Music Lessons in Burbank CA | Los Angeles Music Teachers

This is a question that has been asked countless times over the years. The short answer is that I believe the piano comes easier to small children and adults who cannot dedicate all of their time to practicing.
Aside from these concerns, there are numerous pros and cons to learning each instrument first. The choice boils down to the student's willingness to practice.
Piano vs Guitar
For beginners, learning and memorizing piano notes is easier because of the repeating pattern across all keys. To make things even simpler, many piano teachers start by teaching adults the white keys (there are 7 in total), or while kids learn the black keys (total of 5).
After they have been mastered, the remaining notes come into play. Beginners can also understand basic musical patterns on a piano. If the notes move downwards while reading sheet music, the student knows they’re moving to the left along their piano keys. Intervals, also known as the measurable distance between each note, are easily identified. Pattern based songs can be learned within the first month of lessons.
Note patterns tend to be more complex for beginner guitar players. Each string comes with its own arrangement of notes. This makes it far more difficult to learn which string will affect the pitch, allowing it to go higher or lower.
Unlike pianos, guitars must be tuned before playing. This is another area of study that must be conquered quickly. Otherwise, a student is unable to use their guitar without seeking assistance from their guitar teacher.​

Instant Gratification
Piano lessons offer instant gratification. Playing a note is easier. Sit up straight, lift the wrists upwards, gently curl the fingers and go from there. While the piano will become trickier later on once rhythmically independent notes come into play, the student will learn more about the effect of different fingers and hands.
With guitar lessons, more coordination is involved during the early stages. Students must learn to to fret and pluck strings simultaneously without dampening the sound, whereas new piano students do not use both hands right away.
For piano students, learning curves slow once necessary coordination develops. Using both hands on the keys and playing different melodies and chords is not as easy as it looks. Playing guitar becomes easier over time. Guitar students can grasp chords and learn how to play songs at a faster pace than many piano students.
This point is debatable, as each student learns at their own pace. The student's own level of enthusiasm will also determine their learning speeds.

Learning to Read Music
Piano and guitar lessons provide better learning opportunities than singing lessons, as these teachers will offer a formal music theory foundation. Students are taught how to read music. Conversely, a guitar teacher may start with beginners' books before moving into teaching by example and by ear.
Classical guitar lessons are the exception here. Students must pass RCM exams after learning through graded lesson books. Those learning other styles of guitar playing can ask a teacher to include note reading and music theory in their lessons. The best instructors are always happy to oblige.

It’s All About Preference
The piano is an excellent choice for children. Instant gratification is offered during the first few lessons, there is less music theory to learn and the student is given a foundation from which to work with later.
Deciding between the piano and guitar is all a matter of preference. Do you require instant gratification from piano learning with every key laid out like a musical map? Or would you like to work a bit harder to memorize a fret board and become a master of the electric guitar?
Both instruments are able to provide a crash course on essential music fundamentals. Other instruments simply cannot provide the same benefits. They are both great beginner instruments that provide their own differing paths to the same objective: to enjoy playing music and maybe even become a professional musician over the long haul.

When it comes to the age old question of whether it is too late to starting taking music lessons, there are simple answers and there are answers that are slightly more detailed.
The easy answer is no. It is never too late. On the other hand, those who want a slightly more detailed answer will need to know a few things.
For starters, there are a wide range of disadvantages that come up for those who try to start the process of learning how to master a musical instrument during a latter period in life. We are referring to adults in these instances, as opposed to school aged children.
After all, a 21 year old is hardly too old to start learning. So what are these disadvantages and how do they affect the learning process? Time is a major consideration in these instances. It will take an older student a great deal of time and effort to achieve their objectives.
An older student is simply not going to have the same amount of time and energy to dedicate to the learning process. When a child comes home from school, they have a limited number of obligations. They do not have to endure the same number demands on their time.
An adult will need to spend their free time running errands, socializing and dealing with work related concerns. While this may seem daunting, an adult should be able to carve out at least 30 to 45 minutes each day to practice their instrument.
One downside is that an adult will not be able to receive free tuition from their school or locate a helpful peer group of fellow beginners. This is something that you may have been able to take advantage of if you had taken the time to start earlier.
Those who are self motivating and self discipline will still be able to learn the ins and outs of their instrument quickly. It is important to remain realistic about the process, though. No matter how hard you try, you are not going to be Carlos Santana or Stevie Wonder by the time next month rolls around.
In order to learn more more about the mechanics of your chosen instrument, you should be taking the time to study the basic principles of music theory. This is especially helpful for guitar players who are looking to further their understanding of melody, harmony and rhythm.
The more you know about each of these principles at a theoretical level, the easier the learning process becomes. Learning about chord construction, intervals and scales may seem a bit academic and overly heavy. However, it is a crucial aspect of the learning process and a great way to open up your mind to new information. ​

