I find that I appreciate good musicianship more as a musician, however music that has little to no musical value (e.g. straight eighths rock) really does not appeal to me anymore.
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musicians appreciating music
- Thread starter one
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Sure I appreciate music much more. I don't ever listen to a piece of music now without thinking, "it's structured that way because...",
"he's chosen to emphasise that because...", "he's used that effect to give it..."
however... I don't enjoy music as much as I used to before I understood it, and a lot of my friends certainly enjoy it a lot more than I do. example... went to a party with a friend tonight who listens to music much of the time, but doesn't really play any instruments...
She said at one point, "I love this song, its awesome! it's just perrrfect!"
and of course I said something like, "yeah, totally!" but in reality I was thinking something like, "That's a nice arpeggio... I wouldn't have so much reverb on that lead line... I wonder how he mic'd up that guitar cabinet..."
"he's chosen to emphasise that because...", "he's used that effect to give it..."
however... I don't enjoy music as much as I used to before I understood it, and a lot of my friends certainly enjoy it a lot more than I do. example... went to a party with a friend tonight who listens to music much of the time, but doesn't really play any instruments...
She said at one point, "I love this song, its awesome! it's just perrrfect!"
and of course I said something like, "yeah, totally!" but in reality I was thinking something like, "That's a nice arpeggio... I wouldn't have so much reverb on that lead line... I wonder how he mic'd up that guitar cabinet..."
I think it depends. Personally I enjoy music alot more since I've started playing an instrument. I loved music before and it was and still is the best thing in my life then, but now I find myself tapping my foot and swaying my head at crappy songs because the rhythm is groovy. Not to mention that when I listen to a song I used to really love before, I now notice the level of musicianship of the artists, and it makes me love it even more 
I definetly think we can enjoy music more as musicians but I think for some people when they become a musician it gives them the right to judge all music wether its good or not. To many times a see someone bashing a famous artist from a genre they dont like. But i think they deserve credit if they are successful at what they want to achieve.
I've found that I can appreciate musicianship in songs more. I've listened to Rush my whole life. After I picked up bass, I just love them that much more.
I've found that bands of great musicianship have a lot of musician fans. For instance, if you go on the Primus forums, the majority of members are musicians.
I've found that bands of great musicianship have a lot of musician fans. For instance, if you go on the Primus forums, the majority of members are musicians.
I can't really remember NOT being a musician of some sort. I grew up in one of those homes where mom was always playing the piano, or the stereo was on, and I just picked it up at a young age. (Something priceless I'll always be grateful for).
I've gone through periods of being totally into music, and periods of hardly listening to or playing music at all. At one point I wasn't really playing anything, but got very much into one particular band, and it changed the way I looked at music completely. And part of that came from listening to music from the perspective of these uberfans who are not musicians - seeing what they see in the music and not just the technical stuff, and understanding why they love it.
Of course, it's still colored by my knowledge of music, and the technicalities between how they achieved certain sounds, but it's a different way of viewing it.
It's funny that people keep bringing up jazz players being snobs. I've known a few, too. But it's not just musicians who appreciate jazz, either. My stepdad probably can't put 3 notes together on a piano, but his favorite music is jazz.
I've gone through periods of being totally into music, and periods of hardly listening to or playing music at all. At one point I wasn't really playing anything, but got very much into one particular band, and it changed the way I looked at music completely. And part of that came from listening to music from the perspective of these uberfans who are not musicians - seeing what they see in the music and not just the technical stuff, and understanding why they love it.
Of course, it's still colored by my knowledge of music, and the technicalities between how they achieved certain sounds, but it's a different way of viewing it.
It's funny that people keep bringing up jazz players being snobs. I've known a few, too. But it's not just musicians who appreciate jazz, either. My stepdad probably can't put 3 notes together on a piano, but his favorite music is jazz.
ElMon said:
I hear that.
Several times have I discovered really cool guitar parts or drum fills in songs after listening to them hundreds, perhaps thousands of times.
When I listen to music I don't normally listen to, for example r&b or hip-hop, I kinda fill in the bassline or w/e in my thoughts. I also constantly tap my feet. Even when I'm not listening to anything.
The only difference is, when I'm not listening to music, I tap my feet to create the rhythm of a song I like, and when I listen to music, I create whole new parts using my imaginary double bass pedals.
