I am 33. Am I too old to start learning?

You're never too old to begin learning! The only bad thing about it is that you'll see what you've been missing, haha!
 
another "late bloomer" here.....!!!! Got 10 months in so far and 56yrs old. I still suck but not near as bad as I did 10 months ago.

Keep at it. Don't forget to work thru the book Stick Control. Relax and push the Remo pad aside and steal the mousepad from your computer and use it for a practice pad....much quieter......

Devour(sp?) these threads....LOTS of good info on the Forum......

It ain't a race so relax and have fun.....!!!!!


Thank you everyone. I just want to clarify that by asking my question "Am I too old...?" I didn't mean to offend anyone. On the contrary. Obviously, I don't think 33 is old, generally speaking.

I didn't know what to expect from drumming, so I compared to my experience learning English. I am brazilian, moved to the US at age 19. I have a heavy accent (or so they say :) ).

I remember in English classes when I was a kid (12 y/o or so), I just could not understand why me and other kids in the class would learn so easily, and the few adults would have such a hard time to progress. I then met a 5 year old that was almost fluent, and realized that the younger one starts to learn a foreing language, the easier the process is.

So I thought the same concept applied to drumming (or any instrument), but I am happy to read these replies, and from what I gather from you guys, it sounds like with practice and discipline, progress is inevitable, regardless of age.

I have been practicing the three basic stroke rolls for the past two weeks, one to one and a half hour a day, and I was very shocked yesterday when I realized my left hand was not as retarded as it was in the first day two weeks ago. It is such a tiny little victory, but it is huge in the sense that it gave me a sign that progress has started.

All I have to do now is somehow get the wife to not kill me when I come home with my DTXplorer. Thanks everyone.

PS: I just ordered Stick Control. Thanks for the tip. If there are any other begginer must reads, please post (I'm sure there are threads about it, I'll search.)
 
I remember in English classes when I was a kid (12 y/o or so), I just could not understand why me and other kids in the class would learn so easily, and the few adults would have such a hard time to progress. I then met a 5 year old that was almost fluent, and realized that the younger one starts to learn a foreing language, the easier the process is.

there is something to that. i've read that young people's brains are naturally receptive to learning a language at the time when most kids learn to speak. learning an instrument is kind of like learning a language so i'm sure young people have a natural advantage. but it is definitely still possible to make good progress with some perseverance and dedication at any age.
 
All I have to do now is somehow get the wife to not kill me when I come home with my DTXplorer. Thanks everyone.

PS: I just ordered Stick Control. Thanks for the tip. If there are any other begginer must reads, please post (I'm sure there are threads about it, I'll search.)

Good kit to have picked up without annoying the neighbours and if you like can get an acoustic in the future.
A good DVD especially if you're starting and to make sure you don't develop bad habits from the start - I'm now in the process of trying to correct mine :-( is Tommy Igoe's Great Hands For a Lifetime.
 
"It is such a tiny little victory, but it is huge in the sense that it gave me a sign that progress has started."

That's what frustrates me the most at my age (56)....time is limited and the improvement seems to come slow but it does indeed come! Now that I see improvement after only 10 months and have started to relax some, the frustration is disappearing and I'm learning to just take it as it comes. It seems the new "relaxed" attitude is helping me a lot. Baby-steps....!!!!!

That Stick Control is a well spent $10.....


good luck, relax and have fun!
 
Hey Haroldo,

This is a really great thread for us oldies to read! Thanks for getting it started off.

I started three years ago when I was 41. I can relate to so many of the stories here. I've been able to take a fairly systematic approach (books, DVDs, as much practise as is possible without upsetting the family too much!), which I probably wouldn't have done when I was younger.

Still the point you make about it being harder picking up things when you are older is sadly almost certainly very true. I used to play golf when I was a kid. It seemed so easy to pick it up then (heavy co-ordination stuff, quite similar in some ways to drumming), but I used to be shocked how hard older folks seemed to find it. Early starts really do make a huge difference.

