For years I have been entranced by the music of the piano. From classical, to blues, jazz, rock n roll, funk, and soul, I love them all. When I am spending my time writing every day I always have Thelonious Monk rocking out on Pandora. His music floods my brain with euphoria and I can feel his love of the keys coming through my speakers. I have dreamed for years of being able to share this passion with others by playing it for them.

The problem is, I have never bothered to sit down and learn to play the piano. I can aspire and hope to be a great jazz pianist all day but I will never actually get there without putting in the hours of practice grinding it out. Even if I am tired or don’t feel like it I still need to commit and practice on.

That is where this challenge begins. I have a keyboard, it’s the first of the month, and I am ready to finally commit!

For the next thirty days I will be learning to play one of Monk’s essential jazz tunes Straight No Chaser . This may not be my favorite of his tracks, but I selected it for a few reasons.

• It will be difficult to learn for someone who has little prior piano experience.
• It will serve as a solid base on which to build my piano skills up from.
• And while it may not be my favorite, lets be honest, it still is a damn good tune.

On May 31st, I will be inviting over friends and family to enjoy the musical styling of Mr.Monk as played through my finger tips. I will post updates on this every Sunday to keep track of my progress and keep me on target.

It’s time to play!