Are You Too Old To Start Learning Guitar?
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- Опубліковано 19 сер 2024
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The rise of the UA-cam guitar hero, tons of young guitar players with mind blowing technique has made this question more current than ever.
Behind this question hides and unhealthy thought and that is comparison with others
I think the question you should ask is: What is your goal when picking up the guitar?
When you are certain age you have so much more to say musically than a 12 year old, due to life experience. What I mean is that you are not too old to picking up an instrument, it's so much fun and really enriches your life!
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I didn't start until age 40 and have been playing out professionally for 10 years now!
How old are you right now? ;)
Damn age 40? Ok that makes me feel a lot better bc I know kids who are like 16 and real good when I’m basically starting out at 17. Thank you :)
That's pretty motivating to read.
Great motivation for me. Starting now at 37.. aiming to play guitar in clubs professionally..
Are you serious?
I'm 68 years old and will be getting my guitar next week. Always wanted to learn but was always taking care of other things. It's like starting painting. Doodled all my life. Finally started painting in my 30's. Sold 5 paintings. Love music and determined to learn. Wish me luck.
How is it going Brother?
From the future, are you guitarist now?
I started at 67 without the "Games". I did so as a direct response to the availability of UA-cam. My first start was to try to master Classical. Man that didn't work at all! I moved on to Electric with no real music genre in mind. I am now into Jazz and music theory. I think I've found my comfort zone now. I really have no plans for public performances at all. It's all about the intellectual and technical challenge for me. I can say unequivocally at the age of 76, this has been the best journey in my life!
Adam VanDusen every now and then I get discouraged, I get in a rut, but that's a temp thing. All is well, thanks!
You sir, have progressed very well! I just watched your "The Thrill is Gone" jam and you're way ahead of me. I tried to get both of my sons interested along with one of my Granddaughters. Alas, nobody has the time! So I've not had much in the way of Jamming which I think, is very important to progress in music.
I think you have a very cool Dad. You should join him and Jam out! I know I've tried to get both of my sons to join me, but they are too busy.
jonislow Mate, I've been "doing it" since 1977 off & on. Now, its all I do (long story). My guitar teacher said to me recently "yes, there are protege's (not me), but, pratice, practice and practice and you'll get there. I've read alot about "guitar gods'" over the years and a common theme.."I practiced for X hours a day." Some did 8 hours. Some never put them down. So, for me, "practice, practice, practice..." Best wishes to all!!!
Congratulations
Hell no. Started in my late 50s 2 yrs ago and now jamming out and gigging in bars and clubs. LOVE IT! 🤘😎
Sounds you did well.Is it true that youngsters can learn 10 times faster than ,say, someone who is inhis fifties.How many hours a day did you practice?
Fantastic I desperately want to learn myself , I'm 48 so you are giving me plenty of inspiration, can I ask what method you used to learn ? Was it lessons ? You tube? An online programme ?
Ok Roger, you make me believe that i at 53, i can do it,so thank you
@@andrewstirrat1628 Have you started? How is it going?
Nobody answer! That's say it all.
Started 8 months ago at 64. I am soon to be 65 and just bought my first Martin. Fantastic instruments. "My goal"? pick up chicks.
Good luck
with that! ;)
Best comment ever 🤘🤘🤘
69 likes too how convenient
@@willm3027 oh shit I almost liked the comment, thank god you opened my eyes.
man of culture
Great video and reading the comments, I'm inspired. I picked up the guitar a couple months ago at 48. I see these amazing guitar players who say they've been playing 25 years. And my first thought was, "By the time I've played 25 years, I'll be 73!" And then it hit me. In 25 years, I'll be 73 no matter what. Better to be 73 and a great guitar player, than 73 wishing I had started back when I was 48.
Same but I’m 17 starting out and I know kids who are real good cuz they stared at liek 10. All these comments of older people starting and getting good/ enjoying it are making me feel better lol
Wow! That's really hit me man! Thanks for the inspiration🙏🏼❤
Yes 👏🏽👏🏽
I started six years ago at 72 and am limited by my arthritis but no one is too old. Just don't expect to be another Keith Urban. I'm still taking lessons from a lifelong musician who still does gigs on weekends. Best thing I ever did for myself.
Me to Ron 70 this year and playing since I was 11, STILL learning.
Try a 3/4 guitar much easier to play
@@casaalta1 I started playing when I was nine years old, 1961. I started performing at twelve. In '72 I entered college and studied theory specializing in arranging and composing, and you're right, I'm still learning. That's the beauty of music, you never know it all. I started in rock, then in college I studied classical and at that same time I found jazz. I love it all, from old big band to the most modern fusion.
Congratulations man, dont you ever stop playing!
Kieth urban sucks
Love this. Im 24, and i envy my friends who learned the instrument in their childhood. Thanks for this eye opener. Doing my best saving money to buy my first electric
Hope you were able to achieve your goal! I'm in a similar boat as you right now 😅
"Inside every old man there is a young man wondering what happened."
;)
Olivier Wicker Damn good comment mate.
