do you play an instrument?

more importantly:if so - do you think it helps you generate ideas bettter?

I used to pl;ay bass and im looking to get a drumkit in the hope that I can jam and get a better idea of rhythms and stuff - my programmed beats arennt funky AT ALL i think they lack that human element if you know what i mean. im wicked at bass tho - cos I used to play it.
i think i need to get a kit so i can fuck around when things in `the box` are gettin a bit stale... does anyone do this?do you get better results from doin it?

I don't play any instruments. But sitting at a computer all the time is, imo, not healthy. I would love to join a band. Also,...learning music theory would speed up the melody writing process.

Alto Sax
Drums

Deffo helps!

When I play stuff on the sax, it always sounds different somehow, it's like a breath of fresh air. If i've got a melody in a tune i'm unsure about, on some weird sci-fi sound I created, i'll play it on the sax and it, sort of, puts it in a context; you hear it from a different perspective.

As for drums, I just mic them up, play for an hour with no plans and listen back to the recordings when I need inspiration.

[Macc]

Drums, trumpet, bass a bit, guitar, keys a very little bit...

It all helps Having that shit in your sould does no harm at all - I can't feckin stop things bubbling up, although often it's at thoroughly inappropriate or inconvenient times

Most often the computer gets in the way and slows things down rather than helping, but then it does allow me to capture ideas a lot better than a post-it note or the voice recorded on my phone... Although saying that, a lot of the more recent things I've done actually feature that original idea recording somewhere in them

guitar and keys, yes i use em all the time - even if i end up replacing the parts - its a good inspiration starter

Was, rather. Drumming's fun but I'm not that passionate about it anymore. Nowadays I really want to learn piano.

I think learning a melodic instrument is the best way of learning harmony and really internalising that knowledge so you can draw on it automatically without thinking. Some can learn theory on paper but it's only ever gotten me so far. I learn by doing.

Of course, to be a dnb producer or whatever, yes, you can just use your ears and not know any theory (hey, Shadow made Endtroducing without any musical training). It all depends on the sound you're after in your music. Personally, while I'm not much of a jazz fan, I love all the jazz-influenced harmonies in stuff like Mahavishnu, electric Miles and composers like Steve Reich. Always wanted to have that sound in my music... somehow or another.

My problem lately is finding the time to devote to both piano practice and learning to produce tunes on the laptop. Both seem to need so much dedication that I can never balance the two.

played guitar since i was a wee little vagabond

[noisemonkey]

synthesizer
drum machine
cornet (grade 4)
piano
djembe

double bass. it helps for creativity, although it can kill because imo the more you know about music the more you start thinking when writing

'ooh should i really use that b9 against the v7 chord cause it's actually suggesting a major resolution'




but as already mentionned, great for seeing/hearing things in a different context

skinflute...


and bass guitar / guitar since i was young.


i'm a pretty mean egg-shaker shaker as well.

i find different instruments help with interesting chord voicings.

j

0=0

Violin since 17 years, although I made a pause for the last 2 years. Instead I was playing Viola, so I stayed in the family

Piano, but it's only basic skills I have on it.

And now I'm getting slowly into using my comp properly in order to get results that I actually can call music

nowt really
can construct a few simple chords.
can play the mpc as an instrument
have an indian santoor, cant play it.
can scratch a bit....

should of kept the piano lessons up them years ago.

There are more musicians here than I expected! Maybe we should get on a big collaboration.

should of kept the piano lessons up them years ago.

I wish I'd had any at all! I love tinkling the ivories but far from competent. My main interest is in 'percussion' more than full kit drumming, tho i'm trying.

Oh yeah and I can play a tenori-on. When it gets delivered at work

I used to play piano for about 7 years, haven't played for the past few though....

I played bass for years, a small bit of piano, and a bit of guitar too.
these days it's 95% computer based.
I used to be fairly competent at the harmonica too.

i once held a b sharp for so long it blew buster keatings socks off and i had to buy him a large bucket of chicken and some lemon sorbet to apologise


im thinking about starting a new instrument either brass or woodwind, clarinet or oboe something about that kind of pale dulcit tone you get from a clarinet i wouldnt mind exploring

I'm starting to get the hang of the C major scale.

It's a good one that

[Macc]

I'm starting to get the hang of the C major scale.

On?

if it is guitar

Yeah, guitar primarily.......when I really have it on piano, I'll be happy.

Speaking in the braoder sense......C major holds tremendous power.

[Statto]

Yeah, guitar primarily.......when I really have it on piano, I'll be happy.

Speaking in the braoder sense......C major holds tremendous power.

I recommend you learn Poulenc's Novelette No.1
never has C Major sounded so lovely

i play distortion effect unit.

[Macc]

In C Major?