A great problem a whole lot of newbie piano players have is learning to play scales. I am often asked what use do scales have and why should we be spending time learning them? The principle motive for playing scales is to get your fingers and brain accustomed to playing in certain patterns for every different key signature.
If you have learned a particular scale then when you come to play music in the same key you should find the finger movements a lot easier as the a good number of the notes will be the same as in the scale. If you have committed that scale to memory and then you try to perform a piece in the same key you will see that the movement between the notes is familiar. The supposition is that if you master each and every one of the scales (12 major and 12 minor) then you will have the capacity to play more with ease. practically any piece of music.
Mastering scales is only in reality achievable if you rehearse them repeatedly again and again. This may become a bit of a chore but you can use it as a sort of a warm up to your practice sessions. Just 5 or 10 minutes every day is usually enough. For up to date and detailed video reviews on the best home study piano courses see the How to learn piano website.
You can learn much more comprehensively if you use a metronome whilst practicing your scales. Don’t allow yourself to wander from the beat of the metronome and if you run into difficulties with a scale then simply slow the metronome a little. You need to set your metronome at a pace that will permit you to play the scales over and over again without faltering. You could also check out the following site for more information on learning piano at home:
Fortunately you won’t have to master all of the scales at once. You’ll be able to learn then one at a time. The main scales are good to start out with, C, F and G and perhaps later on D, E and A. Spend a few days or weeks concentrating on learning a new scale. If you have learned a scale you have to carry on practicing it on a daily basis in order not to forget it. Before trying to master a new scale, each day you ought to start your practice by playing the ones you have previously learned. Remember to check with your home study course or your piano teacher to be certain that that you are using the correct fingering as this is pretty important.
Play your scales exceptionally slowly when you are first learning them to be sure that you are playing the correct notes with the right fingers. Play them with only one hand and make sure you start with the correct finger, then attempt with the other hand. If you are struggling with getting the right notes then slow it down again, really slowly. Now you merely repeat the scale time and again. You can begin to play it slightly faster as you get used to it and it is feeling more comfortable. There is a video review of the most popular piano course available here: How to learn piano
If you are practicing a scale slowly enough to play it accurately then you will find that after several minutes of repeating it that it will become so easy to play that you won’t even have to think about it. It is entirely possible to manage to learn all of the scales and have them become second nature in a period of only few months.