Musical instruments

[lxskllr]

Thanks man. I will check out some videos of them on YouTube and see what I can find in the local major cities as far as pricing goes if I am interested in them. Advice like this is always appreciated.

Not really what you're interested in, but here's some heavy cello...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSHUERyeDi8&feature=related

On the mellower side
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbTozgoj9OQ&feature=related

Just an example of thinking outside the box which you can do with any instrument.

 

[marsbound2024]

Not really what you're interested in, but here's some heavy cello...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSHUERyeDi8&feature=related

On the mellower side
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbTozgoj9OQ&feature=related

Just an example of thinking outside the box which you can do with any instrument.

I love Apocalyptica. Wonderful stuff there. Thanks for sharing!

 

[zinfamous]

I played alto sax for ~12 years and was quite good for my age, but got..."bored" due to Marching Band (required participation at my High School to be in Jazz/Orchestra--the other "season")

It's a great instrument, but marching music kills any love for music; at least for those that aren't completely passionate about music at the time. the smart ones get out early :\

I don't know why you don't see the sax as versatile, though. It's not proper for any type of symphony, sure...but from what it sounds like, you don't really want to be sitting around playing a symphonic arrangement of anything, do you?

I'm starting to pick up piano, finally, after many many years.. slow going, heh.

I may just migrate straight to the Keytar, though :awe:

 

[marsbound2024]

I played alto sax for ~12 years and was quite good for my age, but got..."bored" due to Marching Band (required participation at my High School to be in Jazz/Orchestra--the other "season")

It's a great instrument, but marching music kills any love for music; at least for those that aren't completely passionate about music at the time. the smart ones get out early :\

I don't know why you don't see the sax as versatile, though. It's not proper for any type of symphony, sure...but from what it sounds like, you don't really want to be sitting around playing a symphonic arrangement of anything, do you?

I'm starting to pick up piano, finally, after many many years.. slow going, heh.

I may just migrate straight to the Keytar, though :awe:

Actually I'd like to play some symphonies with small groups or even the local orchestra here in town. But I'd have to be quite good for that to happen, so I'm not going to really have any false hopes of that. So indeed, I'll be playing solo for quite some time. The sax just sounds too brassy for me and I am wanting to try a stringed instrument instead. Good luck with the piano and Keytar.

 

[Chaotic42]

I played alto sax for ~12 years and was quite good for my age, but got..."bored" due to Marching Band (required participation at my High School to be in Jazz/Orchestra--the other "season")

It's a great instrument, but marching music kills any love for music; at least for those that aren't completely passionate about music at the time. the smart ones get out early :\

I completely agree. Marching band is a killer of interest in music for too many kids. I hated it. Hated.

 

[marsbound2024]

I completely agree. Marching band is a killer of interest in music for too many kids. I hated it. Hated.

I was in marching band with my sax. I think I can agree with these sentiments. I took a long break from music after high school.

 

[zinfamous]

Another sax player. I played 5th - 12th grade and was pretty decent. Made all-state a few times. Haven't touched it since.

yeah, that's pretty much how I started. Private lessons late in 4th grade, then started in school band in 6th grade. Jazz from 7th-8th, in what was a very good public school music program for our area. I look back at the kind of things I could do those years, and it gives me sad face to remember how much I let it slide.

I suppose I just became disinterested in my teenage years--Marching music is not fun, it's more of an event, or a group participation thing at the time--especially when the music is second nature at that level, you don't even think about what you're playing. I also stopped private lessons just ahead of going into High School, and that's what really killed it. My instructor was really starting to get my ear going as I had been so solid with sight-reading and quite decent with any technical style, so improv and tuning to ear was just starting to come along.
Stupid 14 year-old--"I'm too cool to stay with private lessons--I'm in High School, now!"
God...sometimes I just want to go back and bitch slap that little bastard version of myself.

I still carry the horn around, 13 years later. Most of my muscle memory is gone (rarely would pick it up several times after high school, and stumble through the scales when it used to be such an after thought), but I still imagine that it would come back quickly with some dedicated focus.

GF got a new piano (full sized "economy-priced" Korg--cheap for Korg, but still nice ), so I'm trying to teach myself, finally. I need to find an instructor, though. I feel like I know what I want to do, but I really need some rigorous discipline. If I picked up my horn, I could get myself going again--just need to get those muscles going--but piano is such an incredibly different beast.

