Playing keyboard by ear?

Question: Playing keyboard by ear!?

I want to begin playing the keyboard and I was wondering, is it better to learn how to read the music or to play it by ear!?Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

It's really better to do both!. When you learn to read music, you take a huge shortcut because learning by rote (listening to something over and over) is very time consuming and can lead to false learned behavior!. (practicing mistakes over and over again reinforces them and pretty soon all you can play are the mistakes) On the other hand, being able to use your ear is a tremendous gift that should always be cultivated!. Reading music helps you to communicate with other people (and incidentally, allows you to learn even from those who have passed on) but cultivating a good ear is a valuable asset to any musician's profession!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

If all you can do is play by ear, then how do you plan to play with other musicians who can read the sheet music!?

Learn how to read music!.!.!. it's not that hard!.!.!. I learned how to read music when I was 7 YEARS OLD so that tells you something!.

Once you learn how to read music, then you can also move on to other instruments!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

YES you need both!. I learn new songs by ear most of the time, but sometimes I cant figure out some chords and its sure great to get the sheets and know how to read them!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

You need to learn about music theory first!.

Start off with sheet music and as you learn mor you can try playing by ear!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Better to use your hands and fingers or you might get a headache!.Www@QuestionHome@Com