Mods, this may end up in IMHO territory, so feel free to move it over if appropriate.
I have always wanted to play the drums, but at 60 I figure I no longer have the capacity to learn something new as when I was a kid. (I have never touched a drum set, although I picked up the acoustic guitar as a kid and learned to play it fairly well.)
Not only would I want to learn to play the drums, but I would want to be really good at it, not just be average. I don’t think I have any natural talent toward drumming, but I would be highly motivated and would be willing to practice a lot, say 20 hours a week. There is no physical reason why I couldn’t play the drums that I know of.
So the questions is, can someone with no obvious natural talent become an excellent drummer if they practice enough, have determination and a really good teacher, or does being really good at something like the drums require innate talent and being young?
Is there an example of someone who picked up a musical skill after say age 50, wasn’t a natural, but eventually became a world class talent? I don’t think so, but I may just be ignorant.