They say the only exercise some people get in January is walking back and forth to the fridge. We all know the January gym-goer stereotype: packed facilities, enthusiastic resolutions, and an abrupt drop-off by mid-February. If you’ve ever felt the thrill of starting a new workout routine only to see it fizzle out, then perhaps it’s time to consider a different kind of workout for the soul – learning to play a musical instrument, in this case guitar or uke.
Don’t worry; this isn’t a journey laden with pitfalls. In fact, with a bit of strategy and commitment, you can stay on track and make beautiful music. Here’s how to sidestep the common traps on your musical journey.

Switching from gym sessions to guitar or uke practice is not just a change of routine; it’s a shift in mindset. Instead of dreading the next workout, imagine looking forward to creating your own melodies. To make this transition smoother, consider finding an accountability partner – someone who shares your passion for music. Having a friend to check in with, share progress in chord and strumming skills, and maybe even jam together can make the learning process more enjoyable.

Just like hitting the gym regularly, consistent practice is crucial when learning to play guitar. Aim for a daily practice routine, even if it’s just for a short duration. The key is to build a habit, ensuring that playing guitar becomes as ingrained in your daily routine as your morning coffee. Set realistic goals and milestones, and celebrate small victories along the way.

One of the best ways to keep the enthusiasm alive is by playing songs you love. In fact, in our Big Guitar Survey, 17% of respondents claimed their biggest motivation was learning to play their favorite songs with guitar or ukulele. Whether it’s your favorite rock anthem, a classic jazz tune, or a pop chart-topper, learning to play songs that resonate with you will keep you motivated. With each successful rendition, you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment that propels you forward in your musical journey.

Learn more about the Big Guitar Survey and discover tips based on its results.

Learning an instrument doesn’t have to be a solitary pursuit. Joining a band or ensemble introduces an element of camaraderie and shared progress. Playing with others not only enhances your skills but also provides a social aspect to your musical journey. Local communities, music schools, and online platforms are great places to find like-minded musicians to collaborate with.

In the age of smartphones and apps, technology can be a powerful ally in your musical journey. Check guitar apps that offer guitar tuner, lessons, practice schedules, and even virtual instructors. Choose the app that fits your learning style the best and provides a structured learning path, making it easier to track your progress and stay motivated. Plus, they allow you to practice at your own pace, anytime, anywhere. If your new preferred instrument is a guitar or ukulele, be sure to check out our apps JustinGuitar Lessons & Songs App and Kala Ukulele Tuner & Songs App.

So, as you swap the treadmill for the metronome and dumbbells for drumsticks, remember that learning an instrument doesn’t have to follow the same pitfalls as a New Year’s fitness resolution. With an accountability partner, daily practice, playing your favorite songs, joining a band, and embracing technology, your musical journey can be both fulfilling and enjoyable. So, here’s to hitting the right notes and steering clear of the January blues – let the music play on!

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The post Skip the January Blues: Navigating the Musical Journey Without Hitting Sour Notes first appeared on Musopia Blog.

Musopia’s mission is to help every aspiring musician find their music path and make it easy and enjoyable to learn to play an instrument. In this article, we want to give every music educator rock-solid tips to encourage their students (no matter what age) to learn to play. We sat down with two professional music educators and let them give us their best advice.

When asked why someone wants to play an instrument, the answer is usually that it is fun. Someone might tell you they play and practice to become a professional musician someday. While playing for fun and even bigger ambitions is all well and good, it is commonly acknowledged that playing an instrument also has numerous health benefits for you, both mentally and physically. 

Shortly put, playing an instrument is such a beneficial pastime and skill that everyone who is even mildly interested should be encouraged to grab a guitar (or any instrument, for that matter) and start their music journey.

People start playing for very different reasons. Perhaps someone has a dream to play in a band with their friends, another wants to impress a girl with their musical skills, and someone wants to learn tunes that they can jam by the campfire.

Everyone benefits from playing an instrument and should have an equal chance to do so.

While the motivations for learning an instrument may vary, it must also be acknowledged that the learning methods differ equally. Some people need a teacher they can meet every week in a classroom, some prefer 1-to-1 teaching, while others might be most comfortable learning by themselves while watching videos on YouTube. Then there are those who have found inspiration and help by using an app like the ones created by Musopia. 

