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Think you've gotta be 14 and full of hormones to learn guitar? Nope, says NYU psychology professor Gary Marcus. Nearing the big 4-0, Marcus enjoyed sparring with his wife on Guitar Hero so much he got the itch to learn to play the instrument, happily unencumbered by what he describes as âan obvious lack of talent.â
His book, Guitar Zero, chronicles middle-aged ax grinding and the "science" of the brain's ability to learn an instrument. Zero has the support of men too old for such childish things: Quadragenarian Portland bands Tabor Graph and Steer Crazy will rock out with him at Powell's.
WW: How 'bout them calluses?
Gary Marcus: At first, I was really annoyed, and even
feared losing sensation in my fingers. But after a few weeks they became
less of a burden.
Did you have the desire to write your own music or cover songs?
I'm totally about making my own music. Early on, I
discovered that if you want to make up music, if you know the pentatonic
scale, you can let that be a playground.
What's the brain's role in learning to play?
Playing the guitar is an astonishing skill. It requires
the physical dexterity of an athlete, the memory of a chess player, the
ability to work fast without making mistakes. Playing music requires
activation of your entire brain. One might imagine a particular, small
part of the mind that is the "music center," but it doesn't work that
way. You need many parts of the brain to essentially rewire themselves.
Is gaming a good foundation for learning to play guitar?
Guitar Hero, in particular, is
helpful. Video games help with hand-eye coordination, which translates
to the ability to play guitar without watching your fingers. Rock Band III has an option to play with a real guitar, but there's room for more tutorial games to be developed.
Do you have groupies yet?
A 71-year-old lady drummer wrote to say
she wasn't sure if she'd rack up the 10,000 hours [of practice required
to learn an instrument, according to one theory] because her husband
only lets her make the noise an hour a day.
GO: Gary Marcus will appear at Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651. 7:30 pm Thursday, Jan. 26. Free.
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THURSDAY JAN. 26
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WWeek 2015