Any musicians here who started as an adult? [edited title]

Cafe Society
1

I just picked up a violin and want to learn to play. I am most interested in just learning some simple songs and playing more of a bluegrass fiddle.

I basically picked up a book (The Ignoramus Fiddle Book) and started yesterday learning the d scale on the d and a strings. It is so cool to me how the bow makes the noise as it is drawn across the strings. It doesn’t seem too hard as I can play that scale already without too much squawking and have picked out Twinkle Twinkle Little Star on both of those strings without looking at music. The book is a big help as the music is in tab format and I am familiar with that as I am also learning the guitar.

I am rather retired and so I am using learning music to fill my time. Would love to
hear from others who picked up the violin as an older adult and how you have progressed. Thanks!!

2

You would be amazed at how much progress you can make with regular practice. I’ve seen plenty of adults who have done well with music later in life. A good friend of mine who is in his fiftys even went back to school and earned a performance degree in guitar! Now he plays music at a grade 10 level. I brought myself to a university level of trumpet playing in three years in my twentys. Find a good teacher though, it will fast track your growth. Good luck and have fun!

3

I’m 52 and picked up the banjo a year and a half ago. I have the Ignoramus book for banjo.

I’m doing pretty well.

I did end up getting a teacher. I sort of got stuck on what to do next. I take a lesson about once a month. It’s helped a great deal.

In any case, I love it. I am having great fun with it. I’m learning so much just about music in general. One of the best things I’ve ever done for myself.

4

Glad to get the replies and to hear that you are all doing so well! Where did you have the best luck finding your instructors? I am pretty isolated out in a very rural area and don’t really talk to many people so word of mouth recommendations are hard to get for me. Not really sure where to turn to find an instructor if I decide to go that route. For now I am just going to concentrate on learning the basics of the instrument and try to learn to play this instrument by ear instead of relying upon music as much as I do with the guitar.

For a two-fer, I am learning finger style guitar (teaching myself) and have been working on that for about two years. I am doing pretty well with that and can play a large selection of songs. Anyone who plays finger style guitar out there? Would love to hear from you folks as well. It is hard to find other finger style players to chat with!

Thanks for all who have replied.

5

Great topic, Nobody’sMama – I moved the thread to Cafe Society (and tweaked the thread title a little), since that’s where a lot of the musicians hang out.

I’m not a musician myself, but I write on education a lot – you might want to contact the local high school (or middle school or elementary school) to talk to their music teacher. Even if he or she doesn’t give lessons, he or she might very well know someone who does.

6

I played viola for a year when I was 24. I hadn’t had any experience with a string instrument before (except ukulele.)

I had to give my rented viola back, so I haven’t pursued it since then. But I don’t regret having spent a year trying to pay the viola, because I learned a lot about string instruments.

7

As a musician (clarinetist), I started seriously as a teen.

8

This is an excelent idea.

I live in a mountain resort community. Lots of music is played here. But I was surprised that I could not find a teacher. Anyway, a friend told me about a music store in her area, and they had a reference to a few teachers.

The banjo is the first instrument that I have tried. Planning on the guitar next.

9

I have played since my teens and before but I never really learned music theory. Quit playing 10 or so years ago because I work in the music biz. Started playing Bass Guitar again a few months ago while concentrating on theory and jazz improv and am finally learning, real progress is being made. I join a new band next Tuesday. I am 42

It feels great to me, keep it up

Capt

10

After getting discouraged and bored trying to self-learn guitar in my teens and twents, I started up again last year with lessons once or twice a month. I’m making awesome progress and loving it. 43 years old.

11

Usually, violin is a kind of instrument that you start at a young age. The default time to start is fourth grade. Our school system started in second. I’ve been playing for 7+ years now, and have been taking private lessons for 6 years.

That being said, anyone can learn to play the violin, although it is easier if you start at a young age.

You will want to hire a private lesson teacher, because violin involves a lot of technique such as hand position, making quality bow strokes, vibrato, etc. and a teacher is very much needed so that she can enforce your quality of these techniques.

Violin is a difficult instrument to learn how to play because not only is there a lot of technique that is very critical usually all the time, but the musicality and how you play the piece matters almost equally as much. So essentially, it’s very hard to make it sound good.

So I strongly recommend getting lessons. Most good teachers will teach at a dollar/minute. My teacher offers 30 minute lessons for $30, 45 minute lessons for $45, and one hour lessons for $60. And usually, when you sign up for lessons, the teacher has to accept you. Usually they don’t just take you. The typical frequency for lessons is once a week. And for your first year, you’ll probably only need 20-30 minutes a day, 5 days a week of practice. After that, you’ll probably want to do more. However, you’re teacher will guide you through that. I “should” practice more, but I don’t :D. Apparently though, I still play excellently according to my teachers.

Now as in finding a “good” teacher, like I said, the rates should be close or slightly lower than that. If the lessons are really cheap, chances are, you’re not going to a very good teacher. My teacher says that unfortunately, most violin teachers don’t focus too much on technique, only a few do. One of those teachers are mine obviously. My teacher is really critical on technique, which is a good thing.

However, if you’re just starting out, cheap lessons should be fine, but after your first year or so, you’ll want to find a more expensive teacher who can sit with you for 45 minutes to an hour a week and guide you through everything more critically.

12

I’ve been plinking away at the piano for… oh, I dunno. Six months now? Seems longer. I’ve been picking it up nicely, which I attribute to almost twenty years of typing. C’mon, it’s a similar sort of thing!

Anyway, I’ve been doing fine with it. Just last week, in a fit of optimism (and also getting bored with what I had been working on, Mad World), I went in to my teacher and handed him the sheet music to The Ecstasy of Gold. Hopefullly my reach hasn’t exceeded my grasp too far… :smiley:

13

I started playing guitar in college. I mean I went from not knowing a single chord to playing in a band inside of a year. But I was never really much good. I languished with the knowledge/skill to play but never very seriously for a long time after that.

Now I’ve been playing in a band for about the last six years, and my technique, ability, tone, improvs, everything has grown by leaps and bounds. It’s almost like I started over when I joined the band.

Now - since our immensely talented keyboard player decided to “take a hiatus” (read: he got sick of us) - I’ve been sitting in on piano for some tunes, and that’s an instrument that I never had the vaguest inkling about until about the time I joined the band as well. I mean, I knew my chords, but I had no technique – I still don’t have that much technique, but I can rock out with my cock out if I need to.

I’m 47.

14

I started playing guitar when I was 22 or 23, shortly after I started playing saxophone. I don’t play sax much anymore, but I play guitar for at least an hour nearly every day. I bought a bass about a year ago, and love playing bass. I also have a set of steel drums, a couple of klong yaw drums, a keyboard and a bunch of other percussion instruments. I like to move air.

15

Just yeaterday I ordered Guitar Zero, in which a psychologist decides to research the subject before diving in to learn guitar at nearly 40.

You can read a bit at Amazon.

16

I am a fingerstyle guitarist. What kind of music do you play? I started playing alternating-bass Tommy Emmanuel pieces last year and it’s been a lot of fun. I was stagnating for a while before that and it was hard to even pick up the instrument.

17

We live in a beautiful time. If you live in a rural community, go look into Skype violin teachers. It actually can work very well with the right teacher. You may even be able to swing something where you have a weekly lesson over the internet, and then go for a one on one lesson once a month. That way you can have the best of both worlds. Good luck!