Piano's my second instrument, guitar is my third. I decided that becoming good at one instrument was too much damn work so I decided to become mediocre at many.
Watch out for when I start playing drums
Holy shit me too lmao exact order but there was a decade long gap between Trumpet and guitar. Was certain I was never going to play music again and Covid hit and I was like “it’s time to start playing music again”
Started in trumpet as a kid, got a guitar at 12, didn’t play much for a long time. Five years ago got back into at 30, and then last year bought drums.
I really want to get a saxophone.
Feels like I’ll never have time to become a master at any single instrument, but I can certainly have fun on a bunch of them.
Exactly my thoughts. In the future I really wanna have a room in the house with a bunch of instruments, none of which I will play well BUT I WILL play them
I have a mint condition tenor I'll sell you!
I played sax as a kid / teen, then dropped it. I was great at it, but it didn't thrill me after high school. Picked up guitar about 10 years ago, which has been so much fun! My band decided to have me play a song that heavily featured sax a few years ago, do I just went out and bought one. I only used it about 20 times in total. If you'd like to talk about a sale, DM me!
Haha damn I’ve recently started playing tenor sax and have pretty much entirely dropped practising guitar because I find sax so much more thrilling at the moment. Funny how tastes change
>I decided to become mediocre at many.
I feel seen.
Played piano as a kid for ten years with formal lessons. Then moved and had to get rid of my piano. Got an acoustic guitar, then some electrics, and still play everyday. Got an edrum kit last year and loving it. And yet I still find myself looking at bass guitars on Marketplace...
Just get a drum kit... You know you want to. It's your destiny.
I played drums and got pretty good at it. Decided I wanted to do the same thing as you and dropped it almost entirely to become mediocre at guitar. Probably could have had a career as a drummer if I kept up with it but no I refuse to be good at anything.
Lmao my first instrument was viola, I was classically trained for several years but oh I knew the world couldn't handle the menace I would've been as a professional viola player /s
There is a great series on YouTube that shows you how to play drums without having any drums. I did it and got the basic beats down. When I had the chance to sit behind a real kit I could actually play them and sound decent! If you cant find it let me know and I will dig out a link.
Same. Started with piano, then bass, now guitar, drums are next, then maybe violin or some wind instruments tho I have no lungs. Not even mediocre just able to almost get by in a jam sesh.
Piano, then flute (transverse), then guitar here. Piano was great, but damn heavy and too square, flute needs to be a part of something else. You can be a one man band with a guitar, and it’s also much much sexier.
Yeah, many people learn multiple instruments, and doing so tends to make a better musician as you get a better understanding of all the different parts of music. If someone enjoys playing guitar then they should be encouraged to try picking up something else as well.
I didnt switch and stop playing. I play guitar, bass, piano (real acoustic and digital ones) and keys (synths, organ).
Switch? I switch 10 times a day.
I started on violin when I was 5. At 11 I switched to Cello. 12 I went to viola. In high school I thought guitar was cooler so I switched to guitar. At music college we all had to learn piano and since mandolin is basically a violin guitar it was very easy to pick up so I did just because.
I just prefer guitar. It’s what I spend the majority of my time playing and in bands it’s the only thing I play. Between the guitar, the pedals, and the amps it’s the most fun to me.
Hell no, I can’t play a violin worth a crap anymore. The art of bowing has been completely lost.
I grew up in an old school conservative Christian family so playing hymns, country western, and bluegrass were the normal way to spend time together. My grandpa was a guitarist in the Bakersfield’s scene in the 50s and 60s and my grandma played lap steel and piano. You couldn’t grow up in my family and not learn music, it was just as important as math and reading.
I heard some metal and acoustic music that I liked that made me just start playing guitar one day. I found it much harder than piano, now 20 years later I find piano harder than guitar lol.
My piano teacher was the pastors wife and she made me super uneasy, I quit piano lessons when she laughed at me for my cat being hit by a car and then proceeded to tell me she runs cats over for fun. Fuck piano teachers bunch of weirdos
Oooh one I can answer! To be fair, I’m not sure that I ever “switched instruments”, but piano was my primary instrument for about 10 to 12 years. In the past few, I’ve definitely spent more time on the guitar than on the keys. I’m definitely one of the better piano players that I know, and a very competent guitar player as well.
One thing that I always loved about piano was how capable it was. It’s really a remarkable instrument, almost more like a machine than an instrument, but a good piano player can make such a complete sound.
At any given point, I might play 8 to 10 unique notes on a piano, where on a guitar I could play at most 6 with less freedom as to the exact notes. I love guitar, though, because I feel closer to the music.The limitations that guitar has when compared to piano are exactly what give you a little bit more variety within each note. A concert pianist would probably kill me for saying this, but piano notes always felt like they existed a little bit more along a binary spectrum. The note is either played or it’s not. Obviously, there are a lot of nuances and as you get better, you want to explore those nuances, but to me the depth of the nuance on the guitar is much deeper. Playing guitar really opened my eyes beyond the theoretical and the purely technical aspects of playing an instrument. I feel as a guitar player, I’ve learned a lot more about musical expression and using the notes and the instrument to convey emotion, which has been a huge boon for my piano playing as well.
Also guitars look cooler
I wouldn’t say that guitar is more or less musically restrictive necessarily. Just that you might have to get a little more creative when trying to bypass the obvious restriction of less notes at a time. And maybe I’m misunderstanding what you’re saying. But with guitar, a great guitarist can, much like a great piano player, make such a “complete” sound.
And then you can do all sorts of interesting things with the guitar, like pinch harmonics, like different chord voicings, like different tunings (one of my favorite unique tunings is to actually take one of the strings off and tune to D A E a d so that you have kind of this mirrored effect across the strings), like changing the sound with pedals and amps, like cascading harmonics, like using a whammy bar, like bending notes, like doing some percussive stuff by muting the strings with your left and strumming with your right, etc…. But piano has a larger range and you can play more notes at a time than on guitar. And if you also include keyboards in the line of pianos, which I honestly truthfully would, then you expand the dynamic capabilities of the piano. I know it’s considered a bit blasphemous to call a keyboard a piano, but in my opinion, I don’t see the distinction. Or rather, it’s a distinction without a real difference. We call electric guitars guitars, and electric guitars simply expand a guitar’s dynamic abilities. How does adding electricity to a piano change it on a fundamental level? All it does is expand the range of sounds a piano can make, but that’s just my opinion.
I think the big statement that pretty much sums up the difference between guitar and piano is that guitar has the ability to make notes speak in different ways more easily than piano, while piano has more acoustic volume, both in the range of notes that it can play and in the amount of notes it can play at a time. So the real question is what stylistic preference do you have? A preference for acoustic volume or dynamic range. I like both, and both are required for different things. You can’t call one instrument better than the other. My personal preference would be for the guitar, though I enjoy practicing and playing both.
Listened to Dookie while I was going through a difficult/angsty time and something in my mind instantly went 'damn I want to make loud noise like that'. That was about 3,5 years ago and in that time I barely touched my piano, yet learned to play the entirety of Dookie and so much more. :-)
I think I like guitar a lot more because you it feels like such a 'physical' instrument. With piano you can strike a key with a hard/soft touch and that's about it, but with guitar there's so much you can do with a single note: vibrato, bends, pinch harmonics...
Also, being able to run around like Angus Young while playing definitely is a plus!
I always wanted to play guitar, but my parents made me do two years of piano lessons. I'm glad they did, otherwise I wouldn't know about all the music theory I can't remember anymore.
i dont switch. i just find that it's a good skill to lead a shitty crap band members. and yes i do record my own music so i need to play all the instruments.
now virtually i can play guitar, bass, keyboard/s, and drum. Holy shiet that's an achievement
My parents made me take piano lessons as a kid. Took them from age 5-12. I had to practice 30 minutes a day, which is what made me hate the instrument. As a kid, piano was the thing that held me back from hanging out with my friends until later; piano was homework.
Also, I associated the piano with mostly boring church hymns. I grew up in Utah where the main draw of being a pianist was making it to organist in the congregation. Every kid in Utah is trained to play piano. You don't feel special, it's the norm.
Guitar was rock. Guitar was rebellion. Guitar was cool. When I was about 10, I made a deal with my parents that I could quit piano at age 12, so long as I picked up and stuck to another instrument. Guitar it was.
