B3 Organ - Should I Learn To Play Piano, Keyboard Or Organ?

The first thing to consider when choosing the instrument you want to learn is which one do you like the best. If you like them all, then we can move onto which one is the most practical for you.

The easiest and cheapest option is the keyboard. You can buy a keyboard for less then 100 pounds and you only need to learn to read music for the right hand. The left hand is made easy because you just learn left hand chords as you need them. Typically, you would start with C chord and G chord. With a keyboard, you should be playing a simple tune within a day, it's that easy.

The piano is a more expensive option. If you buy a real piano (not electric) then you need the room, if you go for the electric option then you really should be looking at an 88 note keyboard especially if you intend taking exams. With piano sheet music, you will need to learn to read right hand (treble clef) and left hand (bass clef). You can expect to play a simple tune within a week, based on at least half an hour practice a day.

The electric organ can be a very expensive option if bought new, fortunately, there is a healthy second hand market and you can pick up a bargain. Like the piano, you need room for the organ because they are big and heavy. At the moment, there are no portable options available in the UK. However, you can import the Yamaha D-Deck organ or the Yamaha Electone Stagea organ, which are portable and very modern looking. The organ has two keyboards and a pedal board. The right hand plays the top keyboard the left hand plays the lower keyboard and your left foot plays the pedal board. It is initially more the most difficult to learn because you need to learn to play the bass pedals however when starting to learn the organ, like the keyboard you just need to learn to read music for the right hand and use chord symbols for the left hand and bass pedals.

I personally started on piano then moved to organ and I prefer the organ because of the vast amount of sounds. With a piano, you will only ever have a piano. If I had to answer the question for you then I would say start with a cheap keyboard. If you like it, move on to a bigger keyboard, a piano, or an organ, if not, it's not cost you a lot of money to find out that this music lark is not for you.