Still, who cares if we don't get to be Neil Peart or John Bonham. The great thing about drums is just what a blast it is, even if you are total rubbish! Anyone, really anyone, I'm sure, can get a groove going on with a bit of practise, and whoooaa! just how good does that feel! Hell, who cares how fantastic or dire you are - if you're having fun, it's good for you, and with some consideration, it will be good for your wife and family too, as you'll have a great healthy pastime going on, and will be a better person to live with... Go for it!

I started off with Tommy Ogoe's DVD, Groove Essentials. Both 1 and 2 are fantastic, especially if combined with the accompanying books. The good bit is you get to play real cool grooves very quickly - and he's got a nice set of Latin grooves in there too, with some Brazilian vibes too. Put that together with tech stuff like Stick Control, and you're cool.

Have fun!
 
Hey Haroldo,

This is a really great thread for us oldies to read! Thanks for getting it started off.

I started three years ago when I was 41. I can relate to so many of the stories here. I've been able to take a fairly systematic approach (books, DVDs, as much practise as is possible without upsetting the family too much!), which I probably wouldn't have done when I was younger.

Still the point you make about it being harder picking up things when you are older is sadly almost certainly very true. I used to play golf when I was a kid. It seemed so easy to pick it up then (heavy co-ordination stuff, quite similar in some ways to drumming), but I used to be shocked how hard older folks seemed to find it. Early starts really do make a huge difference.

Still, who cares if we don't get to be Neil Peart or John Bonham. The great thing about drums is just what a blast it is, even if you are total rubbish! Anyone, really anyone, I'm sure, can get a groove going on with a bit of practise, and whoooaa! just how good does that feel! Hell, who cares how fantastic or dire you are - if you're having fun, it's good for you, and with some consideration, it will be good for your wife and family too, as you'll have a great healthy pastime going on, and will be a better person to live with... Go for it!

I started off with Tommy Ogoe's DVD, Groove Essentials. Both 1 and 2 are fantastic, especially if combined with the accompanying books. The good bit is you get to play real cool grooves very quickly - and he's got a nice set of Latin grooves in there too, with some Brazilian vibes too. Put that together with tech stuff like Stick Control, and you're cool.

Have fun!

Here is a down side to learning at an older. Actually it is a bitter blessing. Many of us pick up drumming later because we always wanted to play but never had the time because we (I) were/ was too busy chasing a career and stuff. AKA $$$$.

Now that I am established, I don't hunger for much other than the music. I think that when you try and make music your life and try to pay the bills, whether you accomplish that or not, you HAVE to make it playing. You have to internalize that groove quickly or you wont get or keep the gig. You probably will play better, as if your life depended on it.

Being hungry for something does make it a different experience.

The upside is since I picked it up late, I had an income so it was not a question between a new high hat stand and rent. good and bad to both sides. Being hungry helps.
 
Hi all, and sorry for the trivial topic. Playing the drums has been in my mind for the past 15 years, but not until now I have the means to make it happen.

However, I am 33. I am a Rush and Neil Peart fanatic, followed right after buy Dream Theater and Porcupine Tree.

I bought a practice pad (Remo, really loud!), a stand, and 55A sticks, a snare drum DVD basics, and also had my first private lesson last week. I have been practicing the three basic strokes for the past week for about an hour to an hour and a half a day, and I think I noticed an improvement...I think.

It seems playing the drums involves a lot of muscle memory and unatural (almost freaky) limb indepence. Can an old(er) dog learn new tricks? Would I be able to butcher Rush and DT songs before I grow white hair? Or am I way over my head? My wife thinks I'm nuts...

Thanks for any feedback.

Never too old to do anything, mate... the only that can stop someone from something is a physical or mental handicap.

I'm going to keep this short. Just trust me when I say I was very unfocused for the longest time... and that caused a lot of gaps in between practice... and a lot of "quit time." So this is my prescription for you... I'm giving it to you because it worked for me. Here goes..