While motivations and learning methods vary between individuals, it comes down to this: Everyone benefits from playing an instrument and should have an equal chance to do so. Furthermore, some universal tips apply to basically everyone in their learning process.

Earlier, we sat down with Erja Askolin, K-12 music teacher at the Albert Edelfelt School in Southern Finland,  and Scott Burstein, Director of Teaching and Learning at Music Will in the US. As experienced and rock-solid professionals in teaching music, they have noticed some universal methods and tips that should be acknowledged by everyone teaching music. 

Because their views and expertise should get as broad an audience as possible, we wanted to put together the top tips both professionals gave. 

Erja’s Top Tips

1. The students learn better when they enjoy the learning process and are excited. The fact that you get to make music and play instantly and experience success makes you interested to learn more. I want to highlight that learning is fun and easy, and you can play real songs from the beginning.
   
2. If you have a musically inclined adult at home that encourages you to play, it lowers the threshold for taking up the hobby of playing an instrument.
   
3. I want to encourage my students to try and experiment with instruments. I tell them about the possibilities of playing an instrument and where they can practice, and I inform them about the options of different music apps.

Scott’s Top Tips:

1. Finding songs that students know and love is vital. We focus on student-driven music, finding ways to unlock their inner-music makers.  
   
2. It’s very beneficial that kids get to immerse themselves in music early on. Get kids involved with music as soon as they start having it touch their lives.
   
3. Encourage the kids to make musical choices, let them participate and help them find success and grow their confidence.

Next to the tips above, both professionals also had a lot more to say. You can read the interviews with Erja and Scott in full length on Musopia’s homepage. Read Erja’s interview here, and see what Scott has to say here.

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The post Top Tips from Music K-12 Educators first appeared on Musopia Blog.

This is something that probably not many of our followers are aware of, but July 31 happens to be Uncommon Musical Instrument Awareness Day.  This day celebrates rare, experimental, and uncommon musical instruments. To honor all the beautiful, odd, and fascinating instruments in our lives, we decided to dedicate today’s blog article to this day.

As you know, we at Musopia are experts in guitars and ukuleles, especially when learning these two fine instruments. Our apps are targeted to help everyone find their musical path accompanied by these popular string instruments. 

There are many different ways to count and measure, which are the world’s most popular and most played instruments. This probably doesn’t shock anyone, but the guitar makes it to every one of these top 10 lists. The ukulele is slightly rarer but gets frequent mentions on many of these lists. 

Even though these two instruments represent a considerable part of our expertise, we musopians also want to pride ourselves on being passionate about all kinds of music and every instrument used in making music. The more instruments, the better!

Our team at Musopia has quite a bit of talent with many different instruments. Our team members know their way, for example, with the piano, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, ukulele, bass, drums and keyboards, among many others.

Throughout human history, musicians have tried to push the boundary of sounds and music by inventing newer and innovative ways of creating music. Did you know that the earliest recorded musical instruments are about 42,000 years old? Found in a cave in Germany, these flutes were made of bird bones and mammoth ivory. Instruments have developed immensely since then, and thanks to creative and quirky musical enthusiasts and experimentalists, the selection of existing instruments has gotten deliciously broad!

The Uncommon Musical Instrument Awareness Day aims to encourage people to learn to play some of these uncommon instruments and contribute to the world of music by making their musical instruments.

But what do you assume? What kind of instruments make it to the list of most uncommon instruments? We can, of course, take educated guesses and assume that the guitar and ukulele don’t make it to these lists. 

After some consideration and editing, we have picked these ten fabulous instruments to the top ten of the most uncommon instruments.

1. Picasso Guitar

This fascinating harp guitar has 42 strings, four necks, and two sound holes. It was inspired by Pablo Picasso, the founder of the Cubist movement and one of the most iconic artists of the 20th century. 

2. Theremin

The theremin is one of the earliest electronic instruments. The instrument has two metal antennas that can sense the positions of the player’s hands, which control the volume and pitch of the instrument.

3. Glass Armonica

If you’ve ever tried to make music with a wine glass, you get an idea of how the glass armonica works. The glass armonica consists of a series of glass bowls in different sizes, and the sound is produced by the player rubbing their fingers over the glass. Fun Fact: The instrument is the brainchild of no other than Benjamin Franklin.