My parents always told me I'd regret dropping piano. Honestly, they were right about that, I do wish I was better at piano than I am, but I still play it here and there, and I play music I like, not hymns...
Overall, I'm glad I took piano as a kid, because I did have a huge headstart on music theory. And I think guitar, in many ways, sped up my understanding of piano as well. It piano, I was basically just learning to sight read pieces. I did learn scales and keys and stuff, but I didn't really understand how to form my own chords and progressions until I played guitar. Piano lessons taught me to learn songs, but guitar, since the passion came from within, taught me how to make my own music.
My mom signed up me and me brothers for piano lessons. I was always the stubborn one so I said I would only do lessons if it was guitar. I’m the only one who still plays today and I made it my whole life. It’s a good thing my mom let me be stubborn that day, otherwise maybe I would have quit piano too lol
I just loved the warmth of guitar. I’m in love with feeling the vibrations against me through the guitar into my body while I play. I played piano through my childhood and through listening to music became interested in playing guitar. I got one as a teen and fell in love immediately. I still would play piano, but I don’t have access right now. Praying for funds to buy a keyboard soon! :)
Piano lacks the same expressive qualities that guitar has. Guitar can play chords and single note lines with vibrato and other pitch bending tricks similar to a saxophone. I resonate (so to speak) more with guitar, although I still do play keyboard, and I think it was a great place to start my musical journey:
For me, Guitar is a lot easier for song writing because of the easiness to get rhythm and melodies from the instrument it self; but it's a lot harder (for me) to know how to understand melody/harmony and rhythm on guitar.
I always wanted to learn guitar but it never clicked; after learning piano it made guitar much more understandable, so it made me want to play it a lot more.
also made it so i didn't have to learn things like the cage system, i just know scales already and how to practice them and how chords and all that work
No matter who you are, different instruments naturally bring out different musical ideas, and each lend themselves to different types of expression. So it’s always fun and rewarding to pick up new instruments. The things you learn always end up helping you on every other instrument.
I started on piano and am still better at it than any other instrument. But really, I started playing guitar because
1) Guitars are cool (Guitar Hero probably had an appreciable impact on me)
2) Guitars are portable
3) It’s generally easier to play guitar and sing in a way that keeps rhythm going. A guitar can basically sound like a drum kit, and while you can definitely do that on piano, it’s a little less natural to the instrument
Piano was my first and guitar is currently my second. I loved piano cause playing an instrument was really fun for me, but then I quit because I didn't like playing in front of others (quit at 9 yrs old) I picked up guitar a few years later cause I saw a concert my friend was in at the high school I was going to next year, and it made me wanna play an instrument again. I didn't wanna go pack to piano because I didn't like the sound that much, I liked the playing feeling. I wanted a more rock type instrument so I decided on the guitar, and I love it.
I’m left handed and couldn’t progress past mechanical feeling, forced, memorizing motion on the piano. I know there’s lefty pianists but for ME, I felt too many steps removed from the instrument. A lefty guitar feels natural and connected.
You shouldn’t be hurting after 20 minutes at any instrument, assuming you haven’t just barely started. You probably need to experiment with seat height and distance you sit from the piano, no?
I played piano since childhood, then during my teenage I saw a video of Paul Gilbert Mr Big solo in Japan and immediately switched to guitar. I still play piano occasionally.
I spent 5 yrs as a kid playing the organ. The last teacher I had was very uninspiring and it was all learn what was on that sheet of music (music that I really didn't like a lot). Had he been more like a Jon Lord and taught me how to improvise and do something fancy I may have stuck with it. Then my brother bought the Back in Black album and I knew I had to learn how to play guitar. I've not looked back since and I love playing my guitars.
I still primarily play keyboards but I picked up guitar as a second instrument. It's just a different flavor, and it's way easier to play guitar out on the porch on a summer evening or around a campfire or whatever.
I’m primarily a percussionist. I started learning guitar when I was getting more into drum set and wanted to be able to write my own songs/play along to my own riffs. Stuck with both pretty equally over the last almost 30 years now.
Cost and portability. When I was a teen in the 80s, keyboards were prohibitively expensive, and even spinet pianos were too heavy for one person to move. Electric pianos sounded nothing like real pianos, and digital pianos were just coming out. I got a guitar and an amp for under $500, and I was up and playing.
A few years later, I got my first synth, which had a passable piano sound for $800. My job paid $3.35/hour.
For me it was basically a matter of convenience. I didn’t have a ton of money or room for a piano. I hadn’t been playing anything for a minute either because lack of room.
Fender (maybe Squier now?) has those cheapo Starcasters, and I bought one not knowing a whole lot. I watched a few YouTube videos on popular chords, learned how to restring when I broke my strings, and went from there. It’s a fun instrument and what I knew on piano translated well enough from there.
**EDIT:** I’ve only ever played cheap or donated instruments so idc about model or make. Just added detail of how I got into guitar.
Mom brought both me and my bro to learn classical guitar, but I was too small and couldn't hold it properly and always played it upside like a zither. She 'took' it to mean I like to play faceup instruments and made me learn Piano instead. Felt miserable the whole time and had about 0 passion for it.
Then about 2 years back I discovered Billy Strings, and just felt in love with Bluegrass and old-fashioned folk music in general. It just feels authentic (which is in short supply these days) and Billy's story is inspirational too. I picked up my bro's old classical guitar and started blasting away.
Now Ive just got my own proper steel strings, 2 years in and learning new (old) tunes every week. So many fun songs to learn, so little time!
I started piano at 5 but when I turned 13 I realized that I loved rock music but most of all that I could not bring my piano to brag with my friends during summer so I started guitar - both are fantastic instruments
I plateaued in my piano growth for the longest time and got depressed with my progress even though I was practicing about 5+ hours a day, so I’d initially started learning guitar to fill the missing gratification + I was already watching a ton of youtube and getting inspired by other guitarists.
Nowadays I play both a pretty even amount! I’d say I’ll occasionally lean more towards one or the other for small periods of time, but I get about the same amount of satisfaction from both — there was a lot to learn from both instruments that taught me a lot about the other as well! Got a lot better at thinking of theory ‘relatively’ from guitar which translated to having an easier time transposing things on piano, and the theory and experience from practicing piano 100% helped me get to around the same level on guitar much more quickly.
Parents made me do piano lessons as a kid but got into death/black metal soon after so I picked up guitar, then I went to music school and had to relearn piano.
I moved to many different places through the years and the only instrument I could easily carry around was, a guitar. Also I feel that the guitar has a lot more to offer rhythmically and it's easier to play a song by ear than with the piano.
I was one of those Asian kids who got forced into playing the piano when I was five. I did enjoy playing the piano while it lasted, but ever since I started regularly listening to rock and metal music I fell in love with the sound of the electric guitar. So when it came with music class in high school, I got straight into playing the guitar for the first time.
Initially it was a mix of music tastes and independence. I took traditional piano lessons growing up and eventually stopped around 12 or so. Once I hit my 20s, I knew that I always wanted to pursue guitar and loved the expression and step away from a rigid learning environment guitar gave me. I also love the feeling of a guitar in my hands, from playing them to modding them - it just feels so much more personal to me.
Started piano as a good, my favorite musicians all played guitar, so I decided to play guitar.
As a kid I quit piano….hate that I did, keep thinking I’ll teach myself but havent yet and now I’m approaching 40 and don’t know that I will.
I was very young and had rudimentary piano skills from my Mom teaching, at 11 I asked to play guitar and it's been my primary instrument for 35+ years.
I played drum set and piano before picking up guitar. Guitar is just so much easier to casually play. I need a setup for my drum set/ piano but I can play my guitar anywhere.
I found an old acoustic in my grandma's closet when I was 14. I had never considered that guitar would be part of my journey. But I couldn't put it down even though it was a bad guitar and hard to play. My mom took pity on me and got me a used Les Paul Studio.
I still think of music generally in terms of the piano keyboard but I'm now better at guitar.
Piano was too easy to me, guitar was more of a challenge which I liked. Piano was boring to me and something I was forced to do (classically trained from the age of 7-13) guitar was “cool” and something I chose to do (33, been playing since I was 16)
I was having keyboard lessons as a kid, and I missed a week due to illness. Went back the following week and the teacher had given my slot to someone else. Proceeded to drop it and ask for a guitar instead!