1. Buy a copy of Tommy Igoe's 'Great Hands For a Lifetime' and practice it each day.
2. Buy a copy of Tommy Igoe's 'Groove Essentials' and practice it every day.
3. (Optional) Buy Tommy Igoe's 'Getting Started on Drums'
4. Read or listen to the books 'Talent Is Overrated' and/or 'The Outliers.' These two books will really open your ears to what the human is capable of and what the real story behind "supposed genius" is. You'll learn that Mozart really did have to work and endless practice hours to get where he was. He wasn't "naturally talented" as legend tells it.

Bonus: Get a teacher. I'd have one right now if I could afford it. If it's in your budget, go to one.
 
i used to say, "wow i wish i would've picked the drums back up five years ago-just think where i'd be now...". then five years after that i'd say, "wow, just think if i would've picked the drums back up five years ago". blahblah...i think in the middle of the 4th set of five year chunks, i finally woke up and got some sticks back in my hands. it is about joy to me and is a total labor of love-it gets me up in the morning and keeps me up at night...and even tho none of the drummers you mentioned will ever have to worry about me taking their job, i do have the satisfaction of accomplishing some major stuff in drumming which was never accessible to me before. and even more importantly i won't ever have to say i wish i would've started again five years ago...

so i tell that to everyone who asks a question like that, and aoelian's point: like if you were 13 and started, you may be an amazing player by the time you reached 21. at 33, you're just starting later and that's all there is to it. because once you are there, you are there baby, and no one can ever take that from you...so who cares if you got there a little later than the rest of the class?
 
so i tell that to everyone who asks a question like that, and aoelian's point: like if you were 13 and started, you may be an amazing player by the time you reached 21. at 33, you're just starting later and that's all there is to it. because once you are there, you are there baby, and no one can ever take that from you...so who cares if you got there a little later than the rest of the class?

yeah! good way to think man.
 
Other than your brain probably won't be as fast as a child's brain for learning completely new things, there is absolutely no problem to start late. Do it!
While children's bodies and brains learn quickly to coordinate drumset playing, your cognitive abilities are by far more developed (of course) and will help you greatly.
 
It seems most people are saying that you can learn drums as an adult, but it won't come as quickly as it would if you were a child. I guess I have to go against the grain here. Not only do I think you can learn drums as an adult, but from my teaching experience, I believe you will learn much faster than a child would.

I have been teaching private lessons since 1996. From 2001 to 2005, part of my teaching career was giving drum lessons to young kids at an elementary school. The kids ranged in age from 5 years old to 14 years old. I would go to their school and give lessons 2 days a week. The other days of the week, I was teaching adults in my own personal studio. So...on a weekly basis, I could directly compare the progress of the adults in my personal studio versus the progress of the kids at the elementary school. There was no comparison at all. The adults progressed many, many times faster than the children. The average adult student would typically achieve the same amount in a couple of months that the average child would achieve in a couple of years.

I am not saying this to make the adult beginners here feel better. I would say the same thing if the original poster was asking about lessons for his young child. In other words, my story does not change based on who is asking. All I can report is the truth of what I saw. I had young kids take lessons for close to 2 years who still struggled playing a basic rock groove! And when they WERE able to play a basic rock groove, it was very sloppy. And remember...I'm talking about a rock groove here. This is supposedly the EASY stuff. When it came to reading, hand technique, and the other CHALLENGING stuff, forget it...the young kids didn't make any progress whatsoever compared to the adults.

I know that what I'm saying is contrary to popular belief. We've all heard that kids pick this stuff up so much faster than adults. They're supposedly "like sponges." Well...it simply wasn't true in any way for the young students I worked with. Of course, I will accept that the teacher probably makes a difference as well. It is completely possible that I am just not very good at teaching young kids. But I can tell you that I certainly gave it my best shot. I tried various different approaches for those 4 years, and I still never got the young ones progressing even close to the rate of the adults. Eventually, I gave up the kid job to another teacher, and now I only accept students who are at least young adults. It was just too unrewarding for me to see a child struggle month after month to learn the same things that my adults would pick up so quickly and easily.

