Musicians. What instruments do you play?

[Chandler]

I'm not a musician per se, I've been self learning how to play guitar the past 5 months, but one lesson a YouTube teacher gave that stuck was 'there is no level of guitar that definitively says you are now a guitarist! From you start learning and are passionate about it, you ARE a guitarist. Own it'.

I fell In love with this instrument. I have a piano background so I have a great understanding of how to read music etc. So I have an advantage in learning, but hands down learning to play guitar is one of the hardest endeavours I've ever attempted. I will not quit!

I know there are a bunch of musicians here. Music n herbs go hand in hand. I'd love to hear about others n their musical journey. I'd love to know who is an experienced guitarist to whom I could ask advice etc...

Herbs n music/guitar work, my two main hobbies during covid 19, i could discuss these two things all day.

A friend leant me an electric guitar to begin my journey. After about 3,4 weeks it was either buy this from him, or purchase your own... That guitar had defects. Being a beginner I didn't want to deal with defects n old strings. After a little research I went with the Yamaha apx600 electro acoustic. Having something to call my own increased my love n effort. This is my baby. Next I'm looking to grab a travel sized guitar so I can always practice on the road.


Final thoughts. Pushing 40, n a former high level athlete, I came to a conclusion. I can't run, jump, do anything as well as I used to athletically. I need new vices n challenges to hold me down as I level off from excessive physical competition... The guitar

 

[Planck]

I fell In love with this instrument. I have a piano background so I have a great understanding of how to read music etc. So I have an advantage in learning, but hands down learning to play guitar is one of the hardest endeavours I've ever attempted. I will not quit!

The guitar is extremely difficult to play proficiently.
who do you like, what styles appeal.
Knowing diatonic theory is a huge help.
Enjoy!

 

[Abysmal Vapor]

I am pretty good at clapping breaks on my vapor belly ..

 

[hd_rider]

I'm an old fart at 58 and I hardly consider myself a "real" musician, but I have been studying the piano for about a year now. I'm using only on-line lessons, which is convenient for me.

My main reason for picking it up, other than I've always loved the piano, is that I'm getting older and I feel it's important to keep "exercising" the brain in an effort to maybe hold off Alzheimer's, dementia, etc. Plus, I plan to retire within a year or so and wanted something to fill my time.

This is my setup, nothing too fancy or state-of-the-art, but it suits me just fine.



As part of my learning regimen, I try to spend at least 30 minutes a day on "knowledge building", including practicing scales, site reading, chord progressions, etc. I spend another 30 minutes a day learning songs that I've always loved. Of course, I spend a lot more time practicing on the weekends. I lean towards Contemporary and Progressive Rock, including Chicago, Genesis, Phil Collins, Beatles, Pink Floyd, Elton John, etc.

 

[Gigsabits57]

I started playing electric guitar in 2018 at the age of 55. Very difficult to teach an old dog like me . I'm enjoying every minute of it. I figure if I can at least play a few songs by the time I'm able to retire it will be an accomplishment.

 

[Chandler]

who do you like, what styles appeal.
Knowing diatonic theory is a huge help.

A question I often see teachers ask so as to direct one's learning... Thats the biggest appeal to me. I have no one style I prefer to play. I'd like to be proficient at all styles... Eventually. So I lean more towards classical guitar as I think classical is all encompassing, but eventually blues, jazz, folk, funk, rock, reggae R&B. I love all music! I put the pick down once I discovered a love for finferstyle. So glad I did early. I can always practice with a pick but developing finferstyle takes time.
I've been learning riffs from the likes of Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, Bill withers, nirvana, n i like these little Spanish melodies I've been learning alot.

pretty good at clapping breaks on my vapor belly .

lol

My main reason for picking it up, other than I've always loved the piano, is that I'm getting older and I feel it's important to keep "exercising" the brain in an effort to maybe hold off Alzheimer's, dementia, etc. Plus, I plan to retire within a year or so and wanted something to fill my time.

YES! gotta keep the mind sharp. I'm with you completely. That's a nice piano, nice setup. I like the tablet on the music stand. In fact, that's one of the better music stands I've seen on an electric piano!

started playing electric guitar in 2018 at the age of 55. Very difficult to teach an old dog like me . I'm enjoying every minute of it. I figure if I can at least play a few songs by the time I'm able to retire it will be an accomplishment.

nice. About two years in! I'm sure you must have a nice degree of finger dexterity n strength by now!? What type of music do you learn?