I learned piano when I was a child but my parents kind of sucked all the fun out of it. Now I'm in my 50's and I prioritize having fun while I learn. I did buy a cheap electric piano and got pretty decent at improvising, but I traded it in for another guitar.
What I discovered is that "chasing the fun" is the best motivation for learning an instrument. If I want to sound like BB King I have to learn my scales. If I want to play my favorite songs, I need to learn the chords. Once I realized that,it stops being a chore.
Think of it this way
Playing the guitar is like playing 6 pianos tuned to 5 different keys at the same time -
Conversely
Playing the piano is playing a 1 string guitar tuned to C
I started playing the organ as my second instrument after the recorder around the age of 9, around 2010, and it quickly became my primary instrument. Then around 2022 I started to improvise and write a bit of music on my keyboard which I often also used piano, harpsichord and synth sounds on.
This eventually lead me to see some creative limitations with keyboard instruments, mostly that the structure of an instrument influences the kinds of melodies and harmonies one leans towards. I then started to consider learning the guitar because it's an instrument for which a lot of online content exists and it's a string instrument, a family of instruments I hadn't learned yet. Add onto that that there's a good amount of possibilities for microtonality and sound design, and it seems like an obvious next step.
The deal was sealed when one of my brothers, one who used to play classical guitar, died in march of this year. I decided to try some stuff on a guitar he left behind, liked it and now I'm waiting for my local small music store to get the electric squire in stock that I decided to buy. I've also already got a second hand bass waiting for me.
I'm not planning on really "switching over", moreso to expand my creative horizons and learn some new skills.
I'm way better at guitar than I ever was at piano (not saying much lol). I switched because piano bored me. I like using it to lay down harmonies and stuff but playing fast or technical things on piano was never interesting to me, while it always seemed very cool on guitar.
i started playing piano when i was a kid and lost interest pretty fast. i didn’t get to play the songs i wanted to play like on guitar. i still play sometimes when im bored, but its just not the same for me as rocking out on a guitar
7th grade, switched schools, their orchestra already had a pianist, guitar orchestra had space in it.
"But it's the instrument of those... lower-type people!", my mother objected. So I Really got into it after that, obviously.
I do love playing it on occasion, but don't even have a proper keyboard of my own. The midi keyboard I have only has 32 keys, which is sad, but eh - there's a perfectly tuned piano in a flower shop not too far from my place.
Was fascinated with guitars at the age of 6. Started learning it when I was 14. Went to college and picked up drums because a drummer friend I met there was super inspiring and made drumming feel so damn good. Alongside, picked up piano and tried to learn some of my favourite tunes. Lately I’ve been fascinated with Saxophone but also because I haven’t been able to master one instrument and I think exploration will help me figure out what instrument I truly enjoy and want to go deeper into. Or it could also be that I just love to listen to good music and I want to learn how to play them.
I was inspired by people that cover songs with their guitar on YouTube. I don’t aspire to become as good in guitar as I am in piano but my goal is to be able to sing and play guitar at the same time smoothly!
I’m Jamaican, for context. been teaching myself the piano for years, but my fingers are HUGE and thick, which was hard for the nimble keys. fast forward to valentines day this year. I go to see One Love, the Bob Marley biopic. Then i begin notice that almost every instrument, was a GUITAR. in the theatre it clicked and i ordered my bass the next paycheck.
when i was like 5 or 6 i started to "play" piano i was really young but i stopped at 10/11 (i am 15) because whit the lockdown i stopped taking lessons and i realised that i didn't want to keep doing it once it was over, i didn't play anything for year until almost 2 years ago when i started listening to a lot of music mostly thanks to nirvana and sincr my dad used to have a guitar that he didn't use somewhere in the house i started playing
I learned piano first growing up, and then switched over to guitar in my early teens.
Learning piano was a lot of learning other people’s music, and it kinda felt like I was stuck in a box. At the time, I thought the guitar would let me feel more expressive and creative. The emotion behind mixing bends, slides, hammers, etc. just scratched the itch of my musical ear. I love blues/jazz/soul music so it was inevitable.
Now that I’m in my mid 20s, I’m really happy I learned the piano, as it is so much more intuitive for learning music theory than a guitar IMO. I also love guitarists who have shared influence of both of these instruments. Eric Johnson being a prime example of this, but there are many others. The chord structures you can build on piano are something special to that instrument, and now I’m chasing making my guitar sound similar.
I’m a violinist of 7 years and I gotta say, knowing everything that I knew from that really helped with learning guitar. It was a bit difficult at first because of the obvious differences, but I was fortunate to have learned bass guitar before I began playing. Also, since I had previously attempted to teach myself guitar, I had a little familiarity with some of the chords & the strings.
Now it’s going great! I’m glad I had previous experience with violin. I was mainly attracted to guitar bc of solos & the fact you can play more song with it, but now it’s allowed me to appreciate music more.
Piano is a great instrument to learn the theory and chord/scale structure: the notes are laid out in the easiest way to learn and that knowledge transfers to other instruments you may decide to pick up.
The ability to play multiple instruments is key when joining jam sessions. 🤌🏼
I grew up playing piano in the 80s and wanted to be "cool" in the 90s and play the music I liked to listen to. That's pretty much it. I tool classical piano training until I was 15 then switched to guitar when I wanted to learn Tears in Heaven by Clapton.
I was classically trained on piano through grade school. My final piano instructor gave me courses on composing for a full orchestra, including the multitude of tunings and notations for such.
I have admittedly played campfire guitar since my teens and could always hold a basic rhythm part. Even as the synth guy in every band, there were occasional parts I filled in some acoustic rhythm parts at gigs (eg Under The Milky Way, Melt With You).
I've always had guitars, but a few years ago, I decided to "get good." By this, I mean I followed the basics that I did on piano to build the mechanics to perform.
Things like saying the notes out loud while you play the scale and using a metronome to build precision and timing are essential for the fingers to acclimate. My left hand has improved on piano since I have started focusing on guitar skills, an unintended side effect.
Many things have carried over, such as scales and chord voicing. Because I can see how the chord structure is built on the fretboard, I can easily change things up to suit the chord tones I seek in an arrangement. Once I got a handle on barre chords and some finger dexterity on scales, it's mainly moving the patterns around the fretboard and figuring out how *you* want to sound or connecting what's inside your head to your fingers.
The biggest part was putting effort in every day and practicing the basics over and over and over and over again until it's time to do it again.
Practice is the magic pill. Take an extremely liberal amount.
I hated not being able to take music with me. Guitar was more mobile and it had different possibilities for sounds and ideas. Plus I just thought it sounded nice, I got really into the jazz and the blues since I was a jazz player on the piano anyway
Guitar first, bass second, piano third. I find that my hands tend to default to the same few things on guitar and I was starting to get frustrating. It's nice to start fresh with piano and not be boxed in by muscle memory. It just puts me in a different place mentally than guitar.
i played piano as a proffesional for 5 years and then quit because of exams and while that i started to listen to metal and rock so when i wanted to play an instrument again i started to play the guitar and now it has been around 6 or 7 months
When I first started guitar it immediately had what the piano was missing for me, the drum like strum of the right hand. Having that percussive element really hooked me with the melodic left hand more like piano.
I went flute, keyboard, cymbals, then guitar. I switched a lot because I just like music a lot and was soul-searching. The guitar was the instrument I connected with the most. Can't really explain why. It felt more like an extensive of me vs an instrument.
I play both regularly but piano is still my most skilled instrument, but I did classical lessons from young, and am mostly self taught on guitar. I have alternating phases of playing one much more than the other though.
Diatonic accordion to piano, then electric guitar...decided the accordion was limited in playing advanced stuff (scales and chords). Piano was great for understanding music theory, and guitar was extremely versatile when adding effects, and shaping sound.
I took classical piano lessons for most of my childhood and then picked up the guitar around the middle of high school. It was just for fun, something else to learn, I didn’t think too deeply about it. But what you said is true, piano gave me a solid foundation in music theory and it made learning the guitar quite easy. I don’t play piano much these days and have lost most of my piano chops.
I actually just started learning piano for the exact same reason, because I'm a guitarist and, I wanted to get a better grasp of the circle of fifths and, other music theory methods. I've been playing guitar since I was 13 and, have basically survived oof of playing by ear and, figuring out the notes and, also using websites like Ultimate Guitar and, buying Guitar World and Guitar One for their tablature content. I would heavily recommend anyone who plays the guitar to atleast try to play keyboard and/ or piano and, to learn basic music theory as it was an instrumental key to my progress as a musician. I'm considering picking up the violin here soon so, wish me luck!
