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Guitar anyone (other instruments too)? (Discussion thread)
Godfather
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So a couple of weeks ago I started picking up the way of the guitar, and although i'm nowhere near decent I must say that it's been a pretty enjoyable experience to learn. I actually got an electric guitar during the middle of my freshman year in high school, but didn't even bother to take lessons or much less actually care about playing guitar in the first place (I know, I was a horrible kid back then by doing this).
Anyways, for what has seemed like the longest time (bout a little over a year) i'd always wanted to learn how to play more of a casual style of guitar. Nothing like the rock groups that hammer out the chords at thousands of decibels at your typical (decent) rock concert, just something easy to play and relax at the same time. I figured an acoustic would be the way for me to go, much less start off on, but I kept making weak-ass excuses to not just go for it (i.e. "not enough money/time/etc").
Something just clicked inside my subconsious one day, and I decided to just go through with it no matter the cost. I'm not gonna lie to you folks; I was fighting against the idea inside my head almost every step of the way. I knew that I wanted to do it, but all of these mental walls just started springing up, presenting all sorts of reasons why I shouldn't do it, each excuse more convincing than the last. Fortunately, by the time I had taken my first lesson it clicked that I had finally done something about this idea that had been a concept of mine for so long, and i'm so glad that I went through with it.
Anyways, enough backstory.
The guitar that I own right now is a beautiful La Patrie (Etude model) acoustic that was made in quebec, canada. If there's anything that I learned about canadians, it's that they can make a damn fine guitar. Although the price for this thing was pretty steep (with a case, it clocks in at a little over $400), but it's easily the quality of a guitar worth over a grand. If you're gonna be playing a guitar for a while, you might as well invest in quality I say. It's definitely an excellent beginner/intermediate model that will be lasting a long time for me, so that was the top priority when it came to purchasing one.
I still have my beginner Fender in my room, but i've come to love the acoustic so much that playing the other just doesn't feel the same. It's like the body without the soul, ya know? While I do appreciate a whole mess of rock and roll, i'm a bit more biased towards the spanish/argentinian style of playing guitar. Hopefully when I get a little better i'll be able to grasp a much better appreciation for rock, but right now i'm pretty content with a more casual style of playing at this point.
The only other instrument that I play would be the saxophone, and to be honest it's been kind of a hit and miss regarding that. To really get the most out of that you have to play with a group of other like-minded musicians. I used to do this with a few of my friends on a regular basis, and I gotta say, when executed right it really is one of those experiences that can't be beat. This theory is especially important when it comes to playing jazz (none of that bullshit watered-down crap that plays on the radio during a sunday morning, i'm talking real jazz here). Personally I think everyone should experience what it's like to sit around a jazz session, if only to hear the different musician's take on embellishing their solos. If you really know the piece inside-out, you can do whatever the hell you want with it regarding solos. A solo should be like telling a story to the rest of the group via music and rythim. If done right, it can absolutely nail the type of mood your in, your thoughts and opinions on a certain matter, you name it. In short, it's a way of taking a conversation to a whole new level, where words simply won't cut it.
However (for me at least), unless you have that group to work with or a really strong love of playing that instrument, that's usually where the pros end. The saxophone can be a really boring as fuck instrument if you don't play to it's strengths, and ever since the group I played with broke off and went our separate ways I haven't really been inclined to play the damn thing for a good while now (that and the last couple of years in band really screwed up my appreciation for the thing). So long story short, I don't really get much use out of my sax unless i've got a group to play with.
This is just a thread to discuss any and all kinds of interests in playing music in general, regardless of the instrument. I'd be interested to hear if anyone has any stories/experiences to share regarding playing gigs, with friends, or just because.
Anyways, for what has seemed like the longest time (bout a little over a year) i'd always wanted to learn how to play more of a casual style of guitar. Nothing like the rock groups that hammer out the chords at thousands of decibels at your typical (decent) rock concert, just something easy to play and relax at the same time. I figured an acoustic would be the way for me to go, much less start off on, but I kept making weak-ass excuses to not just go for it (i.e. "not enough money/time/etc").
Something just clicked inside my subconsious one day, and I decided to just go through with it no matter the cost. I'm not gonna lie to you folks; I was fighting against the idea inside my head almost every step of the way. I knew that I wanted to do it, but all of these mental walls just started springing up, presenting all sorts of reasons why I shouldn't do it, each excuse more convincing than the last. Fortunately, by the time I had taken my first lesson it clicked that I had finally done something about this idea that had been a concept of mine for so long, and i'm so glad that I went through with it.
