Piano helps me to express my feelings...

by Charles
(New York, New York, USA)

I'm on my third year of playing piano and I just came to a striking conclusion about a week ago. I've discovered that playing piano isn't about the song or the notes that come from it. For me, and I'm sure for many others, playing piano is about communication. I'm able to say so much more with the piano than I can say through speech. The thing is, (and this is coming from a specific part of my personality so it may not be true for others), the communication helps me emotionally.

That's because I've always been a shy person from way back in elementary school. Even now at work - sometimes I just can't deal with people, so I clam up. Then at home, I pick out some music that reflects the mood I'm in and it's as if everything I wanted to say comes out in the music that I play. Doesn't matter if I'm happy, excited, bored, or pissed off about something. My piano is the instrument for my feelings.

Since I record myself playing, I can listen to my efforts and then judge if they truly reflect my feelings for the day. If I find weak spots in the music, I'll strengthen them so that my feelings aren't misinterpreted or missed. It's just not about hitting every note or faithfully following a sheet of music. It's about telling the world I'm in love, or I hate my boss, or I'm worried about my sick dog. Whatever - the piano allows me to say things that I'm just too shy to talk about or that I don't think anyone would really care about.

The more honest I am about my feelings, the more emotional my music becomes too. I found that if I hold back on something that I'm trying to address through the piano, it doesn't come through my music that way that it really should.