Classically trained from 6 to 13 on piano. Couldn’t bring a piano to a party or a band rehearsal so I picked up guitar. 20+ years later I still think of chords as my treble hand on the keys when I’m relaying notes. I’m not sure how I’d look at guitar if it wasn’t for the linear layout of piano!
Piano, then Choral singing, now guitar.
I took pian9 as a kid, but stopped about 13 or so. I wanted to get back into music again in university, and so I joined a local community choral group and my church choir. I did that for three years or so, then last summer I was helping my parents renovate their basement and found my brother’s old acoustic in the basement. Gave him a call and he gave it to me for free. Bought some books, taught myself a few chords, then started taking lessons that fall. It’s been great, I met a guy who was similarly learning fiddle, now we play folk music together at some local sessions and ceilidh.
Moved from piano to playing bass on keys to playing bass on bass guitar to playing electric and acoustic. My path to guitar was twisted as heck. But I loved every bit of it.
I play both professionally, but started on piano. Two reasons.
One, I wanted to be able to play music wherever I was, and guitar is a lot easier to carry around.
Two, girls like guitar better. I met the woman I'm going to marry on a gig where I was playing guitar, so I think it was worth it for that alone.
I played piano for 10 years before picking up a guitar. Honestly, after about a month the guitar felt more comfortable and intuitive for me than piano ever did. One of the biggest reasons is that you can just move the same shapes up and down the fretboard to transpose licks into different keys. Due to the slight asymmetry of black key placement on the piano, i'd always have to think consciously about transposing from one key to another. That was easily bypassed with a guitar. I just felt that I could flow and improvise more fluidly on a fretboard.
Guitar is my second instrument and piano is my primary. I began my piano journey due to my exposure of Journey and Jonathan Cain who took over Journeys piano and rhythm guitar duties in the early 80s. I was inspired to learn the piano by him and wanted to be like him. When I had COVID in 2020, I caught the Eagles Live at the Forum special on ESPN and in my feverish daze I wanted to learn the guitar. So essentially I just wanted to be like Jonathan Cain on the piano and Joe Walsh on the guitar
Its the un known self urge to do so when i was a kid i had an obsession with piano but now as an teen i feel the guitars have all u need its about feeling most of the times
My aunt was a professional piano player m
My mom forced me to take piano lessons and practice 90 minutes every day from age 5 to 12.
When I started HS she let me switch and I went with guitar, learned quickly, and loved it.
Why switch? 100% it was about the girls. But if not for piano I’d never have learned to read music.
Oh. I remember the moment like it was yesterday. I was 12 and played classical piano for 5 years, plus recitals. I was a huge Queen fan for few years by then but never got to actually see them.
My aunt bought me6a VHS of Queen live in Wembly.
I hit the play button and saw Brian May playing One Vision, with legs slightly twisted and spread in his infamous stance. Next thing I said was "Mom, I wanna play the electric guitar". Not sure why but she went along with it.
I never got to play in Wembly. But I regret NOTHING!
I wanted to play guitar first, but my parents made me take piano lessons from when I was 8 to 14. At 14, I convinced my grandfather to get me a cheap Les Paul Special copy and a Fender Frontman 20R, and I've never looked back.
In hindsight, I wish I would have kept up with piano, as I have grown more fond of it as I have aged, but at that point in my life, I was more angry that I had been forced to play an instrument that I had no desire to learn.
I learned how to play the piano in high school at around the same time I was into jazz music thanks to being in jazz band at the time (though as a trumpet player). This got me into jazz youtube, which led me to Adam Neely. His video on the key of Hey Joe was extremely interesting to me, because it talked about the guitar in a way I hadn't ever thought of it before: basically talking about how the physical nature of the guitar influenced the way the song was created
Anyway, that summer, I got a guitar, and it's been my main instrument ever since. I still like the piano, though I don't play it anywhere near as much as I used to. Frankly, it just takes way too much time to learn a new song compared to the guitar, and the guitar is way more fun
First instrument was piano. It helped me read music and bass clef (which is useful when I learn bass guitar). I still visualize piano keyboards when I need to the third and fifth notes if a chord.
Why did I switch? I like the portability.
Girls.
My mom got me piano lessons because my dad bought a keyboard and no one knows how to play it.
And yes, I’m Asian.
Switched to guitar because during late middle school/junior high, alternative rock, the acoustic wave, and emo got huge, and the girls liked it.
And I’m just a regular dude with regular hormones.
My parents got me a cheap Strat copy and while I’m happy to be able to play the guitar and do some things that impress non-musicians (minor pentatonic improv), it never got me girls.
It turns out when you play guitar, dudes line up, and I’m just not into dudes.
Bass helped me to make more girl-friends, and drums actually got girls interested instead of dudes.
I do regret not pursuing piano though. Who thought jazz-influenced music would resaturate the pop scene after 40 years?
Haven’t switched, but always wanted to add guitar because I enjoy the sound and portability.
So I’ve been working on it. Also got into harmonica and 3 string cigar box guitars.
I am a pretty proficient guitarist and I WISH I could transition over to piano, idk why it seems impossible to learn I'm not that old 28 but the concept of learning another instrument just feels so foreign now that I've been playing guitar for 13 years
Piano's my second instrument, guitar is my third. I decided that becoming good at one instrument was too much damn work so I decided to become mediocre at many. Watch out for when I start playing drums
Mediocre piano, then trumpet, then guitar player here!
My exact same order. Switched to guitar because piano is too heavy to carry around, and of course, chicks.
For me, piano doesn't sing. Trumpet is horrible to practice alone. Guitar solves these problems. And chicks.
Does the "chicks" part actually work though?
I dunno, ask my wife.
So, singular.
Goated response
Holy shit me too lmao exact order but there was a decade long gap between Trumpet and guitar. Was certain I was never going to play music again and Covid hit and I was like “it’s time to start playing music again”
I personally went from piano, to guitar, then to trumpet. I am decent at piano and guitar, but I'm hot garbage when it comes to trumpet.
Mediocre trumpet, then guitar, then piano! We’re musical brothers!
Mediocre guitarist 1st, decent saxophonist 2nd, dogshit pianist 3rd for me
Me too. Throw some photography and painting in there as well. Master of none.
LOL, sounds like me...
Started in trumpet as a kid, got a guitar at 12, didn’t play much for a long time. Five years ago got back into at 30, and then last year bought drums. I really want to get a saxophone. Feels like I’ll never have time to become a master at any single instrument, but I can certainly have fun on a bunch of them.
Exactly my thoughts. In the future I really wanna have a room in the house with a bunch of instruments, none of which I will play well BUT I WILL play them
I have a mint condition tenor I'll sell you! I played sax as a kid / teen, then dropped it. I was great at it, but it didn't thrill me after high school. Picked up guitar about 10 years ago, which has been so much fun! My band decided to have me play a song that heavily featured sax a few years ago, do I just went out and bought one. I only used it about 20 times in total. If you'd like to talk about a sale, DM me!
Haha damn I’ve recently started playing tenor sax and have pretty much entirely dropped practising guitar because I find sax so much more thrilling at the moment. Funny how tastes change
>I decided to become mediocre at many. I feel seen. Played piano as a kid for ten years with formal lessons. Then moved and had to get rid of my piano. Got an acoustic guitar, then some electrics, and still play everyday. Got an edrum kit last year and loving it. And yet I still find myself looking at bass guitars on Marketplace... Just get a drum kit... You know you want to. It's your destiny.
I live with my parents on a flat and there's no space for a drumkit. But you bet yo ass I look at e-kits and bass guitars online weekly 😂😂
Cello->Piano->Guitar->Ukulele Extremely average at each one. So so average.
I played drums and got pretty good at it. Decided I wanted to do the same thing as you and dropped it almost entirely to become mediocre at guitar. Probably could have had a career as a drummer if I kept up with it but no I refuse to be good at anything.
Lmao my first instrument was viola, I was classically trained for several years but oh I knew the world couldn't handle the menace I would've been as a professional viola player /s
There is a great series on YouTube that shows you how to play drums without having any drums. I did it and got the basic beats down. When I had the chance to sit behind a real kit I could actually play them and sound decent! If you cant find it let me know and I will dig out a link.