I know what happened. I got older.
What happens is you get married and have kids and just dont have that much free time and when you do you catch up on sleep..lol well at least that's what happened to me, also in the 80's and 90's no UA-cam and I couldn't afford private lessons, oh I did a few and here's what I got, okay dude you have 30 mins so what so you want to learn!?! Got frustrated and stopped playing until almost 47 and I've learned more in 8 months than I did in 2 years 30 years ago.
Olivier - Oh, I KNOW "what happened"... I just HATE it! 😁
@@dalton7145 It sounds like you had the wrong teacher for you. I taught for over twenty five years and I taught each student differently. Everybody learns in their own way, and a good teacher will tailor the lessons to the needs of each student.
Thanks for the inspiration. I'm 52 and my first guitar should be delivered today.
pinkiewerewolf
How it is going till now?
goodluck pinkie im planning to start at exactly 40
Guardian Observer I bet he gave up.
The truth is that is difficult to learn and the good result show up after quite a long time.
Enjoy!👍
Started up with guitar at 53. 4 years now & still going strong; enjoying the journey immensely. I'm most certainly a better music student in my 50's than I would have been in my teens or 20's. More patient with myself; and clearly my "sonic palette" is more open and inquisitive than it was earlier!
So true, patience and focusing, fingers will follow )
Same here..55 and started playing 8 months ago...Now play many hours a day, each and every day. Pure enjoyment, all of it. (I even love doing scales and modes, up and down the neck. Very relaxing to me)
Doug P hiya doug!
Im 50 yrs old and im just starting on my musical journey-just waiting for my ibanez to be delivered and then hopefully im off and running!!!
True, I started when I was 18, stopped after a year, and started again at 45, has been 5 years and i have learned so much, but, more important, i am enjoying it so much.
Just have fun with it, and you will be ok.
Right on point Doug, I think every age has its advantages. I started classical guitar at age 13 and played for about a year. Now at age 56, probably due to feeling the watch ticking, I've picked it up again. I have a totally other mindset and feel immensely motivated to accomplishing things. As time ticks away, guitar is an intellectual challenge that really raises my good feeling, sense of accomplishment and overall self esteem. It's an endless endeavour that should especially entice mature 50 , 55, 60, 65, 70+ to undertake. It ought to be one of the greatest mind exercises for total psychological health that one should consider if inclined to making music.
Norm from Montreal
Hey guys I'm only 23, and feel a little silly after seeing all the comments by you silver foxes! Thanks for your honesty, bless up and enjoy ur jamming :)
I'm a bit older than you (ok, I'm in my 30s, significantly older?) and I was thinking the same thing. I'm partially moved by regret: I started in my teens and dropped out due to a mix of non-compatible teacher and lack of discipline. Not planning on making the same mistakes this time around!
@@pietro1801 thats the spirit fella just gotta enjoy the process :) x
I m 22..i was thinking I m too old😂
I’m 20 and same
Bro same
Well I'm 28 and just bought a left handed guitar.. Im so ready wish me luck.. Yall so inspiring..
1 years after!! Are you still playing it? ;)
An update?
I started at 15. I'm now 73, and I'm still crap!
George Van Win LMAO I do to!!! I started around 15 I am 55 now and still sucked
We should start a club!!!!!!! LOL.
Me too!!
What level do I wanna reach ? If I can get 10% Paul Gilbert level then I'm a winner .
Lol...your not alone.
Good point, David. I'm 67 and started a year and a half ago. I was terrified to start, but I worked through it. You are right about goals too, my goal is changing right now, although I'm not sure what it is yet. It's a transformation. Btw, I absolutely love it, and it adds inspiration to my life. Thanks.
Awesome!
69 nine and just starting to learn play and repair and setting up starter guitars. really enjoying it.
Do not under stand ghe reply TH.
“Whether you think you can, or you think you can't--you're right.”
― Henry Ford
After tom petty passed I was so devastated so I bought a guitar to honor his legacy. I'm 44....been playing for 2 months and love it
lostbreaker hows it going now
How's your playing coming along? Been learning tons of TP songs
How's it going?
I played in my 20s then stopped cause I was so distracted. Started back up at 45 and it’s the best thing I could have done.
Started at about 35. I'm 62 now and play regularly. I'm still getting better. Your right, it's a journey. I say look for a feel or a groove more than trying to copy someone note for note.
I'm 32 and started today. Any advice?
Playing guitar is fun, plain and simple, I am 58 and enjoy learning and playing everyday, and that's the only reason, it relaxes me and I learn to jam some tunes, it makes me happy......
furncemanjim Well said...playing makes me happy, too!
58 and committed to really learning. Tried 3 times before. Love blues and southern.
ive been playing for 23 years..playing 15min everyday is better than playing 8 hours straight once a month
seekingtheentitie Agreed. I'm 55 and started one year ago. My guitars are never in their cases and I play everyday, 7days a week.
