Piano Education Resource Guide
From Mozart and Chopin to Scott Joplin, Jerry Lee Lewis and beyond – the versatile piano has been a part of popular music for centuries. And if you’re a piano player – no matter what your style or skill level – this is a guide for you. Inside, you’ll find some 40 piano resources on everything from learning and teaching piano to tuning and genre resources.
General Piano Resources
In this section of general resources, you’ll find historic photos and sheet music, a piano keyboard poster, information on the health of musicians and insight into how to learn to play the piano.
Virtual Piano Museum – This resource contains tons of information and photos about pianos, including photos of 25 keyboards and pianos located in the Smithsonian Collection at the National Museum of American History.
Historic American Sheet Music – From Duke University Libraries comes this collection of over 3,000 digital images of historic American sheet music published between 1850 and 1920 in the U.S.
Piano Keyboard Poster – This printable PDF piano keyboard poster will help you more readily understand the location and function of keys on the keyboard.
How to Learn to Play the Piano – No matter how old you are, you can always learn to play the piano. This article gives helpful insight into how to learn.
Learning to Read Music – Interested in teaching yourself how to read music? With the help of the free resources from Data Dragon, you’ll be reading notes in no time.
Popular Pianists – Learn about seven pianists’ struggles and triumphs. Pianists featured include Tori Amos, Billy Joel and Alicia Keys.
Musician’s Health – Visit this link to find out about health problems that musicians suffer. You’ll also find suggestions for making your craft more enjoyable.
International Music Score Library Project – The IMSLP ranks as the largest classical music resource worldwide. Here, you’ll find thousands of works from thousands of composers.
Piano Teaching Resources
Being able to teach piano in a way that connects with students is a gift. Enhance your gift with the following resources.
Creative Piano Teaching Podcast – Learn how to teach piano creatively — and inspire you and your students — by tuning in to Tim Topham’s podcast.
Susan Paradis Piano Teaching Resources – Follow the link to browse a wealth of free resources created and curated by a former classroom music specialist turned private piano teacher.
Resources for Teachers – From the Piano Technician’s Guild comes this collection of piano teaching resources — lesson plans, activities, online games — designed to help you enrich and enhance students’ learning.
Free Piano Teaching Resources – Here you’ll discover free, downloadable flashcards, games, motivational charts and much more.
Piano Chords Resources
When learning how to play the basic chords or more advanced ones, these resources will make the task easier.
Introduction to Chords – This resource is a great place for beginners to learn about chords and how to begin playing them.
Piano Chord Dictionary – Find chord formulas, notes used in chords and common names for chords within this helpful resource.
Chord Calculator – This tool will display the chord for a specific starting note, chord type and key.
Chord Identifier – Also known as the Reverse Chord Finder, this handy tool offers a way to locate chords that have a specific set of notes.
Ultimate Chord Finder – If you need chord suggestions, this is the tool to help you find them. The tool requires you to choose a triple combination of notes, chords and/or scales to work its magic.
Piano Scales Resources
This section offers plenty of helpful information on the different types of piano scales to help you learn the basics or master the more complex.
Scale Practice Tips – The 10 scale practice tips on this site aren’t meant to be applied all at once. Instead, read through the list and take your time applying them.
Piano Major Scales – Major scales are quite common and are vital to the basic understanding of piano scales. Follow the link and check them out.
Piano Minor Scales – Find out about the three groups of minor scales — complete with pictures and notes.
Piano Pentatonic Scales – Popular music styles are often based on pentatonic scales. While minor scales are more common, major scales are also used.
Blues Scales for Piano – You’ll discover information and links for both minor and major blues scales here. Observe the pictures and read the notes, and you’ll soon be improvising blues scales on the piano.
Hanon Exercises – These 20 preparatory exercises from the pianist Charles Louis Hanon are excellent for the beginning pianist.
Piano Tuning Resources
Perhaps you live in a rural area and piano tuners are scarce. Or maybe you like to engage in a little DIY when you can. Whatever the reason, here are some of the best piano tuning resources on the Web.
How Often Should My Piano Be Serviced? – From the Piano Technician’s Guild comes this helpful article explaining when certain brands of pianos should be serviced.
Frequently Asked Questions About Tuning a Piano Yourself – If you’re considering tuning your piano, take a few moments to browse the Q & A on this site.
How to Tune a Piano – This piano tuning guide gives you step-by-step instructions — and a list of proper tools — to tune a piano.
Tune Your Piano Using Free Software – Utilize the guide within this link to find out to use Entropy, a free software, which will help you tune your piano.
Jazz Piano Resources
This section offers historical, instructional and informational resources for anyone interested in jazz piano.
Jazz Piano School – Yes, you can learn jazz piano through this podcast. All you have to do is sit at your piano and tune in.
Free Jazz Sheet Music – Discover a collection of over 100 pieces of sheet music from the likes of Fats Waller, David Bruce and Scott Joplin.
The Jazz Resource – Whether you’re a performer, student or you just appreciate jazz, this site has plenty to offer. Find information on jazz music theory, performing and improvising.
A Passion for Jazz – This site was built with a passion. It includes a myriad of resources such as the history of jazz, a photo gallery, webcasts, piano chords and scales and much more.
Jazz Corner – Behold the largest portal in existence for the official websites of tons of jazz musicians and related organizations. Sharing jazz and blues videos is just a fraction of what you can do here.
Classical Piano Resources
Classical piano is a longstanding tradition. Here you’ll find genre-specific information about composers, audio files, music sheets and many other helpful resources.
Classical Piano Midi Page – Entertain yourself by listening to various classical piano midi files based on the works of famous composers. Or choose to listen to midi files that were converted to audio on a grand piano.
Classical Net – Find chronological timelines and information about works from some of the greatest classical composers.
Free Classical Piano Sheet Music – Discover close to 1,200 pieces of free sheet music from composers such as Chopin, Bach, Schubert, Vivaldi and many more.
Piano Street – Whether you’re a classical pianist, teacher, student or you just enjoy classical piano music, this sight can prove valuable. Find helpful content, downloadable sheet music, classical piano recordings and more.
Piano Podcasts
Check out some of the best piano podcasts found on the Web. Within these podcasts you can take a stab at learning piano or entertain yourself with interviews from some of the jazz world’s best and brightest.
The Piano Podcast HD – Host Dr. Mario Arejo’s podcast is dedicated to pianists and learning piano. Listen in to hear lessons in both classical and popular music, live performances and interesting interviews.
Piano Jazz Shorts – In this podcast from National Public Radio, host Marian McPartland previews soon-to-be interviews and improvisations with the most relevant stars from the world of jazz.
Jazz Inspired – Join host and famous jazz pianist Judy Carmichael for her radio show that strives to uncover her guests’ creative processes and also find out how jazz music has inspired them in their efforts.
The Carolina Shout – Ethan Uslan — pianist and host — performs this podcast from his living room and sometimes includes special guests and experts. He focuses on swing, New Orleans jazz, ragtime and more.