Ongoing Conversation about Instruments in General
 

I don't know if this is going to work, but I'd like to have an on-going, not-topic-oriented thread about instruments, the ins-and-outs of them, and peoples perceptions of them. A real 360 degree conversation and something with a little more sobriety than "no way man, the ****ing oboe rocks!!!"

This is, in part, selfish. In my eternal quest to make sure I'm not wasting my time with instrument X, I'd love to have a long conversation about everything with no required direction. I guess I'm hoping I can drop in a read a conversation about things like having to lug a cello around or how trumpeters deal with cold sores in the winter. In short, insider tips from people who've done stuff, so that Mr. Dave won't yell at me for trying to learn15 instruments in 2 months.

Instrument X is easily the best instrument out there.

you think it would be like that?

Yes, it has an X in it, doesn't it?

But you're forgetting the complexities of instrument Y.

Oh good, I cannot wait for the incoming pages and pages of Michael Ian Black impersonations as the shepple of MB attempt humor.

So anyway, my current dilemma is wanting to stick with piano, it not being portable enough to bring to front porch jams, and accordion seeming to not have the same abilities (and mostly being a support instrument).

If you'd like to be something other than an unsuccessful smart-ass, here's your opportunity.

I felt like I was a relatively successful smart ass. But anyway, why not try something like a melodica? They're portable, piano-like and more straightforward than an accordion.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...x-Melodica.jpg

I've always sort of wanted to learn the accordion.

If you don't mind my asking, what about it appeals to you?

With any instrument, the sound. It'd be fun to make music that sounds like that.

Joke reply -> Response from Big3

Serious reply -> No response from Big3

:(

What? Am I really that hostile? hahaha :p:

Also listen to Janszoon and get yourself a Melodica for porch / campfire jams. It will add a nice dimension to the music that most people wouldn't expect. They're also polyphonic so you can actually play more intricate parts. Plus they're cheap, and Tortoise sometimes uses one so they're cool too.

Flute is the best instrument. Because I play it.

I'll bite!

My first instrument of choice is Guitar and that's simply because I am a guitarist. Acoustic, Classical, Electric... doesn't really matter to me! They are all amazing in their own field.

What I love about an acoustic guitar is how hard it is to add a personal touch! 90% of the musicians (even the top ones) will sorta revolve around the generic stuff (complex or simple) but once in a while, you'll have someone that simply blows your mind. It doesn't matter which style or even which guitar he's using.

Now electric guitar is my domain. I am not a collector but I do have what I need. I have a custom shop Gibson Les Paul with signature Seimor pickups and completely redesigned electronics. My guitar tech and I experimented with pretty much every components on the guitar and today, I must admit that it is a pretty versatile guitar. My nobs are pull and push as well so I can either drop to single coil or have the original Les Paul sound. I also have a custom made guitar that took me nearly a year to build. It all started with a cheap very well made Yamaha electric guitar and ended up becoming my main work horse for live performance. The Electronics, the neck, the wood finish and pretty much everything was modified and changed.

Electric guitar is all about the combinations you can make. It's a lot of fun because you get to learn and build your own sound. My choice of picks (Jazz Tortex 0.75MM) - The use of an EBOW - Your amp combined with the right type of Lamps and speakers all plays a vital role in your sound. I am currently experimenting with the BlackStar amps. Now you may think that this is all very expensive but it's not everything is expensive. A lot of the cool custom adds are actually cheap to buy. You just need to learn how to do it yourself or do like me, have a buddy that is also your guitar tech for your band :P

If you like a more support role with a dash of lead, Bass is a great instrument. It might look like the easiest one to learn but trust me, it's not. It took me quite a few months to get something decent that doesn't resolve around picking a low note. Finger tapping, slap techniques and harmonizing with a band will make the difference!

Piano (or a good keyboard) is in my book a very good instrument to have at home. If you're really good, sure go do some gigs but I believe this is a good default instrument to have at home. It's soft and easy to use while hard to master. You have a quick idea? Jump on the piano and find the notes! Does it sound nice? - A very expressive instrument.

