Although you might find it difficult to put into words, you feel instinctively that a process as long and complicated as learning to make music on an instrument must also have a right time to begin. Because children do not all develop at the same speed, you accept that the right time for one may be wrong for another. Unfortunately, when parents put this question to teachers, they usually get unhelpful answers, which may leave the parent more confused than before. Some teachers will start children at any age. “The younger, the better!” they gaily cry. Some even insist that children must start to learn certain instruments, like the violin, at three or four--“before the Although you might find it difficult to put into words, you feel instinctively that a process as long and complicated as learning to make music on an instrument must also have a right time to begin. Because children do not all develop at the same speed, you accept that the right time for one may be wrong for another. Unfortunately, when parents put this question to teachers, they usually get unhelpful answers, which may leave the parent more confused than before. Some teachers will start children at any age. “The younger, the better!” they gaily cry. Some even insist that children must start to learn certain instruments, like the violin, at three or four--“before the bones have set” Yet, some school authorities recommend starting as late as thirteen or fourteen.