learning a instrument

denon · 19 Apr 2007 at 17:08

as title im thinking about learning instrument but not really sure what, does anyone know the pros and cons of each, mainly guitar, bass and drums?

which one is the best to try and teach yourself?

im thinking about the drums but not sure why.

what do you play and what made you choose that?

Andelusion · 19 Apr 2007 at 18:12

Out of your list, guitar and bass are the easiest and most practical to learn, as for drums you generally need a much larger space, and they inherently make more noise, unless you get an electric kit, but then you're missing out on a lot of the technical nuancess you'll have to perfect to make a nice sound.

Then again, guitarists and bassists are ten a penny (guitarists especially), if that bothers you.

What's some of your favourite music? Learning to play a song you've liked for a long time can be a very rewarding thing.

What about piano/keyboards?

I'm obviously going to recommend guitar, because it kicks bum, but there are many other options too.

denon · 19 Apr 2007 at 18:38

Andelusion said:
Out of your list, guitar and bass are the easiest and most practical to learn, as for drums you generally need a much larger space, and they inherently make more noise, unless you get an electric kit, but then you're missing out on a lot of the technical nuancess you'll have to perfect to make a nice sound.

Then again, guitarists and bassists are ten a penny (guitarists especially), if that bothers you.

What's some of your favourite music? Learning to play a song you've liked for a long time can be a very rewarding thing.

What about piano/keyboards?

I'm obviously going to recommend guitar, because it kicks bum, but there are many other options too.

thanks for the reply, ive played guitar before back in school and i was rubbish thats why im looking at drums, i could put drums in my room or garage if i wanted so space isnt that big an issue.

i mainly listen to rock nirvana, chilis (older stuff), muse, rage against the machine, foo fighters etc so not really intrested in piano/keyboard

m3csl2004 · 19 Apr 2007 at 18:45

nirvana, rage and muse - good taste, I must say - all those bands have pretty simple guitar in them (and some not so simple bits

morello

)

allough rage have some awesome basslines aswell. completely up to you

I love guitar though and glad I took it up, few more years and I might actually be okay at it hehe

denon · 19 Apr 2007 at 18:50

m3csl2004 said:
nirvana, rage and muse - good taste, I must say - all those bands have pretty simple guitar in them (and some not so simple bits morello )

allough rage have some awesome basslines aswell. completely up to you

I love guitar though and glad I took it up, few more years and I might actually be okay at it hehe

thanks again for the reply

what would yous say the difference is between the learning curve of guitar, bass and drums? does it make any difference trying to teach yourself?

Andelusion · 19 Apr 2007 at 19:11

Short reply (munching tea) but by no means give up an instrument because you're rubbish at it.

EVERYONE is rubbish at first, sometimes for a long long time, but anyone can play an instrument, chances are you'll find everything difficult and you'll suck hard for a good while, but you'll notice improvements.

Get a good teacher and you'll be fine.

lemonkettaz · 19 Apr 2007 at 19:18

Id learn the drums if you want to be in a band.. as said above guitarists and bassists are all over, even though most of them are crap...

be a drummer... its coolest!

wish i could play the drums

JUMPURS · 19 Apr 2007 at 19:19

Personally i would recommend trying a dry run with the drums. Drums although they look simple can pretty much need you to be abl to move both hands and both feet at different rhythms, which some people just can't do.
Most drummers are over worked and under appreciated though

If i had to do it all over again, i would still do guitar. With guitar it also puts you off on the right track for the bass, there isn't a huge leap between the two.

denon · 19 Apr 2007 at 19:26

drums is looking my favorite but your right im better having a go before forking out

is a £200 set ok to learn with or is it one of these things you need to pay a lot more for?

OzZie · 19 Apr 2007 at 20:20

I don't really know to be honest. Part of me says go for a decent one so that you are inspired and dont have to get a better one down the line. However, if you decide that the drums aren't for you then it may be a waste unless you can sell it and get your money back.

Go into a few shops and ask if you can try some in (in a practise room) and see how it feels.