Do you wish to learn a new skill like how to play the piano? While doing your research, some of the questions that are likely to cross your mind may include; is it difficult to learn piano? How hard can it get? Finding answers to these questions and more won’t be as easy as you may think, considering the fact that several factors are usually at play in determining how easy or otherwise your mastery of the instrument can be. There are a couple of factors which will likely make it quite difficult for you to learn the piano. It is advisable that you try as much as possible to avoid them all. Below are five of these factors;​

1.    Learning to play the piano without the help of a teacher:
One of the surefire ways to learn to play piano with ease and progress quite quickly is to learn with the assistance of a piano teacher. Perhaps you do not fancy private lessons, then you can take online classes at TakeLessons Live. They have classes which are apt for beginners and can be taken from the comfort of your home. You would also have access to as many classes as you like.
Some of the ways via which a piano teacher makes the learning process easier include;
a.    Establishing good habits:
An integral aspect of the successful mastery of the piano is learning the correct posture, finger movement, and hand position. Although learning piano with the aid of a teacher doesn’t mean you will end up being a concert pianist, but it would certainly prevent you from picking up some terrible habits which may become too difficult to break in the future.
b.    Making stylistic corrections:
You would only get the proper music sounds when you play your piano at the appropriate tempo, volume, and rhythm. By incorporating the right fingering and hand movement, you will also find it easier to learn the instrument. It can be quite difficult, if not impossible, to identify your mistakes without the help of a piano teacher to point them out for you. A piano teacher will offer you one-on-one feedback, which is impossible to achieve when you are using just a textbook. This is the key to moving to the next level.
c.    Providing teaching materials:
Not everyone is astute at reading music or understanding other parts of music theory. If you belong to this group then it is very unlikely that you would assign homework for yourself. Alternatively, a private teacher can identify areas where you appear to be struggling and recommend that you take extra classes so you can improve.
d.    Holding you accountable:
Most of us make New Year resolutions at the beginning of the year, only to break them only after a few weeks. You are more likely to achieve your goals if there is someone else to hold you accountable.

2.    Being unwilling to practice:
Your ease of learning piano is highly dependent on how much you practice between your weekly lessons. If all you do is practice twice between your weekly lessons, then you are not likely to progress at the pace you may have in mind. It is expected that you practice for at least 30minutes every day, if you wish to see improvement from week to week.

3.    Lack of prior music background:
The fact you don’t have any musical background doesn’t mean you can’t learn and master the piano, but you should expect it to be a little difficult and longer at the start. You must be patient with yourself and remain focused.

4.    Learning on a cheap keyboard:
Although this may sound unreal, but it is as true as the previous points mentioned. You will only limit yourself and make the learning process more difficult if you don’t use a proper 88-key piano. You don’t need an extra element to frustrate your learning attempt. For the most authentic playing experience, the best option is an upright piano.

5.    Too high or too low expectation:
It is important you begin your piano lessons with moderate expectations. Don’t assume you will be playing Rachmaninoff in just a few days of your lessons. The idea is to get the basics first and build a strong foundation. You are expected to learn basic melodies and one-handed songs before you move to the more complicated works.
Considering the above listed factors, the benefit of taking private piano lessons far outweighs learning on your own. Virtually every factor that make learning the piano difficult can be traced back to whether you have a private teacher by your side. Therefore, the first step towards achieving mastery with a new musical instrument is finding a qualified teacher.

