Is it realistically possible to learn to play the violin well at age 40 with no previous musical experience?
April 29, 2010 - 5:09 pm
I’ve always loved the sound of the violin and have been curious about learning to play it, especially in the style you hear in Irish music. That looks very difficult. So just wondering I guess if a relatively old dog could learn new tricks or if this is one of those things you have to learn in your fomative years.
Any example of people who have learned to play only later in life would be inspirational!
Yes, very possible, go for it. I learned to play the piano at a very young age and just recently (last year) was playing for some residents at the nursing home and my coworker was amazed, she is a 52 year old RN, she started taking lessons a few months later and she is doing quite well.
April 29th, 2010 at 10:26 pm
you can do anything you set your mind to! dont forget it!!
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April 29th, 2010 at 11:15 pm
It is possible, but you also have to keep in mind that children are much better at learning and retaining musical abilities than adults. You will have to work much harder than you would have had to say, 30 years ago. Good luck!
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April 29th, 2010 at 11:57 pm
I’m not all that old, but you can learn to do anything at an older age. :] My grandma had wanted to play the flute for years! She’s young I suppose at 50, and she started taking lessons, just because you’re older doesn’t mean you can’t start new things. :] just practice practice!
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April 30th, 2010 at 12:24 am
It’d be extremely harder but if you practise like hell it is possible, just way way harder mate.
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April 30th, 2010 at 1:14 am
Yes, very possible, go for it. I learned to play the piano at a very young age and just recently (last year) was playing for some residents at the nursing home and my coworker was amazed, she is a 52 year old RN, she started taking lessons a few months later and she is doing quite well.
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April 30th, 2010 at 1:49 am
yah its possible…its not that hard to learn the basics like how to read musical staff and notes…. um* it’ll be difficult but still possible.
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April 30th, 2010 at 1:58 am
It is possible. You could potentially teach yourself. Ian Anderson taught himself how to play Flute. When he went to colleges, they wouldn’t allow him to come in because he played "wrong". He formed a band called Jethro Tull, they were/are amazing, then Juliard wanted him to come and teach them how he played, because he could reach a completely different range then classical flute could
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April 30th, 2010 at 2:28 am
yes in fact in many ways it will be easier
you probably wont be a world renown violinist at 40 however there was little chance you ever where going to be
how ever could you learn to be a competent violinist who most people will enjoy listening too yes you can
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April 30th, 2010 at 2:35 am
you could learn it, it will just take more time than a kid would because of responsibilities and your brain isnt top notch any more. But with comitment and constant practice (15 mins a day atleast) you will get good in a few years ( like 2 or 3 to be in middle school/highschool level) or possibly be really really good in a short time for that skill level.. just depends how you are.
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April 30th, 2010 at 2:52 am
Sure, hell, why not. Could be being older will give you the tenacity needed to stick with it. It will take some practice but you sure can if your patient and try. Good Luck
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April 30th, 2010 at 3:01 am
Yes, of course.
It would take A LOT of practice, though. Because I know a lot of Irish music has really fast tempos.
I’ve been playing the violin for 3 years, I started when I was about…16 years old. And I’m pretty good at it now. It took a lot of time and dedication.
And you’ll get the hang of it if you practice daily.
It’s not going to be easy, though. It’s a really tough instrument to play. And as I said before, requires a lot of practice and dedication to master it.’
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April 30th, 2010 at 3:33 am
I don’t see why not!
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April 30th, 2010 at 4:01 am
It can be a lot more tough than if you were to learn it as a kid, but with a lot of patience it is possible.
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April 30th, 2010 at 4:49 am
God no! Your heart is shit, your hands are crippled, you should just sit at home. Plus, violins are heavy.
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April 30th, 2010 at 4:57 am
I heard about a fellow who started cello as an adult… I think he was retired, actually… and he practiced 8 hours a day for 4 years and auditioned and got a position playing in a symphony.
That is hearsay from several years ago, but from a usually reliable source, so I believe it tho I can’t prove it.
Besides, I teach music (voice and piano) and my FAVORITE piano students are beginning student retirees. They understand the process and have time to practice. FUN!
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Music teacher
April 30th, 2010 at 5:07 am
You certainly can learn to play Irish fiddle starting at age 40. I learned to play Appalachian old-time square dance fiddle starting when I wasn’t that much younger than you (age 34); now I’m almost 50 and still having a blast playing fiddle in jam sessions with friends and in a local bluegrass band.
I would recommend lessons to get you started on the right path. If you want to play Irish fiddle, the ideal would be to find someone who teaches that style, that would be the best. If not, a few lessons with a classical violinist would at least get you started holding the fiddle and bow correctly and playing some basic scales and such. But a lot of what makes Irish fiddle playing sound the way it does has to do with the nuances of style, like bowing patterns and rhythmic accents and ways of ornamenting the melody, that a classical violinist won’t know anything about. So if you absolutely can’t find an Irish fiddler to give you lessons, get some basic technique from a classical player and then seek out instructional DVD’s in Irish style fiddling. If you possibly can, locate other musicians who play Irish traditional music and attend some local jam sessions, even just to listen and watch the fiddlers and tape-record tunes that you like to listen to at home. You’ll also find traditional folk musicians are generally speaking very helpful and generous to newbies — don’t be afraid to approach other fiddlers with questions after the session. Also be sure to listen, listen, listen to as much Irish music as you can — the more you listen to the music, the more of the style you’ll absorb, gradually by osmosis, so to speak — and your playing will gradually start to sound more and more like the music you’re listening to.
