Learning Music OT

[I'm a Puppy!]

Daily Status: 2019-01-02

- Completed Section #2 of Beginner Piano on Udemy, bringing me to 22% completion for the course.
- Learned how to find any key (A-G) on the piano using some brain tricks. I can name any key now!
- Practiced the right hand intro to "Auld Lang Syne" on Flowkey (beginner level.)

Tasty, I love your gusto here. But a possible word of caution, as you get better and move farther the progress you make will not be able to be measured daily. Or if you did it'll get really depressing. There's been times where I've spent a week working on 4 measures.  It can be really depressing. I used to report status weekly so I'd have more to show. I just wanted to point out not to get discouraged when you get to that point where you spend days on one thing. It doesn't mean you're stalled or crap. It's a different kind of progress.

[I'm a Puppy!]

As for my daily status, I'll be using this as my sight reading practice today.



It's a nice piece, never played it.

[Tasty]

Daily Status: 2019-01-02

- Completed Section #2 of Beginner Piano on Udemy, bringing me to 22% completion for the course.
- Learned how to find any key (A-G) on the piano using some brain tricks. I can name any key now!
- Practiced the right hand intro to "Auld Lang Syne" on Flowkey (beginner level.)

Tasty, I love your gusto here. But a possible word of caution, as you get better and move farther the progress you make will not be able to be measured daily. Or if you did it'll get really depressing. There's been times where I've spent a week working on 4 measures.  It can be really depressing. I used to report status weekly so I'd have more to show. I just wanted to point out not to get discouraged when you get to that point where you spend days on one thing. It doesn't mean you're stalled or crap. It's a different kind of progress.

Ya I know, in the OP I mentioned weekly updates for the year. I just feel like doing daily right now while I'm hyped up.

I am concerned about what'll happen when I hit my first wall (or couple walls.) It's been really smooth sailing so far but I'm basically covering the same ground a new third-grade student would. Sticking with it and practicing a section every day is tough, but much more so when you end the session no better than when you started. It concerns me how it'd probably only take a day or two of that to derail my interest slightly (which always has the danger of becoming more than that.) I suppose in that specific instance I could try a different section or song, but there's other "mental" walls I'm sure I'll hit once I get into intermediate music theory too. There's a number of things I'm expecting to potentially trip me up.

So it's something I have my eye on for sure. My hope with this thread is that the social pressure will keep me at the keyboard every day.

I also signed up for Habitica, an honestly pretty-lame habit tracking RPG thing. I've been using a pretty barebones tracker for the past two years to moderate success, but I wanted something cloud-based and more social. If anyone here is on the site, PM me and I'll add you ("Parties" and "Group Quests" are things on Habitica.)

[Tasty]

Daily Status: 2019-01-03

- Read 30 pages of Music Theory for Dummies. Just kept devouring the pages while bored this afternoon. About 1/3rd done with the book now.
- Memorized the first half of the right hand part to "Auld Lang Syne" (see spoiler.) Second half and left hand this weekend. Really happy with my progress today.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

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[agrajag]

Tasty, is it cool to use your thread as a catch-all for musical thoughts? I'm a philosopher.

[Tasty]

Tasty, is it cool to use your thread as a catch-all for musical thoughts? I'm a philosopher.

Absolutely!

[Tasty]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_and_mathematics

My music theory book has touched on a lot of this so far and it's kind of blowing my mind.

[Trent Dole]

I've seen it said that music theory is 'just numbers'.

[agrajag]

I've been messing around with this looper pedal I bought a couple of weeks ago. Man, what a great tool for testing out musical ideas.

[Tasty]

Made a deal with myself to upgrade from my 61-key non-weighted Casio to the 88-key *fully-weighted Yamaha P45/P71 at the end of the month... if I keep up with my practicing and meet the goals I set out at the start of the month.

Wish me luck. 😬

[agrajag]

good luck!

[agrajag]

I've been messing around with this looper pedal I bought a couple of weeks ago. Man, what a great tool for testing out musical ideas.

