I bought a piano and i love playing it. But I’m dying to figure out how to play notes. I used to transcribe simple songs when I was a kid but the skill has worn off. Do I need a teacher to teach me or can I find a good DIY course to get cracking by myself?
Do you mean read music? You can go into your local music store (one that sells sheet music) and ask for a good beginners book. That’s your best way, I think.
FilmGeek is right on. However (assuming again by “play by notes” you mean “interpret standard notation,” and not just “play music on the keyboard”), it’s really, really simple to learn to read treble (G) and bass (F) clefs. What separates the men from the boys is the accuracy with which one can read a score cold – and, frankly, no musician is perfect in that respect.
You could simply make some flashcards if you like, then go ahead to the music store and pick out a folio of simple tunes from whichever style of music you’d like to play. Any music clerk can help you find an appropriate volume. You learn to sight-read by sight-reading, as in everything else.
There are books, of course, but my approach would be to learn the details, since there are few and conform to simple rules, and go right ahead stumbling through the music of your choice. You will improve quickly.