Music lessons - what instrument and what age did you begin?

[busymama77]

I would love to get DS#1 (4.5 yrs old) started on guitar lessons as he's obessed with the guitar and well the drums, too, but moreso the guitar. Is he at the right age? Too young? Where to look for affordable lessons?

[EdnaMarie]

A lot of people start at three! So I don't think it's too young. My older daughter is nearly four and I want her in music lessons.

[meemee]

yup dd started at 4. guitar lessons at our local music shop. she enjoyed it. her dad had been teaching her since she was 2.

[eepster]

DS is 4 1/2 yo, and asked for music lesson this summer. I found a piano class that is especially for pre-k/kindergarten age students. There are various ones available. Suzuki is the most common, the one DS takes is called "piano'toons."

I've never seen them for guitar though. There are size issues when it comes to guitars. I'm a grown woman, and my fingers aren't long enough to reach all the strings on a standard size guitar. I see these lesson most often for violin. They make teeny tiny violins that are widely available. It is harder to find tiny guitars.

You will probably be able to find him lessons, but you may need to be flexible about what instrument.

[Joyster]

My oldest started piano lessons at around 4 and change. He loves it and has really picked it up quickly.

[aramat]

I thought the problem with guitar at an early age is that it's rough on the fingers? We started dance at age 4 with my oldest; my middle daughter just turned three & we're looking for something to start her on... We were thinking dance or piano for so young, but I do have a musician cousin who started violin very young, around 4 I think. He enjoys violin more than his older brother who didn't start lessons until around age 7.

[busymama77]

There is a Music Conservatory out by our house that I'm going to check in to. I think it's a place where they give lessons for various instruments. Worth a shot!

[omelette]

We tried piano a few months after ds turned 3. It was a bust, I pulled him. I think it had more to do with the teacher and program then him being too young. He's showing zero interest so I'm hoping to try again when he's 5 (he's 4.5yrs now).

[pianojazzgirl]

Dd started Suzuki violin lessons when she had just turned 5. She's been doing it for almost a full year and it has been going great.

[amcal]

My girls started piano at 6 and 7 yrs old.

A lot of places won't start kids until they're in the 6 - 7 age range. They're just not ready to sit and take a lesson and practice.

[mommajb]

Ds1 started piano at 4. The teacher wouldn't take ds until he was a solid reader. We have followed that for the next two girls. Dd3 hasn't started yet because I don't think it will hurt to wait until I can cope with adding something else to our schedule.

[busymama77]

Originally Posted by amcal

My girls started piano at 6 and 7 yrs old.

A lot of places won't start kids until they're in the 6 - 7 age range. They're just not ready to sit and take a lesson and practice.

That makes sense. We tried soccer with him at 3.5 and that was a big mistake. He wouldn't listen to his 'coach' just wanted to play with DH and I. So, we'll try it again next summer when he's 5.5.

[staceychev]

I've seen Suzuki Guitar, but it's harder to find. I agree with what the PP said about the sizing of the instrument. I looked around when DD turned three to find her a guitar (not because she was going to take lessons, but because she wanted one). Her father is a musician and is picky about instruments, so I knew a "toy" guitar wouldn't cut it, and the guitars that actually fit her were really junk. We ended up settling on a decent ukulele, and she's gotten a lot of use out of it. It's a decent instrument and holds a tune, which makes her dad happy, and she can actually fit her tiny fingers on it, which she likes.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by staceychev

I've seen Suzuki Guitar, but it's harder to find. I agree with what the PP said about the sizing of the instrument. I looked around when DD turned three to find her a guitar (not because she was going to take lessons, but because she wanted one). Her father is a musician and is picky about instruments, so I knew a "toy" guitar wouldn't cut it, and the guitars that actually fit her were really junk. We ended up settling on a decent ukulele, and she's gotten a lot of use out of it. It's a decent instrument and holds a tune, which makes her dad happy, and she can actually fit her tiny fingers on it, which she likes.

As far as I can tell, the smallest size real guitars come in is 1/2 size. At that they are hard to find, and I bet that is only small enough for a few pretty tall 4 yo. Good student quality violins can easily be found as small as 1/8 size though, even smaller ones can be found if one goes looking.

At the end of the movie "The Cat Returns" there is a great song with a ukulele. (Might be too scary if your 4yo is sensitive.)

