Guitar Zero: The New Musician and the Science of Learning

If you are interested in:1. How people learn (especially adults)2. What the current research is in brain science and music3. Addressing meaningful questions about making music and playing guitaryou will not be disappointed with this book.I started with the audiobook and purchased this, so I could highlight and check the referenced sources. I think that anyone who is interested in a deeper understanding of how all of the elements come together to influence one's ability to play and make music will absolutely enjoy this book. Of course, if you're just interested in tips/tricks or a mechanical treatment, you'll be disappointed. The author does a good job of discussing his journey AND how it maps on to a general view of learning. With just a little consideration, I was able to map what he was discussing into how that applied to my life/playing. Highly recommended.

I picked up the guitar at the age of 40… I questioned if I'd be able to learn it or not and I basically told myself that I'd have to stick with it for a year before giving up. I bought a guitar and put in that year and at the end it started to sound like something and I've kept with it and it's been rewarding… But it raised that question in me of, can I do this and how difficult is it going to be….So, I stumbled on this book about five years later and the author went through the same type of experience but he questioned deeper and from a lot of other angles. Not only was he going to give it a go at learning guitar but he was going to study the how and why if it was really possible to teach an old dog new tricks. (I'd read glad wells outliers, so was familiar with the 10,000 hour concept and that whole line of questioning, but this guy was asking about it for older folks and how much was possible once you weren't a kid anymore) I thought it would be an interesting read.So, the author starts on this journey and takes you along for the ride. He talks about going to guitar camp, interviewing musicians, his learning style and how he progresses, what works and what doesn't…. He ends up in a band at camp with kids and they go after some basic song writing and performance goals and what that dynamic is like… I found the book really interesting because I'd been through some of what he'd experienced and also in trying to answer the questions of how to get better at something, which is something anyone can apply to anything they dare to learn.

Pretty common theme among the previous reviews - lots of detours and filler, but I read it anyway. It kinda feels like a bunch of Family Guy "like that time when" cutaways...except not always as entertaining. I put this book down for a couple of months, and read a couple of other books, before i could finish it. I've gotten used to sifting through a certain amount of filler in these types of books, while looking for pearls of wisdom from people who have done it. I don't necessarily recall any new pearls from this book, but nonetheless there's something to gather from almost all perspectives, and usually a fair amount of confirmation of things that I've learned elsewhere. Essentially, I reconfirmed from the book that there is no "science" to becoming musical. There is plenty of science around accumulating knowledge, and learning and developing skills. One of the anecdotes the author provided was very useful, describing a certain artist who was turned off by someone trying to talk music theory, because the artist felt so strongly about how bringing music theory into focus ran counter to staying on a musical creative wavelength. Build the vocabulary, internalize it, and move on (which still translates into practice, practice, practice...smartly). Becoming musical...creative and expressive in application of knowledge and skills, is still an unpredictable and non-guaranteed "aha" phenomenon. Just like being a straight A student by itself won't make you a best selling author...but it helps and is usually evidence of a lot of work. The book reinforces that as an aspiring guitarist, you have to be engaged and playing (not just noodling and going through the motions) in order to develop or discover musicality. So, by that, I would say it's worth a read, but don't be afraid to skim if it gets tedious.

You've heard the old phrase "It's never too late to start anything". And that's true, it's never too late to START anything. The problem with this quote is that it's too vague to have any real meaning. If you want to pick up a hard skill, like music, you should know how much time and energy is required for return of investment. So here are some tips for adults to get there sooner rather than dead:- adults learn slower and better incrementally- immersion is ideal for complex subjects like music and language- kids are persistent and have an open mind - take a leaf from this- practice must be focused/deliberate, regardless of age- adults are better at conceptual aspects of music - composition, arranging, musicianshipThese are tips I've picked up from the book and for anyone mature person wanting to become competent on an musical instrument. The author himself picked up the guitar at 38 and though he'll never be world class player, it's enough to write, play and have fun which is the most important part.

最近の本か、って思ってたんだけど7年以上前の本なんですね。読もう読もうと思いながら、そんな長い時間、スルーしてましたかｗなんですぐ読まなかったかというと、言語・進化・意識・AIといったような、僕がアメリカの認知科学者に求める内容じゃない気がしたので。実際、この本は臨界期（あると仮定して）を過ぎた40代中年が、ゼロからギターを学ぶとどうなるか？といったテーマで解き明かしていく内容です。マーカスの意外ともいえる豊富な音楽のうんちくも含めて、なかなか面白かったです。趣味のいい小品といった趣です。というわけで、次のAI本を読むのが待ちきれなくなってきました。

Great book.Within his research, you'll find, maybe, the words you need to keep going deeper in music. A pat in the shoulder

Interesting book discusses various aspects of guitar playing and points to other readings to deepen the subject. Be it stage fright, expert knowledge or reason why people play guitar in late age. Thought provoking if you need to understand the subject deeper.

(Written from Cambridge, Ontario, Canada) This book is a classic. I especially recommend this book to the person of any age who is interested in learning to play guitar (and other instruments also). There are many helpful insights and a fine sense of perspective, and an appreciation of the joy and even the nobility of making that great effort to competently perform and create good guitar music.For the beginner there is encouragement plus a realistic picture of just how big a job competent music-playing is.For a parent whose son or daughter is taking lessons, look especially at the Back to School" chapter starting on page 65, although you will find valuable insights that could earn you a lifetime of gratitude from your kids scattered all through the book.For someone who has played for enjoyment for a long time there are valuable insights into just how difficult good guitar chording is and what it takes to move to the next step.For the person interested in guitar lore, there are some fine interviews and well-told stories.For the person interested in the psychology of learning, starting from infant age and going into the elderly years, there are fascinating studies, and confirmation that we never really lose the ability to learn new things, nore the pleasure found in doing so.I was particularly interested in the fresh and amusing approach, the wide perspective (this was not like a nuts-and-bolts instruction book), and the description of the trials of a person, who has coped with a huge learning disability in connection with playing music but still has never been able to just let it go and get on with other things. The success-story narrative was very encouraging. Also I much appreciated the psychological studies on how people learn, the guitar lore and the interviews with experts in the art form.I also liked the style of writing. There was a nice balance between the substantiveness of the content and the readable, accessible presentation with some very nice turns of phrase.It's a wonderful subject. I would think many beginner-level players would identify with the journey and appreciate corroboration of the feeling that guitar-playing is really every difficult and takes an enormous amount of time, not to mention a lot of creativity and persistence in devising and revising techniques for practicing, and in sticking with the activity. In agreement with the author's experience, I have found that a No. 1 reward for the activity is the social experience of meeting on a regular basis with people who are at a novice or intermediate level but are still serious about the art form and want to jam together. There is a very satisfying feeling of being able to contribute to other people's progress with their lives and their enjoyment.