I don't understand this new "Instruments aren't cool" trend.. in fact, I doubt that people know what the word "instrument" really means and that makes me realize that in a few years (or months) we will have people here asking the following:

"I am pretty good at painting notes but I wish there was a way to phisically press the individual notes that appear on the piano roll instead of clicking with the mouse. That would greatly enhance my workflow in music. If I could access more than 2 or 3 octaves that would be awesome. Also, if someone invents this device, please try to come up with a way to include velocity sensors."

 

lol The problem is music technology has progressed so rapidly that it's encouraged laziness. Not many in this generation see the need to learn an instrument anymore, as music nowadays CAN be made without. It's sad. Thank God I'm a young guy with an old school mindset. Threads like this drive me nuts.

 

Last edited: Feb 1, 2016

You don't need instruments, a piece of paper or your mind are enough.

The difference is at the learning stage. For instance, compare music by an oldschool composer (a guy who actually learned and practiced music) on a piano roll/notation software and the derivative "blocky" stuff that a modern DAW paint-muso will come up with.

Kinda reminds me of lazy guitar players who use originality as an excuse for not learning anything and end up playing the same A minor pentatonic for the rest of their lives.

 

Same happened to many other industries as well. Like in game development where every company is tying to market a No Programming, Do-it-All engine that promises to make everyone a millionaire game maker.

 

Worse than that is the "I can google anything, why learn stuff?" attitude that young kids are adopting. We already have an alarming increase in young adult dumbfucks and I don't see it getting any better.

 

I agree with you. But i wouldn't call that music though. A facsimile of music perhaps, but you can always tell that type of music from a mile a while. Because it sounds robotic.

These threads are getting irritating, and not because the questions are usually predicated on laziness or newbie-ish. but because the OP's are incorrigible and Hypocritical(the worst).

They say because they're new they can ask anything. Okay, cool. But if you can ask anything then everyone can respond anyway.

Your questions aren't censored but our responses are? Who would visit a forum with such conditions?

 

Hey now...no need to get personal!!

 

I ain't even implying that it is a bad thing. The only annoying part is how those bums get all superior with their "I play what I feel, I am original".. which is complete B.S. but hey, why bother showing them that you have to practice to really play what you hear and not what your fingers feel like doing?

I can't believe anyone only hears "pentatonic box, bend, box, slide, bend, box, vibrato.."

 

Maybe best method is by ear, keeping some theory in mind (e.g. knowing what root notes and inversions are).
There are also more sophisticated, technically, step by step methods for human chord recognition described on Youtube .
If you don't want to play all this manually, there are some good tools:
- harmony improvisator
- toontrack ez keys
- cubase 8

 

Last edited: Feb 1, 2016

That's why I think it's beneficial to play more than one instrument of different groups, like strings and brass, for example.

Guitar and piano are very visual instruments. They induce you to play with your eyes, not your ears.

The flute or the sax, on the other hand, don't actually allow you to see what your hands are doing, inducing you to play more intuitively.

Each instrument is a different interface which it's own specific flaws. Each one is biased and kind of pushes you to do its own thing.

There's no neutral musical instrument around, you know, one that doesn't lead you into its own direction...

This is the reason why most modern music is played using white keys chords and notes. Modern music is largely based on piano, and on the piano the white keys are way more evident than the black ones...Thus, the piano, as an interface, ends up interfering in the creative process.

Anyway, so, when you combine your knowledge about a bunch of intruments, you certainly become a more creative musician.

For instance, I've learned I lot when I started to transcribe saxophone solos and play them on the guitar. Their mechanics end up being very different than the standard mechanics of a conventional guitar solo.

Then the kid says that he doesn't need to learn any instrument to become a musician...He's got no clue.

 

Last edited: Feb 1, 2016

I am not defending the OP, but I want to add that when I started out there was a lot of pressure from adults to take up piano or violin and study in the "traditional" & "legit" way. Book One, page one... ruler on the knuckles, 2 hours everyday all that. It was a major turn off at the time. I actually hated it. I did it because they said I could play guitar if I took 2 years of piano lessons. To a 2nd grader it seemed like a fair deal.

A lot of my initial reaction (and my fellow forum members) was a more casual updated version of the same "classically trained players are legit, everyone else is a poser" attitude that was heaped on me as an 8 year old. It is interesting to examine that. Has anything changed in the last 75 years? When I started high technology was reel to reel tape machines. I can't imagine what it is like to begin that journey with unlimited access to a modern DAW and virtual instruments.

Sure it is better to have total comprehension of how all the notes relate to each other and all of the labels of the families of intervals. And to be conversant in all of music history up to the present. But some people's journeys start in the middle of all that and possibly they have to go back and learn things in a random piecemeal way later (if at all).

I think it would do us good to remember why and how we got into music in the first place, and at least appreciate that young people today (with the endlessly multiplying distractions) are interested at all in creating music. Albeit with drastically different methods and motivation than was done in my (our) day.

Excellence requires dedication and commitment. To live up to your potential it takes constant effort. Some people just dabble in music for personal enjoyment and will never make the move to become something remarkable.