Doing 15min a day..do you see progress with so little practice time
Lisa Lorenzo Definitely. More importantly, you will develop the habit of daily practice and as your fingertips harden and your ability to form simple chords develops, chances are that 15 min. will turn into 30 min., 1hr, etc. Never mind fills, frills and solos...Get your rhythm down first, playing along to songs on muted strings if necessary. Choose simple songs and hit that beat, consistently. As you get better, focus on accenting and dynamics. Then, learn to sing, while playing. Once you have that down, go nuts on the fills, frills and solos.
pixelatedparcel do you have a UA-cam channel?
I'm 64 started in January 2017 practice every day getting pretty good and the reason I started playing guitar is because I have arthritis in my left hand playing guitar is actually cleared it up 100% plus I'm enjoying it thank you👍🍻😎🎸
That's awesome, Mort! Rock on!
Kick ass my brother
Just got my first guitar at age 74....Got the case, Guitar School guide, Snark Tuner and picks....Lessons start on Wednesday....Thanks for the encouragement....
@Sam Beckette I started my lessons at the Guitar Center here in the Sarasota, FL area. I bought a straight acoustic guitar...Recording King - Dirty 30's model. I was doing 30 min. lessons once a week until the shut downs, but have gone back to the studio recently. Still enjoying the journey, and improving my technique by playing for a while everyday.
@@joeward1529 how is your progress now?
"If you are interested in playing music it means that you have that something to give to the world"
Inspiring and motivating. Thanks!
David, thanks for the topic, my whole life I've spent playing guitar and I still practice every day, never a dull moment man. I've listened to so many players in jazz and blues, played many things by ear from recordings. I never compared myself to someone else just worked hard each day. Man I'm from the pre- internet period and remember I finally got a jazz book from Mickey Baker on jazz guitar, I worked my balls off writing out those progressions, there wasn't much around man besides my bash of records. Now I'm flabbergasted by all presented here on the tube, it might even be an overload. I know one thing, keep your motivation no matter what and play from your heart and soul, that's my message, greetings Vic.
I'm 69 and been trying to learn guitar on and off since I was 14 . What you say is spot on about life experience, I've found that, especially hearing songs and melodies for so long, and since seeing stuff on UA-cam, that my playing, improvising and creating music since I retired, at 65, has really taken off. I've learnt more these last 4 years than the in the past, 50 years!
But the most and very important point is; 'get guitars you want, the more the better? Ones you like, are easy to play AND you just can't put down!! If you don't like your guitar you're not going to pick it up to play or learn, very quickly, if at all. You need to miss not having it around?
Learning to play has to be enjoyable and fun, try to learn bits of your favourite tunes and various genres, don't get stuck in a groove or bogged down with 'practicing chords, music theory etc. This will come as fast as you want to learn it, yes an effort is required but it must be fun and enjoyable.
No, you're not too old to learn guitar or anything else, that takes your fancy. Enjoy life and get in there.
*If you think you are too old to rock 'n roll, then you are.* - Lemmy Kilmister
You're never too old to Rock'n'Roll, if you're too young to die! - Ian Anderson "Jethro Tull"
If it's too loud, you're too old -- a t-shirt
This is why there is professional hearing protection that is made to just lower the loudness and still be able to enjoy a full scale festival with more than 80 bands playing. Buy some alpine musicsave pro for less than 20 bucks and they last for years. I can't believe the people who go to really freaking loud concerts and will kill certain frequency-bands forever! Can't play if you can't hear yourself. Need constant sound to make the sound in your ears be tolerant.
Also, it's waaaaay louder in front of the band than actually on stage.
They got their monitors to hear themselves but the huge hanging PA...that is all for you.
Jethro Tull
Now he's too old to Rock'n'Roll but he's too young to die.
He once owned a Harley Davidson and a Triumph Bonneville.
Counted his friends in burned-out spark plugs
And prays that he always will.
But he's the last of the blue blood greaser boys
All of his mates are doing time:
Married with three kids up by the ring road
Sold their souls straight down the line.
Loud is not good or bad it is what you are feeling. You want to express happy some days loud "master of puppets" other days slow blues and low is good. Does that make any damn since to you it does me but once I read what I wrote I don't know if I articulated my thoughts.
Learning to play a musical instrument is one of the best things anyone can do.
Age doesn't come into it, it never has!
