Featured Image: Person in Black Hoodie Playing Guitar · Free Stock Photo (pexels.com)

Ever since the start of the pandemic, millions of people found themselves stuck at home with more or less nothing to do. 

The dawn of the information age somewhat forces people to stay on their phones or laptops, simply because it keeps us connected to our friends, family, and other social groups without taking the risk of contracting a virus. 

However, screen time also increases the risk of damaged eyesight and poorer overall health outcomes, which also leads others to find entertainment that involves little to no screen time.

Learning to play an instrument has its many benefits, like keeping your mind active and improving dexterity, aside from lessening screen time. 

Some instruments are quite more advanced than others, while some are quite easy to learn, especially when you can find the right books or YouTube videos to learn from. 

1. Guitar

Generally, guitars are string instruments with around 4-18 strings, with the regular acoustic ones having normally six. There are two main categories to a guitar, with one being acoustic, and the other being electric. 

The type of guitar for you also depends mostly on your music taste, but having the perfect guitar would mean you take into consideration your size, build, hand size, posture, as well as other factors. 

The guitar for beginners necessitates quite the dexterity, concentration, and coordination like most instruments do, as it is played by plucking or strumming and fretting the strings. 

It will take quite some time to learn, but is especially helpful for improving both social and motor skills in both children and adults. Learning resources are quite easy to come by, as most people like to start their lessons from guitar books, videos or websites.

2. Violin 

The violin is a string instrument, normally with four strings and a bow. Despite its small size as an instrument, it is quite powerful when played in a band or alone. Learning to play the violin takes a lot of effort, concentration, and strength. 

Although having the necessary skills to play the violin is important when learning it, it is not entirely necessary to learn it beforehand. With the right instructor, the necessary set of skills and other knowledge can be learned at a proper pace. However, you can start to research proper violin lessons online.

Playing the violin requires drawing a bow against the strings, which is also why hand-eye coordination is necessary. Furthermore, discipline and strength are key factors needed in playing the violin to maintain the proper posture needed when playing it. That being said, with proper practice, the results of learning to play the violin can be very rewarding.

3. Cello

The cello is another string instrument, and opposite to its sister instrument the violin, its large size produces quite a wonderful voice when played well. Because it is played with a bow, the right instructor will also be able to help bring out the talent and potential within you, as the cello does not produce results quickly. 

Learning to play it will require dedication and quality time, and practicing regularly and wholeheartedly produces results in weeks!

Learning to play the cello becomes easier when you are familiar with reading notes and rhythms, but that is something you can easily do with the instructor of your choice or from online resources. 

With the cello being usually played in a band or orchestra, it can help with enhancing leadership and teamwork skills, aside from the improved dexterity and coordination that would normally accompany it.

4. Piano

The piano is a great instrument for beginners, especially ones with a good ear and great coordination. It is played by pressing white and black keys, each producing a different note. 

There are two kinds of pianos, with the electronic piano or keyboard being a great piano for beginners. They can be especially helpful when practicing, and not to mention that quite a lot of books and videos can be used as learning material.

A piano can be quite entertaining, especially when you get the perfect rhythm when playing. It is one of the easier instruments to play for beginners, especially since improvement can be seen within just a few days of dedicated and focused practice. 

5. Flute

The flute is a versatile instrument that belongs to the family of woodwind instruments. At first glance, it can be quite intimidating, what with all the keys and different holes. However, the flute is actually one of the easiest wind instruments to learn, albeit requiring a high level of dexterity and concentration. 

The flute produces its sound when air passes through its openings, and different notes and pitches can be achieved when closing some of the holes in the flute’s body. Because it is a wind instrument, you will need to blow into the flute to produce a strong enough sound, and different notes are easily achievable with the right lessons and online learning materials. 

6. Saxophone

The saxophone is a woodwind instrument with very limited genres, but highly rewarding music. It was most commonly used in military marching bands, but now is mostly seen in classical music or jazz. 

The sax is a very versatile instrument and greatly allows for expressing creativity, given that it has both flexible and dynamic sound. Learning to play the saxophone can be a challenge, but with enough practice with the right instructor, book, videos, or blogs from professionals, great music can result from all that hard work and quality practice. 

7. Drums

Drums are a percussion instrument that can be quite overwhelming at first look, especially when there can be so many parts to a single drum set. Drums produce the beat to a song, and drummers control the tempo or the speed of the song. 

Understanding the parts of a drum set and the drums as an instrument, in general, can be challenging, but drums for beginners can easily be learned with the proper guidance, and a lot of people start by researching online.

Drums can help relieve tension and stress, especially for those who are physically expressive. Despite how difficult it seems, learning to play the drums properly can help you manage things even when they get really messy.

Learning an instrument can be challenging, but it is also one of the safest ways of entertainment. It can be especially helpful when you want to disconnect from the world and just connect with yourself. 

Do note that no video or book can truly replace a proper teacher, but also take into consideration what you can afford. The path you want to go down on is not going to be straight or easy, but the destination is rewarding.

This article is written by Charles from Guitar Junky.