[meemee]

dd has never ever had a toy guitar. my ex is also a musician and he found guitars for her size online. good ones. not junk. he spent anything from a 100 to 150 on them.

i think she is getting an electric one this year and she is totally kicked about it.

but no she has never ever had a problem with fingers due to strumming. in fact her dad got her the guitar because she was using his so much.

[KittyM]

My husband grew up in a family of musicians (professional and not) so we had some specific things we wanted our kids to get out of music lessons - mostly just loving it and not having it be a drag to practice, but also a strong foundation in music in general so they could branch out into whatever area they wanted later. DD (almost 16) plays piano, guitar, ukulele, a little flute and sax. DS (almost 13) plays piano, bass and some drums. They both sing parts too, and now that DS is into it, we can sing 4-part Christmas carols! Here are some things we've learned over the years (I'm not a musician, by the way, but I started taking piano lessons a few years ago just to be able to participate with my kids - very difficult as an adult! But it's nice when they help me.):

Lots of musicians say piano is a great instrument to start on because (a) it's very visual - you can see the relationships between the sharps, flats, octaves, and key signatures, etc. right in front of you, (b) you press a key and get the note, unlike the violin, for example, where you need a lot more practice to get a nice tone and the right notes, and (c) you learn the bass and treble clefs at the same time (also includes chord structure and harmony), whereas a violin or flute only uses treble.

A plus for piano, guitar and ukulele is you can accompany yourself singing on those, but pianos aren't portable.

I think the teacher and teaching method is critical for very young kids starting out - it has to be fun, low pressure, and leveled to the child's attention span and interests. We started the kids at age 5 with 30 minute one-on-one piano lessons with an 82 year old lady who taught them "songs" (really just a modified scale with words) right from the first lesson. This was perfect when the kids were younger, and later when they transitioned to a more traditional approach, we found they really had absorbed a lot of theory - they just had to learn the terminology!

People I've spoken to who have used the Suzuki or comparable teaching methods say that it does work, however they learn How to Play an Instrument, but not necessarily how to relax, mess around, get loose. And the structure doesn't work for every child or family.

We are trying to balance really learning technically how to play/music theory with relaxing, participating with other people, enjoying the experience, and not having it have to be perfect. It doesn't always work out that way (like in the couple of weeks before a piano recital) but generally it seems they enjoy being able to play!

[LynnS6]

We started piano at age 5. It was pretty low key group lessons, but dd learned a fair amount. By the end of the year, she was playing two handed with chords.

[CrazyCatLady]

I waited until she asked for them and really wanted them (meaning was willing to practice on a regular basis). She's almost six and she started voice lessons a month or so ago. She's going to start guitar lessons here very soon. These are the two things that she really wanted to learn and she has been great about practicing at home.

I know that you can start kids as young as two/three though.

[sschott]

I'm a professional musician (organist and choir director, and former piano teacher), and I'd say not to rush things! I haven't taught since my son was born seven years ago, but I didn't take anyone younger than six, and a mature six at that. Once you start formal lessons, the child has to practice -- that means sitting relatively still and also being able to focus enough to "do it on his/her own". No matter how good the intentions, parents are not usually able to sit beside the kid consistently enough to "help" them practice. And I found that kids starting super young did okay, but kids who started later made much faster progress. So, I always figured a kid would end up at about the same point whether they started at 6 or 8 or 10.

An alternative for younger kids is more of a "class" setting. If you belong to a church, often the children's choirs provide beginning music instruction. I teach a children's choir for ages 2 and up, and at the youngest stages, it's learning to use your voice correctly, learning to feel rhythm, learning about tempos, dynamics, etc. We even get into beginning notereading. And, it's free!

If you want to go the secular route, there is of course Kindermusik, which I think has classes up to age 7, and there's also something called "Children's Music Academy" which looks very good, but is expensive, at least in my area. I'm sure there are others, and maybe your local music teachers' association could help you find them.

It seems like the group classes are age-appropriate, and fun, which is important at this age. And they give a great foundation for the enjoyment of and later learning of music in a formal setting, if that's what you want.

[JudiAU]

Argh. I have such bitter memories of music lessons. All the guilt and anger and arguments.

If you decide to go with lessons at this age, don't make a big investment and let your child have an out. To this day the though makes me cringe.