The MLP Arena
Pony Talk => Off Topic => Topic started by: glitterball on July 02, 2021, 11:52:51 PM
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What musical instruments do you play?
Do you enjoy it/them or are they a chore?
During lock-down at the end of 2020 I dug out my old electric guitar & decided once and for all to learn to play it properly (i.e. get down with the theory, scales, modes, triads, all that crazy shizzle).
Fast-forward to mid 2021 and I have been diligently practising daily, using Y-T videos as a teaching aid. Being serious about my passion, I got a new Squier stratocaster in January, then a new, proper Fender telecaster in May; they are such beautiful instruments!!
I am still rubbish! Hahaha! :P But enjoying the ride immensely. I am a secret rock-star diva, when the door is closed and I jam (quietly) in my room... :lol: :lol: I should be reasonable in a year or so...
I played piano & violin when I was little but never delved so deeply into chord theory as I do now for guitar... I find it really interesting and love to see repeat patterns etc. learning about the circle-of-fifths, how composers construct songs, fascinating!
It has also kept me sane when I could not go out (due to lock downs). Plus there is that feeling of satisfaction when you learn a simple song and play it to yourself - ah such a great feeling!!
Over to you!!
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When I was little I played the drums. I had my own kiddie drum kit :lol: I wanted to get a real kit as a teen but my mom wouldn't let me.
I played clarinet in school. I didn't like it. Again, my mom wouldn't let me play what I wanted which was the cello.
As a teen I got into electric guitar. I never learned the fundamentals like you, I just learned by ear. I tried to relearn the correct way, but some things happened and I lost interest. I still have my guitar and amp but they're in a closet.
What I can play, and enjoy, is the keyboard. I suppose I could play piano as well, but I don't have access to one. I mostly play video game music. I still play by ear :)
And the instrument I've always wanted to learn is the accordion :P It's basically a squeezable keyboard so I think I'd be good at it. It's such a silly thing and so unexpected, I love the idea ^.^
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I had a harmonica as a kid.
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I've played quite a few instruments throughout the years. The oboe and the bassoon are my main instruments, though. =) I'm so proud to play instruments from both major double reed families. :frolic:
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Throughout school I played the clarinet and (badly) the violin. I still have both instruments, but rarely play either now.
My sister plays percussion. She got to grade 8 and was part of a youth group that toured in Australia when she was 15... so I guess she's more of an instrumentalist than me. I just played with school and college orchestras.
I like to sing though. I guess that's my only real instrument these days :)
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Oh, god, this is a fun question!
I played Violin all through secondary school; I picked it up again before I left for university, but it ended up getting stuck at my parents house, so I don't have a violin anymore. Which is a shame, I did really enjoy it!
I also self-taught Bass guitar. I still have that, and before the pandemic hit I was in a band society at university, and performed a few times, which was fun - I hope to get back into it soon! Currently I'm not in the same home as my bass, so I'm having to wait (not very) patiently lol
As part of Music GCSE I did keyboard/piano as my coursework.
I also can play a couple of songs on Guitar/Ukelele, I know passably how to use drums and a harmonica. I would really love to actually learn drums, Guitar, Ukelele - and maybe banjo.
I love music!!
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I play cello :) Started in 6th grade at my school. I was originally in line at orientation to join the band, I wanted to play the flute. While waiting in line though my impatient dad noticed that there was no line for the orchestra, so we switched over... and here we are XD So glad that it worked out that way though, cello was a perfect fit. I simply wouldn't be the same person otherwise.
I've played quite a few instruments throughout the years. The oboe and the bassoon are my main instruments, though. =) I'm so proud to play instruments from both major double reed families. :frolic:
Love listening to these parts in symphonies
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Took piano lessons for 7 years as a child and hated it. I never properly learned to read music and played by ear only, as I never had a great grasp on musical theory, and I never really got on well with my teacher.
My mom put me in a violin class in 6th grade, which I loved. We learned the first 2 notes of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in the first lesson, and I went home and picked out how to play the whole song. I thought my teacher would be proud the next week, but she yelled at me and said it wasn't fair to the rest of the class and I had to go at her pace, so I got bored. I eventually got kicked out of the class for beating up the teacher's pet with my bow after she bullied my sister and put gum in her hair. So that ended my future career as a violinist.
I took drum lessons for 4 years. I can still play a little.
I bought an electric guitar in my early 20's and bought about a million books to try to teach myself to read tab. I figured out a bunch of chords and a little bit of finger-picking, and hoped my piano experience would translate over, but it really didn't. I still have the guitar, and hope I learn to play better someday.