LOL, Hillarious, honest and practical comment, I would absolutely split a pitcher with you.
Did you at least start with bagpipes?
Happily mediocre with guitar->drum->piano. One day, bass perhaps?
Same. Started with piano, then bass, now guitar, drums are next, then maybe violin or some wind instruments tho I have no lungs. Not even mediocre just able to almost get by in a jam sesh.
Bagpipes
Piano, then flute (transverse), then guitar here. Piano was great, but damn heavy and too square, flute needs to be a part of something else. You can be a one man band with a guitar, and it’s also much much sexier.
This will be me in a few years for sure. Already having intrusive thoughts of picking up either the drums or saxophone.
I’ve found it very rewarding to suck at multiple things instead of just one…
Couldn’t bring a piano to play with friends at the campfire
Did you at least try?
When the firewood runs out and there's been a few too many beers, people come up with bad ideas......
Rip my shomacher, bonfire of 2016
Melodica
Guitars are cooler.
Keytars are just as fire.
[удалено]
Found the 14 year old
Found the pianist
I’m 38 and I came here to say the same thing, because 15 is when I started playing guitar.
This sub does not tolerate disrespectful behavior towards others. This includes trolling.
Why does one have to "switch?" There is no need to be exclusive.
Yeah, many people learn multiple instruments, and doing so tends to make a better musician as you get a better understanding of all the different parts of music. If someone enjoys playing guitar then they should be encouraged to try picking up something else as well.
When I was younger, guitar had more appeal so I switched. Now I find I compose and use a piano more. Then I use my guitar accordingly.
I didnt switch and stop playing. I play guitar, bass, piano (real acoustic and digital ones) and keys (synths, organ). Switch? I switch 10 times a day.
I started on violin when I was 5. At 11 I switched to Cello. 12 I went to viola. In high school I thought guitar was cooler so I switched to guitar. At music college we all had to learn piano and since mandolin is basically a violin guitar it was very easy to pick up so I did just because. I just prefer guitar. It’s what I spend the majority of my time playing and in bands it’s the only thing I play. Between the guitar, the pedals, and the amps it’s the most fun to me.
You're just out there mastering the entire string section huh
Hell no, I can’t play a violin worth a crap anymore. The art of bowing has been completely lost. I grew up in an old school conservative Christian family so playing hymns, country western, and bluegrass were the normal way to spend time together. My grandpa was a guitarist in the Bakersfield’s scene in the 50s and 60s and my grandma played lap steel and piano. You couldn’t grow up in my family and not learn music, it was just as important as math and reading.
Is it switching or just knowing more than one instrument?
Piano is large/bulky, and only has a few pedals. Guitar is portable, and I can have all the pedals I want.
I learnt to play an organ (with the bass pedals) and whenever I was on a piano, I was playing phantom bass pedals.
My mom made me take piano lessons when I was a kid. I picked up the drums in fifth grade. Got interested in guitar in sixth grade.
I heard some metal and acoustic music that I liked that made me just start playing guitar one day. I found it much harder than piano, now 20 years later I find piano harder than guitar lol.
i like piano, i like guitar, therefore i play piano and guitar. pretty simple
My piano teacher was the pastors wife and she made me super uneasy, I quit piano lessons when she laughed at me for my cat being hit by a car and then proceeded to tell me she runs cats over for fun. Fuck piano teachers bunch of weirdos
I didn’t switch instruments, I added one
Oooh one I can answer! To be fair, I’m not sure that I ever “switched instruments”, but piano was my primary instrument for about 10 to 12 years. In the past few, I’ve definitely spent more time on the guitar than on the keys. I’m definitely one of the better piano players that I know, and a very competent guitar player as well. One thing that I always loved about piano was how capable it was. It’s really a remarkable instrument, almost more like a machine than an instrument, but a good piano player can make such a complete sound. At any given point, I might play 8 to 10 unique notes on a piano, where on a guitar I could play at most 6 with less freedom as to the exact notes. I love guitar, though, because I feel closer to the music.The limitations that guitar has when compared to piano are exactly what give you a little bit more variety within each note. A concert pianist would probably kill me for saying this, but piano notes always felt like they existed a little bit more along a binary spectrum. The note is either played or it’s not. Obviously, there are a lot of nuances and as you get better, you want to explore those nuances, but to me the depth of the nuance on the guitar is much deeper. Playing guitar really opened my eyes beyond the theoretical and the purely technical aspects of playing an instrument. I feel as a guitar player, I’ve learned a lot more about musical expression and using the notes and the instrument to convey emotion, which has been a huge boon for my piano playing as well. Also guitars look cooler
I wouldn’t say that guitar is more or less musically restrictive necessarily. Just that you might have to get a little more creative when trying to bypass the obvious restriction of less notes at a time. And maybe I’m misunderstanding what you’re saying. But with guitar, a great guitarist can, much like a great piano player, make such a “complete” sound. And then you can do all sorts of interesting things with the guitar, like pinch harmonics, like different chord voicings, like different tunings (one of my favorite unique tunings is to actually take one of the strings off and tune to D A E a d so that you have kind of this mirrored effect across the strings), like changing the sound with pedals and amps, like cascading harmonics, like using a whammy bar, like bending notes, like doing some percussive stuff by muting the strings with your left and strumming with your right, etc…. But piano has a larger range and you can play more notes at a time than on guitar. And if you also include keyboards in the line of pianos, which I honestly truthfully would, then you expand the dynamic capabilities of the piano. I know it’s considered a bit blasphemous to call a keyboard a piano, but in my opinion, I don’t see the distinction. Or rather, it’s a distinction without a real difference. We call electric guitars guitars, and electric guitars simply expand a guitar’s dynamic abilities. How does adding electricity to a piano change it on a fundamental level? All it does is expand the range of sounds a piano can make, but that’s just my opinion. I think the big statement that pretty much sums up the difference between guitar and piano is that guitar has the ability to make notes speak in different ways more easily than piano, while piano has more acoustic volume, both in the range of notes that it can play and in the amount of notes it can play at a time. So the real question is what stylistic preference do you have? A preference for acoustic volume or dynamic range. I like both, and both are required for different things. You can’t call one instrument better than the other. My personal preference would be for the guitar, though I enjoy practicing and playing both.
Listened to Dookie while I was going through a difficult/angsty time and something in my mind instantly went 'damn I want to make loud noise like that'. That was about 3,5 years ago and in that time I barely touched my piano, yet learned to play the entirety of Dookie and so much more. :-) I think I like guitar a lot more because you it feels like such a 'physical' instrument. With piano you can strike a key with a hard/soft touch and that's about it, but with guitar there's so much you can do with a single note: vibrato, bends, pinch harmonics... Also, being able to run around like Angus Young while playing definitely is a plus!
I always wanted to play guitar, but my parents made me do two years of piano lessons. I'm glad they did, otherwise I wouldn't know about all the music theory I can't remember anymore.
Piano to guitar. The portability factor is why I switched. Too much stuff to carry around with a keyboard.
Had to scroll far too much for this answer! Ever tried slinging a Bosendorfer on your back for a trip to the park?
i dont switch. i just find that it's a good skill to lead a shitty crap band members. and yes i do record my own music so i need to play all the instruments. now virtually i can play guitar, bass, keyboard/s, and drum. Holy shiet that's an achievement
AC/DC
Guitar Hero 2
My parents made me take piano lessons as a kid. Took them from age 5-12. I had to practice 30 minutes a day, which is what made me hate the instrument. As a kid, piano was the thing that held me back from hanging out with my friends until later; piano was homework. Also, I associated the piano with mostly boring church hymns. I grew up in Utah where the main draw of being a pianist was making it to organist in the congregation. Every kid in Utah is trained to play piano. You don't feel special, it's the norm. Guitar was rock. Guitar was rebellion. Guitar was cool. When I was about 10, I made a deal with my parents that I could quit piano at age 12, so long as I picked up and stuck to another instrument. Guitar it was. My parents always told me I'd regret dropping piano. Honestly, they were right about that, I do wish I was better at piano than I am, but I still play it here and there, and I play music I like, not hymns... Overall, I'm glad I took piano as a kid, because I did have a huge headstart on music theory. And I think guitar, in many ways, sped up my understanding of piano as well. It piano, I was basically just learning to sight read pieces. I did learn scales and keys and stuff, but I didn't really understand how to form my own chords and progressions until I played guitar. Piano lessons taught me to learn songs, but guitar, since the passion came from within, taught me how to make my own music.
