PHOTO BY JENS THEKKEVEETTIL ON UNSPLASH
There’s a reason why so many youngsters begin on violin or piano, rather than wind or brass. Musical instruments come in so many different shapes and sizes, differ in mechanism of sound production, weight, transportability. Some instruments are very physical to play, while others are more gentle ergonomically. It’s important to find an instrument that fits the player, whether it’s hand size or lip strength. Many great performers learned multiple instruments before settling on one. In my biased opinion (as a pianist myself), the piano is the greatest foundation for early music theory and is an ideal stepping stone for learning any other instrument later in life.
Piano is a good fit for the youngest of students because it’s easy to make pretty melodies without much strength. Keyboards in particular are fairly mobile and fun for kids because of their different sounds/settings.
The ukulele is the easiest string instrument to learn. Four strings, lightweight, fretted (easy to play in tune). Takes little strength. A great precursor to the guitar.
For classical strings, the violin is the easiest for kids due to its small size. But since it’s fretless, intonation (playing in tune) is difficult.
Woodwind instruments take lots of concentration so they’re taught to the older child. The recorder is the simplest to pick up. But the easiest classical woodwind would be the flute, because it has no reed. Nevertheless it requires strong lungs and may be hard with small hands. The clarinet and saxophone are also fairly easy, but require caring for and maintaining reeds.
The bassoon and oboe are more difficult to learn. They use double reeds, which are tricky to play and even harder to build. Because of these reasons, there are less bassoon and oboe players making them great instruments for scholarship opportunities. A scholarship for violin or piano is much harder to come by.
Brass instruments can be tricky to learn because the pitch is controlled by how tight you buzz your lips. Some are easier than others. The trumpet is often a good starting point because it is lightweight. The trombone, albeit much heavier, may be easier because it uses a slide rather than valves.
Some instruments are easy to learn but hard to master. The piano requires immense coordination to perform expert-level compositions. The organ is even more so, requiring coordination of the hands and feet. Other instruments are hard because of the instability of their tone (like the clarinet, oboe and french horn). Mastering the high range of the trumpet is also difficult.
So the best way to find the right instrument is to try them out! Give it a month of hard work to see if it clicks. You can always switch. Like languages, the more you learn, the easier learning them becomes.
Jack Gaffney is a local musician and piano teacher. He can be reached at JackGaffney.com.
