THINK you are “too old” or too “tone deaf” to learn to play a musical instrument?

Well, think again because neither of those excuses cuts it with Kalkite’s Col Bernau.

Col, who has been teaching school and private students how to play stringed instruments (while playing regularly with various bands himself) in the Snowy Mountains and the ACT for several decades, believes anyone can learn to play guitar, mandolin, ukelele or any instruments from their respective instrumental families.

There is just one prerequisite: You have to be willing to practice.

Col, who describes himself as “a guitar player who plays other instruments” says the ability to learn to play depends on the person and how much time they put into it, not on age, experience or even DNA.

“Anyone can play an instrument,” he says.

“My oldest student is 93. He was an accordion player who at 89 realised couldn’t hold the heavy instrument anymore and decided to move on to another instrument. He started with acoustic guitar, then got his grandsons electric and started playing electric and old Shadows things.

“I have a number of retirees now and they are all advancing. I range in students between second grade through to HSC students and extremely older. I love teaching them all, whether they are doing it for an interest, to progress or as a future career.

“People often say they are tone deaf, but really, anyone can play. When you see that 12-year-old kid who is amazing, then know they have been playing since they were four and have never had their instrument out of their hands. No matter how talented you are, it’s the number of hours you put into it, that’s the factor.”So how much time? “10,000 hours,” he says with a wry grin.

“I have some people who work their guts out and are playing with other people in a band within 18 months; others will take four or five years. Half an hour a day is a minimum, there is no maximum.

“Good musicians are obsessive. Maybe we all got ADHD, certainly the more you can focus on what doing and spent the time, you better you get faster. I enjoy teaching There are moments of frustration obviously, the thing is, you see them improving, understanding more and enjoying what they are doing. Like I say to students when they say they suck, you are just learning."

Col hadn’t planned on making music his career. He started a science degree after finishing school, but decided after 18 months it didn’t suit him, so worked for a few years then decided to start teaching music.

As a musician, he has worked with many well known artists, ranging from Australian acts like Jade Hurley, Daryl Braithwaite, Sikmon Gallagher, Jackie Love, and Normie Rowe.

He has supported BB King, Joe Cocker, Leo Sayer, Pointer Sisters< hot Chocolate, Renee Geyer, Split Enz, John Paul Young and Jon English.

“I went to Canberra School of Music and did a three-year degree in four years part time while teaching and playing music myself," he said.

"My parents were a bit concerned as to whether I could make a living out of it, but because I was teaching full time, I had a decent income.”

He has been teaching in the Snowy Monaro region since 2017 since he and his wife bought a house in Kalkite, but unlike many new arrivals, they were not chasing snow.

“I happened to see an ad in a Canberra mag for the property for sale and came and had a look. It was a nice place on the lake, and we thought we would go for that," he said.

"I have been working at Snowy Mountains Grammar and Jindabyne High School since we bought the house, teaching guitar, mandolin, ukulele, guitar. Last year I had two Year 12s on guitar and one on mandolin and all did well.

“I take private students at Kalkite Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings. There are still some vacant spots if anyone is interested.

“That’s what keeps you doing it, seeing the students improve and going from not being able to play publicly, to joining various bands, touring, and some ended up teaching as well. Some have done TAFE or uni music courses. One has become a guitar repairer and maker in Sydney, quite a number of students have made it their careers, others continue to do it part time. Some just want to play at home and that is just fine too.”

Col’s own journey as a musician started at a very young age.

“Apparently I asked my parents for a guitar when I was six, but they got me a uke and I didn’t actually start guitar till 1968, had lessons and started playing in bands about a year later when I was still in my teens," he said.

He played in blues and rock bands through the 1970s, 90s, 90s and then from 2000 moved into more function type bands.He doesn’t, however, profess to being a singer. “I do harmonies,” he said.

“During the late 1970s and 80s I was leading a five-piece band where I was doing the singing, but it is not something I always wanted to do. Basically, I was the only one in the band who would do it.Col and his wife Lea O’Brien formed COZMO (Capitol of Australian Mandolinata) – which he says is a fancy name for a mandolin ensemble - in 2001.

“It is still going, always welcoming new members, a community orchestra. We rehearse every week and do half a dozen performances a year.“

It has taken us overseas quite a lot, playing in mandolin orchestras in Europe, with huge classical repertoire, with more modern things thrown in. “The more different types of music you can play the better.”