The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the effect of ear playing instruction on adult amateur wind instrumentalists' musical self-efficacy. Ten volunteer members of a community band in a small town in Ohio completed the "Ear Playing Profile" both prior to and following an eight-week period of instruction in playing by ear and improvising. In addition, participants provided weekly qualitative feedback and the researchers maintained field notes. Following instruction, the participants expressed significantly greater self-efficacy in performing music by ear (i.e., playing familiar songs by ear, playing along with pre-recorded music, improvising music), as well as in other musical skills (i.e., technical ability on their instrument, understanding their individual part in an ensemble, composing music, and listening to music with understanding). Observations of the learning process and suggestions for future research are provided.