Learning to play a musical instrument can be fun, but also quite a burden at times. Young people not only have to find time to practice in the midst of their super-busy schedules. They also have to deal with such tricky problems as taming performance jitters, handling pesky peers, mastering challenging pieces, preparing for rigorous competitions, and dealing with demanding conductors. This lively, highly accessible book will help young people with some of the difficulties involved in learning a new instrument. It is filled with practical tips from more experienced teens and from well-known professional musicians. Numerous studies have demonstrated that children relate much better to advice from an age group closer to their own. That is why 150 teens from renowned musical programs, such as the Juilliard School's Pre-College Program and Boston University's Tanglewood Institute--offer pointers on coping with the various problems they encountered at an earlier age. Both youngsters and adults will also benefit from the practical advice given by nineteen professional musicians, including Wynton Marsalis, Paula Robison, James Galway, Andre Watts, Joshua Bell, and Evelyn Glennie. They tell us how they tackled these same problems when they were kids, and how they handle them today. An extensive resource guide at the end of the book, complete with web address listings, both directs readers to sources of additional help and helps them in their exploration of the world of music. If you are the parent of a child with musical ability, or if your son or daughter is trying to master a musical instrument, this book is the kind of gift that will save a lot of headaches for both you and your youngsters.

Amy Nathan is the author of several books for children, including The Kids' Allowance Book and Surviving Homework. She is the mother of two budding teen musicians and has recently started taking piano lessons.