Recent content by patate_hurlante

I'll just add that you can do a lot of listening if your technique is effortless and don't have to concentrate on playing as much :-)

A wise man once told me "learn words, not full sentences". Not that it made me a good improviser, but he sure was, so I'm guessing the fault must lie with me.

Of course by “drum machines” I refer strictly to the sequencer-type devices. Any loop of a real drummer is another matter entirely. The good thing is that thanks to the last 10 years’ worth of developments, we have an infinite supply of those, that’s what I’m saying :-)

While I tend to be wary of technological gimmicks, at this point I feel it necessary to point out that, rather than relying on a cold and mechcanical drum machine, we’re in the historically unprecedented position to jam with the best drummers in history. Just load any Porcaro/Porcaro/Porcaro...

Eeeeh. Most traditional forms have developed around a very precise type of metronome, called "the legs of the whole village dancing in unison". Biomechanically speaking, dancing bodies act as a pendulum and can be surprisingly precise; if you have a whole village doing it any fluctuation tends...

My experience with bass as a second instrument is... I thought groove would come very naturally for me. After all, I can count and subdivide and transcribe and I understand staccato, legato, swing and all that. Surely the fills would be the problem, right, but not grooving along on root notes...

Sorry for the off-topic, but is there a sportsbike club on TB? If not, I think it's time to start it. That said... obviously all three: backing tracks, metronome and drum machine. With the drum machine you can dial in a certain amount of shuffle or leave out some beats on purpose. Try turning...

Maybe I'm confused, but I see absolutely no instance of "talking crap" in the original post, just praise upon Stanley Clarke's playing, if at all "despite" his old school technique. No, but I legit can outrun Usain Bolt. Can't you?

Probably something like "it's all about the groove, man". Not exactly a novel thought, but to render unto Caesar's etc, that's a thought that simply can't be restated too many times ;-) @logdrum: Sweet video, thanks!

My God, it’s depressing just to think of it, isn’t it? It’s a second day job, that’s what it is.

Indeed. And that’s the reason why playing keyboards in pop/rock cover bands is essentially a desk job 95% of the time and not great for the hobbyist. If I had to name one reason, is that “practice time” ends up being “programming time”. The big name guys offload that part to their keyboard...

As a keyboard player, I swear I wish I knew what you mean. Last time I checked most keyboard instruments, with the notable exception of stuff like the Roland V-Synth, keep looking, feeling, and playing just the same for the whole of their existence. The occasional firmware update, if you get...

Depends on the gig and a myriad other factors. But for a "bread and butter" cover band setup you probably can't go below a single entry level performance workstation like the Roland Juno D. If, and that's a big if, you're willing to give up the piano-style keys and stick with the synth-style...

With due respect, Dream Theater - which I love - and especially Jordan Rudess aren't exactly the epitome of cool :-) Ladytron, Goldfrapp, Empire of The Sun and (yes, yes, I know) Lady Gaga have done much more to Make Keyboards Cool Again, much like Depeche Mode and Soft Cell did after punk. I...

Consider that most keyboardists are trained on piano. As much as a large part of music is universal, playing the Well Tempered Clavier doesn't exactly give you a notion of "pocket", nor does it teach you contemporary styles which you may or may not want to pick up for yourself by going to a...