Teaching an Old Dog New Tricks

I'm still not sure how or why I made the decision.  I think it was the Apostle Paul who wrote, "I do not understand what I do ..."  That certainly applies to me, because two months ago, I decided to learn the piano.  In the song, Bosom Buddies, one singer asks the other, "How old do you think I am?"  She answers, "Somewhere between forty and death!"  Mmm.

Back to the piano.  After some research, I purchased a Yamaha YPG-635, which has a weighted keyboard.  A musician friend advised me that a weighted keyboard allows you to easily transition between digital and acoustic pianos.  It also can replace an entire jazz ensemble, but first you have to learn how to play the piano.

A major advantage of a Midi-type keyboard is that it can connect to a computer.  There are some very clever software programs that facilitate learning the piano.  I am using a program named Piano Suite by Adventus which is pretty phenomenal.  The music appears on the computer display and colors the 'sheet' music green as you play, continuously monitoring your notes and rhythm.  It will not advance unless you play the correct notes.  So if you hit the wrong piano key(s), it simply waits for you find the correct note before advancing forward.  It also flips music pages automatically, which is pretty convenient for a beginner.

Do you remember the movie, Dr. Strangelove?  In the movie, the President's military adviser, Dr. Strangelove, is frequently troubled by his own gloved hand, which appears to have independent intelligence.  A the end of the movie, his own hand attempts to choke him.  While practicing on the keyboard, I have discovered that sometimes my left hand will threaten me, much like Dr. Strangelove.  But I digress...

Watching the Brain Learn tells that neuroscientists have discovered an MRI will show changes in the brain after someone has learned a new skill.  The Scientific American article explains they were surprised the largest physical changes involved the white matter of the brain.  The white matter serves as the network connections for the processing elements (neurons - the gray matter) of the brain.

The researchers studied jugglers, because it is a complex task that requires repetition and practice, certainly weeks and months.  Once learned though, that task, becomes automatic.  In the brain scans, there were changes in the gray matter as well, but it may be that complex cognitive control of motor movements requires faster and fine-grained communication within the brain.  While practice makes perfect, it is apparently rewiring the brain, not just committing new information into memory.

Comments

[software development london]

That was inspiring,

Keep up the good work,

Anyway, thanks for the post