The Steel Guitar Forum

Almost every time I play somewhere I get asked, "how long does it take to learn to play one of those?" I usually say that it is all a matter of seat time and motivation, not a certain time period.

I have been at this a while and I am still learning. If I had to give a number I would say on average 5 years. Am I off base?

3,000 hours to be ok at it. 10,000 hours to be decent.

I've been playing pedal steel since Oct 1969 and I still find new things.

But, I don't think you can really put a number to it. Everyone is different.

My wife plays piano and guitar. She wanted to play steel and thought it would be easy. She changed her mind after getting into it.

Was told it was an easy instrument to play.......5 months later and I'm still learning where and how to sit for foot placement etc.......funny part is I beleived a guy who never owned one....dumb me, but enjoying the learning process

Sam

After 40+ years of teaching guitar, I can tell you that there is no one answer to the question because people have different levels of musical ability and people learn and take in information in different ways. When I’m asked how long it takes to learn to play the pedal steel, I usually say “a few years”.

Been playing 6 string guitar for over 50 years,2 years in on steel. Motivation is what's driving me ,enjoyment is what's keeping me in. The one thing I've noticed is it is keeping my brain sharper than its been in years!
Justin, I only need about 8000 more hours!

When one first encounters a pedal steel the thing that overwhelms is the notion of both feet, both knees, and both hands. That's how it was with me, anyway.

Oddly, and I suppose it's like driving a car with a shift, those things become second nature. I soon knew what my three pedals and one KL did and it became entrenched.

Touch, tone, volume-pedal technique? Those are very different matters. I got my first steel in '73 or '74 and I'm making progress. That's all I can say with assurance, yet I've earned my living doing it!

I've been at it fifty years and I've successfully scratched the surface.

I will never forget us doing a sound-check one day with Buddy Emmons. He was noodling around and fiddling with amp-settings - like he did - when, suddenly, he exclaimed:

'Look what I've found!'

He played something very clever on the low strings on E9 and seemed very pleased with himself. This was in the late-'80s and he'd long been steel guitar's Master of the Universe, yet even he was making discoveries. That must tell us something.

I have been playing 3 years after 50 years of playing bass. I am nowhere near ready to gig!

I would seriously say it depends on your musical capabilities. Someone who has some musical knowledge or an inherent feeling for music could probably play a song within a few days providing they've had some instruction or instructional material. Becoming adept requires determination and practice. As to answering that question of how long, there's no definite answer since we don't know the capabilities of the inquirer, providing that they are the one who wants to play.
And, BTW- we should never stop learning to play this instrument. There is so much to be absorbed in the learning process and so many different approaches to play in different variations. It's a very personal instrument, which, enables us to develope our own style and sound. It's a never ending journey on a road with no end.

Absolutely, John - music is an endless quest even without the physicality of producing a note on a steel guitar.

I meet someone at a steel show who was a great vocalist and had played bass and sang in many bands. He said he had always loved steel so he finally bought one. He practiced and tried to learn for about a year. After a year one morning his wife said to him "I think you are getting better at steel, I think I recognized the song you were trying to play". He said he packed up the steel and took it to the music store to sell.

I’ve known so many guitarists who bought a pedal steel, and six months later… “Do you know anyone who wants to buy a pedal steel?”

I was almost one of those guitarists Doug. I thought this thing has frets, no problem. Well, I soon found out that not much transfers over like I thought it would. At about the eighth month, thing's finally clicked musically. The physical,muscle memory part came in at about a year. Now, at 2 years I can play with a group at church with an occasional solo gig. It's an endless journey for sure. The one thing that really confounds me, is that I can't sing while I play the steel,like I've done with guitar all my life. My hat's off to anybody that can.

Roger Rettig wrote:When one first encounters a pedal steel the thing that overwhelms is the notion of both feet, both knees, and both hands. That's how it was with me, anyway.

Oddly, and I suppose it's like driving a car with a shift, those things become second nature. I soon knew what my three pedals and one KL did and it became entrenched.

Touch, tone, volume-pedal technique? Those are very different matters. I got my first steel in '73 or '74 and I'm making progress. That's all I can say with assurance, yet I've earned my living doing it!

I've been at it fifty years and I've successfully scratched the surface.

I will never forget us doing a sound-check one day with Buddy Emmons. He was noodling around and fiddling with amp-settings - like he did - when, suddenly, he exclaimed:

'Look what I've found!'

He played something very clever on the low strings on E9 and seemed very pleased with himself. This was in the late-'80s and he'd long been steel guitar's Master of the Universe, yet even he was making discoveries. That must tell us something.

Similarly, a friend gave me a talk tape of a lesson with Maurice. Maurice showed him a lick and said something to the effect that it had been in his head for years and he had recently found it on the guitar!

Bill Duncan wrote:I get asked, "how long does it take to learn to play one of those?"

My answer (with a smile) is "I'll let you know when I get there".