Glad to see a few like minded individuals in here.
One great thing about threads such as this, if you remain active on the site and in the Thread, thread becomes a documented account of your progress.

I'll take all the motivation I can get. Anytime yall thinking music, come through n talk about it!

Cheers

 

[warren0728]

i play guitar but really need to practice more (or at all as the case maybe) ... would like to learn music theory but not sure my 57 year old brain agrees lol

 

[Gigsabits57]

A question I often see teachers ask so as to direct one's learning... Thats the biggest appeal to me. I have no one style I prefer to play. I'd like to be proficient at all styles... Eventually. So I lean more towards classical guitar as I think classical is all encompassing, but eventually blues, jazz, folk, funk, rock, reggae R&B. I love all music! I put the pick down once I discovered a love for finferstyle. So glad I did early. I can always practice with a pick but developing finferstyle takes time.
I've been learning riffs from the likes of Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, Bill withers, nirvana, n i like these little Spanish melodies I've been learning alot.
lol
YES! gotta keep the mind sharp. I'm with you completely. That's a nice piano, nice setup. I like the tablet on the music stand. In fact, that's one of the better music stands I've seen on an electric piano!
nice. About two years in! I'm sure you must have a nice degree of finger dexterity n strength by now!? What type of music do you learn?

Glad to see a few like minded individuals in here.
One great thing about threads such as this, if you remain active on the site and in the Thread, thread becomes a documented account of your progress.

I'll take all the motivation I can get. Anytime yall thinking music, come through n talk about it!

Cheers

I enjoy classic rock, rock, and blues mostly. The guitar is an interesting instrument and maybe every instrument is like this, but I can go months and months and feel like no progress is made whatsoever, and then I think to myself, I couldn't do this 6 months ago. It's one way to know that I'm progressing, slow as it may be. I think the key for me is that I'm not trying to be the next Jimi Hendrix. I just want to play for myself, something to enjoy. Attitude is key in many aspects of life, something I've learned over the years.

 

[Chandler]

Knowing diatonic theory is a huge help.

indeed. I enjoy scale work. I have a book of scales that I haven't dove into as yet, but yes I gotta keep practicing scales to build that dexterity, and gain freedom

As part of my learning regimen, I try to spend at least 30 minutes a day on "knowledge building", including practicing scales, site reading, chord progressions, etc. I spend another 30 minutes a day learning songs that I've always loved. Of course, I spend a lot more time practicing on the weekends. I lean towards Contemporary and Progressive Rock, including Chicago, Genesis, Phil Collins, Beatles, Pink Floyd, Elton John, etc.

you sound very disciplined! How long have you been playing/teaching yourself?

would like to learn music theory but not sure my 57 year old brain agrees lol

bit by bit. One day at at a time until it clicks. Too much information can be a turn off sometimes. I'm learning, playing extremely slow and in segments over days has improved overall technique.

I think the key for me is that I'm not trying to be the next Jimi Hendrix. I just want to play for myself, something to enjoy.

indeed. That's the best mindset! I got full of myself when I first started, it's easy to see worlds of progress when you start from nothing. Hit a wall real quick. Had to reassess n humble myself. Lol. Just wanna be me and be able to play what I'd like to play. Maybe one day write my own music

@JohnC what is this device?

 

[hd_rider]

What is this device?

Hi @Chandler - I've only been playing for about a year now. I try to practice religiously, averaging about 30 hours a month. I use an application on-line called PianoMarvel.

That device is my piano 'chord computer'. It allows me to lookup and view any piano scale or chord.

 

[kilo]

Tenor sax has been my main horn for years but I've recently begun to seriously study the bass clarinet. Social distancing has pretty much killed the summer music season — I don't know if I'll even start up the band when things get back to "normal".

 

[Gunky]

I've been playing acoustic guitar since around 1968. It's a very rewarding hobby in a lot of ways. If you keep at it obstacles gradually drop away and you can express yourself more and more freely in music.