Sherbs · 19 Apr 2007 at 21:04

I'd have also gone for drums, but I don't have the room. So I started playing bass. I love the bass tones including drums.

Phalanx · 19 Apr 2007 at 21:15

Guitar: Hard to start on but quite easy to get good at. Cheap

Bass: Easy to start on but quite hard to get good at. Not as cheap

Drums: Hard to start on and hard to get good at. Expensive

Those are the general rules of thumb which many musicians I know will follow. I think it's correct really.

When i say "get good at", I don't mean blasting your way through Harmonic Minor 16th notes at 260bpm, I mean getting used to the techniques, applying skills and being able to play well enough to hold your own.
Bass is more expensive than guitars in terms of string cost and amplifier cost.

I'd pick drums only if you're very very serious, they're very expensive and are quite hard to start on and get good at. Ofcourse if you persevere with any instrument you'll find it rewarding but it's just that Drums are so expensive

Sherbs · 19 Apr 2007 at 21:18

Heh Phalanx, I agree. I am so pedantic about my sound and tone of my playing on my bass its unreal. Mainly the sound of my fingers and the strings, not so much the amplifier. I freaking hate my pickups, I should lower them.

Phalanx · 19 Apr 2007 at 21:23

SherberT* said:
Heh Phalanx, I agree. I am so pedantic about my sound and tone of my playing on my bass its unreal. Mainly the sound of my fingers and the strings, not so much the amplifier. I freaking hate my pickups, I should lower them.

ah well, im very lucky, i've got a nice 3 band EQ on my Yamaha and an Ashdown with two 10" cones. Great setup for funk, im thinking about get one of those Line 6 pedal board things though for a more heavy tone.

denon · 19 Apr 2007 at 22:53

thanks for all the comments guys, im still leaning towards the drums after most of yous recommending something different which must be saying something.

i think im going to try and get a go of some of my friends that play drums kits and see how it goes from there.

i wanted to play an instrument since i was like 5 and thats me just getting round to it at 18

alexthecheese · 20 Apr 2007 at 15:14

Guitar/Bass easy to get good at?

An odd thing to say if you ask me, I'd only agree with that if you have low standards.

elevenseventysix · 20 Apr 2007 at 15:24

Drums definitely. you can pick up a kit that will last you a while for about £350-£400 at a local drum shop. Don't get a crappy starter kit - it will fall to bits in time and barter at the shop.

Andelusion said:
I'm obviously going to recommend guitar, because it kicks bum

Drums kick more bum.

Phalanx · 20 Apr 2007 at 16:05

alexthecheese said:
Guitar/Bass easy to get good at?

An odd thing to say if you ask me, I'd only agree with that if you have low standards.

did you read my entire post?

first of all, I said bass is hard to get good at, because it is, you can't just practice groove, you need to become experienced, though i'd like to think I'm a good player, im really crap at bass compared to most players i'd call "good". One of my friends is an amazing bass player and my improvisation skills are no match for his improvised grooves.

Guitar on the other hand has less of an emphasis on groove unless that's the kind of style you're going for, with guitar, once you've nailed basic picking technique and chording, you can go off in any direction you want. My definition of good is being able to play an instrument competantly, if you're definition of "good" is being able to sweep arpeggio around a jazz progression in 13/16 timing at 300 bpm, then you're dillusional. I might be a hypocrit because my guitar playing is quite basic but all my guitar buddies would agree with me that after they became competant at alternate picking and left hand work, they could focus on whatever they wanted to hone in on their playing styles. One of my friends is an amazing jazz guitarist and you don't become that good at playing jazz unless you dedicate a lot of time to learning the theory and putting it into practice (im constantly in awe as we play in the band together), on the other hand one of my best friends I play metal and rock with and he's extremely good at applying the technical playing to music. They're better than good

Andelusion · 20 Apr 2007 at 16:27

alexthecheese said:
Guitar/Bass easy to get good at?

An odd thing to say if you ask me, I'd only agree with that if you have low standards.

Indeed, easy to get good at if all you want to play is some riffs and chord progressions from what's in the charts, but to be a really good guitar player can take a lifetime. It all depends on your goals though.