The best age to start piano lessons is 7 years old. 7 year olds are physically and cognitively mature enough to succeed in piano lessons. They are old enough to get a significant amount of benefit from lessons, and young enough that they will have plenty of years to learn and grow.
How do I know if my child is ready for piano lessons?
While 7 year olds are almost always ready to start piano lessons, your child might be ready a bit younger. Here are 6 things to look out for to evaluate if your child is ready for piano lessons.
1. Fine motor skills
Young children use their hands primarily for basic motor skills, like grasping and making a fist. The bones and muscles in their hands need to develop to support fine motor skills. By age 7, the hands and fingers are ready to operate independently and play the piano.
If your child is holding a pencil with a mature grip, this is a good sign that their hands are probably ready for the piano.
2. Attention span
The most common way to learn piano is by taking private lessons. For beginners, these are usually 30 minutes long. Teachers who work with children understand that they need to vary the activities to keep their student’s attention.
The child doesn’t need to be able to focus for 30 minutes straight, but they should be able to stay engaged in a single task for at least 5 minutes at a time.
Attention span actually affects practicing more than the lessons themselves. To be successful a beginner needs to practice at least 15 minutes a day, although 30 is preferable. If they can’t stay engaged for at least 5 minutes at a time, they are going to have a hard time getting through all their practice assignments.
3. Reading
Being able to read will make things a lot easier for piano students. Pre-readers will need a significant amount of supervision from parents to practice, or else risk not remembering what was on their assignment sheet for the week.
From a bare-basics perspective, the only truly necessary skill is to know the first few letters of the alphabet, because we name the keys with the letters A through G.
However, more experience tracking words across the page will translate into an easier time tracking notes across the page, too.
4. Rights/Lefts and Fingers
Most students should know their right from their left hand when they start lessons. There is an exception, though. Some neuro-divergent students will continue to mix up their hands well through elementary school. They can still learn the piano and will benefit from lessons.
Finger independence, on the other hand, is less negotiable. It is important that students be able to identify and use each of their fingers separately.
5. Temperament
Learning the piano takes time and a lot of patience. Students often don’t get things right the first try, and that’s a good thing! The challenge is part of the learning process.
Students who get very frustrated with themselves or expect to get new concepts quickly do better if they wait until they are a little more developed to begin lessons. Older beginners get more “quick wins” which keeps students with perfectionist tendencies from getting frustrated before they’ve really had a chance to get started.
6. Interest
Above all else, they need to want to play the piano! We all learn better when we are pursuing something that interests us. Students with internal motivation progress much better than students who are being forced by their parents.
The good news for musically inclined parents is that most children do have an interest in learning to play piano. The point of lessons is to foster and grow that interest. You can do that by starting at the right age, ensuring they have time for regular practice.
Younger children might express a strong interest to learn to play the piano if they have an older sibling who already takes lessons. You may want to talk to a music teacher about your child’s development to see if they are ready for piano lessons. Because interest is the most important thing, it can be good to follow your child’s lead and worry less about starting at the perfect age. If your child is not ready for formal piano lessons, look for other music classes intended for their age group.
Why is 7 the best age to start piano lessons?
7 is not only an age where almost all children are developmentally ready to start piano lessons, it is also a great point in their academic career.
At this age, kids rarely receive homework or have extensive extra-curricular activities. They have time in the afternoon to develop a solid practice routine.
Students who start at 7 cover all the basics by the time they enter middle school and are ready to move into intermediate repertoire. This is a very fulfilling point of study and will keep them motivated to continue playing piano, even as their schedules get a bit busier.
As they are preparing to enter high school, many students evaluate whether they have time for piano lessons. If they choose to continue lessons, they will spend their high school years as advanced students with the potential of making music part of their careers. If they stop lessons, they will have had 7 years to create a solid foundation of music-making in their lives. They will be able to continue playing and enjoying music, even without a teacher.
7 years old is the best age to start piano lessons, not just because kids are developmentally ready at 7 years old, but because it also aligns well with their general education progression.
How long should a 7 year old play piano?
Ideally, a 7 year old would practice at least 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. It’s okay to break that up into several 10-15 minute sessions.
To get a solid foundation that will allow them to continue making music into adulthood, they should continue their course of study for at least 5 years.
Why not start younger?
Young students who are not ready for lessons tend to make very slow progress. They are more likely to quit piano before they have a solid foundation of skills, because they have already done it for a long time. Older children tend to quickly catch up to students who started younger, erasing any perceived benefit of starting at a younger age.
What age do concert pianists start?
Concert pianists start lessons anywhere from 3-9 years old. A career in performance is not dependent on starting lessons at a very young age. It is important to remember that very few pianists have a future as a concert pianist. It is a very high competition career, and success requires the right combination of talent, education, hard work, and even some luck.
You do not have to be a touring artist to be a professional pianist. Many pianists have futures performing at smaller venues and for events. Performing on this level is a great way to have a career as a performing artist, without even half the pressure of being a concert pianist.
What age is too late for piano?
While starting too young comes with pitfalls, it is never too late to start piano! Adolescents and adults should consider whether they have time to play regularly, rather than worry about their age.
Older beginners need to be aware that people learn differently at different ages. They should seek out a teacher who knows how to work with their specific age group.
I have had many students begin in middle or high school. They enjoy their lessons and tend to progress quickly – as long as they practice regularly.
Adults typically find that the best time to pursue the piano is when they don’t have children in the house. For some this means lessons during young adulthood. Others wait until their kids are off to college, or even take piano lessons as an activity after they retire.
My child is not ready for piano lessons. What is my next step?
The gift of a musical education can be achieved in many ways besides taking private piano lessons. Kindermusik, Musicgarten, and Music and Me all have wonderful early childhood education programs. Even story times at local libraries often include singing or rhythm and movement activities.Music classes encourage exactly the types of brain development that prepare children for formal lessons down the road.
You can also go ahead and get an instrument. Young children love to play around on the piano, and improvising is a fun way for a kid to interact with music before they are ready for formal piano lessons.
My child is ready for piano lessons. What are my next steps?
To have the most success with piano lessons, you will want to find a good teacher and get an instrument.
Find a Teacher
It can be good to look for a teacher before you buy an instrument, so that you can get their opinion on your purchase.
You want to find a good teacher. Teachers do more than teach new concepts, they also motivate students to practice and cultivate the love of music. Plan to interview a few different teachers, so that you can pick the one that clicks the best with your child.
How to find a local teacher
- The Music Teacher’s National Association keeps a member directory.
- Not all local teachers have websites, but many who don’t at least have google business listings. Google “piano teachers near me” and check out the map results.
- Local colleges with music programs can provide you with a few options: their teachers often also teach independently, they may be able to refer you to current students or graduates that are teaching in the area.
- Ask your local piano tuner if they keep a list of teachers they know.
How to find an online teacher
- Google! Online teachers are found, well, online.
- Recommendation – ask your friends if they know an online teacher. They won’t all come up on google, and there are more and more teachers meeting with students online.
- Ask a local teacher if they teach online. These days, many teachers have added online lessons to their businesses, even if they still primarily operate locally.
Purchase an Instrument
You need a quality instrument to support you in your progress. If you already have one, great! If you don’t there are resources for you!
If you are leaning towards a digital piano, you might enjoy this blog post: Best Budget Digital Pianos for the Aspiring Pianist
If you are not sure if you want a digital or an acoustic piano, my Piano Buying Guide can help you make that decision and more.
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