right brain vs. left brain

Toneonbass · #1 07-30-2007, 10:17 PM

I have always heard right brain dominate thinkers are better musicians, more creative and outside the box thinkers. Over the years I have figured out that i'm left brain dominate (logical, numbers guy). Am I doomed to never becoming the musician I have dreamed about becoming? Anyone else know about this subject? I have been in a rut for a while, and starting to wonder...
thanks..

geoffkhan · #2 07-30-2007, 11:16 PM

Try practicing while reading, or some other left brain activity (that's what Chopin had his students do). Either that or try having a conversation with someone while practicing. You'll be able to tell very quickly how dependent your playing is on your left brain.

Another trick would be to practice when you're tired, like late at night. When you're tired, the left side of your brain tends to shut down, leaving you more creative.

UBU · #3 07-30-2007, 11:19 PM

Play with an eye patch over your right eye. The right side of your brain controls your left eye. It might help you "tap into it"

kebbs · #4 07-30-2007, 11:22 PM

The left vs right brain dichotomy has been greatly exaggerated in popular culture. As much as it can have some relevance, don't let it guide your thinking too far.

geoffkhan · #5 07-30-2007, 11:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kebbs

The left vs right brain dichotomy has been greatly exaggerated in popular culture.

Can you elaborate please? I've read books dealing with the subject.

Groovy Bastard · #6 07-31-2007, 05:25 AM

There are people playing out there who are left handed, or had an aneurism and had to learn to play all over again, and even this guy who has just one arm. I think a little left/right brain alignment will make no difference. Keep and open mind, and start practising!

DocBop · #7 07-31-2007, 08:42 AM

Now you know why you like Classical music so much and urge to be a sightreading machine. I would say just do more creative endeavors creativity can be practiced. There are good books on the topic like Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. It is a art book, but being creative is the same no mater what you doing even being left brained. Another is book is Free Play. If into meditation check out Effortless Mastery.

geoffkhan · #8 07-31-2007, 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DocBop

There are good books on the topic like Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. It is a art book, but being creative is the same no mater what you doing even being left brained. Another is book is Free Play. If into meditation check out Effortless Mastery.

Read all three books--great information in them!

louieeadg · #9 07-31-2007, 12:30 PM

Get a good book. Read a chapter. Play for 3 minutes after the chapter was read. Don't think. Just play. Make it musical.

DocBop's right. You have to exercise all parts of your brain. Critical and creative. Both are muscles that should be used daily or you will lose them.

Watch movies. Turn the sound off. Play along, look at colors on the screen, play what those colors sound like to you. Play what the emotions on people's faces sound like to you. Play what you think the dialogue would sound like on a bass. Never look at the fretboard while you do this.

Meditate. Drink green tea. Exercise.

jbaird · #10 07-31-2007, 12:40 PM

This is also a kind of chicken and the egg deal, creative people may be more right sided because they are exercising their creative aspects more and not because they were born with some super genius right brain

Scot · #11 07-31-2007, 01:45 PM

I believe both are important and both can be developed. Another technique for developing the right side is gesture improvising, which is basically a type of improvising you do where you try to shut down your thinking process and try to use your intuition or "feeling". See here for more about gesture improvising and other techniques to help develop your right brain improviser chops.

Another thing I would suggest is to make sure that ALL of your practicing is musical, whether playing scales, arpeggios, etc. Everything that comes out of the instrument should be something musical that you could be inspired to sing. Over on the DB side I have many times read of bassists claiming that the Simandl double bass material is not musical, which I never really understood. Those exercises can ALL be played very musically, IMO.

DocBop · #12 07-31-2007, 03:21 PM

Many when they try to be more creative they start adding things to try to find new sounds. To work on being creative start eliminating things put restrictions on yourself. When you have less to work with you have to be more creative to get something out of it. Do things like solo with only the (appropriate) 3rd, 4th, and 5th of each chord. Try play using one two strings, the two outside strings, using only one string. That last one really can teach a lot not only about being creative, but about the fingerboard. Being so many of us play so visually, what I like to do is a night is still and play in the dark. Playing in the dark you really develop a feel and relationship with your instrument.

