My Linnstrument arrived recently and I'm really excited about getting familiar with it, I haven't played an instrument since I was a kid in orchestra class. I see a few videos floating around, there are about 7 folks hanging around IRC. If the serial number on mine is to be believed, there aren't very many of us at all.
I'm going at this the only way I know, much like I was a kid trying to figure the cello out in the 90's. I printed out that lovely overlay from the cultured ear blog and cut it to fit perfectly over the keys. From there I've picked a few simple songs I like, downloaded midi files of them from the web, loaded them up into a notation editor and now I'm translating staff to letters to note squares, playing phrases over and over until I get it right.
I'm wondering if there is a smarter way to do this, if it is like any other article on learning instruments then I know it will take lots and lots of practice, but I think there could be a way to skip the notation-to-letter translation layer. The guitar tab representation doesn't make much more sense to me than a staff, probably because I'm not very familiar with one.
If the idea is to play this thing in a performance, I can't help but feel that I'm not supposed to be looking down at it the whole time, I found a way to help me feel out the note locations without staring at the pretty lights. There is a free plugin called tonespace by a group called mucoder, that lays out displays of notes in patterns and higlights midi as it comes in. One of the layouts available is m2 P4, which matches the layout of the linnstrument. I can look at my screen instead of down at the keyboard when I play which will hopefully turn out to be a better habit. I'd like to be able to pipe midi into it from the playback of those midi files, if I could figure out how to make a mac do it. Surely such a thing is possible, since it takes midi in from the keyboard. Then I could alternate between play a phrase, watch the note highlighting, repeat with hands on keyboard.
Since it is so early it seems like there aren't any experts and lessons and tutorials and stuff so this will be a self-teaching endeavor by necessity. I'm hoping a few of you are in a similar position as me, or remember what it felt like to be where I am now. I'm sure there are ideas that could hasten this learning process that I haven't thought of yet. We should do google hangouts or something.
Learning to play my linnstrument, some ideas
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- KVRist
- 40 posts since 10 Oct, 2015
Hi UnWorldy, I'm working through some of the same issues. Piano/guitar/violin/younameit have all had hundreds of years for musicians to develop playing techniques. Linnstrument (and Soundplane) are the new kids on the block. We can't go out and find a teacher or a book of tried and true exercises to develop the neuromuscular memories required for efficient and expressive musical performance.
That being said, Linnstrument's layout is profoundly logical. I think Roger made excellent design choices along the way that can reduce much of the work that typically goes with learning a new instrument:
* Isomorphism (same size and geometry for all equal intervals) means finger motions learned for one key will work in all 12. That's huge. It's even better than a capo on a stringed instrument because (unlike frets) the pads keep the same spacing for all octaves.
* Pitch redundancy across rows gives freedom the play melodies an chords in 2 dimensions using whatever fingerings work best.
* Configurable LED's -- I've mapped the major scale in all keys to the Note Lights presets so I can have a visual reference in whatever key I'm currently playing. I leave C natural as the accent light (even if it's not in the key) so I have both absolute and relative visual pitch information. You can see an example diagram with the scale degrees labeled in my recent post asking how to edit the Note Light Presets.
Some of the basic challenges, as I see them, are:
* Lack of tactile information (other than the grooves between pads). On a piano, I can feel the gaps between the black keys to check my hand position without looking down.
* Getting used to the pad spacing. It's larger than the distance between half-steps on a piano, so my reflexes aren't yet accurate for horizontal reaches and shifts.
* Programming my fingers to know the row geometries so I can automatically play thirds, fourths, fifths, etc by ear.
* Deciding what roles the thumbs and pinkies should play. Maybe a mostly 3-finger technique is good enough.
* Left-right hand asymmetry -- many intervals and chord shapes that are comfortable in the left hand are uncomfortable in the right and vice versa.
* Velocity control -- Linnstrument's aftertouches feel very natural but velocity also matters and I find I can't control it as well as on a weighted keyboard despite the recent improvements in version 1.23. Using a velocity compressor in Logic X helps at the expense of some dynamic range.
Thanks for starting this thread. I was thinking we need an ongoing exchange of ideas for playing technique among fellow owners of this marvelous new gizmo, so I'm glad you took the initiative to start one.
Cheers,
Mike
That being said, Linnstrument's layout is profoundly logical. I think Roger made excellent design choices along the way that can reduce much of the work that typically goes with learning a new instrument:
* Isomorphism (same size and geometry for all equal intervals) means finger motions learned for one key will work in all 12. That's huge. It's even better than a capo on a stringed instrument because (unlike frets) the pads keep the same spacing for all octaves.
* Pitch redundancy across rows gives freedom the play melodies an chords in 2 dimensions using whatever fingerings work best.
* Configurable LED's -- I've mapped the major scale in all keys to the Note Lights presets so I can have a visual reference in whatever key I'm currently playing. I leave C natural as the accent light (even if it's not in the key) so I have both absolute and relative visual pitch information. You can see an example diagram with the scale degrees labeled in my recent post asking how to edit the Note Light Presets.
Some of the basic challenges, as I see them, are:
* Lack of tactile information (other than the grooves between pads). On a piano, I can feel the gaps between the black keys to check my hand position without looking down.
* Getting used to the pad spacing. It's larger than the distance between half-steps on a piano, so my reflexes aren't yet accurate for horizontal reaches and shifts.
* Programming my fingers to know the row geometries so I can automatically play thirds, fourths, fifths, etc by ear.
* Deciding what roles the thumbs and pinkies should play. Maybe a mostly 3-finger technique is good enough.
* Left-right hand asymmetry -- many intervals and chord shapes that are comfortable in the left hand are uncomfortable in the right and vice versa.