My husband bought me a violin for my birthday in 2014 after hearing my story of how I really felt like it was a missed opportunity when I was a kid. I tried a few YouTube tutorials, and hoped to take lessons, but within the year we had our first baby, and then...well, you can imagine how life goes.
I picked up the piano again a couple years ago when my twin girls were in the NICU; we had a music therapist come in and she brought me a keyboard to keep in our room (we were there for almost 4 months) so I could play for my babies. She taught me some basic chords and printed out music in tab-style, and suddenly I was playing like I had been doing it for years! Turns out my self-taught guitar skills actually helped me relearn the piano more than my years of lessons did! My husband bought me a keyboard as a NICU 'graduation' present.
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Tenor saxophone. Started in 5th grade. I only play occasionally now out of solo books I have. I would like to get back into it more, but have trouble finding the time and motivation for it. My “muscles” are rusty which causes squeaking, ao I probably need a lower numbered reed. I can also play recorder. The fingerings are similar to the saxophone.
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I only learned how to play piano. I only know a few songs but it’s still fun just to play it. When I was in 5th grade I wanted to learn violin. But I hated learning slowly and reading notes because I never remembered any of them and never really payed attention. So I quit because I didn’t like the teacher or learning it. The only reason I learned to play piano is because I owned one for so long so I thought I should actually learn how to play it.
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So lovely to read all of your comments! :)
It's interesting how often folks lose interest once the lessons become all about the mechanics and you feel none of the "fun" bits any more; that's something I am trying to be conscious of as I learn at home, always remembering to play something easy & fun in between learning the more challenging theory things.
So today I investigated a thing called "double stops". It's simply where you play two guitar strings at the same time during part of a song. Found a very basic beginner lesson online & have played through it twice tonight, hehe :cool:
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We learned the first 2 notes of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in the first lesson, and I went home and picked out how to play the whole song. I thought my teacher would be proud the next week, but she yelled at me and said it wasn't fair to the rest of the class and I had to go at her pace, so I got bored.
I can’t imagine people calling themselves educators doing things like this. It’s so frustrating but sadly does happen often. :stressed:
I’ve never gotten fluent at any instrument. I had a small keyboard as a kid and learned several simple songs (Mary had a little lamb, twinkle twinkle, jingle bells, Frère Jacques, etc.). I had learned to read some music in 3rd or 4th grade learning song flute. My teachers were disappointed when I didn’t join band but I only got offered flute or clarinet and wasn’t interested in either. I wanted to learn piano. It’s still something on my bucket list I would love to learn someday but keep putting off.
One of my favorite instruments to listen to is fiddle and I also love cello but after short experimentations with acoustic guitar and lap harp, I don’t really have desire to play anything stringed.
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Love listening to these parts in symphonies
Yes, the oboe especially gets beautiful parts in the orchestra! I'm sad to say I have never played the oboe in an orchestra setting (only bassoon), but the wind ensemble I was in a few years ago in college played some orchestral music here and there (including Stravinsky's Firebird suite and some Holst's Planets) and I was ecstatic.
Oh how I'd love to play the oboe (and English horn!) in orchestra someday!
Also, I will say I've always loved the cello! It's a beautiful instrument!
I also have had a bad habit of crushing on cellists IRL. :redface: :yikes:
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I got my first guitar when I was 9 and taught myself okay. I dropped it about middle school and only would play it every so often. I got a keyboard when I was in middle school, but never learned how to play it. I need to learn how to play them both.
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I had a few guitar lessons as a child, but then stopped. I don't actually remember why - I guess I just didn't enjoy it.
When I was in my twenties, I took voice lessons for a few years and loved it. Singing comes very naturally to me, and it's a great way to express one's feelings. I can't read music well, but it didn't matter because I have a good ear and can pick up melodies easily.
My voice teacher suggested piano lessons to complement the voice lessons, and I stuck with them for a year, but I never was any good at playing the piano, and I never enjoyed it, either. It didn't help that I never got on with my piano teacher, who was very focussed on theory, while I'm more one for picking up things naturally. Maybe with a different teacher, I'd have kept trying for longer, but I don't think I would ever have enjoyed it as much as my voice lessons.
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I play very, very beginner piano (I know a lot a chords but it’s hard for me to get my hands to move independently, hence ‘beginner’) and a few guitar chords and basslines. I’d actually really love to learn banjo :happy:
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Apparently I'm very good on the spoons... but usually I'm in no condition to remember the next day how I did... :lol:
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The piano, which I can somewhat play by ear. Don't ask me to do any concerts though.