You and music: a poll for the discerning individual.
 

Don't think too much about the thread title. I'm working on my personal branding.

A conversation in another thread got me wondering about this.

When we think about music, I think there are three main things that one can do.

One can perform music without instruments, which I like to call singing.

One can perform music by playing an instrument, which I like to call playing an instrument.

One can create music, which I like to call composing.

Which one of these do you think is the hardest to do well? Which would you most want to be able to do well?

By "well", let's assume a definition that you're good enough to make an upper middle class living doing it. Not rich and no mansions, but you're comfortable.

Poll forthcoming in a one anna two anna ...

In before the poll to say that the answer to which is hardest is "composing" by a vast margin.

I would personally like to sing well. I think I'd get more daily, private satisfaction out of meager singing talent to just have fun with.

The most difficult is composing music for the masses.

Anyone can learn to sing or play an instrument (or multiple instruments for that matter).

Not many can write music, whether it's film, television, jingles, pop songs, love songs, sad song, angry songs, etc. that can touch millions upon millions of people.

How often do you go into a bar where someone is playing someone else's music?

And how often do you go into a bar and hear someone playing their own original music?

That right there should tell you which is the most difficult.

Composing music in a general sense and I'd most like to sing.


I somehow was good enough to sing in a school-sanctioned group in college, but turned it down because I'd have to dance as well. Kinda regret that now.

It's interesting that being unique in terms of composition will tend to get you nowhere. There's obviously a formula, much like Alpo and Friskies have a formula of horse meat to bullshit.

If 20% of free thinkers and 5% of mouth breathers enjoy your music you have nothing. These days, the idea is to captivate 80-90% of the mouth breathing population. (Makes sense)
Being able to compose, play an instrument or sing are all useless without any marketable "product".

To answer the question. Composition is the soul of music. Without that ability you're merely a cog in some machine.
Playing an instrument, preferably piano or guitar, would be second on the list since it teaches the building blocks of composition.
They're the chicken and the egg. The instrument can often cause the motivation for composition.

I think composition is hardest except for the really crazy composers that bleed this stuff from their pores.

They should try walking with a bassoon in a marching band, but I digress.

It's definitely not the skill I'd want the most tho.

What about tap dancing? Is that playing an instrument or performing music without instruments?

Also, I didn't tamper with your poll this time. You're welcome.

I'm an accountant. It's all ****ing hard and I can't do any of it.

Composing I am assuming because of what my daughter told me about writing a good fiction story. After having one toughest creative writing profs at FSU she learned that writing (composing) a really good fiction story is not easy at all either. I assume it's similar to composing a song. Creating a composition in any of the visual arts seems much easier though.

I thought you were a farmer?

You don't happen to know a Monty Broeckelman out of Dodge City do you?

My hypothesis when I started this poll was that composing would be the most difficult, but would also be the least desired, probably since it's the least public. It's an interesting perversion of supply and demand, because I would normally expect the most difficult and rare skill to be the most valued.

People have to really really want to do it.

When I read the "playing an instrument" part I'd assumed this person would be writing/creating their own music for said instrument. Not like just a cover band or something.

So, they'd be composing their own music as well...even if it's not a full orchestra, just their part.

Like those Chinese dudes that can ride a unicycle on a trapeeze while balancing a flaming Chinese dude on his head?

Who really wants to do that?

Composing, whether it's for Nashville, Pop, Urban, R&B along with Film & TV also gives the individual(s) an opportunity to live a fairly normal life. There are no press junkets, no touring, no demands by the studios or record companies to put a face on the product.

When composing for Film, TV and even advertising, it's generally an 8-5 gig unless you're under an enormous deadline, in which you may have to put in extra hours. Some of the guys I know that score network TV shows are sometimes working almost up until a few hours before air time but those gigs also offer enormous financial rewards.

I picked hardest singing and and most likely good at playing an instrument.

Singing is a talent

Playing an instrument is a skill.

I'd compare it to the difference between being able to throw a 100 MPH strike and being able to play great at shortstop.

Some things you'll just never be able to do, and some you can be great with with tons and tons of practice.

I see a lot are scared of composing. But some of the best songs are the simplest, I think it draws on inspiration and experience more than innate talent.

Composing

Agreed. I think most people can sing well within their range. I wish my range was larger. I can't hit the high notes on guys like Jason DeRulo but am more than competent at the rest of those songs. To go in a completely different direction, I do fairly well with Luke Bryan songs. If my range was just a tad bigger, I would've went for it.

Absolutely.

Beethoven.

'nuff said.