 

[zinfamous]

I was in marching band with my sax. I think I can agree with these sentiments. I took a long break from music after high school.

yep. one problem is that my horn is still in massive disrepair thanks to some long practices in rain and shitty conditions near the end. pads constantly sliding off, pearls popping out, cork dry-rot. I need a new mouthpiece too.

All these years, I still haven't gotten past the "Just need to put it through a solid repair, and I'm back in!" stage.

What a beast, though. A used Vito that my pop picked up at a pawn shop for 50 bucks, that horn certainly got more than its share of usage.

 

[lxskllr]

You can do a lot of that work yourself if you're willing to put the time in. There's some good resources online for rebuilding horns. The only thing I wouldn't handle myself is mechanical realignment. I'd totally repad and recork a sax though(and glue pearls back).

 

[zinfamous]

Actually I'd like to play some symphonies with small groups or even the local orchestra here in town. But I'd have to be quite good for that to happen, so I'm not going to really have any false hopes of that. So indeed, I'll be playing solo for quite some time. The sax just sounds too brassy for me and I am wanting to try a stringed instrument instead. Good luck with the piano and Keytar.

I noodled around with bass briefly in high school, and strings to me seemed like such a different concept (not bass though). I imagine the violin has a long and steep hump to pass in terms of simply getting a good sound, and confidence, no?

Shit, just move over to Tenor. not too brassy imo, and way versatile. Joshua Redman didn't start playing until his mid 30s after "getting bored with lawyering." He taught himself, and he's about as good as it gets these days.

 

[zinfamous]

Hey bite me jackass. I learned EVERYONE of those before the sperm that formed your zygote was even materialized.
Fuck off.
When I say "Not very well", it's because of the ones who do play well who I've known and compare myself too. Schon, Vai and Johnson spring to mind.
Try Guitar Hero. It's more your speed.

Jesus, man. Looks like someone dumped a truckload of sand into your vulvazela this morning.

What an amusing display of hubris.

 

[zinfamous]

You can do a lot of that work yourself if you're willing to put the time in. There's some good resources online for rebuilding horns. The only thing I wouldn't handle myself is mechanical realignment. I'd totally repad and recork a sax though(and glue pearls back).

yeah, that makes sense, actually. I remember how many times I dropped it off for repairs in high school for pads that constantly fell off. One time, dude replaced a missing pearl with some fake p.o.s.

either the horn was far too abused, or the repairs far too lax. :hmm:
(would one day of rain really loosen the glue on the pads that consistently?)

 

[lxskllr]

either the horn was far too abused, or the repairs far too lax. :hmm:
(would one day of rain really loosen the glue on the pads that consistently?)

It /could/, but the repair probably wasn't that good. Remember, you're blowing wet air into the thing. It should be made for a wet environment. Now if you locked it up in a case after playing/getting it wet, I could see the glue failing, even after a proper repair, but it shouldn't really do that by itself.

Your repair shop might have sucked. I wouldn't let the jokers at my local shop repair my penny whistles, much less my horns. I took some vintage horns to them to inquire about rebuilding, and I wasn't at all impressed with their knowledge. All they know how to do is textbook repair of the rental crap they rent out. The instrument equivalent of someone who only knows how to run MS Word, and can't transfer that knowledge to anything else.

 

[marsbound2024]

I found a violin on Craigslist for only $75; it's used but in great condition. Going to go take a look at it today to see if it is one of those cheap ones that is made of laminate or if this is a good deal for one that is made of solid pieces of wood instead. Hopefully the materials will be decent when I check it out this afternoon. At least it'll be ok for a beginner.

 

[lxskllr]

Sounds good. Even if it isn't that great, $75 is a small gamble. The materials don't make too much of a difference at this point. It's more important that it's playable, than sound good. I can't give tips on inspecting something like that, but make sure everything's straight, giving special attention to the fretboard. Sight down the length, and look for warping or twisting. If it looks well played, it's a better sign than one that looks brand new. A played instrument means it worked. One that looks new might be pretty, but it could mean it's difficult to play.

 

[Cogman]

I used to be able to play the trumpet pretty well, however, I've not practiced for a while. The trumpet is less about dexterity and more about lip strength (though, not completely for fast pieces you have to be able to move your fingers and adjust your lips.)

I also play some piano, nowhere near as good as the trumpet, however, well enough to do one handed . Piano skills are slightly longer lasting since they require less physical strength and more dexterity.