Even though it wasn't for me, I'm glad that some people are good at teaching kids and really enjoy it. We need people like that for those young drummers who do want to get an early start. However, I cannot perpetuate this idea that kids pick up drumming so much faster than adults. I don't know how this idea first started circulating, but I can say without hesitation that it was 100% untrue in my personal teaching practice.
 
that's interesting. i always assumed it would be easier for kids than adults to learn to play drums or any other instrument. maybe it's more like we always hear about the prodigy kids whose videos get thousands of hits on youtube. maybe in reality the youtube phenoms represent just a tiny fraction of kids who take up drumming. meanwhile, no one cares about the adult beginners who are progressing faster than the average kids. no one watches the video of the 33 year old drummer who can play "back in black" perfectly after picking up drumming a year ago.
 
Hi Matt,

Now that really is an interesting human experiment you did there!

My one question would be, were the kids and adults really comparable groups. i.e. Are you comparing kids that were really keen to learn the drums with adults that were really keen to learn the drums.

I recall learning the violin as a kid. I was forced to learn by my (otherwise great!) mum. I can't imagine what a frustration it must have been for the teacher that was stuck with me. I never practised unless forced to, and was just miserable, miserable, miserable at the instrument, even after years of playing.

But there were other kids that really seemed to enjoy playing the violin (hard to believe, but true!). Now, they made crazy progress. I wonder, therefore, how an adult with an interest in picking up the violin later in life would compare with a similarly enthusiastic kid. What do you think, Matt? Whatever, the response, thanks for the really interesting post, by the way. Heh, you encouraged me, since I just started in my 40s, but I can't help but think that I would have been quicker if my mum had got me onto the drums instead of the violin!

Cheers, James
 
Matt, the thing is, all things being equal, the child will learn faster than the adult. The kids you were teaching wernt kids who showed an interest in drums and wanted lessons, from what I can gather, they were just regular kids with no or little musical interest. Chances are, the only practice they got was the 1 hour (or however long the lesson was) you taught them. In that case, the child is only practicing 40 hours a year. contrast that with an hour a day perhaps for your adult students. They would spend the equivalent amount if practice in just over a month. Not only quantity, but the quality of the practice is also important, and if they are not as keen on the drums, it won't be as effective.

I have learnt a few instruments and I found that my progress depended more on how much I practiced and how much I wanted to practice, but there is an advantage if you start younger
 
Matt, the thing is, all things being equal, the child will learn faster than the adult.

Hey, Drums_n_surf. You are certainly entitled to your own beliefs and opinions. However...as I explained in my previous post...the premise that you are stating does not coincide with my real world experience as a teacher.

The kids you were teaching wernt kids who showed an interest in drums and wanted lessons, from what I can gather, they were just regular kids with no or little musical interest. Chances are, the only practice they got was the 1 hour (or however long the lesson was) you taught them.

No, this is incorrect. Legobeast asked me about this, and before I got a chance to log in and answer, you sort of answered on my behalf. However, the info you stated does not accurately reflect my teaching practice and my students. The interest level with my young students covered a broad range. Some of them were very interested, and some were not interested at all. Most of them were somewhere in between. Same goes for the adults. Some are passionate about drumming, but some are doing it only because they feel guilty for never learning an instrument (this is actually a common phenomenon, and it leads to students who cancel a lot and never practice). Just like with the kids, most of the adults are somewhere in the middle realm with their interest level.

Since 1996, I have taught about 500 students. I only put my foot down about teaching kids around 2005. So...I have seen an enormous number of students, covering an enormous range of ages and interest levels. Therefore, when I wrote my previous post, I was considering all things to be equal. My adults who practice regularly tend to progress much, much faster than my children who practice regularly. My adults who never practice between lessons tend to progress much faster than my children who never practice.

In that case, the child is only practicing 40 hours a year. contrast that with an hour a day perhaps for your adult students. They would spend the equivalent amount if practice in just over a month. Not only quantity, but the quality of the practice is also important, and if they are not as keen on the drums, it won't be as effective.

