By Tom Mulhern
What first gets most people revved up about playing a musical instrument in their youth? A deep-seated desire to make music? An urge to impress girls (or boys)? The possibility of fame and fortune? Some kids eat, drink, and breathe music, just as others exist for baseball, ballet, or painting. At some time, though, even the most accomplished, motivated young players either cut back on their musical pursuits or abandon playing altogether. The instrument is shoved under the bed, tucked in a corner, or sold for cash for new priorities like fixing the car, paying rent, or to get another recreational pursuit off the ground.
Whether they let a year or dozens of years pass without playing, many carry around a yearning to play, but time, circumstances, or inertia keep them and musicianship apart. It seems, though, that almost everyone has time for TV, surfing the Internet, and other activities. The trick is repurposing that time for music-making activities, whether it’s playing solo, jamming with friends, gigging, recording, or accompanying their children on their instruments.
According to the Hobby Industry Association’s 1998 study, at least 80% of all households had a member participating in a craft/hobby. Although this includes such things as needlepoint, painting birdhouses, and so forth, it isn’t hard to understand the big-picture concept: people are always looking for something enjoyable to do. So, it only makes sense that playing music would be a good choice for people who have either played in the past, or who love music but have never played.
There are many reasons for someone to take up an instrument as an adult hobby, and research is now finding that the benefits are even greater than anyone might have imagined. Playing provides a means of musical self-expression, certainly, but it also offers relief for stress, anxiety, and depression, offers camaraderie, and possibly is a way to stave off some of the effects of aging itself (see accompanying Music And Wellness story).
Not only are people living longer lives, but numerically there are more people than ever, period. Add to this equation the Baby Boomers, the huge demographic bulge formed by all the people born between the end of World War II and the mid-’60s (approximately 77 million of them!), and you see a lot of market potential. The oldest Boomers are in their fifties, and the youngest in their thirties, and all have a long life ahead of them. Many have fallen out of music, but programs such as Weekend Warriors (see accompanying story) are designed to bring them back, luring them with the fun that they once experienced in their younger days.
The number of adults taking up music for the first time or picking up where they left off years ago is climbing. This provides the retail and manufacturing communities with both a tremendous opportunity and a huge challenge. The opportunity is pretty obvious: If they play, then they need something to play. Whether it’s a trombone, an oboe, a guitar, or a keyboard instrument, the beginning (or re-beginning) player has the same equipment needs as his or her younger counterparts. There’s a difference, though: The more mature musician often looks for high quality and service as much as, or perhaps even more than, price. They’ve been through buying appliances, a car, a house, or other big-ticket items, and they demand a good experience, a sense that they’re being treated right.
There are many programs, both in communities and in schools, that cater to the needs of the young musician. Programs like the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation, research into music and learning in young people, and dozens of other support structures are in place to ensure current and foster future participation, at least through high school. The focus of this article is on ways to increase adult involvement in playing, particularly as a hobby, since professional musicians really don’t need much encouragement to do what they already do. And with people living longer than ever, adulthood is a longer stretch of time that provides the possibility of playing music longer, and for the music manufacturers and retailers, an unprecedented customer-base longevity–assuming the customers can be grabbed and held.
A great deal of attention has been given to getting older people playing (or playing again), and justifiably so. The options for senior citizens’ musical involvement continue to grow, and there are many ways to bring them into music, even if they’ve never touched an instrument before. New Horizons Bands, tailor-made for people over 50 (see accompanying story), are likely the first of a spectrum of organized musical activities that will emerge over the next few decades, driven largely by the aging of the Baby Boomers.
Besides New Horizons Bands, which cater to those who’ve never played as well as those who once played musical instruments, keyboard classes are a strong way to get seniors playing. Julie Romeo, the Vice President of Market Development for Creating New Markets at Brook-Mays Music in Dallas, says, "We started with this about four years ago, and we incorporated it into our Lowrey organ classes. We have 12 locations that do that, and probably about 800 seniors who study keyboard with us. That has a great impact. Just because of the logistics of finding rehearsal places, The New Horizons Band is harder to manage. We have found facilities for that at the University of North Texas, for example. All three of our bands are at different universities in the area. So while our New Horizons Bands aren’t in our stores, the keyboard classes are."
