KVR Audio

tapper mike · Post by **tapper mike** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 4:52 pm

Playing leads didn't come naturally to me. It was all about self determination that made things happen in the early years. Every-once-in-awhile I'd hit a plateau. At this point I thought to myself "Is this as good as I get"
Sometimes it was extremely rewarding especially when I was playing in bands. When I had a good band behind me live onstage I felt unstoppable.

While I still pick up the guitar and play and reminisce I'm no longer as dedicated to the instrument as I have been in former years. I'm good enough for me and that's all that matters. If my chops start falling apart I can usually bring them back up with a little practice.

I missed the challenge of trying things new. With the ztar I've decided to take it on as a lap instrument. This is very strange even now. Everything is upside down and backwards for my left hand. I run amuck with different ideas and approaches to the instrument but I don't master them. Possibly because I treat it as the great experiment rather then the great mastery. I really want to bring my level of playing up but it's not like there are "Z-board" videos on the net.

Are you getting better as a musician?
Do you feel it is important to challenge your skills or expand your knowledge?
Are you comfortable with where you are in your technique and command of the instrument?

pljones · Post by **pljones** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 6:38 pm

I started playing my AlternateMode TrapKAT in 2007 having very briefly played acoustic drums (i.e. a number of weeks) back in the mid '90s. I'd taken lessons, though, which was a really good thing. I started off on the TrapKAT able to play. Getting about 4 hours a week playing time and having no dedication to practice meant I was only expecting progress to be slow and I haven't been disappointed

! It's getting to the point I can have a couple of hours jamming and actually enjoy listening back to most of my playing. Sometimes. Other times it's still dire... But it's better. Which is nice.

robogone · Post by **robogone** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 6:46 pm

I just think there is so much to learn about theory and playing technique that I'll always have something to learn. Maybe I've hit a plateau with some instruments, but others I'm still learning a lot on.

foosnark · Post by **foosnark** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:29 pm

I don't do disciplined practice anymore... but every time I pick up my fretless bass and mess with it, I am exploring what the instrument can do and what I can do with it -- getting familiar with the fingerboard, faster at playing by ear, improving my intonation, and getting to know what I can do with right-hand techniques and how they interact with effects.

There are several ways one can get better. Pure physical development, coordination, ear training, familiarity with an instrument or software, exploration of sounds, refinement of personal style, preparedness, and so on.

debra1rlo · Post by **debra1rlo** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:30 pm

yes but it's not something I really noticed until I started playing in 5 or so bands this year.

justin3am · Post by **justin3am** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:32 pm

No, I'm definitely getting worse.

It's fun unlearning to play music (not that I really knew how to play in the first place).

V0RT3X · Post by **V0RT3X** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:33 pm

nope and i think im gonna move on to things i know im actually good at

CableChannel · Post by **CableChannel** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:36 pm

I learned the piano as a child. Because I was forced to practice I made progress every week.

At college I started to get acoustic guitar lessons, later a few electric guitar lessons. Because nobody forced me to practice I didn't get anywhere close to my piano skills. Today, I have given up to improve on these instruments. It's just futile, I don't like practising, my lazyness is gigantic.

On the piano, I slowly degrade technically, but I improve improvisation skills slowly.

However I am getting better at producing. The learning curve is easier there I think. Your ear is trained just be listening. Your skills are trained by gathering information, trying stuff out, understanding how stuff works.
With an instrument I only learn by mechanically repeating something a thousand times, and that's too hard for me.

SODDI · Post by **SODDI** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:36 pm

I just (touch wood) broke a 2 year slump due to a lot of really bad stuff going on in my personal life, so I am simply trying to reclaim lost ground.

tapper mike · Post by **tapper mike** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 7:55 pm

I have a hard time locking down a direction now.

When I was playing 5 6 7 nights a week it was a lock down and I noticed how solid my playing was.

I'm starting to notice that I want/need live human feedback to take me to the next level of my ztar playing. it's not something simply posting a video on youtube can cure.

DSmolken · Post by **DSmolken** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 8:04 pm

I don't do music professionally and what I do is so scattered across different genres and skills that I'm always getting better at some things and worse at others. Hopefully the ones I'm getting worse at won't be too important in the near future.

robogone · Post by **robogone** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 9:10 pm

I think if I had a band or at least one or more people to jam with regularly I would improve at a faster rate.

ariston · Post by **ariston** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 9:14 pm

My piano playing has degenerated quite a bit, but it's getting better in other areas. I'm getting worse technically, but better at playing what I'm feeling in the moment, without tying my fingers in knots. So, all in all, I'd say I'm getting better.

Tricky-Loops · Post by **Tricky-Loops** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 9:16 pm

Thanks for the reminder that my keyboard is there to play with it and not as room decoration...

HaganeSteel · Post by **HaganeSteel** » Thu Nov 21, 2013 10:08 pm

tapper mike wrote:Are you getting better as a musician?
Do you feel it is important to challenge your skills or expand your knowledge?
Are you comfortable with where you are in your technique and command of the instrument?

I feel it's important to make mistakes.

I want to add to what you said, tapper mike and say this (again, 'you' is referring to people in general):

A lot of people are in it for ego.

It's ego and the desire to be good that keeps people mediocre. If you're worried about sounding good, you're more likely to play it safe and rely less on your sense of interval/relative pitch.

It's funny you bring this up now because I was just thinking about how happy and fulfilled my music makes me earlier today while I was in the kitchen.

I've had such amazing support from my family, who loves my stuff, my friends, and you guys (especially you, tapper mike.

)

I feel safe enough that I can just go wild with my music and not care.

Do what makes you happy in the moment. Not caring about how you sound is what moves you past those plateaus.

The more mistakes you make, the more you learn. And the more you learn that those aren't really mistakes! If you don't let yourself make mistakes, you'll never rise above the rote harmonies and melodies that make someone average.

Good musicianship isn't about skill. Nobuo Uematsu taught me that.

Good musicianship is about fearlessness.

Are you getting better (musically)?