Music is a great way of expressing ones self and among all the various types of musical instrument, piano remains the most fascinating of all. The reason behind piano being such a fascinating instrument lies in the fact that the piano is often used solo or in combination with other instruments. This particular instrument is compatible with any style of music be it jazz, pop, ballads or country music. It is the perfect instrument to learn the basics of music. Compose or even arrange it for any concert.

Depending upon string arrangement, the piano can be classified into grand piano and upright piano. The fundamentals of both these types of pianos are same though they happen to vary in shapes and sizes. Another recent option that is hailed as a cheaper alternative is the electric keyboard. Since original pianos are really expensive many people are resorting to the electric keyboards as a learning medium.

In order to know how to learn to play a piano, it is important to know how the piano works. Every keyboard works on a different note. The white keys are known as natural keys and they usually represent seven different notes namely A, B, C, D, E, F and G. the notes are repetitive in nature and they occur in the reverse order.

The black keys on the other hand are grouped alternatively in pairs. The arrangement of the notes is co-ordinate in perfect harmony. It is interesting to note that the C& E notes always comes left to the group of two black keys, the D note is placed in the middle of the group of two black key set. The E note and B note comes on the left and right side of the group of three black keys respectively. The black keys are denoted by# and they derive their value from the values of the white keys around them.

Finger placement is an important art that has to be mastered by anyone who wishes to learn to play the piano well the piano correctly. For the assistance of beginners in the sheet music each finger is denoted by a number. Number one stands for the thumb, Number two stands for the index finger, number three for the middle finger, number four for the ring finger and number five for the little finger. The sheet usually comes with instructions about finger placement in order to get the perfect note.

Last but not the least foot pedals also play an important role in enhancing the effect of the piano’s sound. A typical piano has three foot pedals. The soft pedal and the sustain pedal are played with the left foot and give a very soft feeling to the music, whereas the Sustain pedal has much more importance as it is fundamental in removing dampers and helping the pianist achieve perfection with his instrument.

Practice and constant reading about various music lessons are two important criterions that can help a person to learn to play piano well. But above all it is important to love the instrument and invest great energy and motivation if one desires to master it.