One suggestion I can make to beginning guitarists is: pay a lot of attention to the overall structuring of your fretting hand. Experiment with where you position the thumb of the fretting hand to find the sweet spot where fretting becomes most mechanically efficient. Most beginners, in order to avoid buzzing, press the strings down against the fretboard quite forcefully, too hard, almost a death grip. This very strong grip makes it really hard to change and is very tiring for your arm. So you have to gradually learn to use exactly the right amount of pressure to produce a clear tone but no more.

 

[The Stray Fox]

Hi all. Great thread. I’ve been playing guitar for 25 years. I mostly play acoustic but enjoy the electric too. I’ve learned hundreds of songs over the years and the older I get it becomes difficult to remember them all. For a long time I’ve been using ultimate-guitar.com to keep all my songs organized. Their app is amazing. If you haven’t, check it out, it a great tool. With 25 years under my belt I am amazed at how much I am able to keep learning and find ways to make improvements to my style and technique. Proof that if you stick with it you will be rewarded.

My latest project has been a pedal board and a wet/dry amp set up. If you look in the top right you can see where I have 12v power so my Woodscents is right there if a dose of inspiration is needed.

 

[EmDeemo]

I play the studio!

I cant play anything well for shit. I'm terrible, even tho I've been practicing guitar/bass for 20 years. But by contrast, and a change of context, I can fucking play anything if I can get a sound out of it I like midi and cv, noise, funky odd basslines, loops and drum programming and learning and fun. I've gotten a lot faster at recording over and over, chopping up parts, and shuffling bits of data around on a screen. None of which is really hard to find when it comes to music technology, or the idea of just banging some rocks together

Perspective, context, and process over goals. The zen of goal achieving. Dont give a shit about goals but still do everything needed to get there, and for me, breaking it all down into component parts to stop it all being a daunting task rather than a rewarding exploration.

I've been making upgrades this last few years since I lost about three albums worth of close to finished material in a PC crash. No backups. Thanks to the approach hinted at above, I managed to not have a breakdown about the whole thing and how stupid it was (NO BACKUP!?), and instead start a process of streamlining my process to hurry things up so there would be less of a backlog of material and not so much data shuffling on the PC, my back and shoulders were dying. Trying to lean into a non musicians approach to music and buying select bits of hardware that complement and add to that idea. Next on the list is either an Arturia Keystep Pro, or the Isla Instruments Kordbot. The kordbot is just a fancier version of @JohnC chord calculator posted earlier in the thread.

Its getting there. If I can do a half hour jam with enough 'bits' I like, I can edit down to a three minute thing with some sort of flow

https://soundcloud.com/ear%2Fmaximalgladness
This post has been brought to you by Procrastination v.1.2

EDIT: OOOOH! Soundcloud embedding!

EDIT2: @The Stray Fox - I covet your Strymon pedals

 

[invertedisdead]

Stay away from music forums. GAS makes VAS look like a stubbed toe!

 

[EmDeemo]

Its all the same. Freudian unconscious needs and desires. I got that shit vaguely under control

GAS and VAS VUC

EDIT: This is my favourite instrument at the moment An instrument for detecting radio waves etc. An anti radio... (not my video, but I do own one of these, and I fucking love it ).

 

[Chandler]

Tenor sax has been my main horn for years but I've recently begun to seriously study the bass clarinet.

I love horns! was in a music store few months back. went to the brass section n was amazed. Such a beautiful instrument, especially to observe up close! On to clarinet? Very interesting! Thinking about it, after knowing the sax, all other woodwind instruments should be (relatively) easy to master no? (I use the term easy extremely loose)

I don't know if I'll even start up the band when things get back to "normal".

a very sad sentiment

been playing acoustic guitar since around 1968

DAMNNN! You been playing longer than I've been alive, A bit longer!! Would you consider yourself. A Master? How do your hands feel?? Do you still play? Are you still as proficient as you were? Do you still continue to learn? Can I get some lessons??? I have a million questions. Please frequent this thread!! n if so inclined please share your journey in music with us! When did you Fcombustion by the way?

a very rewarding hobby in a lot of ways. If you keep at it obstacles gradually drop away and you can express yourself more and more freely in music.

sentiments such as this make me smile, and highly motivate.

