Piano is still the instrument most people say they want to play, but wanting to play and actually sticking with lessons are two different things. We dug into the research on enrollment, starting age, and dropout patterns to see what the data actually shows, not just what feels true from years of teaching. You can find the rest of this series in our full Music Education Research hub, and if you want the full picture on our own piano and keyboard program, that page has our lesson formats and age ranges.
Piano Still Tops the List of Instruments People Want to Play
A 2022 survey of 2,000 Americans, including 1,200 who had played an instrument, ranked piano and keyboard first among instruments people had played, at 27 percent. Acoustic guitar came in second at 20 percent, and violin third at 19 percent. That same survey found 82 percent of parents think it matters for their child to learn an instrument. Parents leaned toward piano, drums, and violin as their top picks, at 18, 17, and 16 percent respectively. Kids had a different idea: 22 percent of parents said their child’s top choice was electric guitar. If your child is torn between piano and guitar, that gap between what parents want and what kids ask for is worth keeping in mind before you enroll them in either one. It also suggests a practical approach: letting a child have some say in the choice, even if piano ends up being the better foundation instrument, tends to matter for how long they stay motivated.
The Age Most Students Actually Start
A 2022 YouGov poll of US adults who had played an instrument found that 48 percent started between ages 6 and 10. Another 33 percent started between 11 and 17, and only 9 percent started at 5 or younger. A separate 9 percent didn’t pick up an instrument until they were 18 or older. In other words, there’s no single correct starting age, but the middle of elementary school is where most people begin. That lines up with what we see at our own studios: most families enroll in private lessons once a child is developmentally ready to read and sit through a structured 30 or 45 minute lesson, which is why our private lessons start at age 5.
What Happens After the First Lesson: Retention Data From a Canadian Piano Study
The most detailed data we found on piano retention comes from a 2017 University of Ottawa study published in the journal Intersections. Researchers Karen Gerelus, Gilles Comeau, and Mikael Swirp compared 153 students who were still taking lessons against 55 students who had quit within the previous year, all recruited through professional music teachers’ associations across Canada.
The two groups started piano at almost the same age: 6.27 years old on average for continuing students, 6.96 for those who quit. The gap showed up later. Continuing students, after an average of 4.76 years of lessons, had reached an average Level 4 on the Royal Conservatory of Music syllabus, progressing at a rate of 0.73 grade levels per year. Dropout students, despite taking lessons for a comparable 4.93 years on average, had reached only Level 2, progressing at 0.45 grade levels per year. That difference in pace was statistically significant. The dropout group quit at an average age of 12, which the researchers noted matches the commonly held idea of a pre-teen dropout stage. What stands out in the data is that the two groups didn’t differ much in how they rated their own ability. Both continuing and dropout students described themselves as somewhat above average at the piano. The real split was in measured progress, not in self-confidence or perceived talent, which suggests dropout isn’t usually about a child deciding they’re bad at music. It’s more often about the pace of visible improvement falling short of expectations.
What Actually Predicts Whether a Student Keeps Going
The Ottawa researchers also looked at what separated the two groups beyond age and progress rate. Academic ability, as rated by parents, made no measurable difference. What did matter was home environment. Mothers of continuing students were more likely to hold academic or professional occupations and to have completed more years of formal education than mothers of dropout students, a difference the researchers found statistically significant. The study cites earlier research from Cremaschi and colleagues showing the percentage of boys still taking piano lessons dropped from 33.6 percent at age 9 to just 9.8 percent by age 17.
None of this means a specific family situation guarantees a dropout. It means the pace of visible progress and the amount of engaged support at home both correlate with whether a student sticks around long enough to reach an intermediate level. That’s consistent with what we tell parents at enrollment: showing interest in what your child is working on tends to matter more than how much you already know about music yourself.
Who’s Sitting at the Piano as an Adult
Piano isn’t just a childhood pursuit. In the same 2022 YouGov survey, adults over 65 were more likely than any other age group to say they had learned piano, at 37 percent. Sixty percent of everyone who had played piano said they learned through formal lessons or classes rather than teaching themselves. And among people who quit an instrument at some point, 48 percent of former piano students said they regretted stopping, a notably high number compared to some other instruments in the same survey. If you tried piano as a kid and gave it up, you’re in good company, and you’re far from the only adult who’s thought about picking it back up. We hear versions of that regret often from parents who enroll their own kids in lessons partly because of how they feel about their own unfinished piano education. Adult students also make up a real share of who walks through our doors, not just children, and the same fundamentals of steady practice and formal instruction that predict a child’s progress apply just as much once you’re older.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best age to start piano lessons?
Most people who learn piano start between ages 6 and 10, according to survey data, though starting earlier or later than that range is common too. Readiness matters more than a specific birthday. Our private lessons start at age 5, once a child can typically sit through a structured lesson and begin reading simple notation.
Why do so many kids quit piano around age 12?
Research on Canadian piano students found the average dropout age was 12, and that students who quit were progressing through skill levels roughly half as fast as students who stuck with lessons. Slower visible progress, not a lack of interest at the start, appears to be a major factor.
Does it matter if a parent doesn’t play piano themselves?
Not directly. The Ottawa study found parents’ own musical background wasn’t the deciding factor. What correlated with students continuing was engaged support at home and steady progress toward visible milestones, which any parent can help create regardless of their own musical experience.
Is piano still worth learning compared to guitar or other instruments?
Survey data ranks piano as the most-played instrument among adults who learned one, ahead of guitar and violin. It’s also the instrument most non-players say they wish they’d learned. That doesn’t make it the right choice for every child, but it remains a strong starting point for building reading and technique skills that transfer to other instruments.
Piano Lessons at ABC Academy of Music
We’ve watched these patterns play out in our own studios across Lawrence Park, St. Clair West, Dufferin Grove/Oakwood, and Brampton for over two decades. Families often start their youngest children in Music Together (R), our program for ages 0 to 3, before moving into Rhythm Kids for ages 4 to 7 and then into private piano lessons at 5 and up. Music Together is a registered trademark of Music Together LLC. ABC Academy of Music is an authorized Music Together center.
The research is clear that steady, visible progress keeps students engaged, which is why our private lessons are built around regular, trackable goals rather than open-ended practice. If you’re weighing whether now is the right time to start, or wondering what lessons cost, our rates and payment page lays out pricing by lesson length. You can also reach out through our contact page and we’ll help you find the right starting point for your child or for you.
SOURCES:
- Newsweek, “Here Are the Top 10 Most Popular Instruments to Play,” Newsweek, 2023, https://www.newsweek.com/here-are-top-10-most-popular-instruments-play-1717696
- YouGov, “Younger Americans are increasingly exposed to playing music and a wider range of instruments,” YouGov, 2022, https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/43512-young-americans-increasingly-exposed-music
- Karen Gerelus, Gilles Comeau, and Mikael Swirp, “Predictors of Piano Student Dropouts,” Intersections, vol. 37, no. 2, 2017, https://piano.uottawa.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/36.-Gerelus-et-al_Dropouts-2017.pdf