Someone who has studied music can get a different appreciation for music, but no more or less than a non-musician.
one said:
I don't think we get any more 'emotional value' (for want of a better phrase) out of it than non-musicians, in fact since learning about the mechanics of music making i've generally been a bit less likely to be blissed out and awestruck by the pure sound of a piece of music because I know most times how the magic's done... but when the magic does hit me, and I hear some serious musical genius, it's as amazing as ever
being a musician has definitely raised the bar on what i'll consider worth listening to, so in one sense i'm less likely to find pleasure in most music that accidentally hits my ear... but the stuff I choose to listen to, I love more than ever
I don't think it's necessary to understand the nuts and bolts of how music's made to appreciate it, although there are definitely some kinds of music where a background in the musical vocabulary of the idiom is desirable
i think being a musician shifts your focus on music, we listen to it differently than non musicians. Musicians tend to focus (including me) on the technical side of music, and not the emotional side. Juts look at this board, we rave about such and such great bassist, guitarist, drummer and what not, but most of the people discussed here are totally unknown to the general public. we think jaco is great but none of my friends know him or like his music. since i write songs for my band my attention to music is shifting back to songs instead of great solo artists.
i don't think the appreciation for music is any differnt for musicians and non musicians.
i don't think the appreciation for music is any differnt for musicians and non musicians.
mvw356 said:
I learned to combat this and IMO it has taken my playing to a MUCH deeper level. Before I did this, I would only judge music on its technical level, usually by the 'complexity' of its bass line (be this lots of notes/rythmic syncopation) or the presence of 'Groove'. While I still honor the latter (ANY music has groove to it if you know where to look for it), I've learned to simply 'feel' music on an emotional/psychic level (which is exactly where the other 98% of non-musical listeners come from IMO) before judging it right off.
When I first heard Tom Waits under my previous inclination to be overly analytical, I was like "this is out of tune, rythmically sloppy crap". Now, I"m like "this is out of tune, rythmically sloppy genius that I can't get enough of".
This topic also reminds me of a Chris Wood interview (of MMW), where he listed players like Mingus for their ability to play 'stoopid' as well as technically advanced. In short, this 'stoopid' style was characterized by alot of inflection and using non-traditional techniques that might be scoffed at by purists, like playing in and out of time while soloing, making 'noises' on the bass and playing sloppy on purpose for effect. This is what I especially like about jazz cats who play with a more 'bluesy' style (like some of Wayne Shorters compositions and solos) than a clean, bebop-inspired style. The former has more feeling to it IMO.
I've tried to turn friends on to guys like Charlie Parker and fusion groups like Weather Report/Return to Forever, but for some reason I have the best luck with Wayne Shorter, Mingus, and the master of minimalism, Miles Davis. I think most non-musical people like simple, easily communicated ideas, whether this be with lyrics or with instrumental music.
ElMon said:
exactly how I feel about The Fall... they horrify all my musician friends, which makes me love the group even more
one said:
I think most musicians have that deeper understanding of music than the average listener does. As for music appreciation, I don't believe that you have to be a musician to appreciate it to its fullest potential. I know too many people that don't jam or have the slightest bit of musical talent that listen to and appreciate more complex and diverse styles than many of the musicians I currently know.
I think we appreciate music in a different way to non-musicians, and we get more out of it in some ways, but at a price. I can't listen to music without analysing aspects of it that a non-musician wouldn't even be aware of.
From "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig, on the process of analysis:
"When analytic thought, the knife, is applied to experience, something is always killed in the process. That is fairly well understood, at least in the arts. Mark Twain's experience comes to mind, in which, after he had mastered the analytic knowledge needed to pilot the Mississippi River, he discovered the river had lost its beauty. Something is always killed. But what is less noticed in the arts...something is always created too. And instead of just dwelling on what is killed it's important also to see what's created and to see the process as a kind of death-birth continuity that is neither good nor bad, but just is."
From "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig, on the process of analysis:
"When analytic thought, the knife, is applied to experience, something is always killed in the process. That is fairly well understood, at least in the arts. Mark Twain's experience comes to mind, in which, after he had mastered the analytic knowledge needed to pilot the Mississippi River, he discovered the river had lost its beauty. Something is always killed. But what is less noticed in the arts...something is always created too. And instead of just dwelling on what is killed it's important also to see what's created and to see the process as a kind of death-birth continuity that is neither good nor bad, but just is."
I remember reading somewhere way back that a lot of musicians are less fussy about their sound systems than other folk. The article suggested that musicians don't need the fidelity of reproduction as much, because their understanding of music at an instinctive level makes it easier for them to lock into what's going on in whatever they're listening to.Rob Lewis said:
Not many writers for hi-fi magazines seemed to be musical back when I used to read such stuff. Or none of them ever seemed to mention it anyway.
Dunno about that!baba said:My brother in law came up with this nugget of wisdom this summer while I was spinning music:
"Do you ever notice that musicians have the worst taste in music?"
But I think it may be the case that musicians often like a wider range of music than "normal people".
All the guys I know that are into one particular genre or style in a big way (you know the type - their music collections reflect the full range of styles from A to... er.... B 
) are either not musical at all, or crap. The musicians I respect all like a much wider range of material and seem to find music they enjoy (and some stuff they don't)in almost every genre.
