Ian Naylor talks about the joy of learning a musical instrument

Learning to play a musical instrument is one of the most rewarding things you can do as a young person. How many adults do you know wish that they had learnt an instrument when they were younger? Most importantly learning an instrument and becoming a musician is great fun; developing your skills; telling stories through music and being the envy of all your friends. It is hard work too and along the way there are many challenges to learning and mastering an instrument, but if you work hard and remain dedicated those challenges will soon be a distant memory!

As a parent or carer, supporting a child or young musician who is learning an instrument can be pretty daunting too. Knowing how to support your child if you don’t feel you are musical yourself, can be a little scary. Musical activities in Sheffield organised by the Music Hub and our partners are open to absolutely everyone. It is normal to worry if you will fit in with all these musical types, but there is no need to worry, we are a friendly bunch and you will be made to feel totally welcome.

We don’t believe that forcing young musicians into a set amount of practice each day is the best way to develop musicality and skill on an instrument. There is no doubt that to get better you need to work hard, but this is best achieved by promoting the enjoyment of music outside music lessons; making music with other people and encouraging what we call ‘mastery and refinement’. This means making sure that you get the music right many more times than you get it wrong.

Most importantly, get involved in as much as you can and always remember your music teacher is here to support you every step of the way.

Ian Naylor (Head of Music Education Sheffield)