Last year, I've done over 30 shows with my band and one thing I can tell you is. Travel light man... First, it sucks when you have to spend 30 minutes to connect your gear on a stage. You want to roll things out within 5 minutes so that you can spend the rest on testing tunings and not feel rushed on. My early setup was amazing in sound but I had a huge Marshall cab with a crazy Marshall special edition amp. This combined with 5 pedals, 2 guitars, a rack mount for effects and sound modulation... Trust me, it didn't take too long for this to suck and even when I had a guy installing our gear for us prior to a show.

My setup today is so much simpler and we're currently building a tour kit that will simplify things even more. If all goes well, next year, all we will do is drop a Rackmount box somewhere on the stage, plug in and play. Of course, if we're headlining, we will take the time to show off our gear.

Stories to share... I don't know man. 14+ hours on the road, sleeping in a park because all the hotels are closed. (we had tents at least!) - Getting lost lol... One night you're playing in front of large crowd and the next, you have 5 spectators... the good comments and the bad comments... bad food 80% of the time... amps failing on stage... power outage in the middle of a show... band fights! ... F&#!ing singers... practicing in a studio that is extremely hot and humide... smells bad too!

There's so many stories to tell and I am nothing of a rock star. It just happened that we got really lucky! You know, the bad never outweight the great! :)

I know how to play many instruments and yet, my focus is the guitar. It's not the amount that matters, its really what you do with them. Are you planning to gig and tour? That will change everything and a simple flute may become a burden if you're not careful about your planing and preparation. Modern musicians like myself have a daily job and we do not make tons of money. My main band gets paid around 200$ per gig and sometimes more. 200$ covers travel and pays our jam space rent. Wallmart parking quickly becomes your second hotel! Park the cars, sleep and roll out in the morning! Life can with ease become work 40 hours a week, rush out of the office on Friday night, pack the gear and leave for a gig. Play, smile, say hi and quickly pack up and roll to the next show. Unpack, play, smile, drink 1 beer, eat, roll out back home, unpack, sleep, go to work, practice at least one night during the week, try to spend time with wife and it's Friday again! Repeat this every weekend for 3 or 4 months in a row.

I got friends that are known around the states, canada and asia... Their routine would be: Friday, take plane, play gig, take plane, play gig, fly back home, sleep 1 or 2 hours, work.

My point here is... instrument wise. A guitar can either be a burden or a tool.

So what do you actually wanna do?

Wait, what? Flute can become a burden? Am I missing something here?

Given your first post, I'd say the point of the thread. ;)


I didn't think that was serious.

I get it now but I wanted to know why he made that statement. I'm just curious.

My guess is that you should take something eloquently simple to play, like a kazoo, and then go out and dump an assload of money on a very expensive kazoo microphone, amplifier, and a plethora of effects so that every hipster in town will want the dude who runs his kazoo through a wah wah pedal to join his/her band.

Can you imagine showing up for practice with a kazoo, effects board, and a full Marshall stack in tow?

Why not?

Honestly? I didn't think it was a real instrument.

I think in general (in life) I like to play a support role. I don't want glory, and I feel like most of the work is done quietly, behind the scenes. But I was thinking about it, and with music, and being in a band, that means you have to be lucky enough to get in behind someone writing things you care about or like.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized I needed to play something with some range for writing purposes.

That's weird. Why did you think that? I know it's not the world's most well-known instrument but it's still in a lot of songs.

really? I assumed you got this from a gumball machine. What songs is it in?

It's in a lot of songs. But here's one you probably know (it's the instrument playing the melody right at the beginning and off and on throughout the rest of the song):



Also, here's a nice little video featuring Dr. Didg jamming out on one (starting at about 1:45 and again at about 3:30):

Here my favourite example of the instrument. My Melodica only cost me about $70 as well, about 18 inches long. So, definitely small but not necessarily a toy. Though they are normally sold as student / learner instruments and market themselves as a stepping stone in teaching children to play piano.


playing the lead melody throughout