I must have a one note range, then. I can't sing at all but i sure wish I could.

It would be such a nice thing to be able to do. I would use the ability randomly all the time. It would add so much flavor and pizazz to life.

Whereas I have little desire to carry a guitar around although I'll happily fastball a pair of panties at a guy on stage doing it.

My wife is the same way. I used to think everyone could, but realized some just can't at all. My wife couldn't care less. I wish you could too because for some of us, music touches our soul, and I'd like for everyone to be able to connect as much as possibly with it that has the desire. I'm not great, but I'm competent and it enriches my experience on the daily.

It really does. Small example, my dog goes bananas whenever I start singing and it melts my heart every day. Shit. Did I say that out loud? My man card is in the mail. Sorry.

For me, music is a non physically addictive mood altering drug.

No its cool, my little girl curls in my lap to listen to me sing anything. And that feels amazing.

Luckily for everyone in the room she's okay with me singing quietly.

I feel bad because when my wife does it he runs away. She laughs it off though so I shouldn't worry too much. I'm far too shy or I'd post a video. It's hilarious how his back end gets to wiggling almost like he's dancing.

Anything musical is very difficult to me. I struggle to find the rhythm to even the simplist of songs. I don't have a very good ear for key or specific notes. So I have never had the first inclination to have a music career.

For the second part of the poll, I marked to play a musical instrument. Most frequently I think of playing the guitar or piano. But it would just be for me. It seems like it would be a good way to unwind and I would enjoy the physical connection to the music. If I was really good at it and people enjoyed my playing, I would derive additional satisfaction from that, but I still don't think I would have a burning desire to make music my career. It's just not in my DNA.

I'm horrible at the guitar and can't sing with it at all, but I know the 13 open note chords and it does bring me a great amount of joy. If youy have the time, pick up a cheap one and teach yourself those chords off of YouTube and youy have thousands of songs at your disposal.

I took Beginning Guitar in 10th grade. I started out pretty rough, but worked at it every day. By the end of the semester, I could rip off a decent rendition of "She'll be comin' 'round the mountain". I earned a C+ the first quarter and an A- the second quarter, which averaged to a B on my semester transcript. It ended up costing me a scholarship to college, back in the day when scholarships were rare. I didn't stick with it and forgot what I had learned.

It's annoying when people are talented or even competent and take it for granted. My wife is a very good singer and doesn't seem to realize how lucky I think she is. She is also pretty innately musical but doesn't really do much with it. I remember when my boys were little, they had a toy guitar that had an electric keyboard for the frets. My wife would just sit down and play random songs on it for them, usually perfectly the first time. I asked her once how she knew to do that and she just looked at me blankly and said "I just played the notes?". :doh!:

I played in band from 6th grade through jr year of high school and was a decent sax player. I can read music (or could then anyway) but never had that innate talent and am insanely jealous of those that do.

Man, that really sucks. I took it in college. My professor told everyone they were getting an A as long as they put the work in to learn. He wasn't Cisne with technical level, just the work put in. He said he'd know. I think 3 people got C's, 2 failed outright, and everyone else got A's and some of us were really no good. Me being one. That really sucks.

:( I'm grateful for what little I can do. I wish I could do much more, and wish youy could too. Some people just don't get touched by it the way some of us do, and they don't care. It is annoying.

I'm flummoxed by the whole thing. I like to thing I have an ear for pitch. I've played nearly everything woodwind and brass, with my main instrument is tenor sax since 8th grade. And I'm a good judge of talent for things like Idol. But I apparently have no connection between my ear and my vocal chords.

I'm sure I could master percussion with practice, and never tackle the guitar because I'm left handed.

I'm left handed and like most things growing up I had to learn the guitar right handed. It's probably one odd the reasons I'm not very good. Or at golf, or batting, or a number of other things. I throw with my left, and wrote with my left, everything else is right handed.

See, I don't know shit. I fully admit that. It baffles me that you have a good ear and can't sing. I have a mediocre to lesser ear and have minor ability. I can hold a note, stay in key, etc. My range just falls me on big notes. It's weird.

I have no regrets. I vacillated about taking it at the time, but I'm glad I stuck with it. you only go around once, so you might as well experience as many things as you can. About the same time I dropped out of a wood shop class that I really would have enjoyed because everyone else in the class was a burnout and I just couldn't tolerate not fitting in to that extreme.

Agreed. Connecting with an audience is the single most important thing IMO.

