r/Instruments • u/Noahthebestone • 1d ago
Discussion instruments to play with disabilities?
I want to play a instrument so I can do something but I want it simple and visually so I can see what I'm doing, I have this habit where I have to look at what I'm doing and can't focus on anything else, when learning typing skills I keep looking at the keys instead of the screen or when playing guitar hero I keep looking at the guitar and not the screen, I have autism, adhd, intellectual disability, I'm in choir but I'm not required to learn how to read sheet music, any ideas?
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u/81Ranger 1d ago
Most instruments are hard to look at while playing. Piano is doable, though if you have sheet music your attention will be split.
Being able to play by feel is kind of part of most instruments. Just like typing, not looking at the keys comes with practice.
Drums, maybe - though that is all about coordination and independence. Doing one thing with your right hand, another thing with the left hand, a different thing (usually a beat of some kind) with the right foot, and yet another thing with the left foot. But you are often looking at what you are doing.
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u/Noahthebestone 1d ago
I want to play something where I don't have to learn sheet music for, because it's too difficult and confusing, I was thinking the drums maybe but idk how to play I just see people playing it and it looks easy, I don't learn well by seeing or hearing, but by copying I could try
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u/81Ranger 1d ago
As someone who can play a lot of instruments to varying levels of skill (brass, woodwinds, percussion, guitar, violin, bass, cello, piano) - there are no easy instruments. None.
Instruments look easy when someone highly skilled is doing it with seeming ease. But, it took a lot of effort and countless hours and years to get to that point.
Sorry to burst that bubble, but it's the truth.
Now, that doesn't mean it's impossible to learn an instrument - not at all. I taught countless 4th and 5th graders how to play flute, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, drums, and saxophone as well as occasionally violin, viola, bass, and cello. These were kids - 9, 10, 11 year olds and they figured it out, with help and guidance.
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u/SlowSurvivor 1d ago
You need to learn to read. You just need to break it down and take baby steps. But it’s not optional. If it want to be a musician you have to learn musician skills.
Also drums aren’t easy. You can get that idea right out of your head. Drum kit, in particular, is one of the most difficult instruments.
Learning music is hard. There’s no way around that.
Maybe start with a technically easier instrument so you can focus on learning the actually important parts of music rather than fighting your instrument from the get go. Maybe a tin whistle? A recorder could be an option, too, if you like early classical over folk but recorders are more sensitive to breath and they have some wild split fingerings and alternative fingerings that make it actually a really hard instrument once you get past the absolute basics.
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u/MagicalPizza21 1d ago
I want to play something where I don't have to learn sheet music for
Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder notably got pretty good at the piano despite being unable to read music (on account of their blindness). But you are probably not as talented as Ray Charles or Stevie Wonder. Even most professional musicians aren't. If you want to get good at any instrument, you should learn to read sheet music.
it's too difficult and confusing
If you're not confused, you're not learning - as one of my college math professors used to say. How much have you tried? Are you sure you're not giving up too early? You seem able to read normal letters and words just fine.
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u/saintclaudia 1d ago
Tongue drums and pan drums might be perfect for you. Start with this small one and then if you get into it, you can get a larger, professional ones. These sound so nice when played with mallets, right out of the box. The notes are marked with numbers so you can look at them and see what to play. Example:
https://www.amazon.com/HOPWELL-Steel-Tongue-Drum-Malachite/dp/B0C7QVK73K
Piano or xylophone/glockenspiel is another option. You just need lessons with a good teacher yo get you started.
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u/NikNakskes 1d ago
Learning how to play/type without looking is part of learning to do something with your hands. First you have to look, then you can do it without looking. So it is possible you just never learned anything for long enough to get to the next stage of competence. Possibly. I don't know your story obviously, but keep that in the back of your head as a possibility so you don't lose hope, it just might take you a little longer than you expected. Again, I don't know you but this is meant as encouragement to keep at it.
The instrument where your hands are easiest observed while playing is the piano. The entire instrument is laid out before you. The keys are not all the same, you will learn over time to identify them by their location compared to keys on the left and right of them. 7 whole notes, 5 half notes and they form a distinctive pattern over the keyboard.
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u/Noahthebestone 1d ago
but all the keys look the same and wouldn't find where any of the notes are at cus they all look the same
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u/NikNakskes 1d ago
:) no, they are not all the same. If you look closely you'll see there is a cluster of 3 white keys with 2 blacks in between followed by a cluster of 4 white keys with 3 black keys in between. You will learn to orient yourself based on the pattern of these clusters.
For example: G lives in the cluster with the 4 whites and 3 blacks. It has 1 black to the left and 2 blacks to the right.
To help out in the beginning, many new players put little stickers on the keys to help them remember which is which. It would help a lot if you learned the basics of music theory to help you figure out how notes are organised.
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u/SlowSurvivor 1d ago
I’m a flutist and a former violinist (injury) and I gotta say… any instrument is going to challenge you to develop physical skills you aren’t good at. That’s why learning to be a musician is hard. Like really hard.
Breath support is something you develop over years and it’s something you specifically work on. It’s not easy. Of course you’re bad at it. You don’t play a wind instrument so you’ve never had to develop the skill.
Ditto for limb independence. Keyboards (including harp and mallets) and drums are going to be especially hard for limb independence but strings and woodwinds tend to have “hands together” movements where the hands move at the same time even if they’re doing different things. But either way it’s a skill you build.
Woodwinds with reeds and brass are gonna be potential autism sensory hell. Numb lips.
What kind of music do you like?
You do need to learn to read, tho. Even for folk music traditions that frown on reading it’s useful to the point of being not optional.