Its late and I need to get to sleep but I’ll try to come up with some recommendations for good instructional DVD’s on Irish fiddle playing for you to look into.
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April 30th, 2010 at 5:52 am
in my opinion. the more learning you do, the better you are at it. children are born and all they do is learn, they hardly ever stop, but as they learn more and more the need to learn ‘everything’ lessens. i believe that age has nothing to do with learning, i think people learn less as they age, and subsequently forget how – to a certain extent. however, if you want motivation, being very interested in anything will increase your learning capacity toward that subject several fold. its one of the reasons why educators are so caught up in trying to make learning fun. desire is everything.
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April 30th, 2010 at 6:18 am
I started learning the violin at age 35….so join the club.
Please get a teacher ; the violin is not something you can teach yourself like piano or guitar.
It is a slow learning curve because the violin is quite a difficult instrument to even get a nice sound out of , let alone play a tune.
I can make it sound okay…on a good day. LOL But it took about 3 years before I got to that stage.
Practise EVERY day for at least one hour whether you want to or not. That is the key : discipline.
I would like you to look at "violinmasterclass.com". I cannot post the URL because Yahoo is having technical problems with this. But it is a useful site to be used in conjunction with a teacher. This is classical music but you may get something out of it.
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April 30th, 2010 at 6:34 am
Yeah! My aunt is in her 50’s and she decided to buy a viola one day. She’s been taking lessons and such, and she loves it! So I say go for it, take lessons, buy books, and enjoy!
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April 30th, 2010 at 7:10 am
How about 3,000 of them? There is a YahooGroup called bavs (beginning adult violin study) where you can find lots of support, and many people who started at much later ages than yours. For links to bavs and other resources, see:
(3) Am I too old to learn the violin, which has always been my dream?
http://beststudentviolins.com/PedagogyTech.html#3
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April 30th, 2010 at 7:52 am
Good news! Here’s a link to a Yahoo group with over 3000 members, doing exactly what you’re doing. http://launch. groups.yahoo.com/group/bavs/ Just in case the link doesn’t work, do a search for yahoo groups " Beginning Adult Violin Study."
And the answer is yes, it is possible. The main thing is takes is a consistent effort and alot of patience, because it takes a while to get the basics. And it’s well worth it!
In Chicago there’s the Old Town School of Music, where you can take beginner classes. There are also week long camps that are very fun, such as the Fiddle Tunes festival (www.centrum.org) and many others, including some focused on Irish music.
Give it a try, you’ll be glad you did!
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/bavs/
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April 30th, 2010 at 8:15 am
For the violin, Irish music is actually among the least difficult to play, in my opinion . . . but that doesn’t matter. You can learn to play anything you want. If other people have done it, you can too. Don’t listen to the people who say that you’re incapable of learning things as quickly as you could when you were younger. I firmly believe that what matters is your interest and your willingness to work hard (and consequently neglect other things). Children seem to pick things up quickly because everything seems new and exciting, but as adults, we just get comfortable in our laziness. Besides, you’re not that old. Really.
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April 30th, 2010 at 8:53 am
I’ve been teaching violin for about 20 years now, and have had beginning students from age 2 to about age 70. Starting at age 40, you’re not likely to make it to Julliard status or anything; but I have had quite a few adult students who have done extraordinarily, surprisingly well. The whole thing about it being harder to learn when you get older, in my opinion, is wrong. What you lack in regard to the 4-year-old sponge brain tends to be made up for with maturity, consistency, and life experience. What I mean is that you have probably held a job that you have had to show up for on-time on a regular basis, and have learned the value of the dollar. That means that since you have developed responsible habits, and you are paying for it yourself, you are much more likely than a child to want to practice consistently. This is half the battle. Also, you will bring understanding of mathematical principles, reading comprehension, and listening experience that will enable you to make connections in music reading and interpretation that small child will not have.
I can think of several older students of mine who have done well. I had one man who was in his 30’s who started as a beginner with no musical experience whatsoever. He was very interested and practiced a great deal, and really had some natural physical and musical ability. He was playing out of Suzuki book 4 (which children will generally take several years to reach) within a year – and doing it well (good technique, tone, pitch, musicianship). I taught a mother of 3 who was about 40, and she did the same, although it took about 2 years for her to get that far, as she didn’t come with as much ‘natural’ ability. But she worked hard and you would have enjoyed listening to her. She moved away and continued with another teacher, but last I heard she is still playing and progressing about 8 or 10 years later. I had one man who was 45 or so. He started lessons with me to get the basics of good technique and reading. He was very interested in fiddling and joined the local fiddling club to pick up the folk style. He loved it. In addition I’ve had a couple of grandmas who were limited by being a little arthritic, but enjoyed themselves tremendously. I can think of several more, but hopefully this will be enough to be encouraging to you.
My best advice is to seek recommendations for a quality teacher. Once you find someone you like, then ask them to help you select a quality violin in your price range. Those two details will have the biggest impact on your success, outside of your own abilities and efforts. Best wishes.
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