One suggestion I can make to beginning guitarists is: pay a lot of attention to the overall structuring of your fretting hand. Experiment with where you position the thumb of the fretting hand to find the sweet spot where fretting becomes most mechanically efficient.

This tip has already helped!

I’ve been playing guitar for 25 years

If you look in the top right you can see where I have 12v power so my Woodscents is right there if a dose of inspiration is needed.

25 years! I would that I could vape n relax with some of y'all n learn/train! All that technology, n pedals. Light years beyond my understanding. When I get to the point where I need pedals to continue my growth, I'll be the weeping guitarist! Do you play in bands, teach or anything?

if you stick with it you will be rewarded.

patiently waiting

Woodscents is right there if a dose of inspiration is needed.

Lol. If you didnt mention it I might've missed it. Looks like a 2020 model? Is that your daily driver?

I cant play anything well for shit. I'm terrible, even tho I've been practicing guitar/bass for 20 years

lol. I dont believe you! 20 years? 20 years?? N still playing? Lol I'm thinking you hold yourself to a crazy standard!

GAS makes VAS look like a stubbed toe!

GAS = guitar acquisition syndrome. right? Beause this is not only a herbal thread but a music thread as well? I also have the other form of GAS (not the stuff we pass), that which involves glass! I'm new to the art but i want another guitar for travel.

GAS and VAS VUC

VUC??

This is my favourite instrument at the moment An instrument for detecting radio waves etc. An anti radio

Very interesting!
I had to look up anti radio. Pretty cool!

 

[invertedisdead]

GAS = guitar acquisition syndrome. right?

Originally, but then a bunch of dudes with 46 guitars realized it would be cool to build an entire recording studio to house them in, and it was changed to Gear Acquisition System as a catch-all term for all types of equipment hoarding!

I’ve been wanting a smaller acoustic for a long time, I have a dreadnought, but would really like something in the GS Mini size. I have a shoulder/rotator cuff injury that has been making it harder and harder to play my acoustic. Funny thing is I have a few nice electrics, but the acoustic is the cheapest guitar I own and it gets 99% of use. I love electric guitar but I’m often forced to use headphones which takes a lot of the charm out for me.

 

[Gunky]

Originally, but then a bunch of dudes with 46 guitars realized it would be cool to build an entire recording studio to house them in, and it was changed to Gear Acquisition System as a catch-all term for all types of equipment hoarding!

I’ve been wanting a smaller acoustic for a long time, I have a dreadnought, but would really like something in the GS Mini size. I have a shoulder/rotator cuff injury that has been making it harder and harder to play my acoustic. Funny thing is I have a few nice electrics, but the acoustic is the cheapest guitar I own and it gets 99% of use. I love electric guitar but I’m often forced to use headphones which takes a lot of the charm out for me.

I have a lot of shoulder issues too. A few years back I started playing standing up with a strap. I tilt the neck up and the lower bout down a bit. This fixed a lot of my shoulder pain and I can even play dreads like this. ymmv

-snip-

DAMNNN! You been playing longer than I've been alive, A bit longer!! Would you consider yourself. A Master? How do your hands feel?? Do you still play? Are you still as proficient as you were? Do you still continue to learn? Can I get some lessons??? I have a million questions. Please frequent this thread!! n if so inclined please share your journey in music with us! When did you Fcombustion by the way?

Not a 'master' by any means. Tons of people can play better than me. Some people pick it up very easily and I envy them. For me it has always come a bit slowly and everything was fairly hard fought for, at least earlier in my guitar career. Nevertheless, I have played a lot over the years and lo and behold all that playing is finally paying off for me in that I am able to amuse myself and play something different every time I play and I have been able to achieve a lot of the goals I had for guitar playing as a young man. When I started out 'folk music' was very popular and of course this had the advantage of being fairly easy to play just by strumming a few chords. My folks, who are rather sharp-tongued, used to make fun of my playing. "What song is that? We can't tell from your playing." I conceived the notion of playing the guitar somewhat more like a piano - being able to play recognizable tunes while also keeping a beat, maybe a bass line, and providing at least some sort of idea of the chord structure. I won't kid you, it took a long time to do because I am stubborn and only took a few lessons and kind of went the way of woodshedding on my own a lot and developing my own thing. I learned right hand pattern picking, then alternating bass like Mississippi John Hurt, and gradually more and more jazz as my musical tastes changed. But all along, I felt like I was being rewarded by the sounds that were coming out of the guitar and the fun of singing, especially once I go my first good guitar, a Martin. An absolute beginner can just play a G chord on that thing and it sounds magnificent. Such are the joys of guitar.

