• The Piano is one of the most widely used instruments in western music because of its versatility and the fact that it can be used in so many different musical contexts. Besides being used as a solo instrument, the piano can be used as an accompaniment to other instruments, a tool for composition and practice, and as an aid in learning the basics of musical notation. Even if you are already proficient at another instrument, learning how to play the piano can help broaden your musical knowledge and increase your enjoyment of all of your musical endeavors. The steps in this guide are designed to help you learn the basics of playing the piano.

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• If you don't already own a piano (or have access to one), you will need to purchase one. See Mahalo's guide to Pianos for helpful links and resources on buying a piano. Because a high quality grand piano can often cost thousands of dollars, you may want to instead consider buying an Electronic Keyboard, a Midi Keyboard Controller or even an inexpensive Upright piano. While they may not give you the best "Sound", they are good for the beginning student in that they are relatively inexpensive, easy to use, and (in the case of the keyboards) even portable. Some local retailers may even offer rental pianos for students who can't afford to buy a piano, but who still want to practice on the real thing. Whatever type of piano you choose to learn on, make sure that it is in good working condition and that all of the notes play true. Here are a few additional resources for how to buy a piano or keyboard:

1. WikiHow: How to Buy a Piano
2. Piano World: A Guide to Piano Buying
3. Serve.com: Should I Rent or Buy a Piano?
4. OnlyPiano.com: Buying a Piano: The Big Issues

• Before we begin to play, you should start to become familiar with some of the basic parts of the piano that you will be using and the terms that we use to describe them. For now, don't worry about the mechanical aspects of the piano (i.e. the strings, hammers and soundboard) that physically produce the sound.

Pitch:The term pitch usually refers to how high or low a note sounds. This is determined by the frequency of the soundwave that is produced when the note is struck. Notes with a higher frequency produce a higher sound, while lower frequency notes have a lower sound. The piano keyboard is set up with the lowest sounding note on the far left hand side. As you move right, each key has a slightly higher pitch than the one before, with the highest note at the far right of the keyboard.

Octave: In music, the term octave refers to the interval of twelve keys between two notes with the same musical value. Notes that are one octave apart generally sound the same to the human ear, even though they have different overall frequencies. There are seven octaves on a normal piano keyboard, meaning that each of the 7 note values (A - G) can be found in seven different places on the keyboard.