What is an easy instrument to learn?
What is an easy instrument to learn?
My hand joints are getting better finally and I wanna learn an instrument. The thing is, I'm dumb and have struggled really badly with reading music in the past.
You're viewing a single thread.
Trombone.
You don’t need to learn finger combinations like on most brass and woodwinds, nor chords like piano and other string instruments. Just the 7 positions the slide can be at. Blow a raspberry and the note comes out.
Trumpet is similar but a lot easier to store and transport. Also those three valves are pretty much the same amongst other brass instruments like French horn, baritone, tuba, etc. so you can move between instruments if you choose.
I have to stop you there. Fingering for french horn is different from the other valved brass.
It sorta is. It's also sorta not.
I wouldn't recommend French Horn to most people as a first instrument without a good instructor.
Agreed. There’s a lot more to it, the mouthpiece is small, hand position in the horn, knowing how to deal with what’s directly behind you.
Because of the rotary valves and trigger? Or for some other reason?
If that's the only difference you're calling out, it's worth noting rotary valves and triggers show up on other instruments as well. In particular, tubas often have rotary valves, and it's not uncommon to see trigger valves on trombones.
Having played both piston valves and rotary, the difference is negligible.
The fingerings are different. Playing one just doesn't mean you can automatically switch back and forth.
I think that applies to the others as well, except in some cases when they are tuned to the same fundamental, e.g. Bb Trumpet, BBb Tuba. But tubas commonly come in C, F, and Eb as well (trumpet variants also exist, but are less common).
As someone who could never get used to just kinda eyeballing where a note is supposed to be, I strongly disagree about the trombone.
You could have marked your slide, but also if you can’t hear when a note isn’t right you’re doing music on hard mode.
The problem with hearing when a note isn't right is that by the time you hear it you've already played it...
If it's a short note, it's usually not that dramatic. If it's a long note and you're still playing it, then have no shame in adjusting as soon you hear that it's off.
Generally, though, don't beat yourself up about it while learning. Just make a mental note that you eyeballed too low/high and try to do better next time.