Clickity Click Click Click

[brewer9]

I guess that makes me an official "Rock Moron." Hey, I know when the shoe fits. I'm not THAT stupid. LOL!

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

(Attempt to keep thread on track)

FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY.......


(Detour into sub-plot)

All this talk about jazz snobs and theory is pretty funny...So a "jazz snob" is someone who can read and "knows theory"? Maybe we should all think about what music "theory" really is, because it sounds like lots of people have very different definitions of what THEORY is supposed to be.

WHAT MUSIC THEORY IS NOT: Music theory is NOT a set of rules that you consult whenever you are trying to write/create/improvise something new. It is NOT a set of mathematical yarrow sticks that you whip out for the purpose of telling you what the next note or chord should be in the music YOU are creating. No amount of music theory is going to tell you how to write a great song or play a great solo - you have to find that from within yourself.


WHAT MUSIC THEORY IS: Music theory, quite simply, is the Quantification of sounds that have already happened (in the past). It is the SCIENCE of giving names to specific sounds so that they are more easily referred to and accessed when desired (in the future). The names that are given to these sounds are not important in and of themselves - two people can be playing a C7#4 chord; one of them knows its name and the other only knows that it's a "cool sound", but it's the same damn chord either way - but the names do become important as a means by which musicians from all over the world can communicate with each other quickly and easily.

There are only 12 different pitches in most western music, and harmonic theory is the study of the way these pitches interact in different combinations. Maybe I'm missing something, but how could studying (read: making observations about what you are doing and taking notes {no pun intended} that enable you to use the knowledge you have gained from your observations more quickly, which frees your mind to make different observations....) music theory NOT make you a better musician?


(We now return to our regularly scheduled program)

FIEDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY..........

 

[brewer9]

The same way a playright who absolutely loves Shakespeare might write boring uninteresting plays, while the guy who loves the Flinstones would write a greatly interesting and fun to watch play.

Too much of a good thing is not always a good thing.

Creativity comes from the person, not from the theory.

(Oops, sorry I forgot to continue the thread's theme....Fieldy, Fieldy, Fieldy, Fieldy, Fieldy).

 

[Beelzebob]

No one ever mentioned John Entwistles type-writer finger style. He was one of the original clickers. I love cliking. Tim C from Rage clicks and he can play. I click and I can play.

Many people said it wasn't technique that did it, but string/neck set up, tone, and miking. So true.

Beelzebob

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

Originally posted by brewer9


Too much of a good thing is not always a good thing.


....as exemplified by any number of "speed metal" guitarists (finger technique) and Dolly Parton (er, uhmm....shall we say, "Bosomage"?). Sure. But that line is only crossed when the "good thing" in question becomes an end in itself rather than a means to an end. Almost all of the players I love know an incredible amount of theory, but that's not why I love their playing.....I love their playing because they know how to use it to better facilitate MUSIC MAKING. Their music does not exist for the sake of their theory knowledge, but by the same token, much of they music they DO make would not have been possible without it.


Creativity comes from the person, not from the theory.

Also true. BUT...a good command of theory opens the gate to creativity by allowing decisions about different sounds to be made very quickly (because the player who commands theory will have already experimented with countless different sounds and will be able to predict how certain sounds will work in relation to each other), and by allowing the player creating the music to be aware of a vastly greater number of possibilities for where the music could possibly go at any given moment.

I know people who play pretty well on intuition alone who know nothing of theory. I also know people who know a sh*tload of theoretical concepts who sound like they are reciting out of a math book in a monotone voice when they play. But I also know people who have great intuition AND know a great deal of music theory, and in my opinion, nobody on earth from either of the first two groups mentioned can even BEGIN TO HOLD A CANDLE to these folks. And - also in my opinion, and my opinion only - people who have (or think they have) great musical intuition and who state that they don't need any musical training or theory to become better players are kidding themselves. What they are really doing is CHOOSING to remain ignorant so that they won't have to face something that intimidates them, or something that will make them have to work to get better.

But, like I said, that's only my opinion. And remember, I live in Kentucky, so how smart could I be anyway? All I do is milk cows all day....


P.S. - FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY FIELDY .........

