22 Jul,2024

Top 10 Most Challenging Music Instruments to Play as Per Music Artists

Unlike human voices, instruments can be taught and mastered with time. Sadly, you cannot acquire an appealing vocal; you will have to be born with it. You can hone your craft to perfection. The best way to satisfy your musical accords is to pick up an instrument and engage people with that instrument. This article is all about the hardest instrument you mustn’t try to master as it can be harmful to your self-esteem and also to the people living near you and the repercussions of an irritated family can be harmful for you as well. Getting introduced to a musical instrument is something else and picking an instrument of your choice might not bring as much affable scenario as the former option might have brought. Jokes apart, if you are to master any instrument you will have to go through a similar process which involves the following steps:

    • Pick Your Instrument

    • Try Out on Your Own (At your own risk)

    • Go to a Coach or Consult YouTube

    • Practice, Practice, and Practice some more

    • Do not get exhausted out of over-enthusiasm

    • Choose a song you want to play

    • Again Consult YouTube

    • Start jamming with a group (If possible)

In this way, you will get habituated with your instrument. If you aim to play professionally then start auditioning to acquire more knowledge about the portions you lack in your playing techniques, the more you will get rejected the better your skills will become. Yet, be ready for this portion as it might cause you a lot of heartbreaks but, following your passion makes these tough patches of life inevitable. If you are at that stage where you haven’t picked up your instrument yet then here is the list of instruments you must try not to pick right away, even if you do you should have a proper knowledge of the shortcomings of these instruments. All of these instruments in this blog are widely popular except for one and it should be your decision to whether to choose these instruments or not:

    1. The French Horn

The French Horn

The hardest part of this instrument is to blow the sound out of it. This is the first instrument that came to your mind when you read the title, the funny-looking instrument that will make your lip completely numb each time you try to play it. To master this instrument you need to expand your breathing capabilities and if you are not reaching up to your utmost potential then you can practice it to work your lips and cheek out and bring your glow. Hailing from the trumpet family, this wind instrument is all about breath control and placing your lips properly. People who have mastered this instrument surely have a healthy pair of lungs.

Also Read: Top 10 Most Popular Musical Instruments to Learn and Play

    2. Violin

Violin

The violin is a string instrument and the most challenging part of playing this instrument involves the fretfulness of playing this instrument. The position in which the player has to hold the instrument and the entire playing technique seems to be very awkward and highly uncomfortable. For this instrument, the noise and music gap is very wide, which means that you will need to try very hard and practice relentlessly to reach your melodious state with this instrument. The melancholy and the charm of the tune this instrument exudes are surely something that drives everyone towards this instrument and this is why it has been a part of this music industry for such a long time. Not just practice to learn this instrument every practitioner should have a sharp ear as well.

    3. The Organ

The Organ

This is one of those instruments that have a smaller melody-to-noise gap. This musically pleasing instrument was synonymous with baseball and church as well. This instrument has been in the history for last 2000 years and maybe this is why this instrument is so close to Christianity. There have been many changes since the instrument became available to the masses. Organ is very similar to a piano even the playing technique is also quite similar, though there are some differences in its tunes and techniques. The surge for this instrument went up high between the 70s and 80s. Instrument companies started to manufacture various sizes of this instrument.

Also Read: Why Are Drums The Best Musical Instrument Ever?

    4. Tabla

Tabla

This Indian instrument is most popular in every Indian music genre, and the most difficult part of learning this instrument is to get proper classes for it. There are assorted types of Tabla Gharanas (Schools) and if you are to learn how to play a particular gharana or school then you will have to be a part of their family and the way in, involving matrimony. This age-old Indian percussion instrument is heavily used for most of Indian classical music. Every Indian native music gharana practices orthodox approaches to preserve their heritage and allowing an outsider to learn their type of music is considered to be very corrupting in most cases. Tabla has always been a great instrument to learn and many have been showing their interest to learn this magnificent and they can up to a certain basic level. It is extremely challenging to proceed further if you are not a part of that family. The beats of this musical instrument need to be broken down by the teacher otherwise you cannot learn the beats properly of this complicated instrument.

    5. Bagpipes and & Uillean pipes

Bagpipes and & Uillean pipes

Have you seen F.R.I.E.N.D.S? Where Ross was preparing to play Bagpipes and & Uillean pipes to honor his native culture on the day Chandler and Monica were going to wed? If yes, then you know that this instrument also has a wide tune-to-noise gap. And you might find any Phoebe to join you along playing their part so well to support your attempt to play the instrument poorly and you might end up receiving a flying frying pan instead. And maybe this is why they march while they play this instrument as it might help them to dodge a frying pan or god knows what! On a serious note, to learn this instrument you will have to put your heart and soul into this process and get as much time as possible to practice it. Preferably you will have to soundproof your room or find a secluded place to practice your Bagpipes.

