Preacher
Well-known member
Forgive me for the whining. I'll just say that right off the top here, so if you want to skip this and move on to another thread, understood. (I hate whining too.) (And this is a bit long. Sorry.)
My main question: Will it ever "click" for me?
I am pretty much completely utterly totally un-musical. I can sing adequately (I've soloed in church without embarrassment) but I can't read music. I'm good at singing along, mostly. I've NEVER been able to learn to play an instrument. I've made small attempts at different instruments through the years, but frustration and impatience have led me to give it up.
Now I'm trying the ukulele. I admit I haven't worked at it consistently, sometimes going weeks without picking it up. I've had little bursts where I will practice every day or so for a couple weeks and then nothing for 10 days. Right now, I'm trying to practice every day for at least a month. So far, I've done 8 out of 10 days. But here's the thing:
I'm still not "getting" it. I still struggle to form a G-chord, for goodness sake! I have to look at the little pictures with the dots to remember what the D7 is. And I pretty much have to stop in the middle of whatever song I'm playing whenever a B flat shows up (and it shows up a lot). I keep waiting for the muscle memory thing to kick in, but right now I feel like a 7th grader who's had a growth spurt and has lost all coordination. I'm now trying to learn how to do some finger-picking (or whatever it's called) and that's been like dripping-water torture in its slowness. Trying to figure out how to read tablature? I might as well be trying to learn Klingon.
So, are there any other totally un-musical types out there who have actually become adept at playing? I'm tired of getting advice from people who played guitar for 15 years before they took up the uke, because, no, it doesn't come naturally to me like it does for you. I've tried different uke sizes and videos and books and, blah, blah, blah. (And while I'm liking the feel of my new Fluke, I'm still not able to form chords any faster.)
Maybe I'm too ADD. Maybe I'm too old (a couple years shy of a half-century).
Maybe I'm just un-musical and it will NEVER work. That's where I'm at today--after playing through my stack of Christmas songs and a couple sheets of Uncle Rod's camp and STILL not seeing any progress.
I know--just keep practicing. But I need to see SOME kind of improvement soon. Otherwise, I've got several good ukes that will be going up for sale.
OK. Whining rant over. (Though the frustration remains.)
My main question: Will it ever "click" for me?
I am pretty much completely utterly totally un-musical. I can sing adequately (I've soloed in church without embarrassment) but I can't read music. I'm good at singing along, mostly. I've NEVER been able to learn to play an instrument. I've made small attempts at different instruments through the years, but frustration and impatience have led me to give it up.
Now I'm trying the ukulele. I admit I haven't worked at it consistently, sometimes going weeks without picking it up. I've had little bursts where I will practice every day or so for a couple weeks and then nothing for 10 days. Right now, I'm trying to practice every day for at least a month. So far, I've done 8 out of 10 days. But here's the thing:
I'm still not "getting" it. I still struggle to form a G-chord, for goodness sake! I have to look at the little pictures with the dots to remember what the D7 is. And I pretty much have to stop in the middle of whatever song I'm playing whenever a B flat shows up (and it shows up a lot). I keep waiting for the muscle memory thing to kick in, but right now I feel like a 7th grader who's had a growth spurt and has lost all coordination. I'm now trying to learn how to do some finger-picking (or whatever it's called) and that's been like dripping-water torture in its slowness. Trying to figure out how to read tablature? I might as well be trying to learn Klingon.
So, are there any other totally un-musical types out there who have actually become adept at playing? I'm tired of getting advice from people who played guitar for 15 years before they took up the uke, because, no, it doesn't come naturally to me like it does for you. I've tried different uke sizes and videos and books and, blah, blah, blah. (And while I'm liking the feel of my new Fluke, I'm still not able to form chords any faster.)
Maybe I'm too ADD. Maybe I'm too old (a couple years shy of a half-century).
Maybe I'm just un-musical and it will NEVER work. That's where I'm at today--after playing through my stack of Christmas songs and a couple sheets of Uncle Rod's camp and STILL not seeing any progress.
I know--just keep practicing. But I need to see SOME kind of improvement soon. Otherwise, I've got several good ukes that will be going up for sale.
OK. Whining rant over. (Though the frustration remains.)