This and the whole comment session is so inspiring! I'm 28 and I was feeling really frustrated that I would never be able to learn new things. Growing up I wasn’t encouraged to do nothing but study. Coming from a poor family, my parents always talked to me how I needed to focus all my energy on being the best at school so I would get the opportunity to change our lives. And so I went, being obsessed about study and then work and not ever developing any skill that wasn’t school-work related. My dad is a musician and I asked him to teach me how to play several times and later on he admitted that he “taught” me poorly so I could lose interest and not give up on school like he did. Those lessons were so terrible that I convinced myself I hadn’t any “talent” at all (now I know the whole talent thing is kind of bs) and should just give up. Since I loved music, especially rock and metal, since I was 10-years-old (my dad never showed me any of this stuff, but he couldn’t prevent me to like it), I decided to become a music journalist and I went to study journalism in college because of that, but always frustrated that I didn’t know how to play any of it. In college as a broke student all I had time to was to study and to work, but it didn’t matter, because by that time I was convinced it was too late to learn it and that I would forever suck at it. The music journalist part didn’t work out either because I ended up pursuing a more profitable area and following my parents dream. So I did it, I got a managing job and for the first time of my life I wasn’t broke and I could even help my parents financially. But I was completely miserable working a corporate job and with the beginning of the pandemic I fell on a huge depression and I used to think about killing myself 24/7. After two burnouts and a severe depression I quit my job and for the first time in my life I started to think about what I wanted to do and not about other people told me I should do. I didn’t have nothing to lose so I allowed myself to try things I always wanted to do: learn how to draw, skate and play the guitar. But it felt so hard to learn these things that that little voice started to whisper in my ears “It's too late, you'll never get good in any of it, you're too old, it’s a waste of time, you should give up”. It didn’t help the fact that I needed to go back to my corporate job 'cause the other job I got wasn’t enough to pay the bills and things started to get really difficult for me. I was depressed again and tired all the time as I overworked myself, so I just gave up. But recently I found the motivation to comeback learning skateboarding again and I was once again willing to comeback to the guitar as well. But as I'm currently stuck at the skate improvement I started again to think it was too late, I was too old and should give up all of it together. Then I found this video. And see people saying they learnt it by 60 or 70 years old, what the hell I'm even talking about? So thank all of you so much. I’m going to try again and I won’t let those negative thoughts come into my way again. I hope I comeback here soon telling how I stuck to it and finally started to improve. Thank you so much!
Simply put you should play
@@natehardy3311 and I am! Since I posted it I've been studying and improved a lot. I came to visit my dad and he's helping me. I'm really happy and definetely this video helped me to get the courage to try it again
Spot on David. As usual a big hearty THANK YOU. I’m 68 years old and have been playing for over 40 years. I will say that about 38 of those years I just played simple songs with simple chords, like John Denver etc. Not that any of that was bad, actually it helped me learn G, C, & D and other open string chords and was a great deal of fun. The last couple of years however, I start working on pentatonic scales both minor and major with great success; at least for a guy who’s 68 years old. I’ve learned to apply music theory to my playing as well as other aspects of playing guitar.
I’m not trying to brag about myself. There is a much bigger point to my comment. Alzheimers is on the rise. The symptoms show up when the disease has already taken over. It has been reported that this disease starts a very young age. Not many people are aware of this very frightening fact; but it’s true.
It is also known that learning a musical instrument will go a long way in helping a person to prevent this very tragic event. Some even believe (doctors) in cases where the symptoms are not present the disease can be reversed. So you see David, or should we call you Dr. David Walliman, you are spot on. It’s never too late to learn the guitar and it might even save the latter part of ones lifes memories. By the way, thank you for all you do in promoting the health of all the brains that learn from you.
I learned to play rhythm many years ago, but, thanks to you, I began to learn the Pentatonic scale and other lead related lessons last year, when I was 64. I've never enjoyed playing the guitar as much as I do now. Thanks.
As I have gotten older, I have learned how to learn. So here I go again.
I'm 28 and only started couple months ago. Your video and the comments have helped me a lot
Great video, David!
I always tell everyone that nobody really cares about your age, but they will care about your music.
Have any of you, after hearing a great song, stopped to think "man, I wonder how old these guys are". Yeah, me neither.
Well said!
lots of sense .I took up the sax at 35 now am 62 and regarded as a good jazz musician it's very true your goals change along the way .started out learning all the bebop heads then Coltrane stuff through to Giant Steps.am now playing Eddie Harris tunes never thought I could get this far but stick at it guys you will go beyond where you think you want to be
Yep, the great secret of getting older is that you can still do the stuff you didn't get to as a young one. You can't teach feel, it's something you get as you live a bit. A lot, even.
As one and only Ian Anderson said "You are never too old to rock'n'roll if you are still young to die".
I've been fingerpicking folk music on and off for 60 years and recently decided to learn how to shred. There is so much more to learn with electric guitars than nylon/classical beyond technique -- which guitar, what string gauge, pedals and how they work, amps and cabs, and what tone am I going for? Wow! Thank goodness for all the info and advice on UA-cam. And reverb is a great place to find reasonably priced used gear. Oh, and I'm an almost 70something grandmother!
Bella Chi great
Bella Chi great
You're very inspiring....keep having fun. Peace to you!
hey Bella Chi - I played classical guitar for 20 years and now I am just picking up acoustic/electric. I thought CG was the pinnacle for technique, but I think I was wrong. Reading music and playing exactly those notes is easy I think compared to playing a decent solo over a basic blues riff that comes from our own imagination. Keep up the great work!
Im 63 and been playing for two years every night I practice for two hours and I love it. I would not play in front of anyone at first but now will walk into any music shop and try different guitars out. Even been asked to do a gig at the local pub you're never too old to do anything ROCK ON :)
How is your progress?
