Alternatives to the 4th string layout?
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- KVRer
- 15 posts since 8 May, 2019
I've been using the tritone layout from the get go, mainly because my brain relies heavily on logical thinking. Having everything laid out in parallel structures makes it easier for me to understand whats going on, not just on a visual level. That's very helpful when I'm composing music since I lack knowledge in music theory and I'm more of learning-by-doing type.
Playability-vise It makes a lot of sense to check out different layouts for easier/more practical chord shapes. Especially when the focus is exclusively on live music. Right now I'm taking the easy route of playing relatively simple chords using both hands and then enjoy the magic of overdubbing for any added complexity.
Playability-vise It makes a lot of sense to check out different layouts for easier/more practical chord shapes. Especially when the focus is exclusively on live music. Right now I'm taking the easy route of playing relatively simple chords using both hands and then enjoy the magic of overdubbing for any added complexity.
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- KVRAF
- 9544 posts since 6 Jan, 2017 from Outer Space
Beside using the tritone layout, I also switched off most lights. I have only the C and A lit in different colors. That way I am much less distracted, especially when I play different scales than C-major/a-minor… Its easier to concentrate on shapes instead of black and white keys…
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FranklyFlawless FranklyFlawless https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=586325
- KVRian
- 1091 posts since 24 Oct, 2022
The tritone layout has been essential for me due to its ease of performing tritone substitutions. It also helps me remember what each note on the playing surface is much better compared to other layouts, as they simply repeat every two rows. Chord shapes on either or both hands are more comfortable and nicely balanced with both horizontal and vertical range.
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- KVRist
- 291 posts since 9 Sep, 2019 from Denmark
When I started playing Linnstrument three and a half years ago, I just wanted to learn to play it, and in my mind, using different tunings would just be counterproductive. And I thought that the +5 tuning was probably default for good reasons (which it is). It was familiar to me because of my bass and guitar playing, and given that I had never heard about a stringed instrument tuned in tritones, I didn’t even consider trying that one.
But perhaps because I am now playing more Linnstrument that I have ever done, this talk about tritone tuning intrigued me, and convinced me to at least try it. So I played it quite a bit over two days and these are my thoughts:
If I was to use the Linnstrument in lieu of a piano, I would absolutely go for the tritone tuning. It totally takes care of the dreaded “stacking fingers on top of each other” that has already been discussed here. It took me very little time to conclude that chord playing was plainly better for me than with +5 tuning.
However, for me, the Linny is my expressive solo instrument, and my playing is all about melodic improvisation. 99% of the time I play one voice, and the last percent I am probably playing thirds or octaves. Or adding a line with my left hand.
So how did melodic playing feel with +6? Surprisingly good, really.
I would say, if the basic seven-note scale had felt better in +6, I might go for it, but for me, it felt just a bit more strained. It is perfectly doable, though, and pentatonics might be better with the +6. There are some “gives” and some “takes”.
I have come to love to use the effect of repeating a note, alternating between two pads on adjacent rows but 5 pads apart. Because I don’t use pitch quantize, each repetition of the note will have variances of pitch. (Kind of like when saxophone players play the same note with alternating fingerings.) That definitely felt a bit worse because it adds a semitone to the stretch between finger 2 and 5. (I have small-ish hands.)
Anyway, I could probably learn to live with +6 and along the way I would probably find more things that was better. (Such as playing “Freedom Jazz Dance” is much easier, - fourths up and down all the time.)
But for me, I just cant justify throwing three years of playing +5 away for something that is not unanimously better. (It was VERY noticable how much brain power I had to use every second of playing +6.)
Had I been a “piano-type” linnstrument player, I would definitely switch, even I had to re-learn so much, but as a melodic (non-chordal) player, I only felt “some” reward and a bit more in the loss department.
But I am very happy that I spent some time with +6. It totally showed how it can lead to wrong conclusions to compare a linnstrument to a stringed instrument.
And if you are one of the many “piano-type” linstrument players, I would absolutely recommend giving +6 a good look. Or actually, I would recommend any linnstrument player to check it out.
Just my 5 cents.
But perhaps because I am now playing more Linnstrument that I have ever done, this talk about tritone tuning intrigued me, and convinced me to at least try it. So I played it quite a bit over two days and these are my thoughts:
If I was to use the Linnstrument in lieu of a piano, I would absolutely go for the tritone tuning. It totally takes care of the dreaded “stacking fingers on top of each other” that has already been discussed here. It took me very little time to conclude that chord playing was plainly better for me than with +5 tuning.
However, for me, the Linny is my expressive solo instrument, and my playing is all about melodic improvisation. 99% of the time I play one voice, and the last percent I am probably playing thirds or octaves. Or adding a line with my left hand.
So how did melodic playing feel with +6? Surprisingly good, really.
I would say, if the basic seven-note scale had felt better in +6, I might go for it, but for me, it felt just a bit more strained. It is perfectly doable, though, and pentatonics might be better with the +6. There are some “gives” and some “takes”.
I have come to love to use the effect of repeating a note, alternating between two pads on adjacent rows but 5 pads apart. Because I don’t use pitch quantize, each repetition of the note will have variances of pitch. (Kind of like when saxophone players play the same note with alternating fingerings.) That definitely felt a bit worse because it adds a semitone to the stretch between finger 2 and 5. (I have small-ish hands.)
Anyway, I could probably learn to live with +6 and along the way I would probably find more things that was better. (Such as playing “Freedom Jazz Dance” is much easier, - fourths up and down all the time.)
But for me, I just cant justify throwing three years of playing +5 away for something that is not unanimously better. (It was VERY noticable how much brain power I had to use every second of playing +6.)
Had I been a “piano-type” linnstrument player, I would definitely switch, even I had to re-learn so much, but as a melodic (non-chordal) player, I only felt “some” reward and a bit more in the loss department.
But I am very happy that I spent some time with +6. It totally showed how it can lead to wrong conclusions to compare a linnstrument to a stringed instrument.
And if you are one of the many “piano-type” linstrument players, I would absolutely recommend giving +6 a good look. Or actually, I would recommend any linnstrument player to check it out.
Just my 5 cents.
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FranklyFlawless FranklyFlawless https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=586325
- KVRian
- 1091 posts since 24 Oct, 2022
Most of my focus with the tritone layout and the LinnStrument in general is based on improvisation, which is why I am writing and releasing all of these documents about it. I am currently in the process of writing up one regarding lead/melody, but it requires time to refine and finalize. For now, I can provide a handful of quick but basic tips:
- The major pentatonic scale has an easy shape to remember, resembling a isoceles trapezoid. Use the first row for the first three whole tones, then use the second row for the last two whole tones, offset one column to the right.
- The diatonic scale can be played easily ascending or descending by playing diagonally upwards to the left, or diagonally downwards to the right. Use your three main fingers. You will know you are doing it correctly when the shapes you make repeat 2-3 times going either up or down.