# Violin or Clarinet?



## KnulpJose

Hi everyone. First of all, my name is Juan and I'm 22. I play bass guitar in a rock band, and have never played classical music, but in my latest years I've been listening to classical and I'm really starting to enjoy it. There are many composers I haven't heard, and many music out there yet to listen, so far I like Beethoven, Paganini, Arvo Part and some stuff from Mozart and Bach. Well the thing is I would like to take up another instrument (I play a little bit of piano and bass guitar) and I'm having a hard time deciding between Clarinet and Violin. My music teachers told me clarinet might be easier, and than violin takes years to master and well, I'm 22 as I already said. But maybe violin is more similar to bass than clarinet (I guess). So I know there's people that learn violin or clarinet at 50, 60 etc. But I want to pursue a career in music as a composer, and that's my only dream. I like all types of music, I just enjoy music more than anything else in life, and would like to learn my new instrument and MASTER it. 

What would you recommend me? I'm sure there's people here that know a lot about this stuff... Which would you choose as a composer? Will it be hard to learn any of these two at 22? I'm I too old and must be realistic and just keep it with bass guitar and piano? (I'm willing to practice four hours a day, either clarinet or violin, I do have the time)
Greetings from Bogota, Juan.


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## Jaws

KnulpJose said:


> Hi everyone. First of all, my name is Juan and I'm 22. I play bass guitar in a rock band, and have never played classical music, but in my latest years I've been listening to classical and I'm really starting to enjoy it. There are many composers I haven't heard, and many music out there yet to listen, so far I like Beethoven, Paganini, Arvo Part and some stuff from Mozart and Bach. Well the thing is I would like to take up another instrument (I play a little bit of piano and bass guitar) and I'm having a hard time deciding between Clarinet and Violin. My music teachers told me clarinet might be easier, and than violin takes years to master and well, I'm 22 as I already said. But maybe violin is more similar to bass than clarinet (I guess). So I know there's people that learn violin or clarinet at 50, 60 etc. But I want to pursue a career in music as a composer, and that's my only dream. I like all types of music, I just enjoy music more than anything else in life, and would like to learn my new instrument and MASTER it.
> 
> What would you recommend me? I'm sure there's people here that know a lot about this stuff... Which would you choose as a composer? Will it be hard to learn any of these two at 22? I'm I too old and must be realistic and just keep it with bass guitar and piano? (I'm willing to practice four hours a day, either clarinet or violin, I do have the time)
> Greetings from Bogota, Juan.


Why don't you have a go at both? If your aim is to be a composer you won't have to get fantastically good on either. 2 hours a day on each one will be quite enough.


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## SixFootScowl

Well I love the sound of violin far more than clarinet. Also while it is a superficial comparison, both violin and bass guitar are 4 strings, but that is where the similarity ends.


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## KnulpJose

Jaws said:


> Why don't you have a go at both? If your aim is to be a composer you won't have to get fantastically good on either. 2 hours a day on each one will be quite enough.


But I really want to master one, I would love to play both though!


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## KnulpJose

Florestan said:


> Well I love the sound of violin far more than clarinet. Also while it is a superficial comparison, both violin and bass guitar are 4 strings, but that is where the similarity ends.


I also like the sound of the violin a bit more. It's just that I've heard it's so hard to be able to play really good. But maybe it's just a psychological problem.


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## PetrB

First, to play anything _minimally_ well, let alone 'master the instrument' _(so often said and heard, but in comparison to Mastering the instrument to play at a high professional level, well, what most people mean is to get half-way decent at playing the instrument)_ takes time enough.

Next then, is the most critical deciding factor: _which instrument has the most appeal to you*?*_

Bass, by the way, is so little like playing the violin, posture, bowing, everything, that the familiarity you have with that is of very little use or advantage if you choose violin.

*Intonation:* either violin or clarinet will give you challenges of making proper intonation. Since you already have a bit of familiarity with a stringed instrument, and you have a desire to compose, I would recommend the wind instrument.

The ultimate decision is yours, and I would go on which instrument's _sound_ most appeals to you.

