I've been playing the violin for about 11 years. Started when I was 17. Despite all my time playing, I think I'm only intermediate but it depends who I compare myself to. Relative to your average adult learner I'm pretty advanced, but relative to classical musicians I'm about ABRSM level 6 or 7 somewhere around there.However I have some serious weaknesses that are holding me up:>Can't sight read at all, and even reading normally is hard, have to read note-by-note>Still haven't learned a real piece all the way through, just parts, usually first few bars and then I give up or lose interest, can't seem to stick with it>I never learned proper scale fingerings, I practice the flesch scale system but find it confusing w respect to fingerings for 3 octave scales, not a lot of detailed information about this online that I've found>My music theory in general just sucksDo you think it's possible to remedy these things despite my age? Sight reading is particularly worrisome because that seems like something you need to start young to get good at. Maybe I should get a teacher?
>>34275143Ask /mu/
>>34275143I think you just have to put more time in to practicing those specific skills and it's not too late to improve.
>>34275165people on mu don't play instruments unfortunately theyre all fl studio ninjas
If you're serious about improving, get private instruction. Tell them up front that you have working knowledge but want to brush up on your fundamentals (scales, fingering, sight reading in that order).Theory isn't necessary unless you want a degree or just want to learn it. You learn that like any other academic subject.As far as learning a "real piece", assuming you are in the US, you go to the music store and ask/look for the high school district/state solo material. Get the audio for that piece, break it up into the movements and practice those. If you can't sight-read then trying to play it through all at once is going to be an exercise in frustration.
>>34275143>Can't sight read at all, and even reading normally is hard, have to read note-by-noteAs an advanced piano player since I was 6, that has been my number 1 problem and killed my desire to play later in adulthood, because it takes 3 months to be able to play anything simple without interruptions.The advantage of this "feature" is that once you learn something, it stays in your muscle memory almost forever. Also, music theory won't help you with that, though I would recommend music theory overall because understanding how music works is interesting and enables you to be able to compose yourself.
>>34275143ive been playing fiddle for around the same amount of time as you. i never learned to read sheet music, have learned hundreds of tunes just by hearing them, internalizing them to the point that they are stuck in my head and i am humming them incessantly and then boom they just flow out naturally. just keep doing your thing. the history of bowed string instruments is massive compared to the tiny spec that is classical technique. hell the baroque era style bows and hold were only a few hundred years ago.
>>34277356>once you learn something, it stays in your muscle memory almost foreverDamn man you nailed it. I can still play the first Scott Joplin piece I ever learned nearly 20 years ago from memory despite not playing it for 5 or more years. But I'm still struggling with a piece that I printed the sheet music for in 2011 -_->music theory won't help you with thattoo true. I can't internalize how chords fit together and improvise something new at will like other seem to effortlessly. Can't create, only copy.
