The debate on playing piano vs guitar continues here. Read on to know if you should learn to play piano or guitar, and if one is easier (or difficult) to learn compared to the other.
Learning to Play Piano vs Guitar
Planning to play a musical instrument, and down to these two instruments? I can understand the dilemma for most prospective students, who are not sure whether to play piano or guitar.
Well, ultimately the choice is yours, but here are some of my experiences.
Playing chords with your left hand on a keyboard (with the accompaniment) doesn’t take long, you can do that in a couple of weeks, at least the C, F, G chords, and you can play several popular songs with these chords. In fact, if you refer to the Kenneth Baker keyboard books, you can play a couple of songs, with chords (with the accompaniment on), in the first week itself, with say 30 min of practice. If you have never touched a keyboard before, these are great books to get started.
But there is much more to learning a piano or the guitar.
We will also take a look at the various involved in learning – learning to read music sheets, developing skills, how long does it take to learn, etc.
Depends on Personality
It’s difficult to generalize but if you have an outgoing personality, you may be well suited for guitar. If you are a bit on the introvert side, then you will mostly choose the piano/keyboard.
This is what at least I’ve observed looking at my friends, who play either of these instruments. It may not be totally accurate, but to some extent it seems to be the case.
Piano is Expensive to Learn
The difference in cost is not much if you are okay to begin learning piano on an electronic music keyboard.
But if you want to learn proper piano, then getting a decent piano with nice weighted action will cost you much more than getting a decent guitar.
If you own an acoustic piano, then you will also have recurring maintenance costs.
You get expensive digital pianos that can double up as an important piece of furniture and can also act as a music player, wherein it plays the songs just like your home stereo.
Looks much more classy!
Guitar is Fun and Portable
Heading out over the weekend for a picnic/mini vacation with friends? You can take along the guitar and accompany your friends while singing some fun songs.
And if you have a few more in the group who can play the guitar, you guys will have a blast.
It’s difficult to do this with a piano/keyboard because of its structure!
Piano Difficult to Learn than Guitar?
Lot of prospective students feel that the Guitar is easier to learn and the Piano is a lot tougher.
I think the reason most students feel this way is because they find playing the piano with two hands daunting, compared to playing the guitar.
But that’s definitely not the case. Maybe you need to be a bit more patient initially on the piano, but most students do get it. It also depends on how your teacher introduces the use of left hand in your piano playing.
I also know many students who have picked up the piano quite fast but struggled with the guitar.
Chord Based Learning
Basic guitar involves learning and memorizing chords, which is easy. As you start playing solo, it becomes difficult and more skill is needed.
A similar approach could help on piano, with your left hand playing basic chords initially and then moving on to more complex parts.
Composition is Instrument Independent
If you want to compose your own music, then it really does not matter what instrument you play – Piano or Guitar. You can play any musical instrument and come up with good musical compositions.
Note: Knowing basics of keyboard can help you, since you can do all your musical creation on a computer.
Do Keyboard Players Really Have an Advantage Over Other Musicians?
Although, playing the piano might help you become better as a musician and an arranger, do keyboard players have some advantages over other musicians? Let us know if you agree with the points listed, or if you have any views that we missed out there.
- Better Suited for Studio Work
Maybe keyboard players have an advantage, when it comes to studio work as its quite easy to input the notes using a keyboard controller.You do get controllers for other instruments as well but then they are not as easy to setup and there are not a lot of cheaper options.
- Piano is Difficult to Learn
Keyboards/piano might be easier to play to begin with, compared to a guitar where the fingers hurt initially when you’re learning.However, if you want to play it really well, a piano could require more efforts as you really need to learn to synchronize both the hands, which requires more practice.
- Not Really
Keyboard players might have an advantage in the studio, but not on stage probably. They may find jobs in studios, but when it comes to live playing, singers and guitar players seem to have an advantage, very few keyboard players in popular bands are actually popular.
Alex Turner Swapped Guitar for Piano for New Album
Alex Turner provides the reasons for switching from guitar to piano for Arctic Monkeys’ new new album ‘Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino’.
After predecessor ‘AM’, Turner started to write songs on a piano this time around. Turner explained his reasons: “The guitar had lost its ability to give me ideas. Every time I sat with a guitar I was suspicious of where it was gonna go. I had a pretty good idea of what I might be which is completely contrary to what I felt when I sat at the piano.”
Conclusion – Piano vs. Guitar (vs other Musicians)
In most cases, prospective students like a particular instrument depending on its sound, or if they have heard someone play that instrument, or if they have heard popular songs that has substantial parts utilizing that particular instrument.
In case you have already bought a musical instrument and you don’t seem to be enjoying it, ask yourself if it is because of lack of commitment, which usually is the primary reason.
If not, then it’s better to try out the other instrument as well, but it will be a bit too much if you try to learn them both at the same time. Over the long-term, you can also set a goal to learn both instruments – Piano and the Guitar.
Do you agree that certain musicians have an advantage over other musicians? Please let us know here. Leave us a comment in the box below.
KeytarHQ editorial team includes musicians who write and review products for pianists, keyboardists, guitarists & other musicians. KeytarHQ is the best online resource for information on keyboards, pianos, synths, keytars, guitars and music gear for musicians of all abilities, ages and interests.
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