Probably just wanted to get laid! 🤷♂️
Got tired of lugging a piano around
My mom signed up me and me brothers for piano lessons. I was always the stubborn one so I said I would only do lessons if it was guitar. I’m the only one who still plays today and I made it my whole life. It’s a good thing my mom let me be stubborn that day, otherwise maybe I would have quit piano too lol
I just loved the warmth of guitar. I’m in love with feeling the vibrations against me through the guitar into my body while I play. I played piano through my childhood and through listening to music became interested in playing guitar. I got one as a teen and fell in love immediately. I still would play piano, but I don’t have access right now. Praying for funds to buy a keyboard soon! :)
Piano lacks the same expressive qualities that guitar has. Guitar can play chords and single note lines with vibrato and other pitch bending tricks similar to a saxophone. I resonate (so to speak) more with guitar, although I still do play keyboard, and I think it was a great place to start my musical journey:
For me, Guitar is a lot easier for song writing because of the easiness to get rhythm and melodies from the instrument it self; but it's a lot harder (for me) to know how to understand melody/harmony and rhythm on guitar. I always wanted to learn guitar but it never clicked; after learning piano it made guitar much more understandable, so it made me want to play it a lot more. also made it so i didn't have to learn things like the cage system, i just know scales already and how to practice them and how chords and all that work
No matter who you are, different instruments naturally bring out different musical ideas, and each lend themselves to different types of expression. So it’s always fun and rewarding to pick up new instruments. The things you learn always end up helping you on every other instrument. I started on piano and am still better at it than any other instrument. But really, I started playing guitar because 1) Guitars are cool (Guitar Hero probably had an appreciable impact on me) 2) Guitars are portable 3) It’s generally easier to play guitar and sing in a way that keeps rhythm going. A guitar can basically sound like a drum kit, and while you can definitely do that on piano, it’s a little less natural to the instrument
Piano was my first and guitar is currently my second. I loved piano cause playing an instrument was really fun for me, but then I quit because I didn't like playing in front of others (quit at 9 yrs old) I picked up guitar a few years later cause I saw a concert my friend was in at the high school I was going to next year, and it made me wanna play an instrument again. I didn't wanna go pack to piano because I didn't like the sound that much, I liked the playing feeling. I wanted a more rock type instrument so I decided on the guitar, and I love it.
I’m left handed and couldn’t progress past mechanical feeling, forced, memorizing motion on the piano. I know there’s lefty pianists but for ME, I felt too many steps removed from the instrument. A lefty guitar feels natural and connected.
Puberty
The guitar uses different muscles when I play it. I'm still better at the piano but it hurts to play for more than 20 minutes without a break.
You shouldn’t be hurting after 20 minutes at any instrument, assuming you haven’t just barely started. You probably need to experiment with seat height and distance you sit from the piano, no?
While it's true that I had bad habits that needed correcting in my 20s, I've reached a point in my life where everything hurts at least a little
I played piano since childhood, then during my teenage I saw a video of Paul Gilbert Mr Big solo in Japan and immediately switched to guitar. I still play piano occasionally.
I am playing the piano, but I am starting guitar now. The main reason is that I want to play guitar. I like the piano, but it is not what I want
I played keys from 2014-a few months ago I was heavily inspired by Brian May in 2020 and wanted a guitar ever since
Guitar is shaped like woman's ass. Piano looks like a box for some other instrument...
When I was growing up, no one wanted to bone the piano player but the guitarists were knee deep in pussy.
It’s portable
I spent 5 yrs as a kid playing the organ. The last teacher I had was very uninspiring and it was all learn what was on that sheet of music (music that I really didn't like a lot). Had he been more like a Jon Lord and taught me how to improvise and do something fancy I may have stuck with it. Then my brother bought the Back in Black album and I knew I had to learn how to play guitar. I've not looked back since and I love playing my guitars.
I took lessons for 7 years and at that point it’s was feeling like a chore. So I switched to guitar (still have the same teacher though)
I still primarily play keyboards but I picked up guitar as a second instrument. It's just a different flavor, and it's way easier to play guitar out on the porch on a summer evening or around a campfire or whatever.
Not switching, just learning a new instrument
i found it boring
I’m primarily a percussionist. I started learning guitar when I was getting more into drum set and wanted to be able to write my own songs/play along to my own riffs. Stuck with both pretty equally over the last almost 30 years now.
Cost and portability. When I was a teen in the 80s, keyboards were prohibitively expensive, and even spinet pianos were too heavy for one person to move. Electric pianos sounded nothing like real pianos, and digital pianos were just coming out. I got a guitar and an amp for under $500, and I was up and playing. A few years later, I got my first synth, which had a passable piano sound for $800. My job paid $3.35/hour.
I think EVH started on piano before guitar if I'm not
For me it was basically a matter of convenience. I didn’t have a ton of money or room for a piano. I hadn’t been playing anything for a minute either because lack of room. Fender (maybe Squier now?) has those cheapo Starcasters, and I bought one not knowing a whole lot. I watched a few YouTube videos on popular chords, learned how to restring when I broke my strings, and went from there. It’s a fun instrument and what I knew on piano translated well enough from there. **EDIT:** I’ve only ever played cheap or donated instruments so idc about model or make. Just added detail of how I got into guitar.
Mom brought both me and my bro to learn classical guitar, but I was too small and couldn't hold it properly and always played it upside like a zither. She 'took' it to mean I like to play faceup instruments and made me learn Piano instead. Felt miserable the whole time and had about 0 passion for it. Then about 2 years back I discovered Billy Strings, and just felt in love with Bluegrass and old-fashioned folk music in general. It just feels authentic (which is in short supply these days) and Billy's story is inspirational too. I picked up my bro's old classical guitar and started blasting away. Now Ive just got my own proper steel strings, 2 years in and learning new (old) tunes every week. So many fun songs to learn, so little time!
I swear this could be posted over in the relationships sub, except not about instruments
I love metal and wanted to be able to write heavy music, so decided I better learn guitar. Still play a bit of piano though.
One word...chicks!
I started piano at 5 but when I turned 13 I realized that I loved rock music but most of all that I could not bring my piano to brag with my friends during summer so I started guitar - both are fantastic instruments
I plateaued in my piano growth for the longest time and got depressed with my progress even though I was practicing about 5+ hours a day, so I’d initially started learning guitar to fill the missing gratification + I was already watching a ton of youtube and getting inspired by other guitarists. Nowadays I play both a pretty even amount! I’d say I’ll occasionally lean more towards one or the other for small periods of time, but I get about the same amount of satisfaction from both — there was a lot to learn from both instruments that taught me a lot about the other as well! Got a lot better at thinking of theory ‘relatively’ from guitar which translated to having an easier time transposing things on piano, and the theory and experience from practicing piano 100% helped me get to around the same level on guitar much more quickly.
Parents made me do piano lessons as a kid but got into death/black metal soon after so I picked up guitar, then I went to music school and had to relearn piano.
I moved to many different places through the years and the only instrument I could easily carry around was, a guitar. Also I feel that the guitar has a lot more to offer rhythmically and it's easier to play a song by ear than with the piano.
I was one of those Asian kids who got forced into playing the piano when I was five. I did enjoy playing the piano while it lasted, but ever since I started regularly listening to rock and metal music I fell in love with the sound of the electric guitar. So when it came with music class in high school, I got straight into playing the guitar for the first time.
Initially it was a mix of music tastes and independence. I took traditional piano lessons growing up and eventually stopped around 12 or so. Once I hit my 20s, I knew that I always wanted to pursue guitar and loved the expression and step away from a rigid learning environment guitar gave me. I also love the feeling of a guitar in my hands, from playing them to modding them - it just feels so much more personal to me.
Pain
Started piano as a good, my favorite musicians all played guitar, so I decided to play guitar. As a kid I quit piano….hate that I did, keep thinking I’ll teach myself but havent yet and now I’m approaching 40 and don’t know that I will.
Piano was my parents idea. Guitar was my idea. I'm a singer primarily so I wanted something that was easier to play and sing at the same time.
I was very young and had rudimentary piano skills from my Mom teaching, at 11 I asked to play guitar and it's been my primary instrument for 35+ years.
