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Comment by c03 | Hacker News Reader

I must agree. op comment is the worst advice i have seen on HN on any subject, it reads like an impatient child wishing to avoid to study just to be able to perform.

But then again, it comes down to what you want to achieve. If you just want to mind numbingly press buttons, knock yourself out.

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I liked the advice because I always wanted to learn piano but every time I approached stage 1, people were saying similar things. "Oh, just to get STARTED, you're going to need an 88 key weighted keyboard, that'll cost you 600$ and take up an entire wall of your studio. Ok now spend 100$ on books, and now you have everything you need to spend 200$ a month and an hour every week on a teacher. And you better practice five hours a week, or don't even bother, don't you dare soil our beautiful instrument!"

It's gatekeeping. I don't want to be excellent piano, or even all that good. I want to be able to occasionally play a song not very well, and play some chords in a way that pleases me. Mostly, I want to plug chords on a whim into my DAW, where I have control to a level I, as a non savant, will never be able to play to.

The OP advice was perfect for someone like me who has learned piano just fine that way.

If that's what you want to do, that's nice and go ahead, maybe the app is the cheapest way to get to that point. My point is that people who use them should be aware of their limitations, and compare that with what they want to achieve.

PS: the weighted keyboard thing is actually important. You can get cheap weighted keyboards for less than 200$, maybe even less in second-hand market. A non-weighted keyboard will limit your playing a lot, even early on.

Very much agree to the view, in fact I think the gatekeeping has become stronger in recent years, in the past, playing piano was considered a more utilitarian skill, since it was more of a means to hear music in ones own house, before recorded music became popular. It was essentially a music reproduction device, like a record player/tape recorder.

I taught myself how to flatpick on guitar. Three years later, I found out that I held the plectrum incorrectly. Though I've learned the proper way (and will switch to it in order to tremolo a la Dick Dale), twenty-five years later I still can't shake it.

I started playing around the same time as you, and also hold the pick "incorrectly", using both the index + middle finger. It's only been in the last year or so that I've made any sort of effort to use just the index finger. It feels unstable, but faster in a way, and also easier to hybrid pick thanks to the middle finger being free.

Gatekeeping????? That's the most absurd use of that word I've ever seen. It's a hobby. Hobbies cost money. People don't have the god-given right to play piano, just like they don't have the god-given right to fly a plane. Pianos cost money. Pianists need money to make a living. It's not gatekeeping, it's just the plain economics of a highly complex musical instrument.

Calling it gatekeeping is a stretch. It is more likely simply how they learned.

How is it gatekeeping? Nobody is actually capable of stopping you from doing what you want to do. They simply don't agree with you.

Many teachers can teach once a month. Many music are free on IMSLP, musescore, etc. There are cheaper ways to get started than what you have been apparently told.

My main objection to using an app are 1) it doesn't correct your posture which might lead to injuries in the long run (though not a concern if you don't play frequently) 2) it usually takes a lot longer to reach the level you have in mind. Learning from a teacher actually saves time.

But, if you just want an interface to DAW, I think an app is fine, since there is no need for phrasing, or timing, etc. You'll probably be fine even without the app.

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