In the 1940’s clarinet was one of the most popular of all jazz instruments. Think of 3 of some of the biggest names in popular music of that era and you’ll come up with “Benny Goodman” (who had many number one hits), “Artie Shaw” (who also had number one hits), and many others including the great Woody Herman, (who also had many hits). All of these were great jazz clarinetists and leaders. The clarinet was also a huge part of Glenn Miller Big Band sound (who was a trombone leader, and according to the “Glenn Miller Story” said the clarinet helped him find his unique sound).
At that same time in the early 40’s, the saxophone was gaining in popularity. Don’t forget that the big band was comprised of 5 saxophones, 4 trombones, and 4 trumpets and rhythm section. The saxophone could more easily compete with the loud brass and add the flavor and energy right for the dance bands of that era. Many saxophonists (who also doubled on clarinet) found that the clarinet had a very popular period in the early 40’s but by the end of the 40’s, with the advent of Bebop, the clarinet started to decline in popularity, and being thought of as more of a swing instrument which began to take on the impression of being passe to the hip new bebop players of the late 40’s and early 50’s. And by the mid 50’s the Hard Bop era which was influenced by rhythm & blues brought the saxophone to even higher popularity.
The clarinet never recovered it’s place in jazz. The saxophone had many decades of some of the most influential jazz stars of the late 40’s, 50’s right through today’s current jazz music, with Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Charlie Parker, Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Michael Brecker to name but a few of the greatest jazz musicians that shaped jazz. With the exception of a few great jazz clarinetists like Buddy DeFranco and Eddie Daniels who always sounded modern and hip, very few other clarinetists ever gained enough popularity to inspire new young clarinetists to play the instrument.
And one final thought that may have led to the unfavorable direction of the clarinet was the simple fact that it’s a much more difficult instrument to play than the saxophone. I don’t think there would be much argument among woodwind doublers (who play both clarinet and saxophone) that the saxophone is a much more logically laid out instrument and much more free blowing than the clarinet. That fact in itself could be the real reason that the saxophone replaced the clarinet in jazz.

​The obvious, but essential answer is to call a music school in your area and get a jazz saxophone instructor if your family can afford one. Even a few lessons from a good jazz saxophone teacher who is versed in the various styles you will encounter, will be able to help you improve your reading ability as well as prepare you for playing jazz.
With or without a sax teacher you should buy the Lennie Niehaus Book, “Basic Jazz Conception” It’s a fantastic book to help young saxophone players. I have used it for 30 years with my students and there’s never been a better book to teach jazz conception. You will learn how to play swing music and basic jazz articulations as well as the basic rhythms and style of playing jazz saxophone. And best of all, it now comes with a professional saxophone player playing all of the jazz etudes so you can hear how it’s supposed to sound.
Basic Jazz Conception for Saxophone, Vol 2: 12 Jazz Exercises; 10 Jazz Tunes (w/CD): Lennie Niehaus: 9781934638019: Amazon.com: Books
You should do your best to take you sheet music and practice every day at home. Sometimes you can find recorded examples of some of the music you will be playing and listening to a professional player will help you understand how it should sound, whether rhythmically or tonally or stylistically.
Listening to a lot of tenor saxophone players is a great way to improve your playing. These days, there are more books and theory about how to play and improvise jazz, but the way many jazz players learned in the past is through just listening to jazz and imitating what they hear. That is a process called transcribing in the music world. You can do it if you start with something simple like an easy melody you like. Transcribe and write it out the best you can or just do it all from memory. That’s a sure way to improve your playing and prepare you for improvising, which as a tenor saxophone player in a jazz band you will be forced to do at one point or another. What ever work you can do in that direction will definitely help you get prepared for improvising. Jazz improvisation, is all about using your ear. Theory helps too but you can do a lot on your own just transcribing and imitating great players!
Good Luck!

​Right now in 2019 the piano/keyboard is the most requested instrument to play by young musicians at least in the U.S. It’s the number one instrument in most music schools with the guitar a close second. It’s probably the most versatile of all musical instruments and is used in every style of music. It can be played or accompany other instruments and is often played as a solo instrument. It also covers a range from the lowest of bass instruments to the highest piccolo sounds.
In addition, many musicians who’s main instrument is a woodwind, string, brass or percussion learn the piano because it is a very visual instrument that makes it easy to learn theory and work out compositions. Many composers think of it as “having the orchestra in their hands,” therefore most of the great composers for hundreds of years were pianists and used the piano to compose and that remains the same currently in contemporary music.
The electric keyboard makes it possible for more parents to be able to afford to buy a piano because electric keyboard companies are able to make them for as low as 50.00 and even good 88 key electric keyboards with weighted keys are less than 500.00.