Thanks David I’m 71 and retired, I’ve learned the chords, and am learning some three chord tunes...love it. Thanks for the encouragement.
I always loved guitar but never had the gumption to try learning to play until my daughter started playing. She inspired me to give it a go. I borrowed one of her acoustic guitars and did some online beginner lessons for about 6 weeks. I was having so much fun FINALLY playing something that resembled real music, for the first time ever, so I went out and bought myself a guitar. I guess I got to about a beginner/intermediate level. But, life has distractions and I found myself putting the guitar down for a couple months, then pick it up for couple, then put it down again. I was doing the 3 steps forward, 2 steps back thing. I was approaching 50 years old at the time. The other day, I was thinking about how long it has been since I actually played and determined that it's been about 15 months! I lamented the fact that it has been 5 years and how I could have been a pretty good player by now, if I had only worked at it continuously instead of on again, off again. I wondered if now, fast approaching 55, if I should start all over again. Then, I go on UA-cam and THIS video is on my home page. After watching the video, and reading the inspiring comments from other viewers below, I feel there is only one thing left to do. Dust off my guitar, change the strings, and get started again.
There was a famous pianist who hardly practiced, yet he played in concert halls and was fairly well-known. He said he practiced in his head. Not sure if that works for everyone, heh. But I find keeping a notebook handy to write down any thoughts, notes, lists of songs to learn, bits of songs, etc. does help keep the spirit going.
Good for you! A similar thing came my way but I had like tendonitis in my fret hand and neck, I stopped like 5 years ago, now been watching some Allman Bros videos and I'm getting inspired to try again.....slowly I just hope my tendonitis doesn't return! Nice video too!
And now???
im 54 & i only started electric guitar about 3 months ago & i love it love it love it, i dont care what anyone thinks, i dont care if dont get any good at it, i just love all the different sounds & riffs i can make. it is hands down one of the most relaxing & enjoyable things to do for me.
I think one thing that many older people, including myself at one time, can get hung up on is how good/bad we are compared to younger players. We think that we'll never be that good as we simply don't have as many years left in us. But playing an instrument isn't a competition. As long as you enjoy playing your guitar (or any instrument) that's all that matters. I'm 54 and I genuinely don't care that there are 14 year old kids that are way better than I'll ever be. I LOVE playing guitar and I always will. Anyway, as a wise man once said, 'it's all about the journey'.
in my 50's now, the more i practice and learn new stuff the more i want to learn. this hobby really gives me lots of positive, a sense of personal accomplishment, joy, stress remover, more inner confidence, a renewed sense of enthusiasm...etc. my fellow late starters...go for it!
I'm about to start learning to play acoustic guitar and it never crossed my mind that I was too old. I just turned 61 and why would I feel I was too old? Life is a journey and as long as your able, you should try new things as long as it's something you WANT to learn and I want to learn how to play the guitar. There are tons of video's on UA-cam now that make it easier than ever to learn how to play. Keeping the mind sharp and learning new things is one way to stay young, keeping your mind sharp is a good thing, even if your body is falling apart, like mine is I can still learn new things. And maybe I can get my grand-children interested in music and playing an instrument, and that to me would be great.
Thankyou so much for this! I'm 57 yrs old and started learning guitar a bit less than 2 yrs ago. I realised straight away that this is going to be a life-long learning experience. What you said was so motivational and just made so much sense. Thanks again, gotta go and practice 😎👍
Was just a drummer but then at 39 decided to take up guitar as well. 54 now and still learning new guitar stuff every chance I get. So glad I started.
"Was just a drummer...."? A lot of people would love to say that....nice comment.
I started at 59 as a music teacher who could already play other instruments. It wasn't as easy as I expected but I'm still trying, two years on.
Pros: if you already understand notation and harmony and have developed fingers] flexibility in another instrument, that will help. But if you haven't, your understanding will still be much quicker than that of the average five year old. You also most likely have a more mature ability to be expressive plus less inhibition compared to a vulnerable teen.
Cons: Mummy isn't there to make you practise when you don't feel like it!
In my case, these were my biggest hurdles:
1. My muscle memory has all but gone. I will work hard on something one day and have to virtually start again the next.
2. After about 5 weeks, arthritis flared up and I had to move on to a proper classical guitar posture with a lap stand to be able to continue. An e-book on Alexander Technique for classical guitarists helped a lot.
3. My fingers are about double the circumference they were aged 20. A proper classical guitar with a 52mm nut width helped there, but space is still tight.
Nice video - keep up the good work!
I'm 57. Good lord! I started guitar in my late teens thru part of my 20s. Then, guitar dropped of my radar until my late 40s. Little by little and with the help of youtube, i've gotten better especially in understanding theory. The main thing for me is to pick up the guitar everyday to the keep the fingers flexible.
Totally agree, I started at 19 and I learned very quickly to play my favourite songs, but it took until my late twenties to understand that whilst I could play well, I was a terrible musician, because I'd only been learning to play songs and scales and random chords, I had no understanding of music, I think that it's a very important distinction to make between being a good guitar player and a good musician, the 2 are not the same thing, now I realisr that I want to be both!
