am i to old?

My wife bought me a guitar ten years ago. I recently lost the use of my legs so insted of sitting around all day I decided to learn how to play. That was 7 months ago I'm still not good enough to play with a band. But I'm getting better every day. Oh yeah and I'm 41 years old. who says they cant teach old dogs new tricks. Keep playing Nite.........

I'm sure am surprised some people actually are hesitant to play cuz of age. I'm glad I started 3 months ago, I'm only 14. Phew, I'm saved...

Nick, I though you weeded through your collection of guitars and you still have THAT many? I guess my guitar life is like my real life: monogamous. I couldn't see sharing time with so many guitars. I did laugh, too, when someone pointed out you need more stands because I looked at that too! LOL. Oh, man, that's a city of guitars.

We all wonder if we're too old for something. If you're wondering if you're too old to compete in the Olympics at 50, I'd say probably. The body is best when young so in physical events I'd say try another hobby. So at 50 I know you still have use of your hands and can play guitar. I think only arthritis would be a big problem. People who are 80 go out and move their lawns in the summer heat. They get used to it and keep active.

We all wish we would have started when we were 10 years old but we can't change that. But we can make sure we develop our skills adequately over time to play well and have some darn fun with it. If it ain't fun, get a new hobby. And, as mentioned, don't quit! I'd guess 90% of people who pick up the guitar quit. Maybe lack of time, lack of learning fast enough, finger pain, ADD, a child broke the guitar, etc.

So if you're still playing after a couple of years you are the minority.

Here's a site of some people who have overcome ADD which include:

...
John Lennon
....

And you never hear about his music at all! Oh wait, thats Lennon... not Lenin

in that case :shock:

Think about how satisfying it will be when you play a hard song. I don't have ADD nor am i 34, but I get frustrated easy. When you really feel the music instead of playing it, not only do none of these hurdles matter, it will be even more satisfying later thats right b*tch, I just felt that music. If anyone asks why you're talking to yourself just start twitching.

When I was 43, I couldn't play at all. At 44 I'm good enough to sit in at my church or at neighborhood gatherings when someone brings out a guitar. It's the coolest feeling in the world to be on the other side of the divide between audience and performer. It's a divide that I could not imagine crossing just 18 months ago.

I hear you on that Sly. This past Saturday I got a taste of that and it's better than a grilled steak. (Disclaimer: But if you've been without food and water for a week I'd go for the steak and liquid. Barring that, playing for others is a blast. End disclaimer.) And, for those of you who forego the steak, feel free to donate them to me since I only get to eat ‘em maybe twice a year.

Let's leave the diagnosis of medical issues to medical professionals and get back on topic.

I started at 45 and have been playing for around three years now. Same here! Not to say that I'm a great player, but I do have fun with it, and I've come a long way from where I started. Go for it.

I recently turned 43. Started 4 months ago. I can do this:

Full songs:
Horse with no name
Wish you were here
maggie may
brain damage
Last Dance with Mary Jane (partially)

And pieces of other songs, like the intro to Stairway to Heaven and Aqua Lung.

Learned open major scale, first position major scale, second as well. The pentatonic scale and the blues scale.

No prior experience at all. I feel clumsy and awkward, and really feel I should be doing better then I am now, but after reading what I just wrote, damn I did not realize how far I have came.

I have really BAD ADD and (hate to say it) I drink too much.

So if this tells you anything it should tell you that it is doable. I am also a bit musically chalanged, sometimes I seem a bit tone deaf, what sounds good to me is sometimes "wrong". But it is improving noticably.

I STRONGLY suggest two very important things:

1. Get a qualified teacher, get those lessons and make it a high priority, in 4 months time (the whole time I owned a guitar) I have NEVER missed a lesson. Study your lessons and devote the time DAILY to practice.

2. Get good equipment. Bite the bullet and buy good stuff, not "starter" stuff. "Starter" means "not good enough for a pro" and hey, you need ALL the help you can get when you are new, you don't want your equipment limiting you.

And don't touch that dial, even taking lessons I find this site very helpful.

Hey palehorse-

That sounds like real good progress. I'm 47, have also been at it about 4-1/2 months, and I also like my beer and wine. My progress sounds like not much different from yours- I may know a song or two more but I haven't messed with scales at all yet, so it's just a matter of different areas of focus. I've been dedicating most of the past summer to barre chords, and I believe I am on the threshold now of being proficient enough to use them in songs.

Hope Ivan didn't sting you too bad over there in Panama City. I live further west along the coast and we watch these things real close too. In fact we had a lot of evacuees camp out in our town when he hit.

Keep it up; one of the great things about this forum is all the other 40+ beginners and being able to share our experiences and how we are all developing.

Hey palehorse-

That sounds like real good progress. I'm 47, have also been at it about 4-1/2 months, and I also like my beer and wine. My progress sounds like not much different from yours- I may know a song or two more but I haven't messed with scales at all yet, so it's just a matter of different areas of focus. I've been dedicating most of the past summer to barre chords, and I believe I am on the threshold now of being proficient enough to use them in songs.

Hope Ivan didn't sting you too bad over there in Panama City. I live further west along the coast and we watch these things real close too. In fact we had a lot of evacuees camp out in our town when he hit.

Keep it up; one of the great things about this forum is all the other 40+ beginners and being able to share our experiences and how we are all developing.

That's good to hear Slipperman. I go from feeling good about my progress to feeling stagnant.

Ivan did lots of damage in my area, but not as much as areas west of me (where it came ashore). I was lucky, the only damage I got was one lone lost shingle!

later

Ivan did lots of damage in my area, but not as much as areas west of me (where it came ashore). I was lucky, the only damage I got was one lone lost shingle!

later

That's good news, Palehorse. A coworker of mine has a brother in Pensacola who had a tree fall on his house early in the storm so all his ceilings got damaged by water, and they had to bail water nonstop to keep it from ruining their floors.

Anyhoo, keep us posted on your progress with the instrument. It's quite a journey. For me, I feel now I have graduaated to another level.. Until now I told people I was "learning" the guitar. Now I just say I am a beginner.

That's good to hear Slipperman. I go from feeling good about my progress to feeling stagnant.

later

Oh, and I forgot- I have the same experience. Some days during practice I do great and then the next day I'll play the same thing and it's not so hot. So there are ups and downs but over time I can see that the peaks get higher and the valleys not as low.

Yeah 34 isn't too old. As long as you want to learn I think you can. I started a few months ago at age 21 and thought I was way past the age for learning guitar since most pro guitarist start at about 7-12 but in just a few months I've taught myself a lot.

My suggestion is to learn the basic chords like C, E, D, A etc. and just practice those for a while, then as you learn more you'll feel more confident.

If you feel frustrated when practicing put down the guitar and go listen to your favorite record and once you're done you'll feel like picking up the instrument and giving it another shot.