What pedal is it?

NUX LOOP CORE. It works ok, but doesn't seem to work with distortion. I am still figuring it our, probably need to check out some demo videos.

[agrajag]

jagrabag, you should post some of your stuff

I don't have anything recorded nor do I have the equipment for that. This year I plan on getting that fixed.

[Tasty]

Get fully weighted man.

That's more Demi's thing than mine

[Tasty]

👀

spoiler (click to show/hide)

I'm an emo boy shutup

spoiler (click to show/hide)

This is sooooooo much fun. I'm even having a lot of fun just trying to do sheet music without any other visual aides. I need to start using a metronome tho, my timing's pretty fucked up.

I'n not 10% satisfied with my current playing of this btw, and I still have the other half to learn too.

[close]

[close]

[Tasty]

Get fully weighted man.

Also I was incorrect -- the Yamaha P45/P71 is fully-weighted.

I'm gonna get the bundle, too (consists of the stand, bench, pedal, and headphones.)

[agrajag]

The Russians' contributions to musical arts are substantial and will not be questioned.

[I'm a Puppy!]

Rimsky Korsakov is seriously underrated. I always say the best neo-classical Spanish composer was Russian because of him.

[agrajag]

Rimsky Korsakov is seriously underrated. I always say the best neo-classical Spanish composer was Russian because of him.

the flight of the bumblebee is the only work of his I am familiar with (although I could have heard more of his stuff and just don't know the titles/that they were his compositions). Any particular works you like?

[recursivelyenumerable]

You've probably heard parts of Scheherezade ...

[agrajag]

oh yeah, for sure

[I'm a Puppy!]

[Tasty]

New thread title.

[agrajag]

ostinato?

[agrajag]

well, ostinato is a more general term for a repeating pattern, maybe there is a more specific term for what you're thinking of

[I'm a Puppy!]

I've always wondered, is there a term for a rythmn or bassline that is more or less constant through a song, even though everything else changes for the chorus?

Examples being,

The bassline in Bodies



The rhythm in Everlong

Boy, am I going to blow your mind right now

[I'm a Puppy!]

I'm not listening to 13 minutes of organ music, trying to figure out what's supposed to blow my mind.

Your loss. Stay dumb.

[I'm a Puppy!]

My music theory professor, who had his doctorate in Music theory always quoted Debussy saying "There is no theory. Music cannot be learned."

That confusing asshole!

[agrajag]

My music theory professor, who had his doctorate in Music theory always quoted Debussy saying "There is no theory. Music cannot be learned."

That confusing asshole!

so his entire career was a sham then?

[Tasty]

Today marks one month since I started learning piano! (Dec. 10) 🎹

Might have a vid of my progress tonight or tomorrow. Today also marked the first time I learned a ""completed"" song, but I'm not quite at speed on the last couple measures yet.

Spent like three hours today practicing lol. I've missed two days in January so far but I've made up for it on the following days.

[I'm a Puppy!]

That's awesome tasty! I'm really proud and envious.


But, there's no such thing as make up practice. It doesn't work that way. Still, way to go!

[Tasty]

Yeah it's really frustrating. Those three hours were basically half hour chunks throughout the day, I've noticed my playing gets a LOT worse after the 30 min mark haha.

[Tasty]

Actually -- misread your post. I agree! There are no makeup days really. That said, when you're traveling cross-state without your keyboard, sometimes you have to just accept an off day. (I mean mostly practice-wise; on those days I still tore into my music theory book.)

[I'm a Puppy!]

Fun fact: Rachmaninoff wrote his second piano concerto but hadn't learned it and his agent booked him to debut it 3 weeks later in New York.
Which means he had to learn it solely using a practice keyboard while taking a ship from Europe to New York. He arrived 2 days before the concert. This makes listening to it that much more impressive. When he debuted it he had only played it on an actual piano a handful of times.

[agrajag]

iirc Berlioz was the first major composer who didn't play an instrument, or could not play his own pieces at any rate.