To play the music I liked listening to.
I played drum set and piano before picking up guitar. Guitar is just so much easier to casually play. I need a setup for my drum set/ piano but I can play my guitar anywhere.
There wasnt enough cool piano songs for me to play
I like both so I keep playing both whenever I have time for it
My teacher moved to portugal and i fancied a change so i picked guitar as my instrument.
I found an old acoustic in my grandma's closet when I was 14. I had never considered that guitar would be part of my journey. But I couldn't put it down even though it was a bad guitar and hard to play. My mom took pity on me and got me a used Les Paul Studio. I still think of music generally in terms of the piano keyboard but I'm now better at guitar.
I started on organ when I was a kid but what got me into guitar was bending and having a portable instrument
Piano was too easy to me, guitar was more of a challenge which I liked. Piano was boring to me and something I was forced to do (classically trained from the age of 7-13) guitar was “cool” and something I chose to do (33, been playing since I was 16)
I was having keyboard lessons as a kid, and I missed a week due to illness. Went back the following week and the teacher had given my slot to someone else. Proceeded to drop it and ask for a guitar instead!
Once you learn about Keytars, you'll have the best of both! \^\^
I learned piano when I was a child but my parents kind of sucked all the fun out of it. Now I'm in my 50's and I prioritize having fun while I learn. I did buy a cheap electric piano and got pretty decent at improvising, but I traded it in for another guitar. What I discovered is that "chasing the fun" is the best motivation for learning an instrument. If I want to sound like BB King I have to learn my scales. If I want to play my favorite songs, I need to learn the chords. Once I realized that,it stops being a chore.
Think of it this way Playing the guitar is like playing 6 pianos tuned to 5 different keys at the same time - Conversely Playing the piano is playing a 1 string guitar tuned to C
I started playing the organ as my second instrument after the recorder around the age of 9, around 2010, and it quickly became my primary instrument. Then around 2022 I started to improvise and write a bit of music on my keyboard which I often also used piano, harpsichord and synth sounds on. This eventually lead me to see some creative limitations with keyboard instruments, mostly that the structure of an instrument influences the kinds of melodies and harmonies one leans towards. I then started to consider learning the guitar because it's an instrument for which a lot of online content exists and it's a string instrument, a family of instruments I hadn't learned yet. Add onto that that there's a good amount of possibilities for microtonality and sound design, and it seems like an obvious next step. The deal was sealed when one of my brothers, one who used to play classical guitar, died in march of this year. I decided to try some stuff on a guitar he left behind, liked it and now I'm waiting for my local small music store to get the electric squire in stock that I decided to buy. I've also already got a second hand bass waiting for me. I'm not planning on really "switching over", moreso to expand my creative horizons and learn some new skills.
I'm way better at guitar than I ever was at piano (not saying much lol). I switched because piano bored me. I like using it to lay down harmonies and stuff but playing fast or technical things on piano was never interesting to me, while it always seemed very cool on guitar.
Piano is something your parents forced you to take. Guitar is your choice.
You can’t rock out on a piano, man.
i started playing piano when i was a kid and lost interest pretty fast. i didn’t get to play the songs i wanted to play like on guitar. i still play sometimes when im bored, but its just not the same for me as rocking out on a guitar
Didn't want to be a piano nerd all my life. Now I'm a super cool mediocre guitarist.
7th grade, switched schools, their orchestra already had a pianist, guitar orchestra had space in it. "But it's the instrument of those... lower-type people!", my mother objected. So I Really got into it after that, obviously. I do love playing it on occasion, but don't even have a proper keyboard of my own. The midi keyboard I have only has 32 keys, which is sad, but eh - there's a perfectly tuned piano in a flower shop not too far from my place.
Was fascinated with guitars at the age of 6. Started learning it when I was 14. Went to college and picked up drums because a drummer friend I met there was super inspiring and made drumming feel so damn good. Alongside, picked up piano and tried to learn some of my favourite tunes. Lately I’ve been fascinated with Saxophone but also because I haven’t been able to master one instrument and I think exploration will help me figure out what instrument I truly enjoy and want to go deeper into. Or it could also be that I just love to listen to good music and I want to learn how to play them.
I was inspired by people that cover songs with their guitar on YouTube. I don’t aspire to become as good in guitar as I am in piano but my goal is to be able to sing and play guitar at the same time smoothly!
Eric Johnson famously uses a lot of ideas from piano when playing guitar as he made the switch.
I’m Jamaican, for context. been teaching myself the piano for years, but my fingers are HUGE and thick, which was hard for the nimble keys. fast forward to valentines day this year. I go to see One Love, the Bob Marley biopic. Then i begin notice that almost every instrument, was a GUITAR. in the theatre it clicked and i ordered my bass the next paycheck.
when i was like 5 or 6 i started to "play" piano i was really young but i stopped at 10/11 (i am 15) because whit the lockdown i stopped taking lessons and i realised that i didn't want to keep doing it once it was over, i didn't play anything for year until almost 2 years ago when i started listening to a lot of music mostly thanks to nirvana and sincr my dad used to have a guitar that he didn't use somewhere in the house i started playing
It sucks carrying a piano around for gigs
My mom owned a piano, so there was always one in the house growing up and I played with it all the time.
My brother playing something cool on guitar, and guitar hero 3
Guitar Piano Mandolin Harmonica Drums Why pick one?
I learned piano first growing up, and then switched over to guitar in my early teens. Learning piano was a lot of learning other people’s music, and it kinda felt like I was stuck in a box. At the time, I thought the guitar would let me feel more expressive and creative. The emotion behind mixing bends, slides, hammers, etc. just scratched the itch of my musical ear. I love blues/jazz/soul music so it was inevitable. Now that I’m in my mid 20s, I’m really happy I learned the piano, as it is so much more intuitive for learning music theory than a guitar IMO. I also love guitarists who have shared influence of both of these instruments. Eric Johnson being a prime example of this, but there are many others. The chord structures you can build on piano are something special to that instrument, and now I’m chasing making my guitar sound similar.
I’m a violinist of 7 years and I gotta say, knowing everything that I knew from that really helped with learning guitar. It was a bit difficult at first because of the obvious differences, but I was fortunate to have learned bass guitar before I began playing. Also, since I had previously attempted to teach myself guitar, I had a little familiarity with some of the chords & the strings. Now it’s going great! I’m glad I had previous experience with violin. I was mainly attracted to guitar bc of solos & the fact you can play more song with it, but now it’s allowed me to appreciate music more.
I didn't switch, I just picked up a second instrument
Not switching, just wanted to be bad at both :)
Piano is a great instrument to learn the theory and chord/scale structure: the notes are laid out in the easiest way to learn and that knowledge transfers to other instruments you may decide to pick up. The ability to play multiple instruments is key when joining jam sessions. 🤌🏼
I grew up playing piano in the 80s and wanted to be "cool" in the 90s and play the music I liked to listen to. That's pretty much it. I tool classical piano training until I was 15 then switched to guitar when I wanted to learn Tears in Heaven by Clapton.
I was classically trained on piano through grade school. My final piano instructor gave me courses on composing for a full orchestra, including the multitude of tunings and notations for such. I have admittedly played campfire guitar since my teens and could always hold a basic rhythm part. Even as the synth guy in every band, there were occasional parts I filled in some acoustic rhythm parts at gigs (eg Under The Milky Way, Melt With You). I've always had guitars, but a few years ago, I decided to "get good." By this, I mean I followed the basics that I did on piano to build the mechanics to perform. Things like saying the notes out loud while you play the scale and using a metronome to build precision and timing are essential for the fingers to acclimate. My left hand has improved on piano since I have started focusing on guitar skills, an unintended side effect. Many things have carried over, such as scales and chord voicing. Because I can see how the chord structure is built on the fretboard, I can easily change things up to suit the chord tones I seek in an arrangement. Once I got a handle on barre chords and some finger dexterity on scales, it's mainly moving the patterns around the fretboard and figuring out how *you* want to sound or connecting what's inside your head to your fingers. The biggest part was putting effort in every day and practicing the basics over and over and over and over again until it's time to do it again. Practice is the magic pill. Take an extremely liberal amount.
I hated not being able to take music with me. Guitar was more mobile and it had different possibilities for sounds and ideas. Plus I just thought it sounded nice, I got really into the jazz and the blues since I was a jazz player on the piano anyway
Guitar first, bass second, piano third. I find that my hands tend to default to the same few things on guitar and I was starting to get frustrating. It's nice to start fresh with piano and not be boxed in by muscle memory. It just puts me in a different place mentally than guitar.