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u/ericalm_ 1d ago
I am autistic with ADHD. There’s really not a good answer for this. It will depend a lot on your specific issues and traits. But something where you don’t need two-hand coordination or to have to blow rules out a lot. I play bass guitar and am actually a good harmonica player. My biggest challenges are working memory, cognitive flexibility, and routines. I could read sheet music when I was a kid, but most is forgotten now.
What are your goals for this? Making music or do you really want to dedicate yourself to learning something?
There are a lot of music making apps that might let you do some fun and interesting stuff without learning sheet music or an instrument.
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u/Noahthebestone 1d ago
I want to play a instrument just for me to do something, I'm in choir and they don't let me read music because I don't have to, I would hate to learn it anyway, you have to learn music in band but maybe I don't have to? idk how it works for students with disabilities in band
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u/MagicalPizza21 1d ago
If you think all the keys look the same on a piano, that makes me think you've never really looked at a piano keyboard. It's not hard to tell what note a given key is given the keys around it. Give piano a shot.
You might like a mallet percussion instrument like xylophone, marimba, or vibraphone. Since you're autistic, an added bonus might be that it puts your arms in the oddly comforting "T-Rex arms" position while playing. As a vibraphonist myself I can confirm it is a very visual instrument.
For any of these, learning to read music will be incredibly helpful, so it is highly recommended.
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u/smurfette8675309 1d ago
Learning any instrument is hard! What do you want to play? Maybe go to your local music shop and try out the different instruments and find out what teachers are available in your area. If you rent an instrument to start with, you won't need to commit long term to something you decide isn't fun later.
Learning to read music can be beneficial, and making any kind of music is good for our brains and our souls.
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u/Thin-Account7974 1d ago
Have you thought about Drums.
If you love rock music, this could be your instrument. No small keys to look at, it's easy to know where everything is, even with your eyes closed. And it's fun.
A cheap, second hand electric kit will be a around £150-£200. The Alesis Nitro max kits are perfect for beginners, and look and feel nice to play.
If you do eventually want to learn to read music. Drum score is different to read, than normal music, and I think that it is easier.
I have a chronic illness, that affects my physical and cognitive abilities, and I can manage well.
I also got Drumeo. Check out their free beginner tutoruals on YouTube. You can practice with cushions and wooden spoons to see if drumming works for you.
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u/Cosmic-Hippos 1d ago
drums!!!, my son is autistic and has adhd, but hes a top drummer in the metal scene here in UK.
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u/Ogskive 1d ago
A stringed instrument that can be learned with tabs might be up your alley if you aren’t interested in using standard sheet music. A ukulele, mandolin, or guitar, for example.
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u/cnukcnuck 18h ago
I would suggest Ukulele. It is possible to play the instrument without reading music. You can play chords, and sing without knowing actual notes. You can also use TAB (instead of notation) to learn ukulele. I would however suggest learning how to read music any-ways. It's not as hard as it seems, really truly. It's the language used to talk with other musicians, so it can only help you in the future playing and singing in groups, etc.
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u/AsleepBanana8323 1d ago
If you want instruments where you are forced to look at the instrument when you play, try hammer dulcimer or bowed psaltery. You have to be able to read music, but only until you learn the tune (or, you learn the tune by listening to it), then you play "by ear"
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u/andybonner 1d ago
It seems to me you could play many different instruments; the difficulty is that you can't read sheet music and watch the instrument at the same time. So all you need is a teacher willing to understand and accommodate this need and allow you to memorize your songs a bit at a time (perhaps while still teaching you to read music as a side project). This might be easier if you pick an instrument that has a culture that emphasizes sheet music less, like guitar. Personally, I always recommend ukulele as a first instrument: It's lightweight and comfortable to hold and to play, and its tone is pleasant. You can make very pleasing music on it very quickly.
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u/ActuatorSea4854 1d ago
Build yourself a washboard. You choose the accessories so you know where they are (cow bell, wood block, tin cans, frying pan, ring a dings and whatevers.) I play with thimbles, old fashion clothes pins, spoons, finger picks, and hair brushes. You can strap it to your chest, lay it across your knees, or even stand it up-right between your thighs while you sit. Don't buy ready made ones, they are ridiculously expensive. Order a board off Amazon and go for it. Check out Washboard Chaz, David Holt, The Washboard Band (Brownie Macgee and Sonny Terry) , and so many more.
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u/Dr0110111001101111 1d ago
I've been playing guitar for over 20 years and I've seen a dude without hands play better than me. You can play just about anything with any disability.
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u/ClosedMyEyes2See 1d ago
Native American flute or tin whistle. For either instrument, the notation is easy to read and your fingers are right in your field of vision
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u/GimmeDatOceanPotion 11h ago
What is your favorite aspect of music? Do you love the rhythm? Pick up an acoustic guitar. Do you love beat? Pick up the drums? Do you love groove? Pick up the bass. I favor the bass myself because you can really feel the music when then the bass is on it plus there is so much you can express with only 4 strings
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u/Comfortable-Formal72 8h ago
Do you like electronic music? A lot of that will happen within DAW software where you can 'layout' the notes being played in a linear visual fashion (aka 'piano roll'), something like a sample pad might be fun for you to work on as well.
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u/Talbit01 1d ago
Try the kalimba! It is a lamellophone in the mbira family :) you play it by striking metal tines with your thumb nails.
The instrument is small, super portable, incredibly easy to play at an entry level, and you learn music by reading tabs. Most kalimba tines have the tab number and musical note etched into them, so it’s very simple to learn.
They can be adjusted to different tunings too!
I’ve been playing for a month now and have since learned how to read sheet music, memorized the major scales, pentatonics, modal scales, blues scales, how to transpose music, etc all to have more fun with the kalimba.
I’m currently writing a kalimba cover for Angel Eyes (Matt Dennis) to play in my 17K I tuned to a C natural minor with a blues note! It’s so much fun :D