[I'm a Puppy!]

iirc Berlioz was the first major composer who didn't play an instrument, or could not play his own pieces at any rate.

He could play guitar. But he was apparently not very good at it.

[agrajag]

sounds like a guitar player

[I'm a Puppy!]

[agrajag]

another favorite of mine I want to share.



he has so much knowledge and so engaging, even people that don't know a lick (har) about music watch his videos.

[agrajag]

I love old timey instruments with nylon (or better yet gut) strinfs. Classical guitars, lutes, harpsichords, they instantly transport you go a long gone era.

 

[Tasty]

It seems like I suck 10% more when the camera's on, but that's just one more skill to learn.

My first "complete" song at full speed. You can really tell the differences compared to the vid a week ago. I'm really happy with my progress so far.

[Tasty]

Also been listening to chunks of this:



Puts the fear of God into me like little else has.

[agrajag]

well Scriabin did try to initiate the apocalypse and raise the old ones with his music..

[I'm a Puppy!]

I love old timey instruments with nylon (or better yet gut) strinfs. Classical guitars, lutes, harpsichords, they instantly transport you go a long gone era.

 

True story. When I was in college I was approached by the early music ensemble because they needed a lute player and they were asking me to help them. I said OK, and they gave me a lute to use and some tablature. I had to learn to teach myself to learn lute tab (no small feat) and I honestly rather enjoyed it. Not as much as the guitar, but it was a nice diversion. Anyhoo, we play a bunch of concerts and all that then one day I get a letter from the Utah Shakespearean festival offering me a job to come and dress up like a minstrel and play the lute for people at the festival. 

Right after that I put down the lute and never picked it up again. If the end game is becoming a professional m'lady-er I didn't want to spend more time on it.

[agrajag]

yeah, next thing you know you're an alcoholic living in the trailer behind the renaissance festival

[Snoopycat_]

I once dated this girl who was in an "experimental" band which made her seem all cool and mysterious. One night I went to see her and her band playing a gig in a half empty pub. It turned out it was just her and 3 Yokos hitting things with spoons. I had to be all supportive and pretend she wasn't a total spaz so I could get into her panties, which turned out to be not worth it. The next day she took me to see some chamber orchestra. I was stuck with her and a bunch of beards watching some divs playing cellos like it mattered. Anyway, the point is you don't even need to learn to play anything cos you can just say your avant garde and nobody will say shit.

[Tasty]

There's always room for self-improvement.

[Snoopycat_]

This is my favourite YT music guy. I like Jak because he's coked to the gills and looks like Bill Murray in drag, but he knows his stuff and he's down to earth. A lot of YT music guys are boring or precious as fuck. Ask James James why he only plays boring 70s shit and it's guaranteed she'll have a mental breakdown and threaten to quit.

[headwalk]

This is my favourite YT music guy. I like Jak because he's coked to the gills and looks like Bill Murray in drag, but he knows his stuff and he's down to earth. A lot of YT music guys are boring or precious as fuck. Ask James James why he only plays boring 70s shit and it's guaranteed she'll have a mental breakdown and threaten to quit.

this is what i'm talking about. i get nothing out of the modern eductated youtube guitarist who goes into aspergic detail about the pick slant slash uses or whatever while having no emotion behind it. if you're teaching rock or metal, there needs to be a rawness there. a piss stained pair of drainpipes that you haven't been able to squeeze into for a decade and a trembling disposition that tells its own story.

i mean, you don't have to go that far, but you have to understand that it's as much about projection of energy as it is notes on a page.

quite like ben eller for that reason. he splits the difference. he's def of the new school but still gets it.

[agrajag]

ITT old rocker man yells at cloud

[I'm a Puppy!]