Since you have ambitions to compose, the most advantageous time spent studying an instrument would be to pursue piano lessons and develop enough technique to get more fully fluent with playing it -- unless you can composes at a desk, it is the most valuable asset you can have in working out compositions for about any ensemble one can think of: a composer can learn, from good books on orchestration _and in consulting with professional players,_ about all one would need to know to write well for all the instruments. One cannot, I believe, learn to write well for the piano unless one has a fairly deep familiarity with the instrument.


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## Ukko

If you feel a _*need *_to play either instrument, choose that one. You can compose on the computer, eh?


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## KnulpJose

I like the violin's sound more, so I guess I would enjoy playing the violin more. I think I just need to find the right teacher and simply destroy my psychological barriers. I always consult people before doing most things, I wonder if thats a good or bad idea. Anyway, thanks for your attention.


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## PetrB

Ukko said:


> If you feel a _*need *_to play either instrument, choose that one.


a-Yep... so often if we stop thinking, the answer to questions like the one the OP asks are patently clear.



Ukko said:


> You can compose on the computer, eh?


Also, a-Yep, but knowing your way around the piano is _reallyreallyreally_ more than just a little helpful, i.e. first hand plugged in to polyphony, your ear actively involved -- nothing but benefits to your conceptual thinking about music if you are planning on making it up -- _which experience composing with computer software will never instill or provide._


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## KnulpJose

Yes, the piano would be the most useful instrument to compose, hands down. I just don't like to limit myself to just one instrument. I must follow my feelings, and try to learn what my heart tells me, and that I think is the violin, I just needed a push.


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## PetrB

KnulpJose said:


> Yes, the piano would be the most useful instrument to compose, hands down. I just don't like to limit myself to just one instrument. I must follow my feelings, and try to learn what my heart tells me, and that I think is the violin, I just needed a push.


... Lol, choosing the instrument you do not have to assemble and dissemble every time you want to use it is at least practical


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## SixFootScowl

KnulpJose said:


> I also like the sound of the violin a bit more. It's just that I've heard it's so hard to be able to play really good. But maybe it's just a psychological problem.


Well, I would suppose that blowing into a tube has it's difficulties. At least with violin you can breathe normally.  Ultimately you have to have drive, if not compulsion in order to put in the necessary practice time. Love the instrument and it will love you! (Does that make sense? I just made it up.)


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## KnulpJose

Florestan said:


> Well, I would suppose that blowing into a tube has it's difficulties. At least with violin you can breathe normally.  Ultimately you have to have drive, if not compulsion in order to put in the necessary practice time. Love the instrument and it will love you! (Does that make sense? I just made it up.)


Haha, it does! I'm just a little afraid, I've heard that mastering the violin, or at least play it a very high level at 22 it's really hard, others say it's imposible, and well, thats the only thing that stops me... although i heard that Terje Moe Hansen started at 19, but practiced 10 hours a day and made it to the conservatory! And I also want to keep on my bass and piano practice. But I will let you know how that goes!


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## dgee

What you won't have experienced before on bass and piano is serious sound production issues - it takes a long time to learn to fully making an acceptable sound at all, let alone consistently across the range of the instrument while addressing technical demands. Frankly, if you want to try learning either clarinet or violin at your age, you should probably approach it as a bit of fun and see how you go rather than entertain dreams of any sort of mastery


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## SixFootScowl

KnulpJose said:


> Haha, it does! I'm just a little afraid, I've heard that mastering the violin, or at least play it a very high level at 22 it's really hard, others say it's imposible, and well, thats the only thing that stops me... although i heard that Terje Moe Hansen started at 19, but practiced 10 hours a day and made it to the conservatory! And I also want to keep on my bass and piano practice. But I will let you know how that goes!


Well just bear in mind that you are talking to a guy who would have trouble making harmony with a jaw harp. :lol:


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## Ukko

I personally know a guy who set down his guitar and took up the fiddle at age 40, and held up his end in bluegrass jams at 60.

Does that help?


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## KnulpJose

dgee said:


> What you won't have experienced before on bass and piano is serious sound production issues - it takes a long time to learn to fully making an acceptable sound at all, let alone consistently across the range of the instrument while addressing technical demands. Frankly, if you want to try learning either clarinet or violin at your age, you should probably approach it as a bit of fun and see how you go rather than entertain dreams of any sort of mastery


That would be more realistic, but even if I learn it to play just some stuff I would consider that a victory. I just want to learn a new instrument and of course would love to master it, if that does not happen, I would at least be happy to play it good.


