Is there such thing as a good age to start playing the guitar?
Truth be told there is no wrong age to start but there are a lot of positives to learning whilst you are a youngster. It has been proven time and time again that learning any instrument when you are younger will not only teach your child an amazing new skill but also help with reading, maths and boost your child’s confidence and self-esteem.
Learning instruments including guitar will give your child the chance of developing a talent that will last their entire life.
Realistically, most people think that once their child can hold the right size guitar between 5 and 7 years old it may be time to get started. You will need to keep in mind that all children are different some may be able to pick up the guitar but not have the concentration to be able to sit long enough to learn or might not be able to comfortably hold a guitar but have the concentration, when these two main factors come together you will have a better indication as to whether or not your child’s ready.
You will also need to take into consideration if your child is mature enough and interested enough to start learning, the choice of instrument should really be left to your child otherwise they will lose interest very quickly.
Before you start spending money on guitars and lessons we will gladly give your child a free taster guitar lesson to see if your child is ready, leave it to us to be able to work out if your child is the right size to be able to hold the appropriately sized guitar, to be able to reach the frets comfortably and more importantly to be able to sit through lessons and pay attention.
5 KEY SIGNS IT’S TO GET YOUR MINI GUITARIST STARTED.
Before your budding musician gets going there are a few things you can think about first.
1. INTEREST Is your child actually interested playing guitar? If your child shows a real love for guitar based music whether they have been listening to your favourite rock bands or singer song-writers and show a real passion for music this is a great sign.
2. FOCUS Does your child have the ability to focus for around 30 minutes? Children ( or adults in fact ) do not need longer than a 30 minute lesson each week, if your child can sit for that length of time and take away knowledge from that lesson you’ll be on to a great start.
3. PRACTICE Some say practice makes perfect and quite frankly we agree when starting out parents will need to help their children to set a practice routine to embed skills learned each lesson. We aren’t talking hours a day 15 minutes a day is adequate.
4. DEXTERITY Most kids have basic finger dexterity. When kids start out they won’t full strength and dexterity but as they practice more and get older this will become stronger and make playing the guitar a lot easier, as your child’s dexterity improves and they can play the songs with ease it will boost their confidence.
5. MATURITY, In order to start lessons your child needs to have the maturity to sit and listen to their teacher, your teacher, will be fully trained and knows how to make learning fun but your child will find practicing at home hard if they haven’t listened to their teachers instructions.
GUITAR TIPS FOR STARTING OUT
If you can see your child is showing some signs they may be interested here are a few ways that you can help them get off to a great start.
• THE RIGHT GUITAR Just as there are lots of things to consider when your child wants to start playing guitar there are a few factors to consider when choosing the right guitar. your child’s size will determine the size of the guitar, half size, three-quarter size, or full size. for a first guitar, you may not wish to spend a lot so used may be a good option until you know how serious your child is about learning. please check out our full guide on Choosing A Guitar for more tips.
• PLECTRUMS Using a plectrum ( AKA Guitar Pick ) can make playing guitar easier, until you are a guitarist with years of experience under your belt and hardened less sensitive fingertips it’s not worth putting your child through the pain as it will only deter them. Your teacher will be able to help you choose the right type of plectrum to use.
• PRACTICE get your child into a practice routine, 15-20 minutes a day will hold your child in good stead, re-learning elements from your child’s weekly lesson.
• STRINGS Little fingers struggle with heavy gauge stings as they are harder for them to press down, try starting out with light gauge strings.
• TUNER It will be a long while before your little rock star can tune a guitar by ear, make sure you get an electric guitar tuner to ensure your child is always hitting the right notes.
• PLAY WITH FRIENDS Musicians love to jam, they love showing what they can do and they get ideas from other players, it’s a real confidence boost. At Pro Music, there will be opportunities to get up on stage either solo or as groups to showcase their talents
IS IT EVER TOO LATE TO LEARN GUITAR?
At Pro Music, we believe anyone of any age can pick up a guitar and get going. If you have the passion and the time to practice you can certainly achieve your goals.
Many parents become inspired by their own children learning an instrument that they get involved too and eventually start having lessons. Before they know it, what was an activity for their child becomes something that now connects the family even more, as it gives parent and child a joint interest. There is no greater buzz for us at Pro Music to see how music brings people together.
