How do I learn to play piano without having to look at the piano keys?
I played piano for a little over a year and play well by ear, but when it comes to playing the partitions, I can not keep my eyes full of music. I have to constantly look down to find where my fingers, and then I lose my place. Is there a trick to jump over the keys and not miss? Or is it just a lot of practice?
You need to stop browsing back and forth between your music book and the keys – the proper way of sight reading is to have your eyes fixed on the music book, only glanced between the keys and music once in a while. When you do glance on the keys, use peripheral vision (imagine a basketball player who pass the ball – he will keep his eyes forward, but use peripheral vision to glance at the ball without looking at the ball).
If you can get used to the concept and method, you can start reading faster. Just like a person who can type fast, do not glance back and forth between keys and screen.
A course that can help you speed up your reading is Mastering The Art Of Piano Sight Reading http://www.sightreadingtips.com
I think if you can practice the piece a lot and build muscle memory you can then look at the sheets and pay further attention to everything else.