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I used to play in a big band of mostly well-experienced musicians where the word was "you don't stop playing because you get old, you get old because you stop playing". There's much truth in that. I'm well north of 60 and haven't gigged for some years now, but I still play every day. I practice a good deal, as well as delving into theory. I've always been interested in jazz and was fortunate enough to play a bunch, both in jams and on the bandstand. As I matured, I began to think of jazz as an anti-dementia program of continuous learning. To that end, in the past few years I have shifted my playing to nearly exclusively fingerstyle, both because of the challenge and the beauty. Every day presents new technical subtleties and new rewards, if things go well, and new lessons in problem solving when they don't.
Improvements in technique are mandatory - neck up, proper thumb positioning, good posture, strict warm-up routines, and perhaps most importantly, if something hurts, stop doing that. Now!
Lighter strings and lower action with a proper set up really helps. I keep guitars out with different string gauges - start light & easy, work gradually up and then back down - I try not to get overly into the repetitive stress injury zone.
I feel that my playing is better than ever. I am playing fewer notes, but they are better notes that mean more to me, and who knows but what they might mean more to others, as well.
Best of luck to you, and to all who are dealing with these issues.
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01-10-2017 06:08 PM
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I just turned 55. I feel I am playing better than I ever have in my life. I have a bit more free time than 20 years ago, and I know what I want from practicing and playing.
I took jazz lessons for about 3 years when I was around 20 and tried to become a proficient player, but I wasn't as successful as I should have been because a) I had too many distractions b) I didn't know how to study or apply what I had learned and c) I didn't have time to practice.
Physically, I guess I'm lucky, because I don't have any physical limitations whatsoever.
Mentally, I don't remember names very well, but I can still outthink any 20-year-old snotty-nosed pseudointellectual.
I did a little research on the topic of whether older musicians were at a disadvantage when it comes to learning an instrument. It turns out there are some deficiencies but these are offset by certain advantages--the ability to focus, some experience with how to study. I think working on an instrument at a reasonably high level doesn't come as naturally as when one is quite young, but if you're willing to put in the effort you can achieve your goals.
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I posted this seven months ago, when a similar thread (they pop up pretty often) was in process:
"This topic and some of the replies had me ready to unload a rant, but I'm not really a rant kind of guy, so I'll just lay out the facts:
Earlier this month my big band played a concert that normally would end our season for the summer. The venue is right in my community, where we rehearse every week and appear four or so times a season. It was sold out at 550 seats, with quite a number of my friends and people I know from the area in attendance. The show went really well. Band was tight, great mix of tunes, lots of enthusiasm from the crowd. In the middle of the third tune from the end I had a bout of focal dystonia. The middle and ring fingers on my left hand twisted around each other, my pinky shot out one way and my index finger out the other. My hand was frozen that way, completely paralyzed, for around thirty seconds. It was extremely painful--I can't force my fingers into that configuration without breaking something, but there it was. I was out for the rest of the tune as my hand kept locking up in spasms. On the next tune I there's a 24-bar bass solo during which I feed chords. I've had a great deal of experience dealing with recalcitrant digits, so I managed to do something credible with two fingers, but I was as close to a panic as I've ever been onstage.
Although I've had serious hand and arm problems for more than thirty years, the focal dystonia dates back only about a dozen. When it started I thought my gigging days were over, but after a while it subsided and has been mostly a nuisance, but this attack was the worst by far. We've been off for a couple of weeks, but my hand is still barely functional. This week we start up again for some 4th of July concerts and I'm not sure if I can get through them, or even through the rehearsals.
There are players in my band that are 15 years older than I am, and I'm no spring chicken, but there's no one in it who can't still move their fingers. If I were to do my rant, it would just be to point out to all the well-meaning folks in this thread that everyone is different, so the fact that player X is still at it is totally irrelevant to player y's situation."
Since posting that I got through a very busy winter season, not without problems but better than I'd expected. I've gone through about the last dozen years thinking that each would would be the end of my gigging, and somehow I'm still limping along. While that should be encouraging, my playing abilities are greatly diminished and I turn down almost all offers except for my big-band gig, so it's been at a high cost.
All that being said, I live in an active-adult community, where everyone I know would be considered "elderly" to the general population. Compared to the medical stories I hear daily in the locker room, not being able to play as well as I used to is not worth mentioning. Of our original big-band roster, only about five players are still alive, and all of us are still playing, so I really can't complain (too much, anyway).
Danny W.
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You know about all this, I suppose:
Musician's Dystonia (Musician's Cramp)
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some of my idols in my youth are now in their mid 70's and seem to be as capable in terms of energy speed and creativity . john McLaughlin for example..chick corea is in the same age range and as energetic as he was in the early1970's..and lets not forget Les Paul..playing into his 90's ??
I spend approx. 2 hours in the early morning writing away from the guitar...creating melodic ideas .. breaking down chord progressions..I will draw fretboard grids and chart the progression naming the notes and their function in the chords..then transpose it through several keys and positions on different string sets and inversions..when I get back to my studio I will play some of what I worked out..
I don't find any hesitation in doing this..I can still play fast passages and form fairly difficult chord forms without pain..I don't think about "what if" .. it will only create anxiety ..
It strange now to live in a world that I thought I once understood as an invincible youth .. and now see it as a wonderland of infinite possibilities and will continue my love of music and guitar..
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67 and I average probably 14 hours a week.
I think my playing is better than ever, partly because I've been playing more than ever.
But, age-related issues have cropped up with my hands and hearing.
