Why are some instruments more popular than others?
When you hear of instruments that people will often select to play in a casual conversation, you’ll likely hear some instruments over others. But what makes certain instruments selections more popular than others?
Popularity. We are impacted heavily by mainstream music. The instruments that we are most often exposed to will have an impact on what others are inclined to select for the instrument that they want to learn. Keyboard, drums, and guitars are relatively popular as such, many people want to learn them.
Price. Some instruments are less expensive than others. Not just the instrument, but also the cost of the parts it takes to replace it is essential to consider as well. A marimba, for example, is not an instrument many people could just go out and buy, so unless a person is part of a school band or something, it is doubtful too many people will learn to play one.
Difficulty level. There are many instruments to choose from; however, some take more work to learn to play than others. It’s not uncommon for people who are first learning to want to be able to play music quickly. Even if it’s just part of a song, being able to play early on can be very rewarding. We’ve become used to instant gratification and persevering till the end is challenging in such a fast-paced world. We expect a lot from ourselves, and others expect a lot from us, even if we are just starting off.
Specialized instruments. Some instruments are known as second instruments that you learn to play after first learning to play another instrument (like learning the flute before learning how to play the piccolo). For specialized instruments, there tend to be fewer players and fewer pieces of music written that utilize these instruments. This adds to the problem and limits the exposure of these instruments.