Real teaching for adult beginners — technique, reading music, and how to practice so that it works. Written by Dr. Maria Pisarenko, DMA, concert pianist and university professor.
September 14, 2026
I was trained in Moscow and I have taught in American universities for years. The two traditions are not better and worse. They are strong in different places, and an adult learning alone needs to know where.
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September 14, 2026
Counting is not a beginner's crutch you outgrow. It is the only way a pulse gets into the body, and there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.
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September 11, 2026
It is not decoration and it is not a difficulty level. The treble clef does exactly one job, and once you know what that job is, the lines and spaces stop being something to memorize.
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September 9, 2026
Eighty-eight keys, one pattern, and a single landmark that makes the whole keyboard readable in about a minute. Piano note names for adult beginners.
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September 9, 2026
A specific answer rather than a reassuring one: what is genuinely harder as an adult beginner, what is genuinely easier, and what actually decides the outcome.
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September 9, 2026
Most adult beginners repeat rather than practice. Five techniques that professionals use, and what a genuinely good fifteen-minute practice session looks like.
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September 8, 2026
Adult beginners blame stiff hands and their age. It is almost always tension, it has three specific causes, and a concert pianist explains how to undo each one.
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September 3, 2026
A concert pianist's plain-English guide to reading piano music for adult beginners — the staff, the treble clef, the time signature, and quarter vs. half notes.
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August 26, 2026
Relaxation, keeping your mind sharp, a lifelong wish, or coming back after years away - how to start piano as an adult, whatever brought you here.
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August 25, 2026
A friendly, honest guide to choosing a piano teacher — why training, playing ability and teaching experience matter, and what to look for before you commit.
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August 24, 2026
A concert pianist's clear explanation of the grand staff, middle C, and how to stop naming every note and start reading by shape.
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August 24, 2026
The hand shape professional pianists use, why flat fingers limit your tone and speed, and how to fix it in one practice session.
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August 24, 2026
Why 20 focused minutes beats two unfocused hours, how to structure a practice session, and what actually drives progress for adult beginners.
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Everything on this blog comes from my free beginner piano course: a real, university-level course I taught for years at colleges, now on YouTube from your very first note. No hacks, no bad habits to un-learn.
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The book I teach from: Alfred's Basic Adult All-in-One, Level 1. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
The first steps to start the right way — no bad habits to un-learn. Join fellow beginners learning with a real university teacher.
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