* Velocity control -- Linnstrument's aftertouches feel very natural but velocity also matters and I find I can't control it as well as on a weighted keyboard despite the recent improvements in version 1.23. Using a velocity compressor in Logic X helps at the expense of some dynamic range.
Thanks for starting this thread. I was thinking we need an ongoing exchange of ideas for playing technique among fellow owners of this marvelous new gizmo, so I'm glad you took the initiative to start one.
Cheers,
Mike
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 39 posts since 13 Jan, 2013
The parts we'd need to find by feel are probably the root note of the key you are in, and the "borderline" where you can jump up and down a row to reach the next note rather than continuing horizontal. I could probably do some arts and crafts to put little bumps on a couple pads to identify the home row of sorts, maybe use some string to divide the grid into octave by 4th squares. It would come in handy at least to develop some familiarity.
It might also be worth creating a left handed chord chart, the illustration in the manual has all the chords laid out in the "\": direction which has made my left pinky pretty sore over the past couple days. Learning different chord fingerings per hand is way less of a bother than per scale, like you said. After we play with this for a while, maybe we can come up with a more hand-friendly chord chart, it will have to be something that we feel out.
It might also be worth creating a left handed chord chart, the illustration in the manual has all the chords laid out in the "\": direction which has made my left pinky pretty sore over the past couple days. Learning different chord fingerings per hand is way less of a bother than per scale, like you said. After we play with this for a while, maybe we can come up with a more hand-friendly chord chart, it will have to be something that we feel out.
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- KVRer
- 22 posts since 20 Jan, 2014
I particularly agree with the points re: left-asymmetry and the role of pinkies and thumbs.
I found myself mostly avoiding the use of the pinky when I can (in part I think due to my lesser ability to regulate velocity with it), but thumbs seem absolutely integral for 7th chords and the like.
If I had more free hours I'd try my hand at implementing some sort of online graphical tool that would allow users to share proposed fingerings....
I found myself mostly avoiding the use of the pinky when I can (in part I think due to my lesser ability to regulate velocity with it), but thumbs seem absolutely integral for 7th chords and the like.
If I had more free hours I'd try my hand at implementing some sort of online graphical tool that would allow users to share proposed fingerings....
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 39 posts since 13 Jan, 2013
It occurs to me that if there were a way to change column offsets the same way row offsets are done, then the grids could be made to align with all sorts of different tone spaces. Some of them are ideal for easily reached chords, not sure how that would impact trying to play one finger melodies though. It might be worth playing with the note mappings along the grid to make them easier to play and learn.
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- KVRist
- 40 posts since 10 Oct, 2015
I've just spent a couple of fascinating hours exploring basic chords one at a time (major, minor, dim, aug, dominant 7, m7, M7, dim7, half-dim7) by turning off all the LEDs but the ones in whichever chord I was exploring at the moment. I kept C as the root for no particular reason beyond convenience.
At first, I was looking for fingerings as you would for chords on a guitar, trying to see which voicings and inversions were comfortable to play in the left or right hands. After a while, I got more interested in getting an internal rhythm going and arpeggiating using both hands together and in alternation -- playing very percussively -- sort of like a demented hammer dulcimer player. It's amazing how many familiar licks emerged. Great fun!
It occurs to me we ought to be looking for playing styles that feel easy and natural on the Linnstrument, for instance bouncing around freely over chord tones through several octaves. That takes years of work on a conventional keyboard, but seems to come quite naturally on the Linnstrument.
At first, I was looking for fingerings as you would for chords on a guitar, trying to see which voicings and inversions were comfortable to play in the left or right hands. After a while, I got more interested in getting an internal rhythm going and arpeggiating using both hands together and in alternation -- playing very percussively -- sort of like a demented hammer dulcimer player. It's amazing how many familiar licks emerged. Great fun!
It occurs to me we ought to be looking for playing styles that feel easy and natural on the Linnstrument, for instance bouncing around freely over chord tones through several octaves. That takes years of work on a conventional keyboard, but seems to come quite naturally on the Linnstrument.
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- KVRist
- 312 posts since 30 Jun, 2003
Something you can look for are fingering charts and excersises for the Chapman Stick. The Melody side of the Stick (in most tunings) is laid out almost identical to the Linnstrument. The Linnstrument has the advantage of being able to play multiple notes on the same row. The Rhythm side of the Stick is usually set up in inverted 5ths and doesn't really work well for Linnstrument.
Having played Stick for several years has really paid off for me in adapting to the
Linnstrument.
Having played Stick for several years has really paid off for me in adapting to the
Linnstrument.
Dave
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- KVRAF
- 2486 posts since 8 Jun, 2010
- Roger Linn Design
Hi UnWorldly,
This article by LinnStrument owner James Weaver might be helpful:
https://culturedear.wordpress.com/2015/ ... -of-stars/
Plus, this blog has other interesting articles about how to play LinnStrument.
Also, there videos of 2-handed LinnStrument performance might be useful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ee2pps0n8KU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R9YjITouuw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ThL6W5tzSI
Also, any of the videos by Jeremy Cubert are great examples of skilled solo expressive solo performance, like this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8teD_Xmm8YI
This article by LinnStrument owner James Weaver might be helpful:
https://culturedear.wordpress.com/2015/ ... -of-stars/
Plus, this blog has other interesting articles about how to play LinnStrument.
Also, there videos of 2-handed LinnStrument performance might be useful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ee2pps0n8KU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R9YjITouuw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ThL6W5tzSI
Also, any of the videos by Jeremy Cubert are great examples of skilled solo expressive solo performance, like this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8teD_Xmm8YI