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## KnulpJose

Ukko said:


> I personally know a guy who set down his guitar and took up the fiddle at age 40, and held up his end in bluegrass jams at 60.
> 
> Does that help?


It does, thank you. If that guy could learn the fiddle at 40, why couldn't I at 22? I know I'm not going to be the best violin player, BUT, I also know I can learn it and play the things I like. 
Greetings.


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## SongQuestion

Hi KnulpJose, I don't know how useful this bit of info will be to you, but I have a short story to tell about when I used to play the clarinet during the late 90s. I used to play it during late elementary school into middle school. My mother bought me the Artley brand name instead of the Yamaha because it was more affordable at the time. 

I can honestly say that it was a mistake that made my music experience less desirable! I don't know if the Artley brand has improved or not, but I can honestly say that I had an extremely hard time getting decent high notes to issue from that instrument! Partly because of this, I quit playing it after Junior High for good! Almost everyone else had Yamaha clarinets, and they played high notes just fine, although the lower notes didn't seem to have the nice quality that my Artley clarinet did. 

Has anyone else had this experience with this brand name of instrument?


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## KnulpJose

SongQuestion said:


> Hi KnulpJose, I don't know how useful this bit of info will be to you, but I have a short story to tell about when I used to play the clarinet during the late 90s. I used to play it during late elementary school into middle school. My mother bought me the Artley brand name instead of the Yamaha because it was more affordable at the time.
> 
> I can honestly say that it was a mistake that made my music experience less desirable! I don't know if the Artley brand has improved or not, but I can honestly say that I had an extremely hard time getting decent high notes to issue from that instrument! Partly because of this, I quit playing it after Junior High for good! Almost everyone else had Yamaha clarinets, and they played high notes just fine, although the lower notes didn't seem to have the nice quality that my Artley clarinet did.
> 
> Has anyone else had this experience with this brand name of instrument?


Anything related to the topic is useful! I just think that I like the violin more, and the only problem is, well, what I've mentioned before, starting at 22.


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## Jaws

Why do you think that starting at 22 is a problem? I hope it hasn't got anything to do with the myth that you have to start young to learn to play a musical instrument? Do you know how many children give up playing compared to how many start? Do you know how many children are truly useless at playing the violin? The reason why the myth about starting young has started is until recently adults did not take up musical instruments. Now that adults are taking up musical instruments some are starting to show the kind of promise that younger people show. Now i don't want to blow my own oboe (trumpet) about this but I started the oboe from the beginning at age 42. I have been to music college since I started as an oboist. I admit that it wasn't my first instrument. I did play the horn when young, but I expect you can see that apart from the blowing these two instruments are not very alike. I now have the technique required to play in a professional orchestra. However I am not really interested in doing this and I don't need the pittance that I would be paid to do it.


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## KnulpJose

Jaws said:


> Why do you think that starting at 22 is a problem? I hope it hasn't got anything to do with the myth that you have to start young to learn to play a musical instrument? Do you know how many children give up playing compared to how many start? Do you know how many children are truly useless at playing the violin? The reason why the myth about starting young has started is until recently adults did not take up musical instruments. Now that adults are taking up musical instruments some are starting to show the kind of promise that younger people show. Now i don't want to blow my own oboe (trumpet) about this but I started the oboe from the beginning at age 42. I have been to music college since I started as an oboist. I admit that it wasn't my first instrument. I did play the horn when young, but I expect you can see that apart from the blowing these two instruments are not very alike. I now have the technique required to play in a professional orchestra. However I am not really interested in doing this and I don't need the pittance that I would be paid to do it.


Your answer is real useful, I know that it's only a myth and that I can learn the violin at 22. I'm going to do it! 
Thank you!


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## VinylEupho

To be honest I would choose the violin. I seems to stand up more on it's own. I mean the clarinet is the type of instrument that is seen in a group / orchestra. The violin has more presence, it can solo, it can lead. 
Don't want to offend anyone, just my 2 cents.


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## SixFootScowl

Well yeah, in my opinion, clarinet is boring by itself, but a violin can do amazing things musically.


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