I have played a wide range of musical instruments but playing the piano is my passion. I played it during my beginner years, but my excitement was taken to another level when I took the piano playing course known as the Playground Sessions. This course will make you learn to play piano with great fun, and if you want to know more, then this Playground Sessions review is here for you! The creators of this course strongly believe that majority of music lovers have more profound concepts of music.
However, they are not aware of their secret understanding of the music. Playground sessions will be making it easier for you to have understood the basic concepts in an enjoyable way. If you are also a music lover who wants to learn to play piano like a pro, you need to take this fantastic course. If you are wondering where to find all the relevant details of this course, there are no worries because we have compiled all the necessary information. So, all you have to do is keep reading this detailed review guide. Here we go!
If you are an active enthusiast concerned about playing musical instruments, then piano must be on the top list to opt for. You may try playing piano by yourself, and you will considerably improve with the practice. However, this is a clear fact: learning without proper guidelines and learning with the help of a good mentor or a good course. Therefore, you should always go for the latter option. The good news is that a practical piano course like the Playground Sessions music app will guide you like a mentor.
If you opt for the Playground Sessions, you will not only be understandably learning about the piano. But also, you will be enjoying the whole journey from a beginner to a pro-level piano player. The trick followed by the creators of this fantastic course is that they have deliberately chosen the most famous songs from the global music industry.
They have used such famous songs for demonstration of the musical concepts. You will be glad to learn that the lessons added by the creators and co-creators of this course are game-like. If you wonder how they resemble games, let us tell you in further clarity. The lesson of this course enables you to develop a connection between a keyboard on the screen and your device, i.e., a computer or iPad. This connection is best in providing the user with the different features.
These features include checking your progress on the screen visually, instant feedback, and how you are scoring on the tests. These facts are enough to convince you about the fun side of Playground Sessions. However, if you are wondering about this course’s effectiveness as a ‘mentor,’ then some details will shed light on the overall effectiveness. Therefore, please continue reading as we share such information in the upcoming sections of the Playground Sessions review!
Brief Historical Perspective
Before diving into the other details of the Playground Sessions piano review, we will like to share the historical perspective of this piano course with you. Playground Sessions is a company, and it is one of the most prominent companies that offer music-learning technologies. This company is situated in New York City, United States, and the fundamental aim is to teach music lovers about playing the piano. This company is remarkable because it provided users with home-based piano learning without any complications.
Through this application, the creators provide the users with expert videos to interact and learn effectively. The inception of this company dates back to 2010, and the name of the founder of this company is Chris Vance. At the same time, some prominent names like Quincy Jones, Harry Connick Jr., and David Sides joined it in 2012. You can also see Harry Connick Jr. and David Sides as the pianists in the Playground Sessions course delivering video instructions. From time to time, the team has been modernizing education to meet the needs of the users of the current era.
Playground Sessions: Age Range and Suitability
The best features and characteristics associated with the Playground Sessions music learning course might make you think that which age is this course made for? The simple answer to this question is anyone who has the zeal to learn and improve their piano. However, this course is specifically suitable for entry-level enthusiasts aged seven or more than it. Anyone of any age will enjoy it and learn with it side by side.
Another good thing that makes it suitable for the use of everyone is that it has a library of 500 songs. This feature is entirely accessible for anyone to find their favorite song falling in any genre and enjoy playing with it. If you are a younger enthusiast, you should play it like a game to keep you engaged, and then you will be learning more in fun. If you are an old-age piano lover, you may go for the older songs you love to gain more skills and interest as you spend time learning.
Distinctive Features of the Playground Sessions
Playground Sessions review will sound incomplete without discussing the distinctive characteristics associated with the Playground Sessions. Therefore, we have added this section to throw some light on the most prominent elements which play an influential role in improving the learning experience of the users. Let’s begin with these features!
A Set of Interactive and Effective Lessons
Once you install the Playground Sessions app, you can see a ‘Bootcamp’ option appearing in a tab. This tab is the set of the most effective lessons containing extracts from famous songs. The creators and co-creators have chosen them meticulously so that you can learn with great ease. As per my experience with the Playground Sessions course, this app and its lessons are the most distinctive features. You will have fun because it is simply a game-like experience.