I once dated this girl who was in an "experimental" band which made her seem all cool and mysterious. One night I went to see her and her band playing a gig in a half empty pub. It turned out it was just her and 3 Yokos hitting things with spoons. I had to be all supportive and pretend she wasn't a total spaz so I could get into her panties, which turned out to be not worth it. The next day she took me to see some chamber orchestra. I was stuck with her and a bunch of beards watching some divs playing cellos like it mattered. Anyway, the point is you don't even need to learn to play anything cos you can just say your avant garde and nobody will say shit.

In college there were several times I was asked to perform with the modern music ensemble. 80% of the performances I did with them I was sight reading/just making it up on the fly. They were always like "Oh man, that was soul touching! Such artistry!" 80% of modern/avant garde music 

[Himu]

Tasty doing good

[agrajag]

that depends on your taste.

According to some very well respected musicians and composers, theory is more of an "after the fact" analytical tool. The real trailblazers create theory. But, all the greats were students of the craft in one way or another.

[I'm a Puppy!]

For every guitarist that actually doesn't need theory there's 20,000 playing wonderwall baldy and thinking they're hot shit.

Never understood the "I don't need theory!" people. Unless you're Jimi or Stevie or Randi (who btw he actually knew his theory) why would you not want more insight into your craft?

[Tasty]

Tasty doing good

Thxoxoxo

[agrajag]

For every guitarist that actually doesn't need theory there's 20,000 playing wonderwall baldy and thinking they're hot shit.

Never understood the "I don't need theory!" people. Unless you're Jimi or Stevie or Randi (who btw he actually knew his theory) why would you not want more insight into your craft?

True. At the end of the day, all those theoretical terms Stro ridiculed are just names for musical sounds. If you just want to play blues-based riffs it's fine to stay in the rock bubble, and it's true that you don't need a whole shit ton of theory for that.

A lot of oldschool jazz guitarists have a very simple approach to theory. For example, Jimmy Bruno rejects any kind of modal analysis, he just trained his ear very well and knows how each note will sound over any given chord, how intervals resolve, etc. That's theory in itself, but more like theory in practice and very stripped down.

I think theory should be looked at as an educational tool, not a rigid template for composing music.

[I'm a Puppy!]

Yup. And it takes different kinds. I understand that I dissect pieces and like to follow theory and all that. But that's why I stay away from composition. I'm too held by rules by the way my mind works. That's fine. I can take someone's piece and make it mine. Others can go and create new. I just can't stand though people that are like "I don't need theory!" and all they can come up with is the same insipid stuff everyone else who thinks they don't need theory comes up with. Just as much as I can't stand the people that are like "Well, I learned in theory class that I should write it this way..."

[agrajag]

For every guitarist that actually doesn't need theory there's 20,000 playing wonderwall baldy and thinking they're hot shit.

Never understood the "I don't need theory!" people. Unless you're Jimi or Stevie or Randi (who btw he actually knew his theory) why would you not want more insight into your craft?

Mostly because it's boring and turns music into a mechanical process.

"A lot of oldschool jazz guitarists have a very simple approach to theory. For example, Jimmy Bruno rejects any kind of modal analysis, he just trained his ear very well and knows how each note will sound over any given chord, how intervals resolve, etc. That's theory in itself, but more like theory in practice and very stripped down."

That makes sense to me and I feel like really that's more than good enough for most players, and actually the natural way to learn it over time on your own without really needed to actually study up on theory itself. If you stick to it long enough you'll likely just kind of figure out most of this stuff and likely in a more intuitive and memorable way than studying definitions and vocabulary.

Actually a lot of like I mentioned, old school jazz players will agree with you. A lot of them resent the modal approach (which scale and mode should I play over this chord) and call it unmusical and the two approaches do have different characteristics. But these differences really boil down to improvisational playing.

Actively studying music does help a lot if you want to compose stuff beyond popular genres.

[agrajag]

I think modal harmony is the term I am referring to. It is the preeminent approach to soloing in the jazz circles nowadays, but the older bebop guys reject it and focus on chord tones. The modal harmony approach was developed in music conservatories.

[headwalk]

getting circa 2003 musicianforum flashbacks.