Can you actually "play" keybds, or do u just "

[zynthetix]

sorry if my opinion is a bit redundant, BUT:

[Cyxeris]

I wanted a "neither" option, or "other," but hey, ya know!

[jkn]

Cyx - definitely agree with your earlier post - they're all just different skills and one doesn't make you more of a musician than another. I consider them all just different approaches - just as some people prefer certain instruments to play or work only with computers, or whatever...

[mosc]

[play]

I have some basic keyboard skills, as my mother was a classical pianist and gave me some lessons when I was younger. I still pick up the beethoven now and then but mostly I just noodle around. I have very extensive classical training in guitar. I still practice my arpeggios and rasqueados several hours a week and love to play bach and flamenco but I don't really use these skills when I make electronic music. I think studying classical and to some extent, jazz, has given me a sort of intuitive grasp of melody and harmony which is sometimes helpful (those occassions when I actually use melody in my songs) and studying flamenco really stretched and expanded my sense of rythm.

Though I don't directly use my classical training in composition, i think it's been very valuable. The wider range of experiences we're exposed to, the more resources we have to draw on later. The road to mastery is a series of self-discoveries and internal obstacles overcome. To me, this makes all subjects one subject because what we are learning is not scales and chords but how to think and how to learn. Studying french cuisine has probably helped my music as much as studying western music theory or the fundamentals of synthesis.

[Cyxeris]

I play at the keyboard. That is how I interprit my manual musicianship.

[play]

[elektro80]

1.) You do not have to understand any kind of notation in order to be a musician/composer.
2.) You do not have to know any formal theory in order to be a musician/composer.

If this was not the case we would not have any music in the first place.


A proper musical education does usually not hurt, but after such an education you cannot neccesarily claim that you make better music or whatever. In some instances education CAN hurt you...

On the other hand, a lot of options and paths are closed if one does not pursue the "proper" education. if this is a bad thing... well.. you decide..

Knowing some theory is cool though.. In some cases I think that knowing some theory is pretty liberating. In the discussion written music vs. improvisation I suggest that both methods are valid and it all depends on how you approach these methods and what you want to achieve.

[mosc]

[egw]

Knowledge can never hurt, as long as you keep an open mind about it.
Understanding theory can in fact be liberating.
However, Mosc makes a good point about how it can change the way you listen to music. The more I started making my own music, the more I found myself analyzing music that I hear (or especially, watch in performance), rather than just enjoying it. But if the music is really good, I can still get lost in it.
When playing music, I tend to favor styles that are not too technically challenging. This frees the mind to enjoy the process and play more expressively. Also in a group setting it allows the vibe to be established quickly, without need for a lot of practice time.

[Cyxeris]

It think there is alot to be said for both methodologies. I think of my music more as a form of architecture than sculpture or painting. It has many roots in theory (although never formally trained, just kind of picked it up as I went and learned in an ad hoc fashion). My music is terribly rigid, stuffy, and anal, admitedly. But this is just me, and how I think, and not so much a reflection of my training or lack thereof. I think it is iportant to recognize and understand when and where one's work may bennefit from a greater understanding of theory, and when or where this understanding might actually be a detriment.

It isnt so much about the tools themselves, but rather the right tool for the right job.

[play]

I have for a long time subscribed to the belief that I should learn as much as I can so I can forget it as quickly as possible. I see studying theory like gesoing canvas. It's optional, but effective and if it's done right you'll never know it happened.

[Cyxeris]

I will say this much...

My knowlege of theory makes bringing into the world the ideas in my head a MUCH MUCH faster process.

[zynthetix]