 

[brewer9]

Hey, I'm from New Hampshire so maybe we have a lot in common. At least thats what my brother's wife/sister says.

 

[Beelzebob]

LOL! Okay Brewer, but I'm originally from Oklahoma. My Auntie-mom says I'm a real good bass player

Still, the clickity-click-click-click is a nice sound, regardless of you state (of body or mind!).

 

[XavierG]

Just out of curiosity, would a "clickity clackity" bass line be written on the bass staff? What symbol would one use to represent that technique?

 

[john turner]

i think "x" at the end of the stem (instead of the round head) indicates a click or ghost note.

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

Originally posted by brewer9
The same way a playright who absolutely loves Shakespeare might write boring uninteresting plays, while the guy who loves the Flinstones would write a greatly interesting and fun to watch play.

Too much of a good thing is not always a good thing.

Creativity comes from the person, not from the theory.

Well, I know that I would much rather sit through 3 hours of any Shakespeare play than 3 hours of the Flintstones!!!

I also find plays by Tom Stoppard (who has written things like "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead" which are directly related to Shakespeare plays) infinitely more entertaining than any cartoons on TV.

I think that great art, bears constant repetition and you find more in it every time you read, watch or listen to it. I can remember listening to Mahler's 6th Symphony over 60 times, in a row (I didn't want to listen to anything else) when I first discovered it and I heard new things each time. And I still listen to it on a frequent basis.

Whereas most "catchy pop" is just irritating after the first few times you hear it.

I think that creativity does come from the person, but if you have two truly creative persons and one has a very limited technique and the other has a large number of tools and techniques at their disposal, with which they are exhaustively familiar; then I know that I would rather listen to the second person's work.

 

[brewer9]

Originally posted by Bruce Lindfield


Well, I know that I would much rather sit through 3 hours of any Shakespeare play than 3 hours of the Flintstones!!!

I also find plays by Tom Stoppard (who has written things like "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead" which are directly related to Shakespeare plays) infinitely more entertaining than any cartoons on TV.

I think that great art, bears constant repetition and you find more in it every time you read, watch or listen to it. I can remember listening to Mahler's 6th Symphony over 60 times, in a row (I didn't want to listen to anything else) when I first discovered it and I heard new things each time. And I still listen to it on a frequent basis.

Whereas most "catchy pop" is just irritating after the first few times you hear it.

I think that creativity does come from the person, but if you have two truly creative persons and one has a very limited technique and the other has a large number of tools and techniques at their disposal, with which they are exhaustively familiar; then I know that I would rather listen to the second person's work.

ZZZZZZZzzzzzzz....huh! Oh, I'm sorry. Were you saying something?

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

Low attention-span disorder?

 

[brewer9]

definately!

 

[seamus]

lol, these Fieldy threads always crack me up

 

[brewer9]

Are you starting to get a bit snide there Brucy? Your mis-spelling of "deficit" is as interesting as any of my mis-spellings. I didnt know perfect spelling was required here, but if your gonna start nit-picking then make sure you're up to the task.

I'm just having fun, please dont take this whole thing so seriously for goodness gracious.

 

[brewer9]

Ok, you've edited your post to change "deficit" to "span." Very good choice.

 

[XavierG]

brewer
I'll bare witnes to his rong speling of that word.. if this goes to court, that is.

 

[brewer9]

Thanks Xavier, I do appreciate that (or should I say "uhpreesheeate"). But this is all good-natured ribbing, so hopefully we dont need Alan Dershowitz yet, or is that "Allen" (we do have to be sure of these things ya know).

 

[Angus]

Originally posted by Bruce Lindfield
I think this is very unfair criticism - I've been here a long time and never seen Angus bragging about his ability - his gear maybe!

Theres nothing to brag out, ability wise!

As far as the comment I made, it was intended to be sarcasm, aimed at the frequent use of "jazz snobs". What, Fieldy is a genius now?

 

[Angus]

Brewer, I fail to see how responding with "Zzzzzz" helps further the discussion. Is this just because you can't give any sort of thoughtful response?

I do find this discussion interesting (though I'm not exactly neutral), so I'd like to see it keep on going.