Have you thought about learning music recently, but not sure how to? You may have done a ton of research on what’s the right way to go about it. Learning music or instruments such as Piano, Keyboard, Guitar, Drums and so on, is a progressive process. There’s no rule book about how to learn it the right way.
You have many options such as group classes, private music classes, at school choirs or clubs, on your own by observation or by watching videos and tutorials online as well! It’s all very confusing because everything sounds promising enough to change your mind, or at least lure you towards their ways. Let’s look at these approaches and see their pros and cons and help you decide what kind of music lessons you’re looking for.

1. Learning on your own
This is a tempting way to learn of course, because it’s more comfortable, slow-paced and also save you some bucks. While learning to practice on your own is advised by all great musicians, it must be done only when you know the basic of your instrument and basically know how to create music. You can try new pieces but you don’t know if you’re playing the same way you heard it on the TV or on YouTube.
You need supervision from someone experienced, to give you feedback and to correct your method if it’s wrong. Best advice here is to learn your basics the right way from a private tutor and then carry on to create and practice your own music by yourself.

2. “Condensed” music lessons from the internet
Internet is full of helpful content, including photo and video tutorial that can be streamed at your own pace to learn slowly. There are a lot of prerecorded video tutorials to learn instruments. This is also like learning on your own, but with a little tips here and there.
This maybe a convenient way to learn but these tutorials and entirely based on the assumptions that you know the basics about music. There is no guidance on how to place your fingers or how to set your rhythm right if you aren’t following it. You’ll never know your mistakes because there is no feedback. So. you’ll basically learn to play but probably get all the notes and rhythm wrong.
These tutorials are based on a general assumed goal of another person. It is not necessarily made for your level or knowledge. The best advice is to have your own personalized learning plan customized only for you by a tutor. Once again, private tutoring can help a ton.
Nonetheless, there is something called Online Piano lessons. Or any other instrument. This is different from YouTube tutorials because it is taught live using a video camera with a trained tutor. They are capable of watching your finger movements through camera (when kept in the correct angle) and guide you through the process. This can be a great option if you cannot travel distances to visit a private tutor.

3. Group lessons
Group lessons are preferred by a lot of students including adults because it is simply fun to learn with other musicians and friends. Also, because it is not as daunting as private lessons. Group lessons are advantageous in a sense that there is no place for errors. You can correct your mistakes by looking at others playing and learn some new ways to play instrument as well. Group lessons also give you the confidence to play in ensembles and perform for a crowd.
But, group classes have a huge disadvantage as well. They mainly and most importantly lack individual attention and help from the teacher. When you learn in groups, it is very easy to slip by some minor mistakes you may have made. Once or twice is alright but if these mistakes become a habit, it is a very bad sign in your music journey. It is almost always impossible to get individual feedback and corrections from the tutor during a group session.
Best advice here is to take group classes for the fun of it, but also improve your quality of playing by parallelly enrolling at a private music class. It helps take you to the next level and keeps you strong on your basics and foundation as well.

4. Private lessons
Private class is undoubtedly the best place to start as a beginner. There is right amount of attention given by the teacher, instant real-time feedback and high quality lessons to establish deep roots in music. Private lessons also gives you the comfort of learning in a comfortable environment with minimal distractions and maximum focus and concentration.
However, the only disadvantage is, you might miss out on some fun jam sessions with a group of other musician and also, you only get feedback from one person, that is, your teacher. His/her perspective may vary from others.

So what is the best option for you to learn music?
As mentioned earlier, self-learning is always a prominent option chosen by many people to learn all genres of music. It’s up to you to decide if you can manage to learn on your own or enroll at a music school. But, having a teacher around who will listen to you playing, spot mistakes and teach better techniques and methods is a complete advantage. You cannot always be consistent when you are playing alone, especially if you come across a difficult piece. Tutors also give you the motivation to keep practicing. So decide if you are ready to learn from an expert or still need time to learn by yourself.

7. Are you familiar with online piano classes?
The best approach is to have all of these combined. Practice on your own, explore your niche by browsing online and try those pieces, perform and tune yourself with a group of musicians and mostly importantly, get your basic right by taking private lessons. Your basics is what helps you create music in the future.
Hope this helped you decide on what kind of musical journey you want to create and what approach you should be taking to get yourself there!