From classical to jazz, pianos can be found almost anywhere. Learning piano is also one of the best musical foundations you can have; most professional musicians have some background in piano. For anyone interested in composing, songwriting, or music theory, piano is nearly essential. John Williams, composer for classic films like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and E.T. began his career as a pianist. But even if you don’t care about playing professionally, piano is a great way to learn to read music, train your ear, and have fun playing your favorite songs!

Piano is unique, in part, for the way it fully engages all parts of the mind and body. Although it’s easy for young children and other beginners to learn how to play simple melodies, advanced pianists are capable of some truly awe-inspiring performances. Pianists are required to read more music than most other instrumentalists (both bass and treble clef, often simultaneously), play independently with both hands, and make use of both feet. This means that not only does learning piano promote coordination and musicality, but it fully engages the brain. An MIT study revealed that the cerebral cortex, a portion of the brain which is important in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness, was significantly more developed in subjects who had studied piano as opposed to similar subjects who had no musical training.

Not at all! Kids as young as four can certainly begin learning how to read music and play with proper technique. Kids need encouragement, but learning the piano can be a great way for a child to learn patience and discipline while still seeing plenty of results to stay excited about learning.

For both kids and adults, learning to play the piano can be an incredibly rewarding experience, whether your goal is to become a concert pianist or just to play songs at family gatherings for the holidays.