Another mention-worthy fact here is that if you are an active player of Guitar Hero, you will be familiar with the Playground Sessions app and the course overall. However, you may miss the flashy graphics that are part of the Guitar Hero, but you will love playing via this app because it gives you the same feeling when you are playing different notes as your video instructors tell you.
Now you may question why these lessons are interactive? This is because you are playing the piano after getting video instructions instead of just pretending that you have a piano and you are playing it. Perhaps this is the biggest reason for Playground Sessions to help several music lovers better when compared with the other courses. In fact, in terms of comparison between Playground Sessions vs Flowkey, I would always go for Playground Sessions.
Video Lessons
Another best feature associated with this course that we must not forget to mention in the Playground Sessions review is the video lessons prepared by the most famous and expert level pianists. You will be glad that David Sides and Harry Connick Jr. are behind the efforts you see in the video lessons. These two instructors are the biggest name on YouTube, and Harry Connick Jr. is also a Grammy winner. Therefore, you will be trained by them then you will see the results being fruitful.
The video lessons are my favorite because these two respectable pianists have been making the video lesson even more entertaining by adding props and anecdotes. Therefore, you will always find yourself in an enjoyable position when you are watching them demonstrate their piano playing skills. In these videos, you will discover the significant concepts and other instructions to take your piano playing skills to another level.
Playground Sessions’ Songs
You will be glad to learn that Playground Sessions offer you a wide range of songs added to the course’s library. The good news is that you can select these beautiful songs besides selecting the lessons of your interest. This songs library has all kinds of music that you like. The music genres that are added for you are Latin, Pop, Country, Classical, Gospel/Christian, and Rock.
If you are a beginner, you will get monthly and annual subscriptions with credits. You can use these credits for getting five songs each month. For an entry-level pianist, these songs are sufficient for learning and practice. If you are an advanced-level user, we recommend getting a lifetime membership. This membership will provide you with forty songs for free. So, if you want to practice more and with the different music, then this membership will be the best one to go for.
Sharing Over the Forums
Another best feature of the Playground Sessions course is that it gives you the freedom to share your worthy opinion and tips with other users. Not only can you share what your understanding and learning are, but also you can use this forum to inquire about other users if you have any questions. Staying up to date on the app, you will get the latest news, and also, you can put your queries. The exciting thing is that the Playground Sessions team also encourages the users to inform them if they have any sort of complaints.
Tracking your Progress
The team of the Playground Sessions deserves a pat on the back for making all the efforts to make you learn the piano playing. One such commendable effort is that they allow their user to keep track of their progress. In this regard, you will be getting a readable chart that will appear when you complete one of the interactive lessons. As you continue completing the lessons, then the graph will go up, showing your progress. The algorithm of this app usually does the measurement of your progress by checking the time you spend on it.
In addition to the time spent, this measurement also includes the scores you obtain while practicing and the extent of the higher and lower points, and finally, it will be including the places where you need improvement. If you are wondering where to find your piano playing progress report, you simply see it by accessing ‘My Playground’ available on the app. It will be easier for you to track your progress by checking this data. This is the most crucial step, and you should not forget to do it.
Real-Time Feedback Mechanism
You will be excited to learn that you don’t have to wait to get feedback about your performance at piano playing. Thanks to the team of the Playground Sessions for adding a real-time feedback feature in this course for you which will give you live feedback. To some extent, this is not totally like a live teacher guiding you. However, the good thing is that the screen will be showing you in case you miss any not. Also, if you are going off the rhythm, it will be alerting you even then.
In addition to these feedback features, you will also be glad to learn that it will guide you if you focus on a single important section. As a result, you will be directed to the area where your effort and improvement are required. Also, this course’s app will be giving you the best ranking compared with the other musical platforms, which do not offer such detailed remarks on your performance. Therefore, opting for this musical course will be the decision of wisdom that you should do. Do it, you will love it!
Gaming Experience with the Playground Sessions
Playground Sessions is more than a course you will love for its game-like work. Therefore, if you like gameplays, you may challenge your friends to play the Playground Sessions. The simple trick to that you all should play one song of the Playground Sessions at a time. The one that scores the highest points will be the ultimate winner with comparatively refined skills. If none of your friends like piano learning, you can do it with yourself by leveling up and improving your skills.