Mature players can find themselves frustrated by the pace of their progress, regardless of how fast they learn. A "cushion" that can soften the effect is a keyboard instrument that’s simple to use, geared toward possible limited mobility and deteriorating eyesight, with big buttons and bold type. Some keyboards offer instant gratification: By playing a single key with the left hand, a full chord is sounded. "The first day when they leave class, they feel as if they’ve accomplished something." explains Romeo. "Something like the trumpet is not the same way; it requires a lot of hard work for a beginner to get to the point where they feel they sound good."
A segment of the hobbyist/musician market that doesn’t get much fanfare, but is important nonetheless, is the group who dropped aspirations of being big stars (usually in their mid-twenties) but never quit playing. Their instruments get used, and they may be in bands that play occasionally, usually for fun rather than profit. Typically, these musicians took "Don’t quit your day job!" to heart. Although they do indeed have other priorities, music is still their love. For them, the need for new equipment has largely been replaced by the want for new equipment, although the need for accessories (strings, reeds, drum sticks, etc.) has remained constant, even if these things don’t cycle through as quickly as when these players were devoting several hours a day to practicing, jamming, and gigging.
These musicians don’t need an established program to get them back into music, because they never completely left. Terry Smith, bassist for Cindy Trotier & The Break, a country band from Chicago, is typical of the Baby Boomer who never quite got out of music, and in fact is getting a "second wind." At 47, he’s been working a steady non-music job for three decades, yet he’s always been musically active. He’s been in rock and blues bands, and most recently got into country–and both the band’s guitarist and drummer are also in their late forties and have been steady players since their teens, despite full-time non-music jobs, families, and other commitments. Switching musical styles has gotten Smith’s creative juices flowing, an important factor in maintaining anyone’s interest in playing: "I wanted to try something different," he says. "It takes a different approach, and I always like coming up with new things, things that surprise me." Although he and his peers aren’t what you’d call part of a looming trend, they’re important because they are steady customers: Terry averages one major purchase every nine months (more than $300.00) and visits his local music store an average of once every two weeks, usually to purchase strings, picks, or recording accessories.
In a suburb of San Francisco, Steve Leonardi, too, has picked up the pace of his playing. At 46, this network operations center manager decided he needed some stress relief, so after years of on-and-off playing, he got back into picking guitar, purchasing a couple of new instruments and re-enrolling in lessons. "I didn’t realize how much I missed playing," Steve says, "and even though I was mixing and recording for other people, this is much better at relieving stress and giving me something fun to do."
The challenge for manufacturers and retailers is to keep Terry, Steve, and their Baby Boomer comrades high on music and high on the products for playing it, and to maintain any momentum that they have built up. Even if these non-professional musicians don’t truly need something new, they might want it just because it is new. The trick is keeping them informed and providing the high level of service that they’re used to in the world of high-end sporting goods, automobiles, and furniture.
What gets people pumped up to play, once they’ve left their "star" aspirations behind? That’s both easy and hard to answer. Talking to adults about this isn’t much different from talking to kids. "Why don’t you play anymore?" gets an ambiguous "’cause I don’t." Or, you’ll hear, "I’ve got too much other stuff to do." Such things as having children who play music may tug a little bit, and finding that other people you work with get together and jam occasionally or have a part-time band may inspire them to jump back in. Only in the past half-decade has the "never too old to rock" phenomenon been addressed, and the Weekend Warriors program (see accompanying story) has made a good first attempt at reeling in those who have been sidelined for too long.
Ever since musicians could afford their own "personal studios" two decades ago, the market has expanded tremendously to accommodate the home recordist’s needs. Microphones, patch cords, patch bays, mixers, and the tape machines themselves have all been part of the array of options. Recently, computerized recording has exploded, and tape-based systems are on their way to extinction, placing hard-drive-based mixer/recorders and software and MIDIable controllers front and center. Adding to the appeal, most musicians can reach the bottom rung quite easily, since so many people now own home computers, the basis many of the recording systems.