 

[TiSteamo]

I enjoy strumming guitar and piano ... as a self-taught amateur ...

 

[The Stray Fox]

Do you play in bands, teach or anything?

Nope. I do love to play in front of people but It’s purely self motivation and passion that drives me forward. I honestly have to give the herbs a lot of credit. I don’t think I would have stuck with it if it wasn’t for the inspiration I get from herb. It’s like a shot of adrenaline when I combine herb with playing music and that feeling is what keeps me coming back. I’ve got young children so passing my love of music onto them is a ton of fun. I also use herb medicinally for pain and anxiety. I find playing music also brings relief to both these aspects of my life.

Looks like a 2020 model? Is that your daily driver?

My Woodscents has the new heater. I love it for quick hits. Lately it’s been pretty hard to pry my New Vape Flowerpot out of my hands.

 

[I'm Ron Burgundy?]

Guitar, Bass, ukulele a little bit of drums and keys

 

[EmDeemo]

lol. I dont believe you! 20 years? 20 years?? N still playing? Lol I'm thinking you hold yourself to a crazy standard!
VUC??
I had to look up anti radio. Pretty cool!

Still playing but only for recording. I kinda gave up 'practicing' properly and just play along with stuff occassionally now. I'm ok if I stick to one string I'm nearly 50 but only had my mental issues finally diagnosed a few years ago, which kinda answered why my brain just wont take in certain things or allow my body and brain to communicate properly. For example, simply switching from one chord to another is still stupidly hard My fingers seize up almost immediately. And tbh, its longer than 20 years, I forget how old I am now Started playing guitar when I was about 12! Definitely not a crazy standard, just crazy I cant retain notes/chords and music theory, the same part of my head that cant do any more than the most basic of maths, it seems.

Tbh, at a certain point, its either give up completely or find a way to make the brain/body/instrument work in some other way, and change perspective on what music actually is, if thats what it takes. I started guitar while being a little metal head, but I couldnt play for shit, so (without realising it) found punk and US hardcore a revelation, Sonic Youth and feedback/noise to be a total liberation. Computer assistance, loops and beats, tho still totally bewildering, was a joy to first get into. But then I got silly and wanted to do it all, and started trying to teach myself how to program some form of jazz? Trying to program drums like a real drummer would play. To take totally random, separate takes from random musicians who never meet and just hear a basic idea of a track and then improvise multiple takes and have me go away make a 'real' track out of it all with programmed drums. To attempt to make it sound like its them all jamming together. This was hard work (I also didnt realise I was very ill with Graves Disease at the time, so my mental excess was going thru the roof, OCD, autism, depression, insomnia, was def losing my mind around this time ) - https://soundcloud.com/ear%2Fdolemition
And dont get me started on what a revelation Brian Eno and his self created 'non musician' status brings, or the concept of outsider art. I think I found my place

VUC - I was initialising my previous sentence where I said VAS was Vaguely Under Control

Ether Anti Radio - SOMA make the best instruments, great for musicians and non musicians alike. Their Lyra synth has long been on my shopping list, but its very expensive.

I get this pedal next week, but I'll be using it with synths, drums machines and noise... CUTTING ROOM FLOOR PEDAL (Echo, Pitch, Modulate, Glitch)

 

[vapviking]

I've been playing acoustic guitar since around 1968.

I started around the same time, maybe '67. Bought my first guitar new for 50 bucks with money from a newspaper route; a Japanese-made 12-string. My older brother played in a folk trio (think Kingston Trio) and I learned some chords from watching them.
Soon I was playing Arlo Guthrie's "Comin' into Los Angeleeees, bringin' in a couple o' keys...don't touch my bags if you please, Mr, Customs Man!"