Pros of the Playground Sessions
After reading all the details in the Playground Sessions review, now it’s time to discuss some advantages specifically associated with it. This section will be highlighting the pros of using this course. These are the reasons you should consider while opting for this course to learn to play the piano. Here we go with these points!
Famous music availability for practice: The songs included in this course are well-known and are recent ones. There are different genres that you may select according to your taste. Piano players of all levels find their favorite song to play. Also, if you choose your favorite songs, it will be easier for you to remember the notes and other rhythms.
Ease of the customization: Another advantage of the Playground Sessions is the ease of customization. You can select your favorite music, and then you can learn to play piano with it using the interactive sessions. When you are easily customizing songs, you will learn things quickly.
Progress tracking: In addition to other benefits, this platform gives you highly advanced visual aids to see your progress and where you need to improve.
Learning Course Cum Gameplay: You can learn effectively by playing the interactive sessions like a game. In this way, you will enjoy and improve your piano playing skills side by side.
Cons of the Playground Sessions
After disclosing the potential strength factors of the Playground Sessions, it is also integral to inform you about specific points that can be a source of frustration for you. I have observed these things in my capacity about Playground Sessions, and also read about these issues in the reviews of the different users around the world and added them here in our Playground Sessions review. So, before opting for it, you need to be clear about these points. They are:
Video lessons number needs improvement: The first thing you have to be okay with is that this musical learning platform does have some video lessons, but unfortunately, they are very sparse. You won’t be finding videos with most of the lessons. Video lessons are the best source of learning compared with other practices. Therefore, the team of the Playground Sessions should consider improving it if they want to attract a more significant number of consumers.
Theoretical base and technique applications need revision: Another significant shortcoming associated with this music learning platform is that few things are lacking regarding the theory and technique. For example, the creators have designed it so that you won’t be making a start with the basic notes or rhythms. Also, some techniques which are easy to learn as beginners have been omitted. This bridge between the theory and technique needs to be revised carefully.
Incompatibility with the acoustic piano: Well, if you own an acoustic piano, you should not opt for the Playground sessions because then you will miss out on something big. The reason is that this music platform is not designed for acoustic pianos. In this case, you can only watch the videos and memorize some lessons without touching the platform, but then you won’t be remembering the things when you change piano. This is the most significant limitation of the Playground Sessions.
Compromising the musical expression: Playground Sessions is a course with an app that lets you learn by watching the videos and tracking your performance. However, you should always keep in mind that it is, after all, a course with online monitoring. By no means can it take the place of the physical teachers that will catch you instantly making mistakes and correct you. Therefore, you need to be careful about this difference and limitation while opting for it.
FAQs
Is there any app available for the Playground Sessions course?
Yes, an up-to-date and user-friendly app is available for the Playground Sessions course. This app has unique features to help you in learning faster and better. It has 24 hours availability in terms of accessing the video lessons. In addition, it has a library of many songs so that you can choose the one according to your taste and start learning.
What is the cost and way of purchasing Playground Sessions?
If you intend to purchase the Playground Session, we must tell you that you can do so by making payment from your debit, credit card, or via PayPal. After purchasing, you are also supposed to give monthly charges of almost $17.99 per month. If you are planning to buy an annual membership, it will cost $119.88. The good news is that there has been a reduction in the lifetime membership cost from $289.99 to $349.99.
Is there any Playground Sessions free trial available over the internet?
The simple answer to your question is no. There is no Playground Sessions free trial available over the internet. Therefore, the only possible way of learning and improving your skill is investing your money in it. However, once you invest your money in it, you will be reaping its benefits for the long term.
If you’re looking for a piano learning app with a free trial then Skoove could be an easy option for you!
Final Thoughts
After reading about the essential details in the Playground Sessions review, we hope you will now have a clear picture of this fantastic musical instrument learning platform. If you are a piano lover and want to improve your piano playing skills, we strongly recommend investing in this fantastic music learning course. Your investment in this course will be benefitting you in the long term. In addition to the advantages, we have also discussed some of the negative points associated with the Playground Sessions.
We suggest you look for them before you finalize purchasing this course. If you have any questions, we will be glad to respond to you. Therefore, don’t forget to pour your questions, opinion, and suggestions into the feedback section. Thank you and take care! Keep playing the piano!
