How learning piano as an adult helped me reconnect with my passions
The Early Days of Piano Lessons
I took piano lessons as a child for several years as a young tween. Every week, Mr. Guerra would come to my house and sit in the blue peacock chair in the living room teaching me the finer points of playing Clementi sonatinas and how to interpret 80s pop music like Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart or The Hotels’ Only the Lonely for the piano.
I didn’t specifically ask for piano lessons, but Mr. Guerra just appeared one day. We settled into a rhythm moving between learning classical piano pieces and more modern ones. I don’t recall ever making the decision to stop taking lessons, but at some point Mr. Guerra stopped coming by the house. Yet I still sat down at the piano almost every day. It became my relaxation and I enjoyed pulling sheet music out to play.
A Treasure Trove of Sheet Music
We literally had a deep bench of sheet music to choose from. The piano that I played was the same one my mom played on and it came with what seemed to be reams and reams of piano sheet music that she had learned to play as a young teen. It was through this treasure trove that I became exposed to all different types of music. In just one practice session, I could pick up and play Carlo Jobim’s Girl from Ipanema, Lecuona’s heart-stopping Maleguena, or even jazz standards like Stars Fell on Alabama. If you’re looking for sheet music, check out publishers like Sheet Music Plus, Musicnotes, or Hal Leonard for a wide variety of options. And, even better than when I was younger, you can download and print your music immediately.
Piano: A Daily Escape
Playing the piano gave me about 30 minutes each day to take a break from the fun and chaos of my family and immerse myself in songs. I added my own sheet music to my mom’s bench, intermingling the music that moved us both the most.
Life Without the Piano
But, at some point, I don’t even remember when, I stopped taking piano lessons. But, even so, I still continued to play. I pulled out old sheet music. I looked forward every month to a new Sheet Music Magazine or Keyboard Classics. I kept playing as long as I could, but eventually, I went off to college, and life moved on without a piano.
Rediscovering Piano as an Empty Nester
I missed playing piano every day. But life got busy, and the timing never seemed right to bring a piano into our home. However, as I became an empty nester, it gave me the opportunity to reflect on what I wanted my next chapter to look like. I asked myself the deep questions I never had time for with two kids at home: how do I want to spend my time outside of work? What’s important to me? And, after some reflection, I decided that now was the time to take my parents up on the offer to move my childhood piano to my own home.
Rediscovering piano as an empty nester was a big part of reclaiming myself in this phase. With the kids gone, I felt comfortable that I wasn’t disturbing the whole house with my rocky piano playing. I always hesitated to bring the piano to our house as I was afraid that I would disrupt their sleep, studying, or just relaxing—the piano is LOUD. It always brought me such peace and joy to create music, so I was thrilled to finally have it back in my life. It was soothing and almost meditative.
Moving my Childhood Piano Back Home
And, now, finally an empty nester, I moved my childhood piano to my home. I tore into my old sheet music and reconnected with the songs of my past. I felt an instant connection to my childhood.
Dusting off Old Songs
At first I was pretty rusty, but gradually as I played more, the music began sounding how I remembered it sounded back in the days when I took those lessons with Mr. Guerra. Rediscovering piano as an empty nester after years brought back so many wonderful memories. I spent weeks digging through piles of sheet music, playing familiar songs and discovering new ones from my mom’s collection.
Looking Forward: Advancing My Piano Skills
But, eventually, I was done looking backward and I was ready to move forward by continuing to develop my piano skills. I wanted to play more complicated and nuanced piano pieces. I loved moody and emotional music and hoped to progress to Rachmaninoff one day. After a few misses downloading pieces of sheet music that were either arranged oddly or too difficult for me, I realized I needed a more structured approach to advance my skills.
Returning to Piano Lessons as an Adult: Adult Piano Lessons
I decided to register for adult piano lessons at our local music school. How strange it felt sitting in the waiting area where I’d once waited with my own daughter for her own music lessons! The music school offered classes for all ages, but of course, children and teens made up the majority of the students. As I sat there, I noticed all the parents waiting for their kids to finish up. I worried about how it would look when I jumped up for my lesson—but surprisingly, no one seemed to care that I was the one going in for a lesson!
This time, lessons felt different. I felt connected to the music in a way I hadn’t when I was younger. Perhaps it was because I felt grateful to have this opportunity to rediscover my passion for playing piano. Maybe my life experience gave me a better understanding of what the music was trying to communicate. My instructor also seemed to understand my musical tastes. She found the moody and magical pieces that I felt and connected with but would never have founded on my own. I wasn’t ready for Rachmaninoff yet, but she introduced me to Chopin and Debussy—composers whose works deeply resonate with me.
Carving Out Time for Myself: Benefits of Playing Piano as an Adult
I felt a sense of joy and purpose knowing that I had carved out this time solely for me. Research has shown that playing music as an adult can improve cognitive function and emotional well-being, making playing piano as an adult a valuable activity at this stage in life. It’s a time for me to quiet my mind and simply focus on the music. Sometimes, it’s hard to turn off the “mom brain” that’s been so attuned to others for so many years, but I try to correct myself when I notice my playing stumble, as it usually means I’ve lost focus.
Taking this step to rediscover piano as an empty nester feels like just the beginning. I feel like I’m rediscovering who I was before I had kids and continuing a journey that had been paused for a long time. I’d encourage anyone who’s an empty nester to look back at their own childhood and rediscover the passions they had then—there’s so much joy to be found in reconnecting with those old loves.
The Next Note: How to Start Your Own Musical Journey
Are you interested in returning to your childhood musical instrument or picking up a new one? In an upcoming blog, I'll share what steps have worked for me in getting started playing the piano again and how you can get started no matter your skill level.
I can’t wait to share the other empty nester activities I’m trying to make the most of my new empty nester state.
Affiliate Disclaimer:
This blog post may contain affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through those links at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products and services that I believe will add value to my readers. Thank you for supporting my blog!
© 2024 Living UnNESTed. All Rights Reserved.
Comments