I have a similar musical background to Joe. I started at age 7 going once a week to a place in Oldham called the Lyceum School of Music. Don't know if it's still there, but it was a real old Victorian style building with a grand staircase and as you walked in, the air echoed with the sound of pianos, violins, soprano voices etc. Just the mention of any type of 'popular' tune would put a big frown on your teacher's face. It was all about learning theory, practising for exams/concerts etc. and I found it all pretty grim to be honest. Sometimes, if you had to do a piece at one of the concerts, you'd be learning it for two or three months before it was considered ready for public consumption! I also used to hate 'aural' lessons/exams. That's where your teacher/examiner plays a passage on the right hand, and you'd have to stand there like a lemon, and then 'sing' it back . . . la, la, la, la, la, la, etc. My voice is a bit like Vic Reeves' 'Club Singer'!

The pace of learning was quite slow and deliberate.

Once I'd 'discovered' life outside of classical music, was when I started to really enjoy playing music. No longer had you to play every note exactly as it had been written. You could basically do your own thing and interpret a tune in your own style.

However, unless you're going to buy a large van to carry your music around in, you're going to have to learn some standards, and busk what you don't know. For some, it never happens, others manage it to a point, whereas others find it dead easy. I think it also depends on whether you enjoy the style of music you're having to play. For instance, when working with a big band, you'll play everything from pop, rock, soul, motown, ballads, standards, jazz, country, etc. etc. and some tunes you'll enjoy playing, (easy to commit to memory), whereas there'll be ones you're not that keen on, (so can't be arsed to learn them - Waltzes & Foxtrots in my case!).

The most enjoyable groups/bands to be in are the ones where you all collectively enjoy the same stuff.

Being able to 'sight-read', (where someone sticks a piece of music under your nose), is definitely a great advantage if you're looking to go pro, however, for the majority there really is no need. If you can learn enough to read a melody line, and have some knowledge of chords, then you're well on your way to finding a solution that works for you.

In general, I think the best 'play-by-ear' players are the ones that haven't been bogged down with the formal, regimented approach taken when learning the 'classical' way.

Swings and roundabouts.

Paul