Review of Musiah

Warning: I'm sorry, this will sound like an advertorial. It's totally unsponsored and unsolicited, just sharing something that has helped us.

Lego Lad has been learning piano for a while. Initially he started quite well and then he stalled. He continued with lessons and begrudging practice but wasn't learning anything new or enjoying it. It was such a shame because learning piano was something he chose to do.
This continued for some time until I saw an ad one morning earlier this year for an on-line piano course that looked like a computer game. The program was Musiah and it was shiny and new and looked like it would be just the thing to get LL playing again if it lived up to it's promises.


From the website:  Suitable for kids and adults, Musiah is by far the world’s most technologically advanced piano lessons, bringing you a serious musical education in an affordable, convenient and fun way.
Musiah is a keyboard lesson system that is visually appealing and has sound musical content that's fun to use.  And it's Australian designed! (by the very talented, experienced and very nice Brendan Hogan)
It provides feedback in real time on how the lesson is going. There is a great storyline behind it and the lessons are taught by Musiah (the purple fellow) as part of equipping you for the mission that you have been given to help save the galaxy from the evil aliens "The Atonals".
You can see why this appeals to my 10 year old boy!

We did have some technical difficulties getting started up, but the site and then the owner/inventor provided great personal support and I'm so glad we perserved. I think our level of technical difficulty was truly unusual. You just need a MIDI keyboard, a computer with a mouse that can go near the keyboard, internet connection and the ability to download a big file.



LL has been using the lessons for a while now and has finished the second level of lessons. He just needs to perform the songs now at a high enough standard to earn enough stars to get to the next level. He has had so much fun and has learnt so many new pieces.  A big improvement on earlier in the year. The songs are still at quite a basic level, but you need to play them precisely to proceed to the next song. It's all good grounding and they learn theory as they go. The songs are played with a backing track, with lots of different effects. Very groovy.
The boy loves being on the computer and he has been so excited about playing and learning. It's a beautiful thing to see.
It's not just for kids, but adults too. If I could play in time and not rush, I might catch up to LL in my lessons on my journey through the galaxy. (but LL likes being ahead of his mum) Just as well Musiah is patient with me!
I know a number of my regular readers are very musically talented and this may not be something that you need to consider for your family.  If however you know of someone, who would like to learn piano and learn it from home, I would highly recommend Musiah. It does cost $25 a month, but up to 6 people can access it for that price.
Have a look at the site for a more thorough explanation.
Here endeth the lesson.

(edited to add: I originally wrote this for my old blog which has since gone private but I wanted to make the review still available. I am still happy to recommend Musiah. LL is now 13, at high school and still playing piano with a great local teacher. And more importantly enjoying playing. I still credit his change of attitude towards playing to Musiah. Musiah is fun and exceptionally good content. My opinions are my own and not sponsored.)