Anyways, enough backstory.
The guitar that I own right now is a beautiful La Patrie (Etude model) acoustic that was made in quebec, canada. If there's anything that I learned about canadians, it's that they can make a damn fine guitar. Although the price for this thing was pretty steep (with a case, it clocks in at a little over $400), but it's easily the quality of a guitar worth over a grand. If you're gonna be playing a guitar for a while, you might as well invest in quality I say. It's definitely an excellent beginner/intermediate model that will be lasting a long time for me, so that was the top priority when it came to purchasing one.
I still have my beginner Fender in my room, but i've come to love the acoustic so much that playing the other just doesn't feel the same. It's like the body without the soul, ya know? While I do appreciate a whole mess of rock and roll, i'm a bit more biased towards the spanish/argentinian style of playing guitar. Hopefully when I get a little better i'll be able to grasp a much better appreciation for rock, but right now i'm pretty content with a more casual style of playing at this point.
The only other instrument that I play would be the saxophone, and to be honest it's been kind of a hit and miss regarding that. To really get the most out of that you have to play with a group of other like-minded musicians. I used to do this with a few of my friends on a regular basis, and I gotta say, when executed right it really is one of those experiences that can't be beat. This theory is especially important when it comes to playing jazz (none of that bullshit watered-down crap that plays on the radio during a sunday morning, i'm talking real jazz here). Personally I think everyone should experience what it's like to sit around a jazz session, if only to hear the different musician's take on embellishing their solos. If you really know the piece inside-out, you can do whatever the hell you want with it regarding solos. A solo should be like telling a story to the rest of the group via music and rythim. If done right, it can absolutely nail the type of mood your in, your thoughts and opinions on a certain matter, you name it. In short, it's a way of taking a conversation to a whole new level, where words simply won't cut it.
However (for me at least), unless you have that group to work with or a really strong love of playing that instrument, that's usually where the pros end. The saxophone can be a really boring as fuck instrument if you don't play to it's strengths, and ever since the group I played with broke off and went our separate ways I haven't really been inclined to play the damn thing for a good while now (that and the last couple of years in band really screwed up my appreciation for the thing). So long story short, I don't really get much use out of my sax unless i've got a group to play with.
This is just a thread to discuss any and all kinds of interests in playing music in general, regardless of the instrument. I'd be interested to hear if anyone has any stories/experiences to share regarding playing gigs, with friends, or just because.
Godfather on
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Yeah, fuck guitars.
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It's a really good idea to learn how to play piano, simply on the soul basis that everything else is based around the set-up of the thing.
I'd learn how to play that but I don't have the money to buy one, much less a decent keyboard. There's been many instances in which I knew how to play it though. Maybe if I can scrape up some money for a decent keyboard, I can start. I hear it's not that difficult to learn.
I will say it right here and right now.
Fuck Jack Johnson.
If people didn't buy into the ideal of "Hey, guitars get me chicks", people like Johnson wouldn't be getting as much airplay as they do.
It works though, shit.
Just disgusts me, because that's such a goddamn waste.
I like the instrument, but in my current situation, and being a slow learner, I want to switch to something that's more compact and has fewer strings.
After my upcoming vacation, I'd like to buy a Ukulele. I have a keyboard as well, but I literally have no space to set it up.
Now I'm thinking the Ibanez ARC300 with the dark violin sunburst finish, and either a Roland Micro Cube or the similar model of amp VOX makes in that price range. I also really want to switch my computer chair to one without arms...I think that plus having the guitar close by on a stand would do wonders for encouraging me to practice more.
Mainly though, I am just enjoying the ride. Even if I just do some basic exercises like the chromatic scale for 10 or 20 minutes, I put the guitar away and feel good, relaxed, mellow. It's amazingly soothing.
I play guitar and bass. Both on a casual level with very minimal instruction in either instrument.
I own two guitars and one bass.
One guitar is a cheap Fender strat that I keep in dropped tunings
The other is a Brawley custom edition that I picked up second hand, it plays VERY well.
My bass is a Schecter 4 string Diamond series. I recieved it as a gift and I like it alot
Lately I've been itching to pick up the drums.
