5 Different Methods for Teaching Piano in Class
No two students are alike, which will require you to adjust your teaching to aid them. Here are the different methods we recommend for teaching piano in class.
Learning to play a new instrument takes time and practice, and no two learners are the same. The ideal method for one student may not work for another because all of us are different. You may learn best by watching someone, but your students may need to approach the task themselves in order to wrap their minds around it. Learn about five different methods for teaching piano in class to help each of your students excel.
Suzuki Method
The Suzuki Method is a Japanese method of music training where teachers treat learning an instrument like learning a language. In this method, you approach teaching piano in the same way you would a new language—through involvement and exposure. People aren’t born with innate musical talent; instead, it’s something we can harness through encouragement and practice. The Suzuki method emphasizes rote teaching, memorization, group rehearsals, and exhaustive listening to recordings.
However, there are some criticisms of this method due to its lack of focus on teaching students to sight-read. Sight-reading is incredibly important for all music players and, unfortunately, is something that some instructors disregard too often as it can be quite hard to teach. This skill provides students with more accurate rhythm, intuition with notes, and harmony which helps them learn piano with a more informed mindset. That is why we made sure to include the SASR (Standard Assessment of Sight Reading) in our app to ensure your students learn this crucial aspect of music with fun and ease.
Faber & Faber Method
The Faber & Faber method is another popular method, and some teachers even recommend it to students wanting to compose their own pieces. It explores pieces for various ages and types of learners and emphasizes that reading music requires note recognition, intervallic reading, and understating the keys. This helps students learn about the ideal hand positions as they familiarize themselves with the instrument.
Bastien Method
Many piano teachers recommend the primer level of the Bastien Method for young students new to the world of music because it dives deeper into musical theory. This method emphasizes the importance of performance, theory, and lessons to help students understand theoretical concepts in addition to how to play the piano. The Bastien method includes four levels, all of which have instructional books to provide students with the information they need.
Alfred Method
The Alfred piano teaching method is great for kids and adults diving into playing the piano and includes four main levels that teach the fundamentals. This method teaches students the piano with an interval-centered, reading-focused approach. Many music teachers use the Alfred method because it is for students of all ages. This is great when we consider that many instructors don’t solely teach one age group. However, there is a drawback: the books for the Alfred Method tend to move quite fast, which can be challenging for any student, regardless of age.
Piano Marvel’s Method
Technology puts the power of learning at our fingertips, allowing students to learn at their own rate without feeling rushed or forced. Piano lesson programs like Piano Marvel allow every student to learn at their own pace. Putting learning the piano into students’ hands allows them to carefully master essential areas like sight-reading, pacing, and more. As students practice songs with our software, we will alert them when they make mistakes so they know what areas to work on.
Piano Marvel’s piano teaching method grants you freedom as a teacher and motivation as a student. Our app allows your students to challenge themselves in fun ways with sight-reading assessments and feedback that encourages them to grow. What’s more, they can also learn with the countless songs we have, from their beloved band to their favorite movie. It’s never been more fun or more easy to learn piano.