Q. I already have an electric piano. Very nice. I want to learn a song by The Fray, but I feel starting off with that is jumping into the process a bit fast.
What should I be focusing on first?
It seems like a great instrument to learn how to play...
A. Learn Chords. Find a song by The Fray and get the chords. Play the chords and sing at the same time.
Piano Chords and scales:
http://www.pianoworld.com/fun/vpc/piano_chords.htm
The Fray's chords:
http://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/t/the_fray/over_my_head_ver2_crd.htm
When you see "C" play it on the piano. Sing with it "I never knew" at "never" play "C" chords. Learn EM, G, C, D, AM for this song. It's simple. Later you can learn how to be more expressive by playing the bass of the chord with your left hand. The root. Say, you're playing a C chord then play C note with left hand and with right hand play the chord in an arpeggio. Kinda like you would be when you tap your fingers on wood. There's a lot of methods that are more complete. Scales. Sight reading but this will get you into it instantly. At first just start with right hand chords in a 4/4 pattern. Be sure to use your metronome. Good luck!
How would I go about becoming a music composer??
Q. The piano would be my instrument of choice. I can also play guitar and violin. Is it possible to be successful in the music industry without pursuing post secondary for it? I am really interested in writing music for movies and videogames. How would I go about doing that?
If college is the best option, what should I expect? I alsolutely hate sight reading and have a hard time doing it. I learn all of my pieces by ear. I can read music too, though, but I never do that anymore.
A. You are definitely going to have to learn western music notation. It will help you out a TON. I trust you to have good ears, and I think it is great that you learn your pieces by ear! In fact, I think that people should start out learning by ear and then move to theory. But, having a solid theory education will be unbelievably helpful in many ways. For example - lets say you sit down at the piano and pump out a really awesome melody. Where do you go from there? Well, harmonically, you could try a half step modulation. If that doesn't sound good to you, try out a common chord modulation into a relative key. Bingo! Say that works for you, but you want to develop the melody a bit further. What do you do? Well, maybe you can jump from the root to the perfect fifth, rather than the major third. Or, you could change the major third to the minor third, add an augmented fourth, and make the melody sound really blues-y. Do you see what I mean? Having a good theory background will help you decide what will sound good based on fact. Based on science. The spirit and emotion of the music then is all up to you. You provide the heart and the soul. You know that Indiana Jones Theme Song that is so catchy? John Williams, the master of movie composition, wrote that melody to be powerful and strong. So, when he harmonized it, he used a major seventh chord for each note. That is 1 3 5 7 (CEGB). If he flatted the seventh of the chords, and flatted the seventh of the melody, it would sound totally different. Add a ride cymbal, and that would be some seriously jazzy crap! What that is is a dominant seventh chord. 1 3 5 flat 7 (CEGBb). That is actually the most common chord in jazz. The point is, though, knowing this stuff will allow you to set the mood when you know what you want the mood to be. Classical theory will be a huge arsenal for you. And believe me - it is not actually that hard! If you are willing and motivated, you will pick this up in no time at all.
You need a teacher. That is a must. College is a definite possibility, but if you do not want to go to college, that is absolutely fine! But then get a private tutor. Find someone who will help you step by step at your own pace understand everything.
But, the most important advice I can give you is to find time to sit down at the piano or guitar for an hour or two at a time and compose. Whether you write it down is up to you - I never write down what I compose, I remember it all. But just play! Even if you don't think you know what you are doing - just play random crap and eventually you will suprise yourself. Trust me. It is the most rewarding experience in the world. You will come up with some awesome stuff that is totally your own. And then, after you learn some theory, you will be able to orchestrate it however you want.
Composing is a blast, pal, and don't ever give up. Don't take any crap from anybody - you are on the right track, and if you are motivated, you will write some great stuff!
How to play a piano and what are chords, scales and so on?
Q. Actually i want to play a song on a piano and i will also love to play piano.....tell me about chords, scale and so on...
A. There's a lot of things to learn before you can just play a song on a piano. So you should learn the basics first before jumping ahead to the scales and chords :3
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Title : What is the first step in learning to play the piano?
Description : Q. I already have an electric piano. Very nice. I want to learn a song by The Fray, but I feel starting off with that is jumping into the p...