The opportunity to record songs at home gives the musician an outlet without devoting the time (or altering his or her schedule) for a band. Pete Prown is the 38-year-old Publications Manager for the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, and a guitarist for 25 years. He doesn’t make his living by picking, but he loves to play, performing in an annual local talent show and recording his home-brewed tunes in his home studio during the rest of the year. He still enjoys the challenge of playing, plus he likes the convenience of being able to record anytime he wants. You might say that his musical experience, with the exception of the annual show, is self-contained. Of course, he occasionally buys new equipment, but more often than not, he trots to the local music store for strings, picks, and other accessories.
Addressing the computerized musician–one who uses sequencers, software, and a PC as much as a keyboard, guitar, or saxophone–isn’t difficult, once you know that they require different things, and that they also are usually pretty technologically savvy. Brook-Mays’ Julie Romeo speaks from her local experience, saying that with over 4 million people in the Dallas area, and with half of them owning computers, it’s almost a given that there’s a market for computer-based musicians. "In the past three years we’ve seen a lot of growth there," she relates. "I used to run an ad in the business section of the newspaper that said, ‘Learn how to make music with your computer. No music background needed.’ I would have anywhere between 25 and 50 people show up for that class on Tuesday evening at 7 o’clock. I asked what everyone did, and they were all doctors, lawyers, computer people, businessmen, whatever. And music was a hobby for them. I showed them what they could do with their computers to make music. They liked Band In A Box and sequencing and notation. It was great."
No matter whether it’s teaching MIDI, recording, or any other computerized system, some homework and a lot of planning must be done before starting a program, if for no other reason than to make sure that it’s a good match for the store’s capabilities. Julie Romeo warns, "Just because one person can teach one class doesn’t mean that you can successfully have many people teaching many classes. You have to make sure that you can run a program across as many stores as you might have, and have salespeople who can accommodate the program."
There's no easy way to solidly define adult music enthusiasts or their spending habits, but there are certainly some at the higher end of the income bracket that not only play an instrument, but have the money to afford purchases that they wouldn’t have been able to make at an earlier point in their lives. Some begin collecting. Instead of buying art or classic cars, they put their money into instruments.
Collecting musical instruments is what you might describe as scratching an expensive itch, if the instruments aren’t going to be played. But musicians usually collect the instruments they play, and play the instruments they collect. And some aren’t content with off-the-shelf models; they want the deluxe, "I want it the way I want it" version with lots of bells and whistles (figuratively speaking, of course!), and they have the money to support their taste. In addition, a collection doesn’t have to consist of old music-making gear, but instead can be centered around new instruments: Some guitarists want one of each type of Gibson Les Paul, for example.
A West Coast bass maker relays a story of a dentist who bought one of his instruments through one of his dealers, and soon after was hounding the dealer to get him another one, and then another. He wanted them now. He didn't realize that special-order instruments actually take time to build. Halfway across the country comes a similar story of a guitarist ordering two of the same high-end instruments, except in different colors. "He said that he always wanted a black one and a white one," explains the salesman, "so rather than settle, he bought one of each."
There's one overarching message that comes through loud and clear from those who run any program, whether it's Weekend Warriors, New Horizons Band, or one tied to a specific manufacturer or curriculum at a local school or university: You need to be organized and focused if you want it to work to everyone’s benefit.
Measuring success can be difficult, especially when you try to connect band or lessons involvement with sales. Again, the trick here is to find your own ways to track the connection, establishing rapport between retailer and musician, and keep an eye on their buying habits and respond to their needs. Above all else, the adult hobbyist musician doesn't absolutely need anything that a store offers, but he or she has different levels of want, and that can be a powerful driver, especially for someone with disposable income.
If there’s one piece of advice to follow, it’s this: In order to get people into learning and playing again, you have to start with no preconceived ideas, and let your creativity drive the process of accommodating them. You need to provide the playing field, and you have to just be there to support your instructors and the programs you put in place. Julie Romeo adds, "You can’t be thinking about selling when those people come in to learn. Selling is the by-product of the class. That’s a different kind of thinking than many retailers are used to. You have to think, ‘I’m going to start this class, and if I do a good job and the people have fun and learn a new hobby, then I know sales will come through that.’ You must build relationships and be a good coach, and the sales will follow."