If you’re a singer, learning piano can make it easier to find harmonies. Plus, being able to play piano can give you a more thorough understanding of music theory, which will improve your ability to read sheet music.
Another benefit of playing piano is that it helps strengthen your fingers. And stronger fingers mean more dexterity, which can also help you with your singing.
1. It Strengthens Your Ear
One of the most basic aspects of piano is ear training. It’s important to develop this skill as early as possible so that you can recognize patterns and melodies, and eventually play without music. This can help you to better understand what musicians are hearing when they play and sung their songs, and will also enable you to compose your own music.
Ear training on piano is different from ear training with other instruments. For example, with a violin or saxophone you need to have good pitch matching skills and be able to “fish” around until you hear the note that you played in your head. That’s not the case with piano, as you can pretty much know what note you hit on the keyboard and it will sound like that.
Piano also requires a lot of musical theory, which helps you to understand the logic behind music and how things work. This can be a huge benefit as a singer because it makes you more aware of how certain notes interact with each other and why they repeat in specific places. This can also help you to learn vocal pieces quicker and more effectively as well as improve your ability to create riffs, runs and normal melody choices within songs.
2. It Strengthens Your Memory
Learning piano requires a lot of mental work, which can be taxing on the brain. But it also strengthens the mind-body connection, develops finger dexterity and fine-tunes your hand-eye coordination. And because the mind is engaged, it releases endorphins, which helps you feel happier and more positive.
In addition, playing the piano encourages improvisation, which forces you to create on the fly – just like a composer. This kind of creative thinking can help you problem solve in other areas of your life, too. It can even improve your typing skills!
One of the most important things about learning an instrument is that it teaches you how to set goals for yourself. This can make you feel more confident and help you overcome shyness if you have to perform in front of others.
Another important thing about piano is that it requires you to practice, which teaches you the importance of sticking with something for long periods of time. Many people have a hard time with this, but it is vital if you want to become a good pianist. And it teaches you how to work well under pressure – which is an essential skill for any career.
3. It Strengthens Your Hand-Eye Coordination
Whether it’s reading music for vocalists or playing piano, the coordination skills required to play an instrument stimulate the mind in various ways. For instance, pianists must learn to play by ear and sight read, which strengthens their hand-eye coordination. Sight reading involves recognizing pitches and tones in relation to one another, which is similar to how people recognize words on the page.
Additionally, learning to play the piano teaches students proper posture, which can also improve health and overall well-being. Having good posture helps to avoid back problems, as well as maintain a strong and healthy spine. It’s also a great way to build accountability, as being a student of piano requires commitment and consistent attendance.
Furthermore, playing the piano strengthens the muscles of the fingers and hands. This enables students to have the confidence and skill necessary to perform songs with a professional sound. It also increases their range of motion, which can help with singing and other physical activities. Plus, the concentration that is required for playing piano makes it an excellent activity for focusing the mind and clearing the mind of other distractions. Having the ability to focus in such a concentrated manner can be beneficial for anyone.
4. It Strengthens Your Rhythm
Learning piano is one of the most exciting and empowering experiences for any student. Unlike the violin or saxophone, which can have an awkward phase while you figure out what to do with all those itty-bitty keys, the piano is delightful right from the start. It’s percussive so you know what sound you’re going to get, and it gives you a confidence boost that if you can hit the keys, you will actually make music!
The key to getting better at the piano quickly is practicing consistently. A good teacher will do their best to provide students with a lesson plan and practice guide so that they can work on their skills between lessons. This helps to create a habit and builds the accountability trait of taking responsibility for what you need to do in order to get better at something.
When you learn to play piano, you’re also learning about rhythm, which can help you with your singing. You can use the piano to practice singing along with a song or a recording, and you can use it to improve your ability to read music by understanding rhythm and chord symbols. This can be helpful when collaborating with others, as well as developing advanced listening skills for rehearsals and performances.
5. It Strengthens Your Flexibility
Keeping your fingers flexible is essential for playing the piano. Stretching out your fingers on a regular basis will make them stronger and more limber. This will prevent aches and pains and keep them in better shape for longer practice sessions and performances. It’s a good idea for all musicians to do finger exercises at least occasionally, and pianists should definitely have a routine of warm-ups before playing as well as some beginning stretches and extension stretches.
You’ll also strengthen your wrists when learning piano. It’s important to have a strong wrist because it will help you play the keys without straining or pulling your fingers. This will allow you to play faster and more fluidly. In time, you’ll find that it becomes second-nature to have a strong, healthy wrist.
One of the most significant benefits of learning piano is that it teaches you how to read music and understand musical theory. This will give you a solid foundation that will benefit you when playing any instrument, including singing. It’s also a great way to learn how to compose your own songs, as well as improve your performance skills. It’s hard to overstate the value of learning an instrument like piano, especially as more research comes out linking it to a happy and healthy lifestyle.
6. It Strengthens Your Stamina
One of the best parts of learning piano is that it can help you strengthen your stamina. This is because it helps you practice more consistently, which in turn strengthens your muscles. To start with, it’s recommended to practice in small increments (such as 15 minutes) and slowly build up to longer sessions over time. This is because your fingers need to be able to hold their position for long periods of time when playing piano.
Piano players also often have to stretch their fingers to keep them flexible and strong. To do this, you can try exercises such as tabletop stretching, where you lay your fingers flat on a table and then bend them at the knuckles. You can also make a fist and gently press down on each finger to give it a good stretch.
As you build these muscles over time, your fingers will become more resilient to fatigue and pain. As a result, you’ll be able to play for longer periods of time without breaking down. Practicing regularly will also help to improve your overall physical health, and may even lower your risk of stroke or heart disease.
7. It Strengthens Your Creativity
Piano is a unique discipline in that it encourages improvisation and creativity. This exercise of the brain is one of the most important aspects of playing piano. You’ll need to be able to think of what to play next and literally compose music on the spot. This is very similar to how a singer thinks on stage. They have a certain amount of data (the song they’re trying to sing and what their voice sounds like), but they also have to be creative and think of what they want to do next.
This type of thinking is a great way to boost your creativity in other areas of life. It helps you come up with creative solutions to problems that might not be obvious to other people. This is especially valuable in the workplace where you need to think outside the box and find ways to solve a problem.
Having the ability to play the piano can be a great asset for any singer. It can help you practice harmonies and give you a base to work upward in pitch chromatically when doing vocal exercises. It can also be a fun way to learn how to read music and get better at transposing songs on the fly.