I started 7 months ago!!! 37 years old here! I will never give up. I am in love with playing music.
;)
I love all the inspirational comments. I too just started 2 months ago. Just turned 51. Got an electric guitar. Always wanted to play. It's like learning a new language. It's great eye hand coordination. It's exercise for your brain. It's great stress relief. Your mind focuses on the task at hand. Noone is ever to old to invest in themselves and enjoyment. I think the older we get we have a better appreciation of things. I certainly want to be able to like the greats....but I'm just THRILLED to be able play anything at this point and get through it without making a mistake. I'm talking about Hal Leonard guitar method book 1....Ode to Joy and Yankee Doodle. I'm slaying that!! I'm totally loving it. You can learn anything if YOU want to. You crawled before you walked and you had to learn too add before you multipled. All the guitar greats started somewhere making all the same mistakes us noobies are making now! We can do this!!! Thanks for the video.
Started at 55 and loving it! I have been a drummer since I was in 7th grade. I am thankful to be able to still learn something new. With the guitar, I feel like I am in 7th grade again. 😊😊
I started when I was eight. For years it was just me and the minor pentatonic. I had a pretty good ear but that was it. Music lessons was for rich kids. But now at 62 with all of these masterful youtubers, like David, sharing their knowledge I'm like a kid in a candy store. I feel like I'm learning for the first time correctly
I started at 55 years old, im now 57 and learning blues , im a lot more patient now than when i was younger that to me is a big advantage, i love it and im hooked, thanks for the great video👍.
I’m 31 all my friends have played since they were kids. But after 3 years of learning I’m not that far off honestly. This video hit the feels though
Men I’m glad to see this one. I’m 32 and was wondering if I was too old
Nice words, David. I'm in my 50s and bought my first guitar this week. The buzz from playing three chords that vaguely resembled Highway to Hell was fantastic.
Hi David! Absolutely true. I picked up the guitar at 50 and went to the neighbour hood school. Now at 60 my UA-cam channel has more than 180 videos of mine and with some 40 K views. I also play with the local bands at times. For a businessman like me this has been a great passion and an effective stress buster too. The Eagles Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd are my favourites.
NEVER too old!! I was having issues accepting that I was turning 65 and not 24!! I saw a video of Johnny Hiland playing and talking. We have become good email buddies and I have been playing now for 2 years. It has really brought a great joy back to my life and I am too old to fear any "guitar slingers" so I just have fun!!
Thank you Mr. Hiland, you are the best!!
I'm 30+ I have not found anything that interests me and saw an ad for a guitar, buying one now to learn.
Like many others here, I'm over 50 years old. Right after starting for the first time I stopped playing to deal with life issues & health limitations a year ago. I picked up the guitar again a couple weeks ago because I refuse to give up. Sometimes I can only practice for 5min. Other times a half hour. I find I keep making progress even with my erratic practice. Never give up!
Thanks, thanks, thanks for this videos, man! I`m 65, and... well, God bless you!
I'm 67 and am having my 4th lesson with a teacher via Skype tomorrow morning. Already nailed 'Mary Had a Little Lamb' and making deep inroads into 'Jingle Bells'!! I really like the the concentration it involves - the time simply whizzes by. I'm also quite chuffed that i keep picking up the guitar to practise.
Thanks for your advice I'm 63 and been learning for about a year and loving it. Thank god for you tube and people like you. One thing I would say is always have your guitar out where you can see it every day and you will be more likely to practice.
You’re a great teacher that everyone needs in their life! We all need someone that believes and encourages us in following our paths. Thank you for sharing the love ❤️
I retired at 63, bought a fender squire tele and loaded the G-Chord app (android) on my cell phone. The first song I learned was What's Going On by Marvin Gaye then a a slow ballad by the Delphonics. Immediately started jamming with some younger guys (50 and 55) and was gigging the next summer. Started taking lessons, as You Tube will only take you so far. My journey has progressed quickly because I have the time and dedication now that I didn't have when I was younger. You are never too old to learn to play the guitar. Learn the music that you enjoy and others will enjoy it also.
Well, I am 65 and have decided to learn to play. Years ago I used to repair musical instruments (I am an electronics tech) and have also been involved in radio station management and have a broad interest in music, but never learned to play.
My approach is a little unorthodox though. I have a no-name strat copy that I bought cheaply and which turned out to be amazingly well built. I am refurbishing it and setting it up (with the vast help of You-tube) but have yet to play a note. I also decided to build my own 120 W valve amp/speaker cabinet and effects pedals, which is well under way. I have a lot of old audio gear stashed in the shed!!
The reason I have yet to strum the guitar is that I decided to do a couple of months of keyboard training before starting guitar. Keyboards are easier to learn and I hope to get a good grounding in theory before tackling the guitar. I am still setting up the 'music room' and will start the whole program shortly. To help prepare, I have been doing finger exercises daily for weeks and have good dexterity and zero medical issues. I am even pre-building callouses on my fret hand!! I have prepared some diagrams of a fretboard and keyboard and start every day by writing in all the notes (easy for keyboard) and deriving all the notes on the guitar fretboard. Note location is becoming second nature and I have yet to play!!! I have also started identifying chords too.