Also Read: Bongos: The Iconic Afro-Cuban Drums 

    6. Oboe

Oboe

This windwood instrument with reeds came into the larger spectrum in the late 1700s. This instrument is most of the time a part of the orchestra. You can also regard it as a smaller version of a clarinet. You will need a certain level of aptitude to take it to a pitch-perfect level. This hearing aptitude should be something you need to have; you cannot acquire it with time and dedication. And not just this once is a case of various instruments hearing it properly is more important than playing it right. Apart from that, there’s another level of difficulty as the oboe player must learn the proper breathing techniques as well. And the difficulty level doesn’t seem to end here as well. The instrument comes into pieces and you will have to keep the pieces together in its box and just playing or practicing you will have to assemble them for the instrument properly.

Also Read: Simple Guide for Flutes: Origin, Types, and How to Play It

    7. Accordion

Accordion

This beautiful yet melodious instrument which hardly can be a noise to anyone has lost its respect once people have started to play it on the streets. The constant ridicule of this instrument has been widely disheartening for the instrument yet; no one considers that once learned properly it is hardly challenging to play it badly enough to offend people. Artists like Flaco Jiménez and Lawrence Welk should get their due respect for taking the instrument to global platforms. Many bands also have properly utilized this charming instrument to get the best out of this instrument. Yet, the training period will be stuck with how to play “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” for a really long time, yet you can always boast to others that you are learning a Mozart piece on your Accordion. Hence, by the time you reach to the next level you can almost play a lot of things also.

    8. Didgeridoo

Didgeridoo

This wind instrument is the most difficult to work with, and it makes it almost impossible to breathe for the artist. Even the sound of this instrument varies from instrument to instrument, which makes it more unpredictable. There is a vast gap between the noise it might create and the music it can offer, and this is why the popularity of this instrument is decreasing each year. Even, your family and friends need to practice tolerance while you hone your skills with this instrument. And you must keep people with low tolerance away while practicing this instrument. Originally people would search for the perfect tree to make this instrument, to this date, finding a suitable tree is more difficult than learning to play this musical gadget. From the perfect tree, they will hollow out to make this instrument. This becomes too challenging to try to play it effectively.

Also Read: Saxophone: Exploring One of the Most Distinctive Musical Instrument 

    9. Banjo

Bnajo

The difficulty level for this is not high if you are a seamless multitasking person, as you will have to 3 things at once to speed up the process. Deviating from all the cuts you might get during your first few days and probably later as well. This guitar-like string instrument is something people have been celebrating for centuries and mostly for folk music, this instrument has been widely popular. This is a great option if you are willing to embark upon folk music, then well done, you have chosen the best by far. Once you properly attach is pieces together it is hard to bring something noisy from it. The reason why this instrument is limited to folk music is hidden in its natural musical pitch.

    10. Cello

Cello

Lastly, comes the bigger brother of the violin and the awkwardness increases a level higher with this instrument. This instrument stands in a thick needle-like stick and the rest of the oversized violin is on you, while you spread your legs wider hug the instrument in, and play it with your utmost passion, congratulations, now you have officially made it to the Sonata trio family. The deeper notes of this instrument are surely something you will enjoy learning playing and experimenting with this magnificent instrument. The melody to blare gap is high for this instrument yet once you get a hold of it after several sessions you might overcome the fear of playing it so badly. Yet, everything good starts from something discomforting whether it is a relationship with a person or a musical instrument.

More instruments like Harp, Guitar, Piano, Clarinet, Bassoon, Theremin, and all the Percussion are hard for a beginner yet once you get hold of the instrument you will start to enjoy the process. The learning process will require practice yet if you find an amiable environment where you don’t get suffocated with judgments and unwanted opinions everyone can master these instruments and get a hold of these instruments in a better way. The steps are to practice as much as possible until you reach your utmost potential and grow optimally as much as you dream to be. Some learn an instrument to satisfy their thoughts and calm their minds, yet some are more focused on their journey to reach the furthest heights in this career, whichever your goal may be you will need to acknowledge it and work towards your goal and nothing else. Whether it is as offbeat as a Didgeridoo or as popular as a Guitar, if you want to learn the process you will need to get started and overcome your insecurities or overcome those who cause these insecurities in your life.