4 ms·

Piano requires adaptation in the corpus callosum of your brain to coordinate two-handed playing - it takes time to develop. Competent players have usually been

Piano requires adaptation in the corpus callosum of your brain to coordinate two-handed playing - it takes time to develop. Competent players have usually been playing for years to a decade before they're at a level of public performance.

jasonfarnon 3y ago
My anecdotal experience is that someone who starts at 25 and plays until 35 will be a shadow of a 15yo who started at 5. Are there concert pianists who started late, say post-puberty? I think maybe jazz, but the standards are pretty different.
- Barrin92 3y ago
  Most children who start to learn instruments at some point just stop doing it. Kids who actually turn into concert pianists undergo rigorous training that is effectively a full time job. How many adults at age 25 have even attempted that? Just in financial terms, how many adults have spent the resources on themselves that the parents of highly competitive kids do? Most adults who pick up skills just don't do it in a deliberate way. When I moved to Japan for work I thought as an adult it'd take me years to acquire a new language. But the company I worked for got me professional training and I hunkered down about 2 hours per day and in ~14 months I did much better than I thought was possible.
- spurgu 3y ago
  One aspect of it is that the 5-15 kid has a ton more spare time. And when practicing is able to be more immersed, not bugged down by real life chores and problems like the 25-35. Personal history: I started playing guitar around 18 and at ~25 I was way ahead most of my 18-20 year old peers who had started way younger. And I was a jazz snob since like 20. I did learn the basics of piano and reading music when I was around 7 but never played actively, but it might've helped that I didn't start from scratch at 18. But I was immersed once I started - music was literally all I did in my spare time aside from doing drugs. :D I'm now in my 40s and have been learning piano for the past 2 or so years. I think I've been progressing quite fast, but it's easy since I already know what to do, it's just another instrument (the challenge is mainly the hand coordination).

jasonfarnon 3y ago

My anecdotal experience is that someone who starts at 25 and plays until 35 will be a shadow of a 15yo who started at 5. Are there concert pianists who started late, say post-puberty? I think maybe jazz, but the standards are pretty different.

Barrin92 3y ago
Most children who start to learn instruments at some point just stop doing it. Kids who actually turn into concert pianists undergo rigorous training that is effectively a full time job. How many adults at age 25 have even attempted that? Just in financial terms, how many adults have spent the resources on themselves that the parents of highly competitive kids do? Most adults who pick up skills just don't do it in a deliberate way. When I moved to Japan for work I thought as an adult it'd take me years to acquire a new language. But the company I worked for got me professional training and I hunkered down about 2 hours per day and in ~14 months I did much better than I thought was possible.
spurgu 3y ago
One aspect of it is that the 5-15 kid has a ton more spare time. And when practicing is able to be more immersed, not bugged down by real life chores and problems like the 25-35. Personal history: I started playing guitar around 18 and at ~25 I was way ahead most of my 18-20 year old peers who had started way younger. And I was a jazz snob since like 20. I did learn the basics of piano and reading music when I was around 7 but never played actively, but it might've helped that I didn't start from scratch at 18. But I was immersed once I started - music was literally all I did in my spare time aside from doing drugs. :D I'm now in my 40s and have been learning piano for the past 2 or so years. I think I've been progressing quite fast, but it's easy since I already know what to do, it's just another instrument (the challenge is mainly the hand coordination).