 

[marsbound2024]

Does that appear to be full size (4/4) or another size?

 

[lxskllr]

Jeez, I don't know. I don't think I could visually tell the difference between a 4/4 and a 3/4 instrument. Google around for some dimensions, then compare that to the string pack for reference.

Edit:
That's actually a CD, isn't it? That'll make the size reference easier.

 

[marsbound2024]

Jeez, I don't know. I don't think I could visually tell the difference between a 4/4 and a 3/4 instrument. Google around for some dimensions, then compare that to the string pack for reference.

Edit:
That's actually a CD, isn't it? That'll make the size reference easier.

Yeah and I believe CDs are 5" by 5.5". I'll take a look. Besides, I'll see it this afternoon anyway.

 

[zinfamous]

I used to be able to play the trumpet pretty well, however, I've not practiced for a while. The trumpet is less about dexterity and more about lip strength (though, not completely for fast pieces you have to be able to move your fingers and adjust your lips.)

I also play some piano, nowhere near as good as the trumpet, however, well enough to do one handed . Piano skills are slightly longer lasting since they require less physical strength and more dexterity.

so you're saying that I should add +2 to dexterity at my next level up to improve my piano skills?

 

[Cogman]

so you're saying that I should add +2 to dexterity at my next level up to improve my piano skills?

Well, it should be a +2 to dexterity and +2 to intelligence. After that, you can distribute your skill points however you want without improving your piano skills (I recommend spending some points on strength for dual instrument usage.)

 

[lxskllr]

Tough to do from a picture...

Children typically use smaller string instruments than adults. Violins are made in so-called fractional sizes for young students: Apart from full-size (4/4) violins, 3/4, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/10, 1/16, and even 1/32-sized instruments exist. Extremely small sizes were developed, along with the Suzuki program, for violin students as young as 3. Finely made fractional sized violins, especially smaller than 1/2 size, are extremely rare or non-existent. Such small instruments are typically intended for beginners needing a rugged violin, and whose rudimentary technique does not justify the expense of a more carefully made one.
These fractional sizes have nothing to do with the actual dimensions of an instrument; in other words, a 3/4-sized instrument is not three-quarters the length of a full size instrument. The body length (not including the neck) of a full-size, or 4/4, violin is about 14 inches (35 cm), smaller in some 17th century models. A 3/4 violin is about 13 inches (33 cm), and a 1/2 size is approximately 12 inches (30 cm). With the violin's closest family member, the viola, size is specified as body length in inches or centimeters rather than fractional sizes. A full-size viola averages 16 inches (40 cm).
Occasionally, an adult with a small frame may use a so-called 7/8 size violin instead of a full-size instrument. Sometimes called a lady's violin, these instruments are slightly shorter than a full size violin, but tend to be high-quality instruments capable of producing a sound that is comparable to that of fine full size violins.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violin

 

[slugg]

No love for percussion? My main instrument is drumset, but if you have any questions, I play all of the following:

- Drumset
- Timbales
- Congas/bongos
- Djembe
- Marimba
- Vibraphone
- Xylophone
- Timpani
- Various orchestral percussion
- Marching percussion (snare and tenors)

Fun fact: did you know that a kazoo is a type of drum? Yup.

 

[Terzo]

I picked up violin a little over a year ago. I don't practice nearly enough, but I still enjoy it. I'm not very knowledgeable, but it seems to me like you should expect a minimum of 1 year to become proficient with the basics. If you're diligent during that time, you might be able to join a local orchestra as a backup (second?) violin, playing an "easier" part.

As mentioned, it will take some time to get the notes down. I still get corrected on notes all the time, and I'm only in first position. I imagine learning second+ positions wont be any easier, and it will take some time to become proficient enough to seamlessly switch between positions.

I think I have very little musical talent though, so if you've played instruments before I assume you're progress will be much better. Hell, I still have issues playing in time, or anything faster than eighth notes.

 

[zinfamous]

No love for percussion? My main instrument is drumset, but if you have any questions, I play all of the following:

- Drumset
- Timbales
- Congas/bongos
- Djembe
- Marimba
- Vibraphone
- Xylophone
- Timpani
- Various orchestral percussion
- Marching percussion (snare and tenors)

Fun fact: did you know that a kazoo is a type of drum? Yup.

I play a mean jaw harp.

I think the issue with drums for most people is space, and ability to transport.