Question. Can you whistle in tune and in key? My experience is the two go hand in hand but again, I'm an idiot, it's just my very limited experience

I've been told on some occasions that I have a good singing voice and on others that I can't sing worth a lick. I think the truth is that if the song is in my range and I have someone who is decent that I can harmonize with, I get by.

I hated that about high school. I totally get that.

Yep. Most people either think they're great and they're horrible, or they're way too hard on themselves. I let the opinions of others guide me when it comes to that. Range is everything.

To be honest, I may overstating. I don't have an American Idol disaster voice, just not a very good one. And I'm not the best whistler either. But I think my ear makes me more critical of my skill singing. And maddened me eternally because I'd hear I was off and couldn't change that.

I'm not saying singing is easy but I'm of the opinion that anyone can sing. Regardless of your 'voice', you can still be trained to sing within your limits. Or sing 'your' songs.

I'm a huge My Morning Jacket fan and many do not like Jim James voice. But, it's the only voice for 'his' songs. And it's perfect.

Know what I mean?

All of my compositions are in my head. I play through them constantly as I play a few hours throughout each day. Wish I could get to a point of laying them down. I might actually have something to share.

I can sing and I can play. I cannot do both at the same time.

Me too. I think like me, youy wish your range was bigger and are too hard on yourself.

I wish I could sing and play at the same time too.

It's just practice. I was doing shows at the age of five singing and playing but I practiced every second my parents would allow.

I'm talking about singing WELL.

Have you seen '20 Feet From Stardom.' It's a documentary on the difference between backup singers and stars, and a lot of it is more appearance and personality than skill. Those people can flat BLOW. And they back up everyone, one week it's Conway Twitty and the next it's Ray Charles, then it's on to a sitcom theme song, then movie soundtracks.

Those are people I think sing well, not just carry a ditty.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tWyUJcA8Zfo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I just knew I couldn't something like this in my life

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ChONufP0FEs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Tru dat. I don't have an interest though. I would rather just play a guitar composition, solo. Would have someone else on guitar if I sang because there is some cool shit you can do with vocals.

Take this for example (start around 4:30 for the good stuff):

<iframe width="640" height="390" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wDl-oAiLL5U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I've been playing with this on my new looper.

Just what I am. Thinking of adding a layer of some violin and/or chello.

I have a decent acoustic guitar. I've thought about diving back in full steam.

I can play guitar and piano and can comp along appropriately. Singing comes fairly naturally to me and I have a decent ear. My 4 year old loves music she hears on the radio so we frequently will look up chords and I will sing them to her; most tunes are super simple.

Composing, to me, is easily the most difficult. And it's not even close. Good composers truly have a gift that I cannot fathom.

Well truth be told, I stopped singing lead and playing guitar simultaneously when I was 18 years old. Thankfully, the bass player in my band was a very good singer, so it was no big deal. That band is still out there BTW, minus me, of course. :D

I never enjoyed singing, my vocal tone doesn't fit rock or modern rock and even when I've sung background vocals, they just never seem to fit in a mix. I don't care for my vocal tone, overall, so no real loss.

Cool, Man! If you've got the time and the passion, go for it! :)

It's just for my own enjoyment, why not, right?

Right!

Hey man, it looks like we're putting the band back together

Dude, I've been married twice. Had a kid. Lots of other girls and friends. Even a family.

No one has ever heard me play. To this day. :shrug:

My musical talent is thus:

Composing - I've never tried, but it would be cool to do. I could do lyrics, I think, but the music would take a lot of training. I'm in awe when I hear a complex song like Jungleland. How do you envision that in your head? Amazing. And a symphony with 50+ instruments? Mind-blowing.

Instruments - I like musical instruments and want to play. In my youth I was the first chair in my saxophone section, but I had no illusion that I was really good. I could play mechanical stuff pretty well and could play the fast stuff really well, but I couldn't really do the subtle things that make it really good.

Singing - I have an ear for music and can hit the right notes, but I have a range of about half an octave and I don't think my voice is very melodic. I never sing in front of anyone other than maybe my wife when the radio is really loud and I'm just singing along.

On the above note, out On Demand TV channel throws up experimental channels once in a while, and a few years back they put up a karaoke channel. The wife was gone and I found the karaoke channel and thought, "Let me give it a try." It was terrible, in part because they didn't have songs that I knew very well, but also because a song would be the wrong key for my limited range or it would be bizarrely slow or something. So I tried it for 20 or 30 minutes and then thought, "Ugh, that was a disaster."

And then my wife came down the stairs. I thought she was gone, but she was just up in the bedroom. She heard me doing this horrible singalong for a half-hour. I was mortified.