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What are the best instruments for a beginner to pick up?
(lemmy.fmhy.ml)
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this post was submitted on 19 Jul 2023
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You have some options.
Firstly, remember that learning music is basically learning a new language. So be patient.
Piano/keyboards are great because of low-cost of entry. You can find second-hand instruments in all sizes (25 key up to 88 keys) on Craigslist or Reverb for as low as $50. If it has MIDI or USB, you can hook it up to your computer and control endless downloadable virtual instruments - and/or record it easily to write songs.
It’s an ideal instrument to learn theory. I recommend getting a roll of masking tape and labeling all the keys until you memorize them.
Guitars are more fun, IMO. They’re portable. You don’t have to learn as much theory to get started and it’s certainly less formal. Some of the best guitarists around don’t really know what they’re doing - they’re just feeling. You don’t get a much of that with piano.
Guitar is all about awkward hand positions and building muscular memory around that. I never know what note I’m playing half the time when I play guitar - I just know the positioning.
The downsides is maintenance. Guitars require tuning before playing, changing strings periodically, etc. There is a higher cost of entry. A lot of new players buy terrible quality cheap guitars with unchanged strings and get discouraged by the poor sound and feel.
Ukeleles are generally cheaper and it’s easier to get a good sound. They work similar to guitar and you can figure out the basics fairly quickly.
That's because toan is stored in the balls.
Also yeah, I used to be a concert snare player and then gave up drums entirely. I picked up guitar at 18 and was a better guitarist after a year with no formal training versus 10 years of snare. Once you learn basic chords, you can generally follow a chord chart pretty easily, only needing to learn more when you get into the more complex shapes. Music theory is great but not required to make neat sounding music (I still don't know it, I just find notes that sound good with each other).
Ukelele would be a good starter though, it's similar enough that it'll partially translate but is also like $20 to get into and the strings are cheaper.
Yeah. What’s cool about guitar is that there’s really no wrong way to play it.
I’ve been playing for 15 years, and the way I pick is not going to be the same as the way my friends pick. Or, like - I have one friend whose left handed. But he doesn’t play a lefty guitar, he just plays upside down… without changing stringing (so his high notes are on top now). It’s weird, but he plays incredibly.
Ukelele has some drawbacks. It’s a comparatively thin sound that doesn’t work well as an accompaniment for a lot of singing. It’s also much harder to go from Uke to Guitar than Guitar to Uke. It’s a bigger climb if you feel the range isn’t enough.
A mini acoustic travel guitar could be a better alternative. Small fretboard so your hand doesn’t have to stretch as much.