So just as artists go thru periods of only painting with one color reduce what you let yourself use to play. Don't be afraid to sound bad, those are lessons too. Working these types of exercises you will also learn to turn creativity on and off as needed. Like when learning some new scale or technique on the bass you want that left brain to be in control. But once you physically learn it you want the right brain to take over so you can discover what you can do with it.

jaebee · #13 07-31-2007, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DocBop

Playing in the dark you really develop a feel and relationship with your instrument.

<p>

All good suggestions. Another good excercise to help creativity is to write out a 4 bar 16th note pattern
make a simple 16 beat bar, insert a mute at the beginning of the bar (so starting on the 'e' of 1eaE'). so you essentially have an 'odd' meter running through normal time. can really make some cool grooves this way and interesting song structure

DocBop · #14 07-31-2007, 03:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaebee

<p>

All good suggestions. Another good excercise to help creativity is to write out a 4 bar 16th note pattern
make a simple 16 beat bar, insert a mute at the beginning of the bar (so starting on the 'e' of 1eaE'). so you essentially have an 'odd' meter running through normal time. can really make some cool grooves this way and interesting song structure

Another one I didn't say because I don't know if the OP know basic theory and reads/writes music. A great exercise is to put the bass down. Get a sheet of staff paper and write out some chords 8 bars of a common progression or even some song. Then with out the bass write a simple bass line using whatever theory you know. Then pickup the bass and start playing it. If you don't like something that is what the eraser is for go thru and make it something you like. Do that a few times a week and you will start being able to take what's in your head and first get it on paper, then get it on your instrument. You will start learning about what sounds that you like so you can decide when to use them.

We don't need to have our instruments in our hands all the time to practice playing. IF you get to hang around good composers and arrangers you will find they write a lot without an instrument. They play what they wrote afterwards to check themselves. People get amazed when they hear Beethoven wrote his last symphony after he went deaf, but after you hang around great musicians you realize they are hearing things in their head with any instrument, band, or orchestra they need.

Johnny Crab · #15 07-31-2007, 05:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toneonbass

Am I doomed to never becoming the musician I have dreamed about becoming?

Only if you believe it.

By day...logic, decision-making, numbers, etc. and only sometimes getting to be creative(solve problems)...which folks in this line of work find fun...

A day WITHOUT playing music or at least listening to some leaves me feeling "strange". A bass & POD go to work with me for lunch hour. I tell the curious that I'm exercising the other side of my brain.....

Practice, play, listen, etc...it ain't like you got only half of a brain installed from the factory or something....

Toneonbass · #16 07-31-2007, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny Crab

Only if you believe it.

By day...logic, decision-making, numbers, etc. and only sometimes getting to be creative(solve problems)...which folks in this line of work find fun...

A day WITHOUT playing music or at least listening to some leaves me feeling "strange". A bass & POD go to work with me for lunch hour. I tell the curious that I'm exercising the other side of my brain.....

Practice, play, listen, etc...it ain't like you got only half of a brain installed from the factory or something....

I agree, I don't like going a day without listening or playing music.
Thanks, for the input everyone..

kipsus · #17 08-01-2007, 07:54 AM

Another one of those left brainers here

Great thread, great suggestions, thanks guys

Cristo · #18 08-01-2007, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toneonbass

Am I doomed to never becoming the musician I have dreamed about becoming?

Maybe so, maybe not, depending on how realistic your goal is, how much you work to achieve it, how much blind "luck" you have, etc.

I wouldn't worry too much about the impact of "brain-sidedness" on your success, considering that there have been a few succesful musicians who overcame problems like blindness & deafness.

Toneonbass · #19 08-01-2007, 01:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cristo

I wouldn't worry too much about the impact of "brain-sidedness" on your success, considering that there have been a few succesful musicians who overcame problems like blindness & deafness.

Good point!

geoffkhan · #20 08-02-2007, 10:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scot

I believe both are important and both can be developed. Another technique for developing the right side is gesture improvising, which is basically a type of improvising you do where you try to shut down your thinking process and try to use your intuition or "feeling". See here for more about gesture improvising and other techniques to help develop your right brain improviser chops.

Another thing I would suggest is to make sure that ALL of your practicing is musical, whether playing scales, arpeggios, etc. Everything that comes out of the instrument should be something musical that you could be inspired to sing. Over on the DB side I have many times read of bassists claiming that the Simandl double bass material is not musical, which I never really understood. Those exercises can ALL be played very musically, IMO.

Excellent, excellent post, Scott!