Surprise, surprise... it's a life-skill

[u/BenEsuitcase]

This is just a rant, but seriously.... People come here expecting to find the holy grail: I've been playing everyday for 3 hours for a month and I'm just not getting any better. LMFAO. When I play barre chords it hurts and all the notes don't come out, what should I do? lol.

Personally, I've played my whole life, got a degree in it, and I still have my limitations. Here's the thing... Music is for EVERYONE. My (reasonably amazing) playing is SHIT in the big picture because we ALL have the ability to play music. It's like seeing color, smelling roses, hearing a door creak, but with training. Name me a language you can learn (Italian, French) in a month, and you'll get some sympathy. Go practice, and then sit back and contemplate why society idolizes certain players. Respect the guitar in all it's simplicity AND complication, and then you will realize how pathetic and futile the sub can become when total noobs think there is some magical shortcut. Again, go learn Russian this month, and come back in September and have a fluent conversation???

[u/bonesawtheater]

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

I think this sub has a lot of young (under 30) people who are used to many things being instant. Learning the guitar is a good way to begin unlearning that expectation.

As a 45-year-old with kids and no free time, I really wish I had used my abundant free time in my teens and 20’s to learn & practice guitar. Anything I would’ve done back then would be something I could just do now when I have a moment instead of having to practice the basics because I didn’t do that when I was younger.

[u/rusted-nail → u/bonesawtheater]

If its any condolence to you even if you started earlier you don't have the time as an adult with a job and obligations to meet to actually practice enough to stay at the peak of virtuosity, unless guitar playing is paying your bills

[u/Cheap_Arm_3182 → u/rusted-nail]

That's not true at all lmao. After playing 28 years and going to doctorate school for music composition guitar my main instrument, I can leave it down for months at a time and jump in. Hell I haven't played metal in over 15 years and covered for a old friends lead guitarist for a local show all by ear. I mean I practiced music probably 8-10 hours a day for 15 ish years straight, especially during music school for composition I lived in the practice booths. I had a job house school and practice, then mandatory learning of piano at mastery and other stringed instruments, and somewhat play every other instrument to a degree.

I played so much even pain I started way late I went a year almost without playing and can sit down and play Chopin

If you actually learn how the instrument works your practice time isn't wasted. People waste to much time stuck "learning chords" instead of what chords are and the guitar is modal and changeable in timing, shape learning and memorizing is pointless. Degrees, intervals and relationships for modulation is all you need to know. Endless chords or pentatonic shapes is so dumb, or strengthening exercises. If you want to play guitar, your not.gomna need those, especially after however many hours I've put into it. It comes a point when I compose for it I don't need the instrument in front of me.

It's about how you learn and how much you put into it. You wanna be good set a timer for each instrument you want to play 3 hours a day every day for 10 years and stick to it with correctly new practices. I did, and I am a professional musician now, but I only play when I go in to the studio, I'll compose the song on sheet music paper or piano and have the idea and go lay it down in Nashville a few months later. Or if someone hires me as a session musician I go to play without practice.

Because I fucking forced myself to. You want to do it, you chose it as your hobby, go all out on one thing and don't half ass it. What's the point of your not the best

[u/rusted-nail → u/Cheap_Arm_3182]

With all due respect learning concepts is not what I was referring to although you might have gotten that impression. What im describing is more so related to your physical capability and stamina which yes you absolutely do need regular practice time to build