As I said, I've seen the full spectrum. However, in general, the kids probably practice a bit more than the adults. Most adults take up drums as a hobby for some relief from their busy adult lives. They usually have a spouse and a full-time job. For most adults, the lesson is their only drumming time. Kids, on the other hand, will often have a parent who insists that they practice a little each day. Again, it varies from student to student. But...if I had to generalize...I would say that the norm would be for the kids to get a little more practice time than the adults, not the other way around.

I have learnt a few instruments and I found that my progress depended more on how much I practiced and how much I wanted to practice,

Absolutely. This holds true for adults and children alike. The more passionate the student is, and the more they practice, the more progress they make.

but there is an advantage if you start younger

Yes, of course...but not because children pick up drumming faster than adults. I simply do not believe this to be the case. There is an advantage to starting young because it allows more years overall to learn the instrument. For example...let's imagine that you have 2 drummers, both age 20. One of them started drumming at 5 years old, and the other started at age 16. From my experience, with adequate practice, both of these drummers would make very good progress from age 16 to age 20. BUT...one of them would be starting from scratch, and the other would be starting with 11 years of drumming already behind them. All other things being equal, the one who started earlier would have a big advantage if the 2 of them went head to head at an audition. Still, this doesn't mean that the one who started earlier was making faster progress at age 7 than at age 18! I've never seen that happen.

I actually have a student right now who is a pretty good example of what I'm saying. He started drumming lessons almost 7 years ago, when he was 8 years old. He is now almost 15. In the past 2 years, he has made more progress than in the first 5 years combined! No, it's not because he is practicing more now. He has been practicing a lot since day one. Between this and a high level of natural ability, he is currently what most people would consider a drum "prodigy" or "phenom." But I can tell you...it has mostly come from hard work, and this work has brought about much faster progress now that he has gotten a bit older. I assume, based on what I've seen, that he will progress even faster over the next few years.

I don't know the explanation for what I'm telling you. I would guess that it's because of greater cognitive skills and greater motor control in adults compared to children. But I don't really know. Like I said before, I'm just reporting what I've seen first hand over many years and many thousands of lessons.
 
Definitely not too old, if you put in a good years worth of practice and learning, by 34 you'll be quite amazed at how far you've come, and will probably be good enough to gig if that is something you wish to do.
 
You do make some very good points Matt and I do agree with most of them. I'm not doubting your teaching experience, or the number of students you've had. I will admit i did make a few assumptions, mainly that the kind of children you'd be teaching at a school would be drastically different to the kind of children in a private situation. Many of the kids who learn an instrument at school do it because their parents think they should. Those kids that do take it seriously enough, and their parents take a genuine interest in letting their child develop their passion, often get lessons outside of school instead of, or as well as the school lessons. I don't have teaching experience to justify my observations, but i have graduated from school a few years ago. The school i went to had a very strong music program which i was involved heavily in, and these were the things i observed.

I myself took up the clarinet when i was around 9 or so. I realised at around 12 years of age that I did not really enjoy it, but still continued to get school lessons and played in the band until i was around 16. I know that there was a fair few people like me, so it wasn't like i was an exception here. What I learned in the first 3 years or so, came very naturally, and I improved quite rapidly. However, over the next 4 years I barely progressed, even though I had an hours music lesson and around 3 hours of band rehersals a week. There were a fair few people who were playing instruments even though they wern't too keen on it.

Contrast that with my experiences playing piano. I took that up at the age of 5 with private lessons which i continued taking until the age of 17. Being taught at such a young age and having a great deal of interest in it, I learnt some of the basic fundamentals so easily, and they were ingrained in my brain at such a young age, that they became second nature to me. I cannot play a piano now with wrong technique, because it was drummed into me at such a young age that I don't know how to play otherwise. Compare that to an adult learning how to play, where they already have preconceived ideas on how things should be played, and it takes longer for these correct ways to become second nature.

While i still stand by my point that all things being equal, the child will learn faster than the adult, the reality is that it can never be equal. Things such as enthusiasm, concentration, dedication, practice time, natural talent, desire and things like that come into play. What I was trying to say in my first post was that you can't assume that the children you were teaching had the same characterestics as the adults you were teaching.
 
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