Music Notes: When your parents don’t let you Play
Welcome to my first Music Notes installment! If you have suggestions for this young lady, please leave them in the comments. 
And, as always, if you have a question, send them on down!
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Hey Heather please help me out. My name is Aastha… I belong to a very musical family. My mother made me join a classical vocal music class when I was 7. I liked the teacher. He wasn’t bad. Now I am 13 going to be 14 this December. As I grew up I began to dislike this type of music so I gave up singing and asked my parents to let me attend a guitar class. They didnt agree and are still forcing me to attend those classes. Wherever I go I am sick of listening to people telling me to continue singing as it is in my blood and all. I am not singing since the last 3 years. My parents havent given up either. I really don’t know what to do.
Please help me. Aastha
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Dear Aastha,
I am very sorry you are going through this. Being forced to do something you don’t care for is never fun.
That said, I would encourage you to talk to your parents again about it. Try to find out why they don’t want you to play guitar. They may be keeping you in vocal music because they don’t take your interest in guitar seriously. A guitar is a big investment, whereas you already own your voice. They may not want to get you a guitar if they think your interest is only going to last a month or two (in which case, they fear having wasted time and money on a guitar that won’t get played again). The thing is, you have to find ways to show them that you’re serious about it and that guitar is something you’re passionate about. Tell them how much you really want to play. Offer to help find a reasonably priced instrument. Offer to help find someone to teach you (If you have friends who play guitar, that is an excellent resource for getting started!).
If you try all of these things and they still won’t budge, consider this: all music is related. You are learning musical skills which will help you when you do get the chance to play guitar. The concept of notes, music structure, and rhythm are universal. Everything you learn now will make you a better guitar player in the end. Just stick with it and don’t give up. If you *really* would rather play guitar than sing classical, take heart that eventually you WILL. It might not be right away — you may have to wait until you are an adult — but if it’s something you really want to do you will find a way to do it. Opportunities have a way of showing up when they’re needed.
Thank you for writing! And best of luck!
Heather
