Am I Too Old to Learn an Instrument?

If you want to make music but never had lessons as a young kid, don’t worry.

Yes, most professional musicians started when they were young. But both neuroscientists, and many music teachers, have said that it’s never too late to learn a new musical instrument.

Research has shown that although older adults may learn more slowly than their younger counterparts, they are just as able to learn new musical instruments.

Am I Too Old to Learn an Instrument?

No, you are never too old to learn music or to play a musical instrument. Your brain can form new connections at any age.

What are Some of the Easiest Musical Instruments to Learn?

  • Keyboard.
  • Drums.
  • Harmonica.
  • DJ Controller.
  • The Harp.
  • Ukulele.

Which Musical Instruments are the Hardest to Learn?

  • Violin.
  • The French horn.
  • The Organ.
  • Bagpipes.
  • Accordion.
  • Oboe.

What is an Easy Instrument for an Older Person to Learn?

The piano is one of the simplest musical instruments that seniors can learn. The classical piano is an instrument that requires practice, as well as hand-eye coordination, and is an ideal choice for individuals above the age of 50.

Results from a study of people who started to play piano between the ages of 60 and 85 noted that after six months, those who had received piano lessons showed stronger gains in memory, verbal fluency, and other cognitive functions.

Can a 70 year old Learn to Play the Piano?

Yes, people can start learning and playing piano at any age, even over 80 and above. Your brain can form new connections at any age, and you can always learn new skills. Plus, there are great mental, physical, and emotional benefits involved to increase your overall health and well-being.

Does Playing an Instrument Increase IQ?

Learning how to play an instrument can positively affect your I.Q. Research has shown that the activity raised general I.Q. by an average of 7 points.

When someone plays a musical instrument daily to learn it, they are also improving their hearing and memory skills in the process.

What Music Increases Intelligence?

Researchers have historically theorized that listening to classical music can help people perform tasks more efficiently.

The theory is called The Mozart Effect, and suggests that listening to classical composers can enhance brain activity and in turn act as a catalyst to improve health and well-being.

Which Instrument Should I Learn First?

The instruments that notice the quickest progress for new learners are drums and piano. After those on that list are guitar, bass and ukulele. For band and orchestra instruments, it can sometimes take significant time to learn the basics.

Final Thoughts

So now we know that you’re never too old to learn a new instrument.

Personally, while I’ve never had official music lessons since my Recorder lessons at age 8, I do own some audio and DJ equipment that I have a lot of fun with. (And if you don’t know what a Recorder is, I don’t blame you!)

You can purchase a decent midi keyboard second hand for a very reasonable price, even less than $50. A few months ago I purchased an older DJ controller second hand for $60. Both are fairly user friendly options, something that once you have set up you can play around with to get familiar and have fun with.

What about you, are you interested in learning a new musical instrument?

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8 thoughts on “Am I Too Old to Learn an Instrument?

  1. Wow. I have been wanting to learn how to play a piano since a child. I still do but tell myself at 50+ I am too old. Thanks for the encouraging words. I just might try it.

    Liked by 1 person

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