"How long have you been playing?"

[ole Jason]

The more I hear it the more it irritates me. I seem to always get the obligatory "is that all?" when I tell people I've been playing six years and didn't start upright until I came to college. I never had the oppurtunity to play strings in an organized environment during school. I take a lot of pride in the fact that I hold my own in orchestra and sit higher than people that have been playing since grade school. Why do people make such a big deal out of how long someone has been playing? I know guys that have played guitar twelve years but have no real "experience". Obviously I understand that it does take years to become a mature musician but to some people it's like they equate years on an instrument directly with chops and experience. Lately I've taken to replying with "yes that's all, how much do you practice everyday?". I usually come out on top then har har har. I'd be interested to know if Chris ever gets junk from snobs, having only played bass four years.

[T-Bal]

It seems like the "Is that all?" question is a compliment, as in, "You're that good after only x amount of time?"

I used to ask this question of people who I thought were better that I, to try and guage how long it would take for me to become that good. Now I realize that everyone progresses at a unique pace, and how long someone has been playing is irrelevent.

[tplyons]

Frankly, I've only been playing for three weeks. But on the other hand, I'm already the 4th best bassist in the orchestra...I've already passed three people!