And so it begins...
I have my reservations about the timing of this post. Part of me wanted to wait to see if it panned out. However, if I make it public now (at least to the meager few who read this), it might apply enough pressure to keep me at it. Have I adequately engaged your curiosity?
I have started practicing how to play bass guitar. This will be my fourth attempt to learn a musical instrument. The first was way, way back in middle school where I was given gentle encouragement to pick up the flute. At the time I lacked the discipline, as children often do, to give it a faithful effort. After about three weeks at best, the flute found its way into the recesses of the attic.
The second attempt was the piano. I always liked the instrument for its versatility and full sound. However, they are a bit cumbersome to lug around and a bit daunting to play to boot. Luckily there was a piano at my dad's place and I would occasionally noodle on it when no one was looking. Though I did try a few times to add some structure to my learning, it never really became more than a passing fancy.
The third attempt was, predictably, the guitar. I had dug out an old guitar I think my brother once tried to learn on. I spent an awful long time trying to tune the sucker too... and I bet, incorrectly. So along with a book trying to teach me some basics, I struggled through a few lessons which didn't seem right. On top of which, I found that the strings cut into my fingers a bit too much for my liking. So, being a bit of a wuss, I decided to shelve the instrument instead of working to develop the callouses to withstand the cheesecutters.
More recently, the advent of Guitar Hero has reawakened my musical inclinations. Now I have no misconceptions that playing that video game translates into playing an actual guitar. I also have no preconceived notions that I would somehow become magically predisposed to learning an instrument. What I do know is that I am older (much older) and, as a result, much more methodical in my learning.
My desire to learn, along with the opportunity to borrow a bass guitar from one of my coworkers, was all I needed to set events in motion. I got the bass on Friday with a busted E string and picked up a new set on my way home from work. It is a good thing that I did because I busted the G trying to tune the thing.
I didn't get to any decent practice until last night. I went through quite a few exercises in the book I purchased and feel pretty comfortable with what I've learned so far. My pinky does not quite have the finger strength to put down the string properly and I hope that comes in time... as does some of the hand positions the book calls for. Still, I am pretty happy with my first practice.
Now that the cat is out of the bag, maybe I will be more inclined to stick with it. In another couple of weeks, I may have to go looking for my own bass.
I have started practicing how to play bass guitar. This will be my fourth attempt to learn a musical instrument. The first was way, way back in middle school where I was given gentle encouragement to pick up the flute. At the time I lacked the discipline, as children often do, to give it a faithful effort. After about three weeks at best, the flute found its way into the recesses of the attic.
The second attempt was the piano. I always liked the instrument for its versatility and full sound. However, they are a bit cumbersome to lug around and a bit daunting to play to boot. Luckily there was a piano at my dad's place and I would occasionally noodle on it when no one was looking. Though I did try a few times to add some structure to my learning, it never really became more than a passing fancy.
The third attempt was, predictably, the guitar. I had dug out an old guitar I think my brother once tried to learn on. I spent an awful long time trying to tune the sucker too... and I bet, incorrectly. So along with a book trying to teach me some basics, I struggled through a few lessons which didn't seem right. On top of which, I found that the strings cut into my fingers a bit too much for my liking. So, being a bit of a wuss, I decided to shelve the instrument instead of working to develop the callouses to withstand the cheesecutters.
More recently, the advent of Guitar Hero has reawakened my musical inclinations. Now I have no misconceptions that playing that video game translates into playing an actual guitar. I also have no preconceived notions that I would somehow become magically predisposed to learning an instrument. What I do know is that I am older (much older) and, as a result, much more methodical in my learning.
My desire to learn, along with the opportunity to borrow a bass guitar from one of my coworkers, was all I needed to set events in motion. I got the bass on Friday with a busted E string and picked up a new set on my way home from work. It is a good thing that I did because I busted the G trying to tune the thing.
I didn't get to any decent practice until last night. I went through quite a few exercises in the book I purchased and feel pretty comfortable with what I've learned so far. My pinky does not quite have the finger strength to put down the string properly and I hope that comes in time... as does some of the hand positions the book calls for. Still, I am pretty happy with my first practice.
Now that the cat is out of the bag, maybe I will be more inclined to stick with it. In another couple of weeks, I may have to go looking for my own bass.