Violin PANDA

Learning to play the violin as an adult: Four myths.

woman sitting on a sofa beside a violin

Adult violin learners always have doubts about learning the violin. What if I tell you that even you can learn to play the violin?💁🏻‍♀️

You’re probably wondering how true this statement is. Right?

Never picked up an instrument before?

Over the years as a violin teacher, I have come across popular misconceptions and myths about learning how to play the violin. Some I do understand, however most of them are just outrightly ridiculous. I have just picked only four to talk about in this article. Shall w

 
 

Myth 1 – It’s too hard to become a beginner violin student as an adult.

Have you heard that before? You probably did. Well, let me burst your bubble…ready?  That is false!

According to research, adult violin learning is often more productive than being compelled to learn to play as a child.

It’s entirely natural when you are younger to rebel against certain tasks, but as an adult, you are choosing to pursue a goal, and you’ve developed the self-discipline to stay the course. 

There’s no better time to start than now. 

I can’t count how many people in their 40s and 50s I have taught and they are doing great. This is what one of them has to say.

“Being in my late 40s, I thought that I will never learn to play my dream instrument, but after taking Rimma’s lessons I can now play my favourite song on the violin. One of my best moments was playing “happy birthday” on the violin for my daughter’s 8th birthday. I couldn’t be more proud of myself!!”  “Michael”

As you can see, Michael, probably just like you, had doubts about learning to play the violin being in his 40s but when he gave it a go with every passion, he saw his dream of playing the violin come true.

Myth 2 – I have no talent.

Ever seen your favourite artist play the violin or maybe a video of someone good at playing the violin pops up, and you wish that you were the person playing? But after a few seconds, you shove the idea away with a statement “I have no talent like them”. 

I can never play like them. 

Does this sound like you?

Well, honestly we’ve all been there. 

No doubt some people are very exceptional and seem to be born with natural talents.

However, the truth is that many great musicians didn’t have innate talent. Many just had the passion and put in a great amount of work, time and dedication.

High ability in any discipline is more a function of dedicated SYSTEMATIC practice rather than innate ability. Most of my students had the same thoughts and they had to eat their words after following my proven systematic approach. 

Myth 3 – Violins are expensive

Oh, I can’t even tell you how many people lost an opportunity to learn the violin due to this popular misconception. 

Have you had the same thoughts? Do you think you need to break the bank to get a violin?

Sure, if you want a top-of-the-range violin you are going to have to pay at least $1000 or above.

Well, what if I tell you that you can get a decent beginner violin for the same money you pay in a restaurant for a 3-square meal? Is that a shocker?

An avearge person according to statistics, spend about $150 on just entertainment per month. 

You agree with me that it is easier to fork out $100 or less for a decent violin than to go for a high end from $1000 right?

Shhh…Another secret for you, you can get a very good secondhand violin and good value for money.

Before you do though, I will strongly encourage you to check this article ” Know this before buying a violin”

Myth 4 – You can learn the violin by yourself

Well, we are in the “YouTube era” where we are constantly bombarded with a lot of videos which are usually unstructured and disorganised and lack consistency. 

There is a sea of unqualified “content creators” posing as tutors over there and I have seen some students struggle to unlearn some of the wrong playing techniques they picked up from different sources. 

And believe me, it is much harder to unlearn. 

When you start, you need a step-by-step process that shows you what to do and how to move forward, at least for the first year.

To think that you’re going to save money by not taking a high-quality course is completely untrue. You’re going to lose a lot of time, and worse, you’re going to lose the urge to play the violin.

Whew! That was a long one but I believe it’s worth it. If this has given you even a glimmer of hope to pick up the violin, then I’m a happy person.

Conclusion

Do not give up your dream of playing the violin as an adult. You might not be a star violinist, but you can still learn to play decent tunes and most importantly be proud of your achievements. If you want to start learning but don’t know where to start, I highly suggest you join this Free Violin beginner Bootcamp.

See you on the other side!

Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest

Related articles

Leave a Reply

Rimma Strings Academy
Do you want to learn violin in a structured way?
Learn More

Recent blog posts