Product: Online Piano Course
Price: $40 (£27) for downloaded course, $199 (£122) for physical copy of course, plus postage and packaging (GBP prices correct at time of writing)
Features: Free online lessons available (after registration, no purchase necessary); 12 months of step by step lessons
Country Availability: Worldwide (English speaking lessons)
What they say:
“Dear Pianist,
Would you love the ability to sit down at your piano and just play the songs you hear and enjoy. Are there songs you want to play with your church? Perhaps you want to write and perform your own music?
Whatever your reasons are for learning Piano, Rocket Piano WILL work for you, and its FUN!”
What I say:
Well I have previously written about having musical lessons online – in that case it was violin lessons. It seems that online musical lessons are quite established as an idea. As well as wanting to learn languages, and wanting to learn computer programming (PHP, Java), one other thing I’ve always wanted to learn is the Piano. (Actually, I did took some short-lived lessons back when I was about 11 years old). Sometimes I feel that there is a musical aspect to my nature which has never been expressed – something that is related to my love of poetry or classical literature - a kind of poetic depth. However, as I can’t play musical instruments (besides the drums, but they don’t count!), I lack the language to express this aspect of my nature.
Actually, I also always wanted to teach myself, if nothing else for the challenge, and because it is a lot cheaper, of course. I did buy a keyboard a few years ago, but I gave it away to someone who I thought would use it, since I did not have the time to practice on it. When I went to their home, I saw my keyboard, which I bought absolutely brand new, and that cost £”Full Price” and £”Not even almost Free”, dumped carelessly and casually in a room. Perhaps I should have asked them first before I made my gift – maybe this just demonstrates that people do not appreciate what they get for free. Not that I’m bitter, or anything!
However, learning the piano still remains something that I aspire to do. My piano teacher back when I was 11 said that using a keyboard was not an adequate way of learning, because you don’t have the pedals, or that “dampening” effect when you hold a key down for a length of time. However, if buying a keyboard was a big deal, how much more an actual piano? Not gonna happen, any time soon – at least until I own my own home – and that is not a personal priority or even goal, frankly – so a keyboard it is!
So anyway, back to this course; I think I would buy it, but that is because I already have a commitment to learning the piano, and also enthusiasm, and passion. I already have a vision for how I would use such a course, and practise endlessly. Also, it only costs £27 GBP, which is a lot lower than even a couple of lessons with a physical teacher. Admittedly, my points on my blog post about the online violin lesson about having a physical teacher to oversee your technique still stand. However, frankly, technique is not really my priority, as long as my fingers produce the notes. I guess I was (and am) a lot more sceptical about the violin lessons because I don’t have a heart for the violin. Perhaps if I had a vision and a commitment and a passion for the violin that matched that I have for the piano, then maybe I would find the online violin lessons equally feasible! 