I have been diagnosed with arthritis. I've had multiple injections in various fingers and have taken various medications, some with awful side effects. The good news is that I've been pretty much fine for a couple of years -- which I attribute to two things. One is taking a particular vitamin supplement. I did it under medical supervision after blood tests showed a deficiency. It is possible to hurt yourself by taking too much, so I'm not going to say which one. What I will say is this. If you have the problem, get a rheumatologist who is willing to spend the time it takes to make a good diagnosis -- and then follow the recommendations religiously.
The other thing that has allowed me to keep playing is that I switched to a guitar with a very narrow neck and I have it set up pretty light. Low action, light strings. I have to process the sound to get it thick enough, but it does work. When I try to return to one of my old instruments, my hands start to hurt again.
The only thing I'll mention about hearing is this. There is something called sudden sensorineuron hearing loss. You'll notice a pretty rapid change -- with distortion, changes in frequency perception and lowered volume. This is a medical emergency because rapid treatment is more likely to restore your hearing than waiting. Again, you need a good diagnosis. The treatment plan may be steroids for a short time and a low salt diet, of all things, since the problem can be related to swelling in the inner ear.
Well, one other thing. I don't know if age makes a difference, but we should all protect our ears from overly loud sounds. I use Etymotic Musician's Earplugs. I wouldn't call them perfect, but they work. I think this is especially important for drummers, since most of the older drummers I know have problems with their hearing. But, it's true for guitar players too.
So, eat right, keep fit, make sure you have a very careful doctor and protect your hearing.
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>> What happens when guitar players get older... ? <<
Wait a second - no disrespect - but I think I know it!
It was already covered in this post Wes' gravesite visit.... : You may get a lovely gravestone!
On the other hand - if you've never gotten to world fame - you'll be plumb forgotten.
I had to stagger around in that cemetery for a longer time, until I fell over the guitarist's brushy, down-to-earth grave whose prominence as a player culminated in the early 1930s. Precarious times in Germany, back then...
Don't think twice - just keep on playing!
What does the old man need?
The daylight becomes darker, the shadows become lighter, the night is no longer to sleep, the ways shorten. Only two or three ways, one last. - Johannes Bobwrowski (1917 - 1965)
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I'm 62, just getting back to playing. Having more fun now than I did ever before... Free from egos, deadline, and performance demands. I play what I want and started practicing about 3-4 hours. Age is only a number. Don't ever think about slowing down and you'll keep going.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
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As fellow turmeric eater you may be interested in this latest: Deceptive Spice Extract Offers Cautionary Tale for Chemists - Scientific American
Originally Posted by medblues
Also: I make capsules on a regular basis (important to use a reliable brand since some have been recalled for lead contamination) with 10% black pepper. Turmeric is poorly absorbed and pepper aids in this. Some commercial brands use piperine (also for other supplements) to aid in bioavailability.
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Good article, I have read it. I use black pepper in the turmeric loaded almond milk I put in my granola/cereal. Originally Posted by zdub
Here are some potentially useful links:
Phase IIa clinical trial of curcumin for the prevention of colorectal neoplasia. - PubMed - NCBI
Turmeric | University of Maryland Medical Center
As your link content does, these have negative findings but also positive findings.
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I'm 66 and have been playing on and off since i was 18. Probably as much off as on. Have a good background in theory, have played gigs in my past, and even had the great honor of having a meeting with the Great Joe Pass once (1976ish).
Love playing big band swing.
All that said, tomorrow i'm having CMC joint surgery on my left thumb. That after having carpel tunnel procedures on both hands this past fall. Carpel tunnel procedures seem to have been successful. My surgeon is very confident that the CMC surgery will go well also, and that i should be able to get back to doing everything i want to do going forward. Recovery is a long one. Might be 4 to 6 months before i'm able to play again. Sites like this one have re-inspired me to do just that. My goal is to get back playing with my local junior college jazz band(more like a community band) by next fall, so i will definately have my work cut out for me. Now that i'm retired, time will be available to devote to getting some semblance of technique back. It'll be great to just not have my hands hurt anymore.
Thanks to all of you here for just being here and sharing all the things you do!
Godspeed,
Bob P.Last edited by Bob P.; 01-12-2017 at 03:07 PM.
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The left thumb? What jazz guitarist cares about the left thumb? (OK, so Metheny does use it a lot...) Originally Posted by Bob P.
Seriously though, good luck with your surgery and the recovery process.
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<- This, actually. Not just because I have to but because I want to. Physical challenges ... reading is affected. Even if this is bad it also motivates me to learn and remember the tunes. Another thing is that I have downsized my amplification equipment. I can still play louder than my Tinnitus. The bass player in my band looks tormented if we have long practice sessions without breaks or long sets. On the sunny side I think age has given (most of us) some maturity and musical awareness which enables us to play with more taste. Originally Posted by kris
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I just turned 67. I really don't know how that happened. I just kept living and...here I am!
Unfortunately, I have a whole lot of musician friends from my generation that aren't here anymore. At least a dozen.
I think that people who try to make a living in creative arts might be more vulnerable to poverty, bad nutrition, drugs/alcohol abuse, emotional problems, relationship problems and unhealthy lifestyle. Our society celebrates fame, but many dedicated and extremely talented artists, especially older ones, live on the margins.
When you reach your 50s and 60s, these things can start to kill you.
BUT, I do know that quite a few guitarists have remained active, competent and creative into their 80s and beyond...I plan on being one of them!
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When you're older, you know what you want.
For kids, playing the guitar hurts, handling a tool gives blisters, their bones make noise.
When you're older your hands are stronger and more accurate, your hands hurt when you have played well for hours.
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I'm reminded of the quote (usually attributed to ragtime pianist and composer, Eubie Blake): “If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself.” Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
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