The piano and violin are by far two of the most popular instruments that young children learn when they begin music lessons. Parents often ask, why must learn the piano? What's so good about the piano versus other instruments, like the violin? This is especially so when one compares the initial 'investment' between the piano and violin - the price difference can be significant.
Well, here are some of my thoughts on this:
First things first, why piano and violin as opposed to other instruments?
Piano and violin are the two instruments that are physically suitable for young beginners. They are manageable for young fingers. Violins come in fraction of the size from the full-size violins (e.g. 1/4, 1/8), so there will be one that suits the size of the young learners.
Other instruments, esp wind instruments (e.g. trumpet, oboe, french horn), require more mature and larger lung capacity, as well as physical strength / facial muscles to hold / control the instrument.
Between the piano and violin, what are the similarities and differences in learning the two?
Realised I can't create a table on Blogspot...! ;0 So bear with me with the prose...
Piano: Anyone can produce a relatively pleasant sound by simply pushing down the key – as long as the piano is in tune! An advantage is that the child may be more motivated in the early stages of learning because he/she is able to hear a reasonably nice tune by his/her own playing – the sense of gratification is much earlier!
Violin: Requires accurate bowing and pitching from the player to ensure a decent sound! So, both child and parents may have to endure the very beginning stages where the violin could sound rather unpalatable. But, because of that, the learning curve may be real steep, so that everyone (incl. the child) gets out of the sound misery! ;p
Piano: Allows for the opportunity to play harmony and melody at the same time. The music generally sounds fuller and more pleasant as a result.
Violin: The violin usually plays one melody at one time, and thus usually needs to be accompanied. Contacts for good accompanists are a bonus for violin students! :)
Piano: Because it’s quite ‘easy’ to produce the correct pitch on the piano, sometimes, from my experience, students may stare at the notes, look out for the fingerings, and don’t really pay attention to the sounds that they are producing on the piano!
Violin: From the musical point of view, it takes effort from the child to produce the correct pitch by listening and constantly adjusting their fingers, so in terms of listening to their own playing, violin students are forced to listen more keenly to their own playing.
Piano: Piano students tend to miss out phrasing (essential to make music flow).
Violin: Another plus point for the violin is that, the child is actively phrasing the music through the bow, right from the very start.
Piano: Not moveable, so the child will have to get used to the pianos that he/she may play on.
Violin: Portable, so the child always get to play his/her own instrument
Piano: Usually a big investment for a decent piano. (As to when to buy a piano, what to look out for in a piano, will be subjects of future posts!)
Violin: Probably more comfortable on the wallet compared to the acoustic piano
To end this comparison, if one is quite serious about music study, the student will need to have some knowledge of playing the piano eventually. This is because music theory knowledge, e.g. harmony, are usually illustrated and learnt through the piano.
For future posts, I'd be sharing on the suitable age to start instrumental lessons... watch this space! :)
Well, here are some of my thoughts on this:
First things first, why piano and violin as opposed to other instruments?
Piano and violin are the two instruments that are physically suitable for young beginners. They are manageable for young fingers. Violins come in fraction of the size from the full-size violins (e.g. 1/4, 1/8), so there will be one that suits the size of the young learners.
Other instruments, esp wind instruments (e.g. trumpet, oboe, french horn), require more mature and larger lung capacity, as well as physical strength / facial muscles to hold / control the instrument.
Between the piano and violin, what are the similarities and differences in learning the two?
Realised I can't create a table on Blogspot...! ;0 So bear with me with the prose...
Piano: Anyone can produce a relatively pleasant sound by simply pushing down the key – as long as the piano is in tune! An advantage is that the child may be more motivated in the early stages of learning because he/she is able to hear a reasonably nice tune by his/her own playing – the sense of gratification is much earlier!
Violin: Requires accurate bowing and pitching from the player to ensure a decent sound! So, both child and parents may have to endure the very beginning stages where the violin could sound rather unpalatable. But, because of that, the learning curve may be real steep, so that everyone (incl. the child) gets out of the sound misery! ;p
Piano: Allows for the opportunity to play harmony and melody at the same time. The music generally sounds fuller and more pleasant as a result.
Violin: The violin usually plays one melody at one time, and thus usually needs to be accompanied. Contacts for good accompanists are a bonus for violin students! :)
Piano: Because it’s quite ‘easy’ to produce the correct pitch on the piano, sometimes, from my experience, students may stare at the notes, look out for the fingerings, and don’t really pay attention to the sounds that they are producing on the piano!
Violin: From the musical point of view, it takes effort from the child to produce the correct pitch by listening and constantly adjusting their fingers, so in terms of listening to their own playing, violin students are forced to listen more keenly to their own playing.
Piano: Piano students tend to miss out phrasing (essential to make music flow).
Violin: Another plus point for the violin is that, the child is actively phrasing the music through the bow, right from the very start.
Piano: Not moveable, so the child will have to get used to the pianos that he/she may play on.
Violin: Portable, so the child always get to play his/her own instrument
Piano: Usually a big investment for a decent piano. (As to when to buy a piano, what to look out for in a piano, will be subjects of future posts!)
Violin: Probably more comfortable on the wallet compared to the acoustic piano
To end this comparison, if one is quite serious about music study, the student will need to have some knowledge of playing the piano eventually. This is because music theory knowledge, e.g. harmony, are usually illustrated and learnt through the piano.
For future posts, I'd be sharing on the suitable age to start instrumental lessons... watch this space! :)
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