How to Read Piano Number Music

Playing piano by numbers is often an entry point to traditional piano lessons.

Playing piano by numbers is a way for beginners, especially very young children, to learn piano without learning standard music notation. It is described as "training wheels" for piano lessons, enabling players to play familiar songs immediately without the frustration that often accompanies early piano lessons.

Things You'll Need

• Piano or keyboard
• Piano-by-numbers sheet music
• Numbered stickers compatible with the sheet music

Instructions

Thinking Numbers Instead of Notes

1. Place the numbered stickers on the appropriate piano keys as instructed by the sheet music. Usually the stickers are numbered 1 to 12, with 1 going on middle C (C4) and 12 going on G above high C (G5). Place the stickers on the white keys only.

2. Look at the sheet music, playing the keys indicated by the numbers on the sheet. For example, if you see the number "3" three times, it means to strike the key labeled "3" (usually E above middle C, or E4) three times in a row. Rests are indicated by asterisks, and measures are shown by vertical lines. (Most simple songs should be in 4/4 or 3/4 time.)

3. Remove the stickers from the piano when it is time to progress to standard music notation; they are designed to not leave a residue on plastic or ivory keys.

Tips & Warnings

• This is a temporary solution to introduce players to the piano. Therefore, be careful not to think of a particular note as "1" or "7," or else the transition to standard notation will be more difficult.

• Only attempt to play piano by numbers using specially designed sheet music for this purpose. Some early standard-notation sheet music has numbers above the notes, but that is for fingering purposes and does not always correspond with the notes used in piano by numbers.

References

• Piano is Easy: Piano By Number
• Author's personal experience, pianist for 24 years