Your dad’s birthday is coming up, and this year you’ve thought of something special: you want to surprise him with a rendition of his favourite song on the piano, Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata”. The thing is, you don’t know how to play.
To make this special moment happen, without the need for any pro skills, piano learning app Flowkey is on hand to help.
Lessons for beginners
Flowkey is designed to teach you a song in a relatively short time period, even if you don’t have any musical knowledge. Here, you get to dive into pure practice instead of learning boring theory.
To make things as straightforward as possible, the app uses a split screen: at the top, the piano key you need to press next lights up in yellow; below, the sheet music of the corresponding track lines up perfectly. Only after you’ve hit the right note will you move onto the next one, learning to play the song key by key.
To use Flowkey, you’ll ideally have your own piano to practise with, or use an additional app and play on a second device. “Some people start with an app and then buy a used keyboard,” says Flowkey co-founder Jonas Gößling.
Two months until the show
As a beginner, start by learning to play with the right hand first. To focus on one skill at a time, Flowkey will hide the other hand onscreen. And don’t feel discouraged if it takes a bit longer than you thought to bring both hands together: “You have to allow two months before a piece really fits,” explains Gößling. Flowkey has something very enticing to get you onto the piano stool more often though: its great song selection. You won’t just find classical music from Beethoven, Chopin and Shostakovich – there are also tunes from The Beatles, Billie Eilish and Tones and I. Filter the songs according to your skill level and enjoy learning how to play hits from your favourite musicians.
The start of a new hobby
Best case scenario, learning the “Moonlight Sonata” for your dad is just the beginning of a new hobby. If you like playing for fun and want to take it further, Flowkey offers additional courses that teach you the technique from the ground up. With a subscription, you’ll be able to access all the app’s lectures, which teach you things like ambidextrous playing and learning the scales. So beyond the big birthday surprise, you can hone your skills and have a hobby you’ll enjoy for years to come.