This is a trend I’ve been noticing for some time. Numbers for guitar students are down in private teaching and at the university level.
It seems that student numbers for instruments like the violin, piano and drums are holding steady. Is there really a decline in new students for the guitar?
I was surprised (ok, maybe not really) to see the cover story in Guitar Player Magazine this month was “Who will Save the Guitar?” Guitar Player Magazine!
The problem is a generational one. From the 1950’s through the 1980’s, the guitar was a major force in popular music. Almost every commercial hit featured a guitar solo. The bands, especially in the blues, R&B, Rock-n-Roll, Country, Rock, Punk and Heavy Metal were all guitar-based bands. The singer-songwriters of the 60’s and 70’s wrote, sang and largely played guitars. Guitar was THE musical tool of choice for the hip, young musician.
Even the early rap and hip hop styles featured rock and funk guitar sampling to create a new style of music.
With the advent of Grunge in the early 90’s, the guitar solo became passé. In today’s popular music… you’ll never hear a guitar solo on the radio (except on a country station!).
Guitar players are still needed though. Those solos still reign and are an important part of live musical performance regardless of what you hear on the radio. And in the studio, guitarists play all kinds of extremely varied, supportive roles on multiple instruments to a variety of textures in the overall sound.
Jazz, classical and even rock music are no longer the “popular” musical styles but people are still drawn to those genres and even specialize in them.
Commercial country music might be the last bastion for the popular guitarist. Most new country bands carry 3 or 4 guitarists in their touring bands. That seems like a great idea to me!
Perhaps the decline we are feeling is only a dip. Culture and tastes change from generation to generation. Each needs its own music for its own time and for it’s own young people. The guitar just happened to play a major role for a few past generations. I predict we’ll see a resurgence in the coming years. It may be through a feeling of nostalgia for the older styles or it may be something entirely new for the guitar. Either way, I don’t think the guitar is dead yet.
I don’t want to neglect that there have been plenty of guitar heroes in the last 30 years (Even a popular video game featuring great classic rock). Rock music may not be the popular music anymore but there are still many artists who lean heavily on it. Bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The White Stripes, artists like John Mayer and purveyors of jam like Derek Trucks have kept the torch alive. There are many more. I hope you have your favorites too.
I’m not sure this is a problem to solve or a problem at all. We can all do our part by encouraging the young musicians in our lives, dust off our own guitars or just listen to the music that you loved when you were coming up.
Let’s keep an open mind here too. New music is a great thing. Regardless of the style or the importance of the guitar playing, music should bring people together to make the world a better place. I’ve found that through the guitar. I expect that others will find it too. Again.
Jason Riley
I’m a hustling musician and family man. I love to learn, play, share and encourage others in music. We’ve got some cool bands (including Soca Jukebox) and I am the director of the St. Joseph Arts Academy. This is my Blog!
www.jasonriley.com
www.stjosephartsacademy.com
