[mondk]

I'm going to check to see if we can afford both. Brad took a year of piano last year and enjoyed it and did well in his recital, but has now been bugging me for guitar lessons as well.

This kid is AMAZING on his Guitar Hero games and when he was first born...about 4 weeks old, he would wave his arms to the beat of whatever we were listening to. As soon as he could walk, he'd march to the beat and tap on tables etc. When he was in elementary school, his music teacher called me one time and told me she thought he'd make an excellent drummer for their band, but Brad refused. You should see him on Guitar Hero ( a video game with actual guitars) he can beat the expert level on "Devil Went Down to Georgia".

We saw the game Rock Band on sale at WalMart and got it and now he is learning how to drum too. I asked him what kind of music would he play on a guitar....he said anything heavy metal/rock.

Before I decided to have kids, I'd always dreamed of having a boy who played in a band (a rock band). Well, if the lessons aren't so expensive....I guess my dream may come true!

Blessings, Michelle

[katie52]

Get him low cost guitar lessons. It is a 'must' because a piano is not portable enough. lol
What I mean is, teen boys have an easier time breaking the ice at social events when they can pick up a guitar and strum along. It is great way to bond with other guys--- and the girls, of course, love it too.
Our youngest kid showed great aptitude for music, and getting her piano and guitar lessons were well worth it.
Now she is a teen and it will no doubt be her life's work. Seriously, she is that sold on it. I say any real talent that a child shows when young, should be enhanced if possible, as it builds self esteem, just in time for teen years.

[Stormster]

DH plays guitar and is dying to learn Piano.

Many people say that guitars are more portable, he can bring them to parties, camping, etc....

DH says people can kind of just fake it with guitar but in order to play piano you really need to read music because it's a bit more formalized. And if you can really read music you can play every other instrument.

So that probably didn't help LOL.

[CaddoRose]

I'll chime in as a musician who plays guitar and piano and DH teaches guitar privately(he is a professional player-not classifical). Depends on the age of the child as to how well they will play guitar. It takes a lot more physical strength in the hands and fingers to play guitar. This only comes from practice day after day. It is easier to learn to play on an electric guitar because you do not need to press so hard on the strings and because the sound comes from an amplifier, it is more easily heard. Playing the guitar is nothing like playing guitar hero. It will never come as fast as the game. The learning curve is steep, but once they can play a few chords and scales, they will be on their way to being able to play what they hear on their radio/mp3 player.

If you want your child to have success with guitar, you will need to pay real money for a good instrument. That means don't buy a guitar from Walmart. You need to go to an actual music store and talk to the professionals who can help you choose the right instrument for your particular child. Smaller privately owned stores are generally better at helping you than the big bargain stores.

[mondk]

Thank you and uh-oh, dh bought an electric guitar from...you guessed it, WalMart! That was way before this post unfortunately. I had a professional drummer in a small band laugh me out of town about that one. He was like, "You bought it where????" He won't let us live that one down.

Blessings, Michelle