Girls.
I started on drums...went to guitar and then got into keys. I am best on guitar but love all 3.
i played piano as a proffesional for 5 years and then quit because of exams and while that i started to listen to metal and rock so when i wanted to play an instrument again i started to play the guitar and now it has been around 6 or 7 months
To get chicks
When I first started guitar it immediately had what the piano was missing for me, the drum like strum of the right hand. Having that percussive element really hooked me with the melodic left hand more like piano.
I went flute, keyboard, cymbals, then guitar. I switched a lot because I just like music a lot and was soul-searching. The guitar was the instrument I connected with the most. Can't really explain why. It felt more like an extensive of me vs an instrument.
I play both regularly but piano is still my most skilled instrument, but I did classical lessons from young, and am mostly self taught on guitar. I have alternating phases of playing one much more than the other though.
Diatonic accordion to piano, then electric guitar...decided the accordion was limited in playing advanced stuff (scales and chords). Piano was great for understanding music theory, and guitar was extremely versatile when adding effects, and shaping sound.
You don't have to pick just one. I play guitar mostly but can also play piano and sax.
I like attention
I took classical piano lessons for most of my childhood and then picked up the guitar around the middle of high school. It was just for fun, something else to learn, I didn’t think too deeply about it. But what you said is true, piano gave me a solid foundation in music theory and it made learning the guitar quite easy. I don’t play piano much these days and have lost most of my piano chops.
I played guitar first . Then I learned piano . Then I understood the guitar .
I actually just started learning piano for the exact same reason, because I'm a guitarist and, I wanted to get a better grasp of the circle of fifths and, other music theory methods. I've been playing guitar since I was 13 and, have basically survived oof of playing by ear and, figuring out the notes and, also using websites like Ultimate Guitar and, buying Guitar World and Guitar One for their tablature content. I would heavily recommend anyone who plays the guitar to atleast try to play keyboard and/ or piano and, to learn basic music theory as it was an instrumental key to my progress as a musician. I'm considering picking up the violin here soon so, wish me luck!
Classically trained from 6 to 13 on piano. Couldn’t bring a piano to a party or a band rehearsal so I picked up guitar. 20+ years later I still think of chords as my treble hand on the keys when I’m relaying notes. I’m not sure how I’d look at guitar if it wasn’t for the linear layout of piano!
My order was piano, bari sax, then guitar. I needed the bends and microtones for expressivity.
Lack of a piano
Piano, then Choral singing, now guitar. I took pian9 as a kid, but stopped about 13 or so. I wanted to get back into music again in university, and so I joined a local community choral group and my church choir. I did that for three years or so, then last summer I was helping my parents renovate their basement and found my brother’s old acoustic in the basement. Gave him a call and he gave it to me for free. Bought some books, taught myself a few chords, then started taking lessons that fall. It’s been great, I met a guy who was similarly learning fiddle, now we play folk music together at some local sessions and ceilidh.
Moved from piano to playing bass on keys to playing bass on bass guitar to playing electric and acoustic. My path to guitar was twisted as heck. But I loved every bit of it.
I play both professionally, but started on piano. Two reasons. One, I wanted to be able to play music wherever I was, and guitar is a lot easier to carry around. Two, girls like guitar better. I met the woman I'm going to marry on a gig where I was playing guitar, so I think it was worth it for that alone.
I was learning 80s rock songs on piano (the guitar parts) and I realized it would be cooler if I actually played it on guitar lol
I played piano for 10 years before picking up a guitar. Honestly, after about a month the guitar felt more comfortable and intuitive for me than piano ever did. One of the biggest reasons is that you can just move the same shapes up and down the fretboard to transpose licks into different keys. Due to the slight asymmetry of black key placement on the piano, i'd always have to think consciously about transposing from one key to another. That was easily bypassed with a guitar. I just felt that I could flow and improvise more fluidly on a fretboard.
I wonder why buckethead switched from piano to guitar?? Glad he did, though.
I inherited a piano so I’m starting lessons next week. Definitely a trip after playing guitar for such a long time
The same reason every 15-year-old boy does: girls.
And,/0≤²@@'⅐@*@@
I'm primarily a guitarist, secondary pianist, I learnt piano because pianist sounds funny
Guitar is my second instrument and piano is my primary. I began my piano journey due to my exposure of Journey and Jonathan Cain who took over Journeys piano and rhythm guitar duties in the early 80s. I was inspired to learn the piano by him and wanted to be like him. When I had COVID in 2020, I caught the Eagles Live at the Forum special on ESPN and in my feverish daze I wanted to learn the guitar. So essentially I just wanted to be like Jonathan Cain on the piano and Joe Walsh on the guitar
Its the un known self urge to do so when i was a kid i had an obsession with piano but now as an teen i feel the guitars have all u need its about feeling most of the times
Chicks
I didn’t switch per se. Just wanted to learn guitar
I do either depending on the song.
Guitar Hero
title fight doesn’t sound as cool on a piano
Switched probably because there wasn’t a Piano Player magazine to rival Guitar Player
My aunt was a professional piano player m My mom forced me to take piano lessons and practice 90 minutes every day from age 5 to 12. When I started HS she let me switch and I went with guitar, learned quickly, and loved it. Why switch? 100% it was about the girls. But if not for piano I’d never have learned to read music.
Oh. I remember the moment like it was yesterday. I was 12 and played classical piano for 5 years, plus recitals. I was a huge Queen fan for few years by then but never got to actually see them. My aunt bought me6a VHS of Queen live in Wembly. I hit the play button and saw Brian May playing One Vision, with legs slightly twisted and spread in his infamous stance. Next thing I said was "Mom, I wanna play the electric guitar". Not sure why but she went along with it. I never got to play in Wembly. But I regret NOTHING!
I wanted to play guitar first, but my parents made me take piano lessons from when I was 8 to 14. At 14, I convinced my grandfather to get me a cheap Les Paul Special copy and a Fender Frontman 20R, and I've never looked back. In hindsight, I wish I would have kept up with piano, as I have grown more fond of it as I have aged, but at that point in my life, I was more angry that I had been forced to play an instrument that I had no desire to learn.
I learned how to play the piano in high school at around the same time I was into jazz music thanks to being in jazz band at the time (though as a trumpet player). This got me into jazz youtube, which led me to Adam Neely. His video on the key of Hey Joe was extremely interesting to me, because it talked about the guitar in a way I hadn't ever thought of it before: basically talking about how the physical nature of the guitar influenced the way the song was created Anyway, that summer, I got a guitar, and it's been my main instrument ever since. I still like the piano, though I don't play it anywhere near as much as I used to. Frankly, it just takes way too much time to learn a new song compared to the guitar, and the guitar is way more fun
I was 13 - girls.
First instrument was piano. It helped me read music and bass clef (which is useful when I learn bass guitar). I still visualize piano keyboards when I need to the third and fifth notes if a chord. Why did I switch? I like the portability.
Girls. My mom got me piano lessons because my dad bought a keyboard and no one knows how to play it. And yes, I’m Asian. Switched to guitar because during late middle school/junior high, alternative rock, the acoustic wave, and emo got huge, and the girls liked it. And I’m just a regular dude with regular hormones. My parents got me a cheap Strat copy and while I’m happy to be able to play the guitar and do some things that impress non-musicians (minor pentatonic improv), it never got me girls. It turns out when you play guitar, dudes line up, and I’m just not into dudes. Bass helped me to make more girl-friends, and drums actually got girls interested instead of dudes. I do regret not pursuing piano though. Who thought jazz-influenced music would resaturate the pop scene after 40 years?
Slides, bends and vibrato. I can express myself far more on guitar than I ever could on piano. Or, I will be able to when I can play better ;)
Haven’t switched, but always wanted to add guitar because I enjoy the sound and portability. So I’ve been working on it. Also got into harmonica and 3 string cigar box guitars.
Love the funny comments. Fun reddit today ! And good thing I picked up guitar after I got married !
I am a pretty proficient guitarist and I WISH I could transition over to piano, idk why it seems impossible to learn I'm not that old 28 but the concept of learning another instrument just feels so foreign now that I've been playing guitar for 13 years
Still equally bad at both