise in jazz, classical or popular styles and play fun “improv” games with them at the piano. I have some parents who supplement their kids’ lessons by helping them learn from my piano improv video course. The course works very well as a supplement to traditional lessons and you don’t have to pay full price for a second weekly in-person lesson.

The child’s musical interest
Opinions vary widely on this one. If you consider music to be an essential part of an overall education then it doesn’t matter if your child shows interest or not. They’ll get a lot out of their lessons, including good work/study habits and a sense of “flow” and problem-solving in real time. Studies have shown that kids with musical training tend to do better in all their school subjects and on tests. On the other hand, parents do have to prioritize their children’s activities and it’s true that “you can’t do everything.” Therefore, some parents emphasize those activities in which their kids show special interest. I teach one boy whose parents made him ask for lessons for an entire year before calling me. They knew that this particular kid would stick with lessons longer if he really wanted to learn, so they made him “pay his dues” ahead of time, so to speak. In their case, it paid off very well: their son loves his lessons and practices daily on his own accord.

The child’s musical talent
This is similar to the “interest” question above, with one important addition: if your child shows extraordinary talent at a very young age (like picking out tunes on the keyboard at age 2 or 3), then they will benefit greatly from starting very young. Early lessons will develop their musical ear and hand coordination far more rapidly then if they start later on. Even if they eventually switch to a different instrument, their early piano training will make everything come easier for them. They’ll internalize music like a language in a way that’s more difficult (but still possible) later on.

The child’s personality and learning style
As a parent, you know your child better than anyone else. Your 4-year old son may be very talented, but will he sit still for a weekly 30-minute lesson? If so, then by all means go ahead and contact a piano teacher. But if not, your money may be better spent on a group singing or musical movement class and waiting a year before beginning lessons. Sometimes you’ll have to try a few lessons and “see how it goes” before making this decision. Just be sure to speak candidly with the piano teacher in advance about this. Let them know you’re starting the lessons on a trial basis.

The family’s lifestyle and daily schedule
As I said above, you “can’t do everything.” If your daughter is involved with 3 sports, ballet, and has tons of homework from school, they simply might not have enough time to learn piano in a meaningful way, despite your best intentions. If this is the case, I would look into a school choir or any other way to keep her involved in music, but without the after school time demands of learning an instrument. Learning some guitar chords during the pre-teen and teen years is also a good way to keep the musical flame alive in a fun way, without the expense of weekly piano lessons.

The family’s budget
This one is self-explanatory. If piano is a huge priority and you simply don’t have the budget for lessons, I suggest you use this as an opportunity to learn a little piano yourself and teach your child. If your family dynamic is right and your child is willing, this can be a great family activity. I’ve seen this work successfully with both home-schooled kids and with kids in traditional schools. But a lot depends on the individual parent-child relationship.

I myself didn’t have a formal piano lesson until I was 15 years old. But I benefited greatly from a rich home musical environment which included lots of singing, a piano where I could teach myself from the age of 6 or so, and a good school music program where I could learn trumpet and play in the school orchestra. In retrospect, I had a lot of later catching up to do on piano, but my passion for music was kept alive so well that I loved every minute of it.

I wish you and your children the very best with your piano pursuits. It’s a wonderful way to experience music. The factors I’ve discussed above will help you as a parent find the right way for you and your child.

You might also want to read How To Keep Teens Interested In Piano

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