I gladly smashed that piece of crap 12 string to smitherines shortly after my dad (knowing squat about guitars) bought me (new) a '69 Guild F-47 6-string acoustic, still my main instrument to this day. Just had it's 50th birthday this past Christmas. This guitar has been an integral part of my entire adult life. Of course I know there are better ones, but I've felt that if I ever brought a replacement into the house the Guild would simply fall apart, in shock. It plays beautifully, btw, had 8 frets replaced about 2 years ago.

Along the way, I've picked up a '68 matching 12-string Guild (F-212), a '68 Gibson ES335 electric and a '66(?) Epiphone Casino electric. The only guitar I've acquired in the last 40 years is a Martin backpacker travel guitar, since I was visiting grand children across the country often. At $180 (at the time) it is still unmistakably a Martin, the neck feels great!

Other instruments in the house include (and I play with varying degrees of competence); Baldwin studio upright Piano ('60's), M-Audio Keystation 61 key midi controller, Appalachian dulcimer, Hammer Dulcimer (I built it in furniture school...), Banjo (5-string), small Auto-harp, Recorder (flute), Harmonicas, etc.
I must be forgetting something...

So, main instrument is acoustic guitar but I have been playing more and more piano as years go by. My only music 'lessons' ever were 3 different starts/stops at piano as a kid. I just hated to practice, and still am not a big fan of sheet music. But I am infatuated with sound, in many forms (mostly musical though). I also love to sing, and learning to accompany my own voice has been a big part of what I do. I sang in choruses/glee clubs when younger and have educated myself pretty far into theory but I'm no Leonard Bernstein.

I would love to continue this discussion; I feel a lot in common with several of you who have posted already in this thread.

One tid-bit for any beginner learning one playing, any instrument;
Whatever it is you want to play, play it very slowly at first-- only upping the tempo as your skills allow. I had a very hard time following that age-old advice. The problem is, if you play something too fast with errors, repeating it will serve to ingrain the errors into muscle memory, not make them go away!

 

[Chandler]

it was changed to Gear Acquisition System as a catch-all term for all types of equipment hoarding!

gear acquisition! Lol. I love it!

I enjoy strumming guitar and piano ... as a self-taught amateur ...

self taught ameteur? My hats off to you sir. How many years of growth before you felt within yourself 'I am no longer a beginner. I've reached ameteur level status'!??

honestly have to give the herbs a lot of credit. I don’t think I would have stuck with it if it wasn’t for the inspiration I get from herb. It’s like a shot of adrenaline when I combine herb with playing music and that feeling is what keeps me coming back. I’ve got young children so passing my love of music onto them is a ton of fun.

YES. N YESS! I can be in a bad mood n want nothing to do with a guitar... 2 sessions later that's the only thing I wanna do!!.. Also, watching kids learn n fall in love with music is a sight to see. Akin to dance!

Lately it’s been pretty hard to pry my New Vape Flowerpot out of my hands

I'm with you. I enjoyed my WS alot, but then I got a g43, a Vrod, an Elev8r. Then my rare exotic blackwood WS that Ed has made very few of, quickly became a glorified aromatherapy device. I haven't used my WS once as a vaporizer since I've recieved my others mentioned. But I use it every day with essential oils. Maybe I don't need the new heater? But I'll get it upgraded anyway for love of it n to support the community! N I want to put it back to use!

Guitar, Bass, ukulele a little bit of drums and keys

nice! Do you own all of these instruments, or just proficient?

I get this pedal next week, but I'll be using it with synths, drums machines and noise... CUTTING ROOM FLOOR PEDAL (Echo, Pitch, Modulate, Glitch)

I would love to hear something you've arranged! Those pedals seem insane. Incredibly awesome! My mind is going crazy with the possibilities.... But I'm still probably years from playing as proficiently as my minds eye would have me.

started around the same time, maybe '67.

would love to continue this discussion;

My friend. Please. Let us continue the conversation! I can't express how my heart feels listening to real-time response to MY questions from seasoned, experienced musicians/lovers of the art who have more experience than I've been alive?!!
@vapviking did you actually smash the guitar? How'd it feel? Lol! I thinks its incredibly cool your still using vintage guitars that were basically if not, new to you back then. Awesome. I'm sure they hold a particular monetary value? Can we get some pics??!!

So envious of you musicians who've stuck with it since youth. Feel like I wasted precious time.