The plan is a half hour of keyboard and at least a half hour of guitar practice every day....wish me luck!
I needed to see this. Played some when I was much younger but was all on my own (listening to records and in search of the lost chord). Had no one to show me any technique so other than a couple chord books, I never progressed much. It's been 30 years since I seriously touched a guitar cause life got in the way. Now I'm 62 and retired and have You Tube and channels such as this! Thanks David.
You can definitely start at any age. I've thought a 65 year old to play. I find you have more time and dedication at that age. Never too late. Great video
Thanks for the positivity. I'm 42 and one day I will pick it up and learn to play. Now it's not the right time, need to focus on other things now, but I swear I will. 🙂❤
52 years young. i still play Guitar. electric and Acoustic. nearly everyday.
I badly want to like this video more than once ♥️ I'm 20 and I wasn't feeling good but this shit just got intriguing 🙌🏻
And god bless the comment section! 🥺🔥
I tried to start playing 12 years ago at 55, but didn't progress. My instructor was used to teaching kids how to play pop songs, not in teaching someone how to play the guitar. And I was part of non-progressing too, in that I was not sure what I wanted to play. Watching Keith Richards: Under the Influence opened my eyes. I realized that the music "in my head' was blues. Electric, Mississippi Delta blues. So starting late 2015 I went down that path via a DVD course on blues guitar and a new teacher. I'm two years into this now, practice almost daily. Using Nick Pantano at @SoundSpace in Atlanta. Playing in a blues guitar workshop at the Shackup Inn in Clarksdale, Mississippi in September, including live performance and recording. No such thing as too old...in my view. Good luck and best wishes to all you seniors out there. It is worth every minute. kg
Every persons musical style is like a finger print.It's unique.
Thanks for the encouragement.
I'm all fired up to become better. I've been playing 50 years and I never stop learning new things. I never want to stop either.
The only thing that frightens me is when You start to plateau and when that happens take a week break and go back to it and restart.
I'm the greatest guitarist in the whole wide bedroom.
t's really about enjoying the ride, the journey, more then the just the final destination.
Yep, once you understand that, and stop comparing yourself to others or "a better/future version of yourself", you can only have fun...
Exactly. Exasperation and frustration at encountering difficulties and plateaus are merely opposites of pleasure and elation felt 'penny drops' moments, both to be experienced in the journey. One can't exist without its opposite. Once one knows this, and applies this perspective, all of the journey is just as it can only be and should be.
im 34,im buying my first guitar tomorow :D
A year later, how did it go? Are you still playing? :)
@@LennartKolmodin Nobody answer! That's why so many used guitars on ebay.
Have you bought the guitar? ;)
I started with 50! Because I wanted to and I wanted to play for myself. Now 5 years down the road, I'm loving it more than ever, and still pick up the guitar every day despite a very busy schedule!
I have started guitar last year at 25 years old.
I'm 26 years old now!!!!!!!
Hanging in there not really able to play that well but hanging in there and never quitting!!!!!!!!!!
updates?
Awesome video. I started as a teenager and have been playing for about 20 years now, but for many years, I didn't challenge myself and was just okay. In past 5 years or so, I've been actively learning more theory and generally just trying to become a better player. I can honestly say that I've learned/improved 10x more in the last 3-4 years than I did in the first 15 years I played. It's all about goals like you said. If you're someone new to playing, don't be discouraged by age, just put in the time and effort and you'll be fine.
David! In my opinion, you are very inspiring! Not many YouTubbers can say that, but you're one of the few, who certainly can. Thank You! :)
+Dávid Huszti Thank you!
60 here. Sold my Strat this week. Starting to look for a new one today.
Hey David. I am 49. I just started learning accoutic guitar. Truly a new experience in my life. Great video. My goal would be that be able one day to share emotion playing the guitar. Thanks!
I picked up my first guitar at age 57, fell in love, and now I have 18 guitars.
I'm 57 and just picked the guitar again about a year ago..i still had a lot of tab books from the 80s.and back then we never had internet this youtube can help anyone advance so much faster..i bought a nice fender strat...and a Gibson studio hp for 1850...cant play the way ide like to but having the right tools for the job ..make it a lot easier..
I'm 53 and just got an electric guitar that I've always wanted since I was a kid. This gives me hope!
Thank you for these helpful and inspiring words -- also many of the responses below make me realize I am not alone in wanting to learn guitar in my "mature" years. I want to enjoy it, more than anything, and other people confirm that sentiment as well.
Thanks for the topic! I started at 52 even though I had friends in high school who played, I just wasn't inspired until I started going to see local bands. I think it was being exposed to many different styles that inspired me. As a young man I was intimidated with guitar wizards who played fast all the time. Now, four year after getting started, I like playing for myself and my wife. That's good enough for me.
