To start or not to start

Invader

Invader

Ancient Mariner
I've lately been thinking of starting to play an instrument of some kind.  I've pretty much narrowed it down to (electric) bass.  I've also thought of drums and guitar, but I don't want guitar because it's so (relatively) common, and I just don't have space for drums.  Those are the only "real" instruments for me; of course I could take something like piano but I'd rather play an instrument that is associated with the music I like.  So, a bass it is.

Now, I'm not planning to join or make a band; I'd simply play for the enjoyment of playing, not for other people.  One chief problem I face is whether I would really have the energy to carry on with it.  I.e. is this just temporary "hype" for me or proper enthusiasm.  Also, am I too old (17) to start playing an instrument?

I've been thinking of trying to borrow a bass from someone and give it a try to see how it works out.

So basically what I'm asking is, how feasible do you think it would be?  Should I start? 
 
It is never too late to start anything like learning a language or playing an instrument. It is harder, but you can still learn, specially if you are only going to do it as a hobby. A suggest you do it, because you won't know if it is "hype" or true conviction until you go through with it.
 
17 is not too old to start learning bass. I didn't start until I was 15 (though I admittedly already played piano, drums and some guitar by that time). But learning an instrument is not like learning a spoken language, which is notably harder for adults than children because of the way the language processors in the brain develop. That part of the brain is primed to learn language in childhood. I've never heard of any parallel with learning music.

There's another thread around here somewhere in which I've been giving (occasionally facetious) advice about learning to play bass. I'll keep my nonsense to that thread, and give some serious tips here. Moreover, I'll talk for a bit about learning music in general here, and not specifically bass.

First of all, learn to read music. I don't mean tablature - I mean standard, traditional notation. The stuff that used to be called "sheet music", although in these modern times it's not always printed on paper anymore. Traditional notation gives you a greater insight into music than tablature. For example, a rising melody actually rises on the page, and the third-based nature of chords is more easily seen.

Learn how to play major and minor scales in every key. If your instrument is a guitar or bass, learn to play them with different fingerings in different positions. Learn about intervals - for example, learn what a third is, and then what the difference between a minor third and major third is. Learn about inversions of intervals - for example, learn why a perfect fourth is the inversion of a perfect fifth, and be able to name the inversion of a minor seventh.

Learn how chords are created from major and minor scales. In essence, it's done by taking alternating notes of a scale and playing them together. For example, the 1st, 3rd and 5th notes of a major scale create a major chord. Learn about chord inversions.

Study chord progressions from songs, and learn about voice-leading (how chord changes are structured to create melodies as part of the chord changes). You'll quickly see there are 3 common types of chord changes:
1. A change of a fourth or fifth, in which the two chords have one common tone
2. A change of a third or sixth, in which the chords have two common tones
3. A change of a second or seventh, where there are no common tones
Each of these changes has its own distinctive sound, and learning those sounds will help you learn songs by ear faster.

Work on your ear training. Play along with CDs and learn songs by ear. Knowing what a note will sound like before you play it will make you a better player.

Take lessons, even if they're just free lessons from a friend who can play. Even if you have the talent to be self-taught, lessons can still help.

Most importantly, don't let old farts like me tell you what to do. Rock and roll is about being yourself.
 
SinisterMinisterX said:
First of all, learn to read music. I don't mean tablature - I mean standard, traditional notation.
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I don't think this is that important. I know quite some musicians (especially in metal) who can't read it and don't use it nor need it.

It depends what you want to do as a musician, but me personally, I'd prefer to learn something by heart.

For everyone this might be different, so it depends. Do you have an ear for music, for tone, for melody, for recognizing and recreating a melody or a riff. It's more of a feeling for music.
 
Invader said:
Now, I'm not planning to join or make a band; I'd simply play for the enjoyment of playing, not for other people.  One chief problem I face is whether I would really have the energy to carry on with it.  I.e. is this just temporary "hype" for me or proper enthusiasm.  Also, am I too old (17) to start playing an instrument?

I've been thinking of trying to borrow a bass from someone and give it a try to see how it works out.

So basically what I'm asking is, how feasible do you think it would be?  Should I start?
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you should start -for the enjoy of playing  ;)
 
____no5 said:
you should start -for the enjoy of playing   ;)
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Hehe, indeed. I also was a bit surprised by this topic.

It's the same as when I'd say here: "Should I start baking bread?"

Conclusion: Start and see if you like it.
:-)
 
Forostar said:
I don't think this is that important...
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Sure, you can learn to play without reading music. However, you'll learn slower in the long run and be much more limited in what you can play. I've played with many musicians who can read music, and many who can't. Without a single exception, the ones who could read were always better musicians. They always had better rhythm, played better melodies when they soloed, fit better into a group and had a better feel for music (any style).

You may be able to eventually play a mean metal guitar without learning to read music, but it will take more work, and it will be harder for you to expand beyond that. If all you want to do is play metal, then go ahead and skip reading music and deal with the consequences. But my advice was intended to make a person a better musician overall, not just a good metal player.

Besides, reading music isn't that hard. There's really no excuse to skip it, since it only takes a very short time. Learning to sight-read is harder (i.e. learning to play a piece at tempo upon seeing the music for the first time), but I'm not talking about that. I only meaning knowing how to interpret sheet music so you can (slowly, if need be) learn more music.
 
My advice is also, start and see if you enjoy it. But if at first it may sound crummy, don't be discouraged, the key to mastering any instrument is practice (and a little patience mixed with a tiny sprinkling of talent).  :)
 
Well, SMX, you might be right in a way, but it's another barrier to get started in my opinion.
It depends what you want to do with music. Myself, I never like to play covers. Creating and playing is cooler for me than reading and playing.

If you only want to play songs of others, than it might be handy, but still it limits you in a way to be creative yourself. I'd say discover an instrument and later decide if you need to read notes.

Best example of a musician without any theoretical knowledge:
Steve Harris :)
 
SinisterMinisterX said:
Sure, you can learn to play without reading music. However, you'll learn slower in the long run and be much more limited in what you can play.
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I agree. i took piano for 5 years and never learned to read music. I essentially memorized over 3 hours of music, but after moving to the States and not playing for a year I essentially forgot everything except 15 minutes worth of songs that are so engrained in my brain (hey that rhymed!) that I'll never forget them. But still, I wish to this day that I had learned to read music. But now I'm too busy with other endevours to devot time to music.
 
I say go ahead! Do it! It's great! I started guitar when I was 16... I had a couple of years of piano and viola behind me, but they were too far back to aid anything but my initial music reading... to be fair, my music reading for guitar is still pretty bad but it's improving.
On that topic, I don't think you should learn to read music to the fullest straight away. I say work on it a bit every day, even for a short amount of time. Use the rest of your time learning however you want. This will develop your skill with both sheet music and with theory-based improvisation and learning songs without sheet music.
 
Playing something you hear is possible without reading notes. Discover the tones with your fingers on your own instrument. Tablature can also help.

Without reading notes it's possible to make music with a band or alone, since you are the creator and you can record the songs that you make and practice them yourself or with others.
 
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