I also think that music means something very different to the current generation. Since the idea of paying for music is completely foreign to them and they celebrate "DJs" that push play buttons we really can't compare something like Chopin or Hendrix to what is currently popular. The children of the purely digital age are having a completely different relationship to music. For the analog generation it was sacred and culturally unifying for this generation it is basically disposable background noise.

Music is a language and it is most easily passed down within households that speak (and value) that language. It is most easily absorbed by young people while their brains are still forming. I get the feeling this guy is the only one in his family into music and he is trying to figure it all out on his own so I am willing to overlook his possibly rude reaction to a forum full of people telling him he is doing it all wrong.

 

@ClaudeBalls

If someone told you "I've been studying theory and I want to have a deeper understanding/connection with harmony, melody and how it all works", would your main advice be "Keep drawing in the pianoroll?"

I don't think so..

 

I agree.

But.. I also think from his level of understanding that wasn't the question he was really asking.

Rule number one of show business is "know your audience".

I think it is frustrating when threads go bad because of a lack of empathy on both sides. It becomes a dead end.

I don't think his goal is to ever "play" music the way we are all thinking.

People always follow the path that they are most excited about. I think the idea of having to put in years of "hard work" before he could "play" sounds really unfun to most people. From where this guy is at it is a non-starter. People tried to give him some solid examples of how it will benefit him to divert some attention into developing skill with a traditional instrument. Maybe for this generation the computer/tablet/phone really is their "legit" instrument.

I think he is firmly part of the "cut and paste" generation.

One post that mentioned his friends that are still doing the same thing four years later really rang true to me as well. I remember those guys too. That is a great illustration of how you don't want to be stuck in the middle of the lake without a paddle. I can also remember how thick my skull was(is) and how I couldn't understand advice like that until much more water had gone under my bridge.

 

Deep down you agree with the advice that people gave here.

I am all for people doing their own thing and I don't deny that sometimes the original intention gets lost in words. Either way, whatever his real purpose his it doesn't justify any of the terrible answers he gave everyone. People spoke the truth as seen from their perspective (not preference) and if he is unable to deal with that in a civilized manner, then it means that the probability of him being looking for answers up his own ass is very high.

 

i like those:
https://autochords.com
http://www.pianochord.com/list-of-chords

 

Wow dude that's a little bit rude, i was once worried about chord progressions and all that as well until i understood there's nothing better than to learn theory and play an instrument (cause how are you gonna apply that theory if you don't play an instrument?) also analizing other people songs will take you nowhere, what are you gonna do, copy the progressions, change it a little bit?, once you get some theory concepts down it's easy to write your own music, the way you like it and the way you feel it, It's music at the end of the day, you got to enjoy it and there are very few things i enjoy more than playing the actual thing, i'm sure some people agree on this with me.

 

Last edited: Feb 1, 2016

this is amazing!! great thank u

 

My main instrument is the mouse...and I'm proud of it.

 

I disagree with you saying "analyzing other people songs will take you nowhere". Music going as far back as the Renaissance was always built on the successes of their ancestors. Music is pretty much influenced by everything that has come before it. Even Metal, EDM, R&B, etc. all have something (actually a lot) in common with music written nearly 300 years ago by Bach who was likely himself deeply influenced by his predecessors. Studying works of the greats and learning why their music was so greatly received by the public should be the cornerstone of any aspiring composer's/songwriter's work.

Also, you really only have seven or so useable chords if you are just using diatonic harmony (which the majority of songs do) when you are writing a song. Sure you can modulate, use a few borrowed chords, or color the triads with innumerous added tones (6ths, 7ths, Sus, 9ths etc..) but in the end you really have a limited pallet to work with. Chances are if the progression you are writing sounds good it has probably already been used in thousands of records.

Even though this is a bit beyond the scope of the thread creators initial request I still believe more effort should be placed in writing unique musical melodies. This is really where your individuality can be developed. The good news is there is even a science behind writing successful rhythms and melodies, and everyone can learn it if they are willing to put in the hours. Aside from just studying theory, transcribe everything you hear and enjoy! Then try to analyze those melodies based on what you learned in your music theory books. You will come to understand why certain intervals sound particularly pleasing in certain situations, how to write catchy hooks and choruses, how to build or relieve tension in sections, and how most pieces are really just a few motifs (or short melodic fragments) combined and modified in unique ways.

P.S. People shouldn't get mad at the thread creator or judge him. Most people only partake in music for fun as a hobby and don't necessarily intend to make a career out of it (or even dedicate much time to it). As long as someone is enjoying what they are doing all the best to them.

 

Last edited: Feb 1, 2016

I Just have two best solutions fo identifiying chord progressions
1. Humming the base note of the the chord (the root note).
2.Follow the the circle of fifth
Learn these and train your ear, you will never fail to identify any chord progression once you master the techniques.
You need to learn: Minor and major chords with their seventh and diminished extensions.
Learn what are first,second and third inverted chords.
That is all,all about chords you need to learn then your ear will became adapted.

 

Last edited: Feb 2, 2016