is 28 too old to learn the piano ?

[BUNJA]

hi im 28 im realy a singer but ive been trying to learn how to make a tune for a while . but i cant play the piano proper .
i get round this by playing realy badly and editing after
or drawing things in which is much easier but i feel like its cheating .
do you know most young producers aint even bothering learning piano theses days instead just drawing them in in programs like fl studio (but there songs are so good ).
anyway im starting a music producer course in september and i wanna get decent at the piano so i can make good dance music!!! (not just trance happy hardcore scouse house etc .)
do you lot think im gonna struggle to learn at 28 ?
and are there any examples of someone learning late and still making a splash in the industry ?

and are there any good free chord guides ?
thanks in advance 4 your time .

[stanlea]

If you're serious and patient, there's no problem, unless you want to play Scriabin's sonatas.

[BUNJA]

If you're serious and patient, there's no problem, unless you want to play Scriabin's sonatas.

mate i just mean good enough to produce using good melodys
not no beethoven lol i would have to start from 5 or 6 to get that good
thats why my daughter starts next year ...

[Sascha Franck]

do you lot think im gonna struggle to learn at 28 ?

Let's say it this way: You will struggle more than someone at, say, 13.
But on the other hand, unlike younger folks, you may as well be able to concentrate on the things you really need instead of wasting time with, say, endless finger etudes and the likes.

IMO, the key is finding a reasonable teacher, who would actually follow YOUR needs rather than going whatever route of "established" training methods.

Just as an example: As a composer, you may not need much virtuosity, so being able to play all scales and chords at almost each tempo might be completely useless, the same would go for any classical finger excersises. What you may however need is things such as playing proper (read: suitable for whatever style you're after) chords in the left and some little melodic ideas in the right. Or some nice chords in the right and a bassline in the left.
Following most "classical" methods, getting there would most likely take you years. So I'd rather suggest looking for a teacher coming from a sort of jazzy background.
I had an excellent piano teacher during studying music (I'm a guitar player but it's been a requirement to play piano to some extent) who didn't even bother to have me learn scales or whatever. We started out with some simple "bass left, chords right" rhythms and proceeded to "chords left, melody right" things.
Admittedly, back then I've been lazy as a f**k, most likely because I already play an instrument with rather ok-ish accompaniment "features", so it didn't pay off too much in the end, but if I wanted, I could easily freshen up what I learned - and I think it'd be quite sufficient for a lot of composing needs.

And well, I think it will speed up your compositional options enormously being able to play things in realtime - something no piano roll in the world will ever offer. So, by all means, go for it. Just make sure you know what you want, so you can actually select a proper teacher (or a teaching method) yourself.
And fwiw, I really recommend looking for a teacher for the first, say, half a year. You might be able to continue on your own after that.

[justin3am]

As long as your fingers still work, I don't think it's too late... if you've got the motivation and the will to follow through I'd say there isn't a lot you can't learn at any age. The thing is at 28 you may have taken on responsibilities that take a higher priority than learning an instrument (job, spouse, kids, etc.) but even those aren't insurmountable obstacles if you really have the drive to learn. Hell, people like my Granddad have such a strong drive to learn new things they are willing to sacrifice eveything, people like him only have themselves as obstacles (not that abandoning your family to learn piano or in his case metal work, is a good thing).

If the only thing driving you to learn an instrument is that you feel like your cheating by drawing in your tracks, I think you should re-ponder your motivations. Drawing a synth lines in a sequencer is pretty easy in it's simplest form but it's not cheating. Drawing convincingly natural drum parts and complex arrangements in a sequencer is difficult and requires a certain level of patience and is definitely not cheating as far as I'm concerned.

I can't play an instrument worth shit, and I have little motivation to learn properly. However, I enjoy making songs and infact I love playing with intruments I have no skill for. IMO it's only cheating if I said I played the parts that I infact sequenced and edited together.

[stanlea]

I'm 50, and I begin today (or maybe tomorrow).

[gckilla]

I don't know if this will help, but I'm 30 and started taking piano lessons a few month ago as something to do while I recover from jaw surgery (no judo for a few months to say the least).

It's been really rewarding to pick up new skills. I certainly don't think that I'm wasting my time as it's really fun to sit down, practice, learn how to read music, learn scales etc...

On top of that I find it really relaxing.

I definately don't think 28 is too old...lol, I wish I had done it before I had a kid!

[nuffink]

Is 28 too old to learn English?

[BUNJA]

Is 28 too old to learn English?

nuffink go and get a job that plugin wont pay the bills
no one cares about talking english proper engish anymore
an d anyway im a cocney boy and that is a real engish accent
do we all have to talk like the queen 4 u ?

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ill do my cockney boy routine 4 ya ...
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chordspace plugins 2 for a pound
get your plugins here two 4 a pound
two 4 a pound
no one ?
3 4 a pound
plugins plugins

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stop bitching on my posts
im trying to learn from intelligent people (not u then )
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that skirt looks a bit short on u mate

[nuffink]

Apples and pears. Gor blimey guvnor.

Splendid stuff. Do some more.

[geekboy]

Is 28 too old to learn English?

Boy are you peevish!

[metamorphosis]

No
m@

[Arksun]

You're never too old to learn anything, really. Just do it

I'd still like to learn the guitar at some point, just never got round to it.

[BUNJA]

You're never too old to learn anything, really. Just do it

I'd still like to learn the guitar at some point, just never got round to it.

your presets are fantastic man
cheers mate

[headquest]

I have several adult piano students who are doing really well including some who are quite a bit older than you. Some of them have taken up piano for fun while others have more serious goals.

The main barrier to learning as an adult is time commitment. Kids who get out of school at 3.00 in the afternoon have the time to practise, adults with busy working lives sometimes don't. So ask yourself about the time commitment and whether it is realistic for you. I would recommend that you should practise for an hour a day as much as possible if you are serious about learning piano relatively quickly (though less practise is possible if you are learning in a more leasurely way).

Finding a good teacher is, as stated above, essential. Mastering the piano is a difficult skill that can take several years to do well. A good teacher will be able to diagnose the areas where you need to focus in your development, including troubleshooting physical/technical issues as well as helping you develop your music reading, hand/eye coordination, general musicianship, communication, etc.

Good luck!