To all music lovers,
Maybe you’ve never played an instrument in your entire life, or maybe you used to play the piano but stopped when 5th grade rolled around – either way, it’s been a while. You jam to music when you’re doing homework and you think about how cool it would be to play that riff in that guitar solo. Or, maybe you think about how cool it would be to sing along with Beyoncé (and if you haven’t, I don’t know where you’ve been).
College life is all about new experiences and trying new things, so why not try something completely different? There are so many hobbies to choose from, but let me give a little insight to why picking up the guitar, or any other instrument, can help you out.
Listening to music is quite relaxing and most of us are plugged to our phones all the time, so why not try being on the other side of the music? Listening to live music is always better – think back to going to your first concert or listening to someone play their guitar in a coffee shop. When it’s yourself playing, though, it’s an unexplainable feeling.
Your fingers pluck the first string, and it sounds absolutely awful. You laugh at how bad it is and think about why you even thought to pick up something you’ve never played and teach yourself. You have all this homework and club meetings you have to go to, so how do you even make time for something like this?! Is it going to be a waste of your time? Are you going to ever be any good at it? Are you just going to get frustrated that you can’t get the right finger placement or melody right?
Any of these things can happen, and yes there will be a lot of moments where that instrument is going to be put aside so you can focus on school and your other million responsibilities, but here’s why you should take your time with your new or returning instrument:
Playing an instrument is a great mood booster, especially when used to balance all the time you spend studying. Listening to music that is right there in front of you and not through a speaker can give your brain different types of emotional bonds with the sound of music. Hearing music can make you feel somewhat “refreshed,” as well as successful. Having small goals like learning a new chord or new keys can boost your esteem and make you want to keep going till you’ve learned a whole new song!
Having your alone time and claiming your “me time” back with an instrument can be a new way of de-stressing! Thinking about what song you want to learn to play, or even what genre you want to focus on, is always exciting. When you start to get the hang of learning, you just can’t wait to go back to your room and try something new. You get this new feeling of wanting to learn more about a world you never knew about and try to explore why musicians do what they do.
So, to every music lover out there, if you’ve always wanted to learn an instrument but thought it was too late or that you would just fail, please reconsider. Find the new adrenaline that comes with finally getting a chord or a song right. You will fail several times, but the best part is, you’re learning something new! Plus, how cool is it that you can not only sing along, but also play along to Charlie Puth’s new song (or any other artist you like).
I hope that, whatever instrument you may choose, you enjoy the process and that your passion for listening and loving music shines through! Even if no one else hears your music, I hope you truly enjoy the new melody and new side to music that’s been waiting for you!