h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

-What instrument we should take up-
depends what you wanna do with it.
*band with friends, then play the sax, you get the most attentiona dn look coolest and it's easier to move than drums. also it can be transfered more successfully than most instruments to orchestra, big band, dance band etc. but here's a warning, saxaphones are VERY heavy. I have an alto and I have difficulties with the pressure round my neck from the sling, it makes me blackout!
*orchestral playing, depends. do you want to play the harmonies, (woodwind and top strings) the fiddly bits,(woodwind especially flutes, and top strings) the big noisy cords (lower stings, any big instruments, lower woodwind like bassons, brass like trumbones and horns) or the tune? (pretty much resticted by the style of music the orchestra plays but violins, clarinets and some other woodwind, it does vary a lot and depens also on the make up of the orchestra.) some instruments hardly ever get the tune, double base, basson, base clarinet etc.
*playing at schoolgives you street cred but is heavy and expensive. drums make your parents hate you. clarinet is probably best cos it's easy to transfer to sax later but be careful of your teeth, you dont want to give your orthadontist anymore excuses. violin is nasty sounding and only really worth the effort if you intend to make music your carreer because it takes so long to get anywhere and violin music is so hard. guitar is v good to take up but will put certain types of group/orchestra off limits. piano is good but a bummer if you want to play in a big group. cello is lovely but big and heavy. recorder is a great way to dive in, learn the music and not waste much money if you dont like it. it also has nearly the same fingering as nearly all the wind and reed instruments so it's a good place to start to get a grounding before you ave to worry about the technical things. it can also sound absolutely wonderful if you get really good.

-How we can learn to read music-
*well, i learnt before i could read words so i really cant remember.

-How we can keep the cost down-
take up something cheap to start with, see if you like it. some shops do rent to buy which maybe good if you are not sure. some schools lend pupils poor quality instruments but these are good enught to start on and will last a few years.

The best places to find second-hand instruments and what we should look for when buy instruments second-hand
second hand is good for many things but unless you have lot of experience then you must go to a dealer nt buy somthing out a paper. there are a lot of things that can go wrong with an instrumetns, mechanically they can be very complicated so you really need to know what to looks for. the best shops to go for are the ones down side streets. try for a woodwind shop for wood wind and a strings shop for....... pianos not. avoid the big dealers who supply everything plus the kitchen sink. some are good but in general they bmo up the cost but cant give you much help or attention. a good shop will let you try a selection out there and then and are quite happy to let you p**s about for a bit as long as you dont waste tehir time and ar a bit serious about the whole thing. you will probably also find that there is a resident 'expert' who is happy to play each instrument for you so you can hear what it sounds like when its played properly. you can normally trade in your old instruments to these shops as well and they also normally do repairs to when you drop the thing or bash your little brother with it.


Lessons or finding a teacher
school funded lessons seem to be a thing of the past and to be honest they are normally not that good anyway. one on one is the best. added together with playing inas many groups as possible and try to practice most days. this is especially important if you have to build up callouses or are playing a reed instrument and need to strengthen the muscles in your mouth. the answer i found is to hire a university student, they do not have the teaching certificate, they are normally trying to get them, so they dont charge as much but they still know what they are talking about. they will last you up to about grade 8 standard after which you need to ind someone REALLY good. normally your teachers teacher is a good bet, but they will be expensive. when starting try to have lessons no less often than once a fortnight.


-Keeping the noise the down or finding somewhere to practise-

dont practive early in the morning or after about nine at night, earlier if there are young children next door. try to shut the windows if you can othersie the nieghbors will keep asking you how its goin and asking why you never play any tunes they know. very upsetting. violins and trumpets etc have mutes but they are not to keep the noise down during practcie so dont use them for that purpose.
just try to be considerate, if someones watching TV don't practice in the same room. dont play the same thing over and over for an hour. it wont help you learn and wont make you popular.



unexpected side benefits,

wind instruments help control asthma and other breathing difficulties due to the disciplin involved. very important to practice standing up though. despite orchestra playng being seated do stand up whenever you can, it's much better for your playing and posture and lungs and etc......

playing the flute got me through the most exruciating braces on my teeth, the pain from practicing distrated me from the other pain and meant i dodn;t go competely mad.


and if you think I'm going to spell check anyof that lot then you are madder than I am

FABT