The Hard Truth About Learning Music

Adam Maness goes deep into the hard truths about learning music as you get older. It may not feel as easy as when you are a child....but it can be.
Ready for the Beginner's Mind?

0:00 Intro
2:45 Play more, think less
4:35 Organize your life like you're a kid
6:42 Find a mentor
8:39 Find a community of peers
11:03 The beginner's mind
12:44 Summary
14:14 The Open Studio community

[JohnnyB]

This is an excellent video! I'm 68 years old, been playing keyboards most of my life, and came to a couple of realizations in the last year. 1. I'm better than I think I am. 2. I will never play like Keith Jarrett. 3. My ego is my nemesis! (judgement, fear, comparison, contempt, etc). 4. I need to cultivate a beginner's mind! Thanks for talking about the human side of being a musician.

[TheJoscelyne]

I played in band as a kid and remember that every sound I could make was cool, it didn't matter how basic or bad it sounded, just the fact that I could play something was amazing. I try to keep this attitude as an adult learner. None of this internal criticism about my performance, just pure wonder that I can make any sounds at all.

[oscillocelot]

I just started playing piano 5 months ago, at 42 years old - a lifelong dream of mine - and the only thing that stopped me from starting sooner was that *story* I told myself that said I was too old to start. We all write our own stories, every day. The story I'm writing now is one of passion and dedication - and it turns out that I'm actually pretty good! I'm writing my own music, playing pretty well for a newbie, and learning more and more every single time I sit down to play. And I just PLAY! It's FUN! It's challenging, pushing myself to learn more, but man is it fulfilling!

Excellent video and a great message - I think it's too easy to forget that it's supposed to be FUN - that's why it's called PLAYING =D

[pleximanic]

Bill Evans once said
" Practice the minimum!"
Meaning to practice the least amount of material at the given time to fully absorb it to the point that you really own it.

Practice the minimum/play the maximum is my one and only religion, , 🙏

[wendydarling]

I like the idea of scheduling events. That feels very useful. Reminds me of Ellington: "I don't need time. What I need is a deadline."

[davidmead]

Thanks for this Adam. Am 77 years young, had to leave music by age 18 in order to climb out of relative poverty. Rediscovered my love for playing at age 53 when semi retired (violin/fiddle) and now coming back to the piano at age 75. Doing some theory and loving more just doodling and making music. I GET what you have just presented. This needs to be recognised by all teens who have the support to engage fully with music. The cuts to free music lessons in schools (as I had in the '50's is a tragedy, and I hope to give back supporting my grandchildren.

[matta]

I feel like I found the Beginner’s Mind by switching instruments. I had been a bass player since college, but switched to bari sax at age 47. I still like those low notes, but I’ve had to sprout a completely different musical mind, and the discovery and exploration has been wonderful.

[LollyDolly]

I'm so thankful for my community orchestra. A place to play, to be inspired, to inspire, to perform, to grow, to connect with other, and to learn.

[sanchezzz]

Wow thank you so much for this. I never had any lessons as a child but I remember in 5th grade listening to Dave B. for the first time. Something inside that music ignited a passion in me. Fast forward to today, I’m 30 year old female immigrant from Mexico and decided that it’s now or never. So now I practice the sax regularly. I taught myself (via books) basic music theory and learning now to read music from scratch! I sometimes just put music on and play even if I mess up I’m just SO happy to finally do what I never had the chance to do. Thank you for the encouragement!

[samwababoon]

Wow. This is honestly one of the most important talks I've ever watched. I'm so glad I clicked on this, and thank you for the mentorship.

[cfthompson]

Adam, you are a treasure! Fantastic musician and wonderful person.

[piotrszarek]

I am sixty one. I started lerning violin about a month ago.
I find your talk very useful .
Thank you very much.

[sugaall]

This is so true. I am an adult and I struggled a good time trying to implement all that theory and knowledge about harmony. Finally, I made my biggest progress when I stopped thinking of all the harmony rules behind stuff and stopped trying to explain everything. Now I can just play and when I improvise I rarely think about scales, modes, extensions etc. I just play, and somehow call muscle memory patterns that sound good for me. Thats the way!

[oolabob]

I love this! Funny thing is, I already know and I still love to be reminded. Grown-up life is habitually serious, and (just going to say it) almost everyone is habitually self-critical a lot of the time, especially when trying to get better at something.
A lot of the best musicians I know say that when you practice, you should practice hard and keep at it until you get it to sound the way you want, and then when it's time to play, forget about practicing and just play.
Accomplishing anything in any art comes from doing both: practicing hard in practice, then letting go of practice and being playful when it's time to play. Each mental state is its own type of genius: practice builds mental and physical intelligence, and play brings emotional intelligence. It all really requires a lot of work along with plenty of time of no-work.

[michaeldraney]

Awesome advice, worth more than any number of “10 things you need to learn” videos out there. It’s about giving yourself permission and space to grow!

[easylikesat]

I needed this message today. I was 14 when I stopped taking lessons. Now I'm 50, and started taking lessons again within the last year.. I feel like I'm stuck.I haven't mastered any of the tunes I've been learning. I feel like I sounded better at age 14. I practice for at least an hour a day. When I get to my weekly lesson, it's like I've never placed my hand on a piano before.

[alistairmaleficent]

Agreed on all points, but with a caveat.

I sometimes wish I had been forced to play hours a day when I was a kid. I would be monstrous at this point. But I don't think my art would have quite as much depth to it.

Kids that spend all day playing music and not just playing around and experiencing life just don't seem to have the depth of feeling in their music that some less prodigal but more life-experienced players do. It's why these days I prefer listening to actual songs instead of just endless jams conducted by technical wizards.

Of course, the best of both worlds is totally possible. I think Pat Metheny, Esperanza Spalding, and Miles Davis are great examples. That's what I aspire to; not to be the hottest prodigal player on the block, but to write music that makes people feel deeply while at the same time blowing their minds with musicality.

Keep up the good work, guys. This was a great message; I can tell it was heartfelt, and I'll be thinking about it and applying it.

[gerbidashadji]

Thanks for making this video Adam. It really resonated with me and I recognize so much in it about my own musical journey. I've spend most of my 20's doing a lot of technical work on the guitar, spending most of my practice time doing technical etudes.
It caused me to really burn out on playing the guitar, and almost didn't play for the first years of my 30's. Now in my late 30's I've picked up meditation and mindfulness and managed to reconnect to the simple joy I once felt of just strumming a chord,
or even a single note and my playing is better than it ever was. I guess we calledl it 'playing' music for a reason.

[workouttransformation]

I was expecting a music lesson but received one of the best life lessons in life

[patriciodasilva]

Boy can I relate I'm 71 I've been noodling on the piano since I was 45 that's 20 something years and then I listened to Joey Alexander who's just a kid play like a an adult of 35 years old playing for 30 years and he plays twice as good as me -- I just get discouraged but I practice anyway. I can play songs and that's about all I ever wanted out of it and it's nice.