I’ve been playing the guitar on and off for 30 years, but never managed to progress to the next level. I play the same old tunes over and over until i loose interest, and put it away for a while.
I’ve been playing the whistle for about four years now, and i have a toot on it nearly every day. In the past four years, i think I’ve learned quite a lot, and been pleased with my progress. Tunes that i thought near impossible to learn two years ago, are easy now.
My problem is that i can see myself doing the same with the whistle as what i did with the guitar.I get to a certain level of skill, and it just stops there.
Has anyone else felt the same as me? How do you keep yourself dedicated to learn more? Any tips?
One problem for me is that i play entirely on my own as there are no musicians i know of in my area that plays irish folk
Lessons, workshops, even if one must travel to them.
Nobody teaches Irish flute in St. Louis (except one lady who
does O’Carolyn and won’t take more students anyway).
I sometimes drive 8 hours one way to get a lesson.
If you wish to progress then it’s helpful to make up one’s mind
to do what’s necessary.
There are also, on YOUTUBE, whistle lessons by Michael Eskin
and Father Dunn that can be helpful. But personally
I find that isn’t going to be enough.
I would have to say that going to some sessions would help you break out of your rut. That being said, I did a quick search and did not see any in Norway but there are some in Sweden. Not sure if you would want to travel or not but that might be your best bet.
I’ve used both of these sites, and have learned a great deal from them, thank you Micheal and Ryan.
Maybe i’ve learned all i can from these sites and really need live help. I would love to have the opportunity to play and learn from others, but it’s hard to find here in Norway
The best thing any musician can do is play with other people. That trumps lessons, learning websites, instructional book/cd sets,… all of it.
There may be no ITM sessions in your area, but there surely are musicians with whom you could play. Unless ITM is crucial to your happiness, I’d suggest you branch out and see what folks in your area like to play. You might be happily surprised.
Good answer!! I can remember playing guitar years ago with a really good guitarist, he really brought the best out of me and actually made me play better. He certainly inspired me to learn more.
Yes, definitely. I think the plateau phenomenon is very common, even for experienced players. You get to a certain level - maybe approaching it asymptotically - then stay there for what seems like a long time before a sudden leap moves you up again. The important thing is to stay with it and maintain your level, keep practicing, learning new tunes, etc. You don’t want your plateau to become a downward hill, and lose what you’ve already reached. The next level comes only if you are prepared for it when it happens.
As to what triggers the leap … It can be different things for different people at different times. For me, often it’s hearing a new player, either live or recorded. Or really focusing on a familiar player. I start to explore the details of their personal technique, and suddenly the light goes on and I’m aware of an entire area of technical challenge to work on, which may translate broadly into improvement across the board.
I also recommend branching out into other types of music. If you only want to play ITM, that’s fine, do what you want to do. Other than an occasionaly Danny Boy, I don’t think I’ve ever played ITM on my whistles or flute. I just happen to like the sound of pennywhistles and I have a Hall Crystal Flute. I used to have a homemade PVC flute but I gave that away but I found someone with a drill press so I plan on making some more. I play in the folk group in my church and with friends for fun. Whistles and flutes don’t always work and I play other instruments too. Other musicians playing other music might like to hear what a whistle will do to their music.
You might need whistles in a few keys to play with other people.
I think the plateau phenomenon is very common, even for experienced players. You get to a certain level - maybe approaching it asymptotically - then stay there for what seems like a long time before a sudden leap moves you up again. The important thing is to stay with it and maintain your level, keep practicing, learning new tunes, etc. You don’t want your plateau to become a downward hill, and lose what you’ve already reached. The next level comes only if you are prepared for it when it happens.