You can play violin. The secret is learning to practice in a way that doesn't make you want to throw your instrument out a window. I've been teaching online since 2017. Sign up for free lessons, tips, and giveaways — plus dad jokes you'll regret laughing at. 🎻🤓
Am I Too Old To Learn The Fiddle?
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Some people ask this question in their seventies. Some ask it in their thirties. A few years ago I wrote a post about this. The comments were more convincing than the post. “I always wanted to play the fiddle but with family and career always put it off. When I retired I picked up a fiddle and never looked back. Actually I surprise myself with my progress.” “I agree totally with the ‘never too late’ theme. Just turned 66 and started trying to play my fiddle in my mid-40’s when my kids were driving me crazy playing ‘Twinkle Twinkle’ for Suzuki lessons on our piano. I actually started playing along (in a remote room) with my fiddle from time to time — that was my start.” “I took up fiddle when I retired three years ago. Now I’ll probably never become a professional classical violinist, but that was never my goal. I’m having a great time jamming with friends, and at bluegrass festival campouts. I can hear and feel improvement and that’s really my goal. And I’m having a great time and meeting new people. I’m using my brain and keeping active.” A Mini-Documentary About Adult LearnersI’d like to make a video about learning fiddle as an adult, with some of you in it. I don’t know yet how many people end up in it. Three, four, maybe five. I want to hear from a lot more than that. You don’t have to be good. You just have to still be playing. If you’re sitting there thinking your story isn’t impressive enough — that’s the one I want. The impressive stories aren’t the useful ones. It doesn't matter how long you've been at it, either. I want to talk to people who've been playing for years, and people who started six weeks ago. Different stories, and I need both. Restarters count. If you touched a violin in fifth grade and picked it back up at 60, you’re an adult beginner. What it involves:
Nothing goes in without your okay. You’ll see it before anyone else does. If you watch it back and hate it, it doesn’t go in. You can go by first name only if you’d rather. Someone out there thinks they’ve missed their window. You’d be the evidence they haven’t. The form takes about five minutes. Fill it out by Friday, September 12 and I’ll write back either way. Best to you on your fiddle journey, P.S. I said I wasn’t going to answer the question. If you want my answer anyway, it’s in these: |
FiddleHed
You can play violin. The secret is learning to practice in a way that doesn't make you want to throw your instrument out a window. I've been teaching online since 2017. Sign up for free lessons, tips, and giveaways — plus dad jokes you'll regret laughing at. 🎻🤓
Hi Reader, We're past the halfway point of the 5-for-30 Practice Challenge. Today is Day 16. The middle is the quiet part. Nobody quits loudly. They just say "I'll play tomorrow." So today I'm not giving you a lesson. I'm showing you my own practice. I picked a tune I didn't know by heart: Westphalia Waltz. I read music fine. But reading a tune isn't knowing it. If I look away, it's gone. So I chunk it. In Strum Machine, I loop the first four bars. I read them once. Then I turn away from the...
Hey Reader, Today is the last day to enter the fiddle giveaway. Entries close tonight. Saturday I draw a name. Sunday I tell everybody who won. 👉 Enter the giveaway → You can enter more than once, by the way. Share your link with a friend, share it on Facebook, subscribe on YouTube — each one adds entries. The referral link is the big one. It’s all on the entry page once you’re in. I’ve been playing it all week I keep picking this fiddle up when I’m supposed to be doing other things. It...
Hey Reader, We’re giving away a violin. Not a cheap one. A handmade one. Michael, one of our own PED members, started out on guitar. Then he picked up fiddle. Then — because apparently one instrument wasn’t enough of a project — he started building violins. He’s made a bunch since joining, and we’ve already given a few away... I’ve been playing this one. It sounds great. It’s beautiful. And it’s easy on the eyes, which matters more than we like to admit. 👀 I demo it a bit in this YouTube...