I know that may make me sound shallow when it comes to my guitar preference in music, but that's one of the few exceptions I found in video game music that warranted me learning how to play it. It's not that difficult of a song to learn, and it really is a relaxing melody with a spanish vibe to it (again, i'm a sucker for these types of tunes), so I attempted to play it for a few days via tabs I got off on the net.
I just finished my second guitar lesson today and it turns out that my instructor (whose been playing for 30+ years) not only knows the song, but has actually played it quite a few times at many of the gigs he's done. He's a phenomenal guitar player, but that's always been one of his favorite tunes to play. Just goes to show you that some of the best songs out there are the simplest.
EDIT: Man, I almost picked playing drums over the sax a long-ass time ago. I kinda wish I did, because i've been told that i'm one of the few white boys out there with a sense of rythim and shit. I've always been good with keeping time, thinking outside the box, you name it.
This one has me perplexed though; a drum set is not cheap by any means, and I honestly can't think of anywhere in my house that I could go without pissing off a shitton of people, whether it'd be family or neighbors.
Ain't no need to go outside,"
Just playing this and the part before is enough to get a girl wet.
But hey, he doesn't know anything about guitar theory anyway, he can't even read music, just tabs.
A guitar group that i've really come to respect is Rodrigo y Gabriella. I heard them play one night on the Tonight Show and it really floored me. I went out and bought their CD and they've got a lot of really awesome stuff on there. Something interesting to note is that they did their own version of Stairway to Heaven in the style of spanish guitar. I honestly thought it would sound pretty mundane but it was actually quite good (really good in fact). My favorite parts are when he embellishes on a few of the section, creating these really kickass jingles in between the main melody.
hi5 dude.
Hell, a lot of the early stuff I learned (aside from the obligatory Green Day/Nirvana/Ramones stuff to get Power chords out of the way) was video game music.
At one point, I could pretty much do a medley of all the Ocarina songs.
Anyway, I'm pretty good, I suppose. I fingerpicked for a few years, but now I've gotten into rock, moreso. Nailing the Iron Man solo, or playing a crunchy Led Zeppelin riff is a hell of a lot more fun that playing Classical Gas.
I'm more or less at the point now where I can play any song if you let me look at the sheet music of it for a while, so now I just look for random difficult songs to learn to play.
Anyone remember that neat little song in FFX called "The Sight of Spira"? That's one amazing video game guitar song I tell you what, but from my standpoint it's pretty difficult.
Oh, and the Song of Healing from Majora's Mask is a really easy song that's great for beginners. It's the first song that i've successfully been able to play.
EDIT: Flamenco style is the most difficult guitar style from my standpoint. Listen to artists like Govi and you'll get what I mean. Listen to the song "Andalusian Nights" and you'll get what I mean. While the song doesn't sound like it's played via Flamenco I can assure you that he prefers to play like that, and the song itself displays the spanish vibe without sounding stereotypical. It's actually some great driving music to boot.
because they are so cherry
I used to fiddle; there's an instrument the chicks dig, I tell you what.
I have a Gibson LP-style guitar, and you can't tell the difference. It sounds amazing.
if I were to want to just make stuff up on my guitar while dicking around or even actually write something, what would I go about learning first to make that happen?
links we be nice
what the fuck are you talking about
you just told me that i don't need a gibson because you can't tell the difference and then you say that it sounds amazing.
what brand?
What are you talking about? I was referring to my LP-copy.
Depends on what you get.
Imo, Gibson is way over priced. It seems like the finishes are what costs so much. You can get something that plays just as good but at half the price of a Gibson.
dude i have played a gibson
i have played an epiphone
if you can't tell the difference, you are playing on a shitty amp
My guitar wont sell but for like 80 bucks now since they are making a new model.
Some people get all the talent.
EDIT: It's usually the jazz guitarists who are the best at embellishing and thinking on the fly with a solo. All it is is toying around with the scales and limiting yourself to a few notes (I really wish I could remember which notes are okay to play and which ones you generally stay away from). There's supposed to be a certain pattern that you steer away from from sounding too repetitive/stagnant, but that's knowledge I pulling from years back, so I have no idea.
I just started around a month ago, I guess. All I've learned so far is Everlong and a couple of chords. I'm not very good at keeping a practicing schedule so I'm still fairly new at it. Fun experience though.
I'm maybe planning to get an amp and an electric guitar sometime in the future.
Damnit, Kusu...I like you, but you are making this really hard.
he has a cd that is just him playing every instrument
i'm used to playing on like 5000 dollar sound systems :O