4. The Wintergatan Marble Machine

This instrument is a hand-cranked music box with instruments, including a circuit of 2,000 cascading steel marbles. As the device cycles, it activates a vibraphone, bass, kick drum, cymbal and other instruments that play a score programmed into a 32-bar loop comprised of LEGO technic parts. The marbles are moved internally through the machine using funnels, pulleys, and tubes.

5. Yaybahar

The Yaybahar is a new electric-free, entirely acoustic instrument. The vibrations from the strings are transmitted via the coiled springs to the frame drums. The membranes turn These vibrations into sound, which echoes back and forth on the coiled springs. This results in a unique listening experience with a hypnotic surround sound.

6. Wheelharp

The wheelharp produces the rich sounds of numerous stringed instruments all at once. It is basically a keyboard that controls 61 bowed strings, allowing a single musician to sound like an actual orchestra.

7. Zeusaphone

Probably the most intimidating instrument on this list, the Zeusaphone, sometimes called “the singing Tesla coil”, is something else. It is a solid-state Tesla coil modified to produce musical tones by modulating its spark output. The lightning-like arcs vibrate the air at musical frequencies, which produce the fantastic sound you hear!

8. Badgermin

So, you already know what a theremin is, right? Now this is where it gets weird: there’s also a badgermin. It’s a badger crossed with a Theremin. It’s a badgermin. And no, we are not making this up.

9. Sea Organ

This project aimed to turn the sea into a musician using the reconstructed seafront in Zadar, Croatia, as a ginormous organ. Pipes underneath the promenade react to the waves as they crash in, creating harmonious sounds that tourists flock to experience.

10. Guitalele

This is where we have made a full circle and circled right back where we started from, to the guitar and ukulele. This time, however, it’s a combination of these two: the guitalele. A guitalele is a guitar-ukulele hybrid, that is, “a 1/4 size” guitar, a cross between a classical guitar and a tenor or baritone ukulele. Due to its small size, the guitalele combines the portability of a ukulele with the six single strings and the resultant chord possibilities of a classical guitar.

Congratulations if you have ever seen or heard of one of these fascinating instruments! Ten points for Gryffindor!

If you have the opportunity to get familiar with or even get close to one of these instruments mentioned above, use your chance and dig in! Life is short, and you can never spend too much time exploring new, wonderfully weird things that simultaneously cause joy and raise eyebrows.

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The post Uncommon Musical Instrument Awareness Day first appeared on Musopia Blog.

Playing music has some fascinating effects on you since it can bring total peace and make you feel completely alive at the same time. According to studies, 70% of people would like to play an instrument, but there are often a few things that might stand between them and their musical aspirations. It can either seem so complicated that they are hesitant to start at all or they end up quitting their newfound  hobby after some time because it simply feels too hard.

Our mission is to ignite the music in people, and we give them the spark to start their musical journey by creating apps that make playing music easier so that more people can take those first steps on their learning journey with ease and curiosity for their new musical hobby. 

How do we do that?

We think that learning to play can be engaging and entertaining from the get-go.

Our Instant Play Method is a unique combination of features that makes learning to play an instrument an enjoyable experience. You don’t need to go through boring and frustrating practice periods before you can start to play the music you love, but instead, learn by playing your favorite songs. For a beginner, it is possible to learn a new song within minutes. It is all thanks to the unique features of our method, which include: 

• Simplified chords for thousands of songs
  Play-along display with adjustable backing tracks
• Strum patterns and tempo control for gradual learning
• Lyrics so players can sing along as they play
• Helpful tutorial videos to get you started
  

Practising new skills by playing real songs helps you to learn the rhythm and chord changes correctly from the start, as well as creating your repertoire of awesome songs. In addition, it is genuinely entertaining and creates a natural flow of learning cool new things and having a new skill for life.

See how the this works in practise, download the Kala Ukulele App or JustinGuitar Lessons & Songs App from the app stores.

Learn from the best by reading this article: Top Tips from Music Educators.

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The post Musopia’s Secret Sauce of Learning to Play Music first appeared on Musopia Blog.