I'm 28 and after being on and off - mostly off, since my first lesson at 11. I'm really starting to enjoy playing now as I've endured most of the beginner conditioning issues such as calluses and barre chords (still working on sliding and holding the shape). Now am dipping into music theory very slowly, mapping out the neck and just listening to as many styles and artists as possible to broaden my horizons. My goal is to understand the guitar as much as possible, learn the languages, transcribe songs, and compose original pieces. happy learning y'all - every journey starts with step, every great piece just one note or chord. Oh and being able to tune by ear would be really cool! Really inspiring seeing you old-timers picking up 6 strings too - there i was worrying i might be too old!
Awesome, encouraging, and supportive video David. Thank you. I picked up at 46, and like so many others I gave up as a frustrated young teen.
UA-cam was definitely a factor in getting the desire to try again. I have a new outlook that has come from maturity as well. Patience and an understanding of goals has paid off far greater now than it ever would have back then. I have gained so many new friends and acquaintances from using the internet for learning and searching for techniques and lessons, another thing that would not have happened back then.
Thanks for your great videos and inspiration.
If you can play what you want. That's all that matters.
just turned 47 myself..playing for 4 months after not playin by since my my early teenage yrs..even had our own band in jr high playing ac/dc songs..lol. Its like starting all over again,,finger exercises and so on..but this time around its easier as patience has come with age..learning theory/the whole 9 yards..played by ear as a kid,,still do to a point when i try n play cover songs..needless to say(You Never get to Old!..lol)..ill play heavy metal till i die!👍
todd russell ROCK ON, BRO!🤘
Brilliant video David. As a guitar teacher I 100% agree with everything you say. I love to teach older pupils (in fact that's the only type of pupil I will take nowadays, no one under 50 and preferably retired folk) but the most common thing I hear before I start teaching them is "Am I too old to start..." No, I've never found anyone "too old" and yes the life experience side of things is massively important, and the joy it gives when someone plays a song, or a solo, or a riff they love for the first time is amazing!
😭🤝
David thanks for posting this for people wanting to learn to play guitar. It is enlightening and shows that age is just a number and you are helping people overcoming agism and stereotypical prejudices of being old. Music is a beautiful entity.
I just started at 66. Being too old never crossed my mind.
This video is solid gold! My story: I started playing when I was around 16 and was consumed by it until I reached college. Can't say I was any good, but loved it...got onstage a few times, playing rhythm guitar in hard rock bands and was actually told (more than once), "Dude, you've got to be THE WORST rhythm guitar player I've ever seen!" Who cared? I often left these "gigs" with a few girls' phone numbers, staggering from all the free beer I'd soaked up (which definitely didn't help my playing). I had so much fun that it took awhile before it occurred to me that I could get paid in cash, not Budweiser...
So what happened? I decided to become an "adult," sold the guitar, eventually wound up in the army, followed by a *long* series of jobs that never "clicked." I came home from the service with a Gibson Explorer that I promptly shoved under a bed and left there for about ten years. I think I dragged it out to show to my wife when we were dating. "Play me a song!" "Don't remember any." Back under the bed it went.
About ten years ago, my wife said, "You need a hobby. Why don't you pick the guitar back up?" So I went to back to Mom's house and dragged the guitar out and haven't looked back. I've been taking lessons from a first-rate guitarist who's half my age and twice as good (at least) as I'll ever be, but I'm still a better player at 58 than I was as a half-lit 17-year-old as a direct result of the time, effort and patience he's demonstrated, trying to re-ignite an aging headbanger. Hell, I'm actually out here, learning to SHRED and planning to "turn pro" very soon. The moral of the story: You're NOT "too old" to start with the guitar. You're NOT "too old" to pick it up again. You might not ever compare favorably to Eddie Van Halen (RIP, gone far too soon) or whoever your guitar hero may be. You may have missed your shot at a lifestyle of "heavy metal sex, drugs and rock and roll" stardom & debauchery. But male or female, you can do this. It is not too late, it's never to late, to make music...
I started again 5 years ago at age 52 and can play some. Love you but may never be another Jimi but truly am enjoying myself.
Just started at 65 on retirement really enjoying the stimulation and challenge and being part of a guitar players community and it’s so enjoyable to learn and make progress.
I'm 23 and bought a guitar everybody in my family said i'm too old to learn new things
23!!!!nope u r young... Ignore others and start learning guitar.
I shut out my family sadly don't listen to them. I started at 22 on day 3 and already got a few riffs down :)
lol 23 is too young
I started at 26 and got good within a year. I practiced about 4-6 hours a day though and I practiced efficiently. Learn the basics of music theory and everything else will make so much more sense.
Really, really wise words with a kind, compassionate back-beat.
Thank you. (PS. You remind me of Roger Federer, with glasses and a guitar of course. Not that I'm comparing you with him... as you say so eloquently, that would be distinctly unhealthy.) :)
just found this channel, really want to learn the guitar, but im 55, what you said has inspired me. i couldn't afford a really expensive guitar so iv purchased a epiphone Les paul, and a small amp. thanks.