Ask HN: Tooling for Learning to Play Piano?

Abandon your engineering mindset when approaching any kind of art, especially music. Don't impose terms like "tooling" and talk about "my brain" and things like that. Submit to your music teacher, learn music the way people have been learning it for thousands of years. Don't procrastinate with looking for "tool games", as so many enginerds do when the going gets tough.

so much this!!

An easy method to learn new music (I saw this on a YouTube video by Jazer Lee):

Practice very short sections, like 2 measures. Play the left hand perfectly 7 times, the right hand perfectly 7 times, and then together perfectly 7 times. If you mess up even 1 note, that doesn't count toward your 7 reps. If practicing 2 measures, I'd include the first note of the 3rd measure too. Then when you start with the 3rd measure, you will be connecting with the previous 2 measures.

https://www.youtube.com/@jazerleepiano

I guess PianoMarvel fits your criteria but I doubt any tool will remove any of the frustation you're currently feeling. It's just part of learning to play an instrument.

> But something about the way piano teachers teach piano doesn't properly click in my brain.

Would you be able to articulate what doesn't click with you? Perhaps you need to try other teachers. Not all piano teachers are created equal. There may be a better fit for you somewhere else.

> I often mess up but don't realize until I play it for her and she corrects me.

This is part of the process. You'll make less mistakes as you get better and your ear develops. Eventually, you'll play a note and notice to yourself "Wait, that doesn't sound quite right". You'll look at the sheet music and sure enough you played a wrong note.

Synthesia

https://synthesiagame.com/

As a vistual learner and graphical thinker, those music score on paper are all bullshit to me. Only this can help me out. You can import your own MIDI into it. Practice the shit out of it and at least can play 1 or 2 fairly advanced songs.

If a piano teacher sucked out all your enthusiasm, it says less about your character than the piano teacher's.

Pleasure is one of the best reasons to play the piano.

Fun is also anathema to some musical traditions.

What do you mean by "learning to play piano?"

Good luck.