I don’t know about you.
But having kids changes how you look at life.
We get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Pursuing our careers and relationships. And settling into a lifestyle.
And that lifestyle may include listening to music and maybe playing a musical instrument.
Growing up my mom played piano and sang in the church choir.
My sister and I both played instruments (I played the clarinet and she played piano and flute).
We performed in school bands and my mom and sister played in church.
We both did well in school, especially math. Were we drawn to that because of our intellect? Or did music develop it? Or a combination of the two?
Whether or not one influenced the other is subject to debate another time.
Later in life (in my mid-40’s) I took up playing guitar (see my guitar playing story here).
I really enjoyed the challenge, the peacefulness that helps me unwind from challenging work days, and loved sharing it with my kids.
Oftentimes when my daughter couldn’t fall asleep she’d ask me to play guitar for her. Within a couple Pink Floyd songs (“Wish You Were Here” and “Mother”) on the acoustic guitar she’d fall asleep (it used to be Alice In Chains, “Rooster”).
Recently my son has started to show some interest in the guitar and drums. Not yet enough to focus on it but maybe soon (he’s 13). My daughter started playing around with my harmonicas.
Often with kids it starts as an interest you can positively reinforce. I find that is the best way so it doesn’t turn into something they fight you on and don’t want to do.
I hope someday they’ll take up an instrument, practice enough to get good at it, and then I can share the musical joys with them.
Maybe it will be guitar. I love that the guitar is so versatile. It works for many different musical styles. It is portable (unlike the piano). And it is fairly easy to get good enough quickly to play songs to keep your interest up.
Research shows that playing an instrument can bring many benefits to children. It develops physical abilities, social skills, discipline and enhances self-esteem. Learning to play a guitar also improves dexterity.
It isn’t for everyone though. Before signing up your kids for guitar lessons you should consider these factors: age, physical capability, interest and motivation.
Ideally, they should be at least 6 years old to have sufficient dexterity in the hands to handle the guitar. At this age, most kids can focus and concentrate on lessons for at least 30 minutes straight (an amount of time necessary to build their skills).
Being physically ready to play the instrument makes it easier on the child to manipulate the strings. The guitar should also fit in their hands nicely. It helps if they like the guitar they’re using. So let them choose their own guitar (from a selection of guitars that are designed for their size and strength). They’ll also want to be able to test and feel the guitar in their hands.
Are you and your kids ready to take that leap and see if learning to play the guitar is right for them? Check out this article that explains how to purchase the right guitar for children. And begin your musical journey with them.
Photo credit: Frédéric de Villamil via Foter.com / CC BY-SA
My kid is showing a lot of interest in playing music from an early age. I hope it’s guitar because 1) I love it and 2) all the reasons you mentioned about portability. I’m glad you said, “they should be at least 6 years old to have sufficient dexterity in the hands to handle the guitar.” It’s nice when someone draws a line in the sand and backs it up! Another thing about guitar is that you can just rest it on your lap and browse through endless lessons and YouTube song tutorials from your phone or laptop. Definitely wasn’t so easy ‘back in the day’!
So true, Mitch. Thanks for sharing.
Mike
In order for you to learn playing guitar correctly you must set yourself your own small personal goals which you will need to accomplish each time you practice your guitar playing. As time goes by and you are able to accomplish more of the goals that you set yourself you will find that your confidence levels begin to grow.
You make a good point that guitars will work for different musical styles. My son wants to start learning how to play music. It seems like the guitar will be a good option, so I’ll need to find somewhere for him to get lessons from.
Sounds like a good time for him to learn. Definitely having them show an interest is a great first step. Good luck.
Thanks for sharing this. I’m currently working on the f# minor nocturne! they’re beautiful pieces. Afte completion of this, I would go for guitar lessons.
Don’t get me wrong, you have to be strong and confident to be successful in just about anything you do – but with music, there’s a deeper emotional component to your failures and successes. If you fail a chemistry test, it’s because you either didn’t study enough, or just aren’t that good at chemistry (the latter of which is totally understandable). But if you fail at music, it can say something about your character. It could be because you didn’t practice enough – but, more terrifyingly, it could be because you aren’t resilient enough. Mastering chemistry requires diligence and smarts, but mastering a piano piece requires diligence and smarts, plus creativity, plus the immense capacity to both overcome emotional hurdles, and, simultaneously, to use that emotional component to bring the music alive.
Before I started taking piano, I had always imagined the Conservatory students to have it so good – I mean, for their homework, they get to play guitar, or jam on their saxophone, or sing songs! What fun! Compared to sitting in lab for four hours studying the optical properties of minerals, or discussing Lucretian theories of democracy and politics, I would play piano any day.
But after almost three years of piano at Orpheus Academy, I understand just how naïve this is. Playing music for credit is not “easy” or “fun” or “magical” or “lucky.” Mostly, it’s really freakin’ hard. It requires you to pick apart your piece, play every little segment over and over, dissect it, tinker with it, cry over it, feel completely lame about it, then get over yourself and start practicing again. You have to be precise and diligent, creative and robotic. And then – after all of this – you have to re-discover the emotional beauty in the piece, and use it in your performance.
Great feedback, Biplab. Thank you.