Do you play an instrument? What's your favorite thing about it?
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
I play the piano but haven't touched it in a while. But, at peak, I was playing pretty good since I did it for over 10 years. My favorite thing to do whenever I can bring myself to do it is come up with chords and melodies. I rarely write things down but the ones I do, I turn into electronic music.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
I play ukulele because when I miss a note or get a beat wrong it just makes me laugh because it sounds so silly. I got a banjolele too and that thing is ridiculous, but when it works it sounds awesome.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
Guitar mainly, but I can play any of the typical instruments associated with rock/metal.
My favourite thing about the guitar is all the expressive ways you can play a single note. There's the spectrum of how hard you pick it along with what you use to pick - fingers or plectrum, what angle you attack the string with said pick, vibrato, bend up to the note or down from it, slide into or out of it, etc...
It's such an expressive instrument. I love it. You can really hear someone's personality come out in their playing. There truly are endless different ways to play a single song. It all just depends on the choices you make.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
Mandolin - I like that almost nobody has heard of it so I'm usual. When I'm asked to play something I can honestly say "if you have heard of it I can't play it" while picking out several dozen tunes, some dating back centuries.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
I wish I could pickup trumpet again. My neighbors probably don’t share my sentiment, though. I dropped it after high school, but never really had ‘fun’ with it during that time. Would love to pick it up again to play things I want to play.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
Violin for 10 years, and it was fucking hard. It starts sounding decent around year 7-8. Effectively matching the tone of the instrument to the components you buy and pieces you play is a trick too. My violin had a super dark tone, basically only sounded good with new strings (wound only, except for a steel E), which meant it was always sliding out of tune because of the tension. But on the occasions it all came together, it was extremely loud and resonant, and made Bach’s partitas sound pretty awesome.
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Hopefully you've picked up some ear protection since then! Drums are loud AF and if you've already got hearing issues, drums will make them worse. +1 for Loop earplugs if you need some.
Don't worry,I learnt from my past mistakes. I've got solid ear protection now and also wear earplugs for all concerts I'm attending.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
I play the piano (keyboard). I'm horrible at it (for now!). My favorite part about it is that I don't have to hurt my fingers to play it, unlike guitar... I like playing video game OST and sometimes some classical music, I don't have a favorite piece at the moment.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
30 years on the clarinet and 5 or so on the trumpet. I'm an average 2nd trumpet player but pretty good on the clarinet. There's nothing quite like nailing a big solo in front of a couple of hundred people. I love it.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
i love to learn the theremin. but i like drums as well. i find it challenging keeping timings on each hand and foot.
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Ah, I love this. I really love bluegrass, so a mandolin has always been playing at some point in my life. They look like they'd be super hard to play
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Viola! I like its range of sound and the fact that we get our own (alto) clef makes me feel special. But you end up playing a lot of lame parts when the violins get all the melodies and solos.
Viola sounds amazing but yes, fun pieces are written for violin.
Do you know any great viola music that is on par with great violin music?
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Kinda basic, but my favorite is the bass. I play guitar too, but it's a bit easier to play bass and people are less aware when you make a mistake !
As someone who doesn't like being in the spotlight, switching from guitar to bass was very liberating
I've been learning piano the last 3 years, and now I'm either solo or at least more front and center and dealing with that has been as challenging as learning the instrument.
Still playing with others I feel is the most fun thing about any instrument. I think I learn more and learn faster doing it as a group, and it's just a lot of fun making music with people.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
I’ve played the trumpet for 27 years now, and have played the pipe organ for 3. Both of them professionally, and the issue with picking a favorite is there’s a ton of fantastic music!
On the trumpet I’d recommend a listen to Bugler’s Holiday, or Great Gate of Kiev. Possibly my favorite gig as an anecdote was an old Catholic Church in a poor part of the city. They had built an elevated stretch of subway what felt like inches from the church and the priest had to stop his homily every 5 minutes so the subway could go through. The organist ended with the Hallelujah Chorus and it might be the reason I have tinnitus but it was the most heavenly sounding space to play in!
On the organ, I played Schriener’s adaptation of Louis Vierne’s Maestoso in C. Straight from the get go it’s a fantastic piece to rattle the floors and wake up a church. I’d also recommend Scott’s arrangement of Hymn of the Cherubim as it is much softer and a good idea of the breadth the instrument can cover style wise.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
I play a little bit of the harmonica. It's gotten out of tune a little bit over the years and no places near me will repair it.
But what I'm really proud of is the set of ceramic bowls I've collected over the years to make what is called Jal tarang. Water needs to be filled in them to specified levels and struck with wooden sticks to make a musical note. Tuning it is an exercise of its own but I love playing it when I can find the time. Sounds really nice.
Here is a virtuoso of the instrument playing a song:
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My favorite thing about me playing an instrument are the cheers and frenetic applause of my neighbours when I stop it.
Really really inspiring.
Is it the skin flute?
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i love to learn the theremin. but i like drums as well. i find it challenging keeping timings on each hand and foot.
But when you lock in to a new rhythm it's like a mini orgasm in your brain.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
Yes. it lets me connect to and understand music better.
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Or have you played something else in the past? What's your favorite piece to play?
Edit: thanks for everyone that has replied. This has been so heartwarming to read
wrote last edited by [email protected]I picked up a steel tongue drum out of pure serendipity and I can't keep my hands off of it. The good quality ones that are hand tuned by an artisan and crafted from the highest quality steel will sound good no matter how you hit it. I started just bopping random notes with mallets, then tapping patterns with my hands, and whatever I do it sounds great and feels zen and beautiful. I don't really play any songs on it, just patterns, but it's like the audio version of a warm bubble bath.
There are mass market dinky derpy ones off of Amazon and they're completely different instruments. If it sounds like a gong or a bell it's a cheap one. If it sounds like the ethereal thrumming of the deep forest magic it's a good one.
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Ah, I love this. I really love bluegrass, so a mandolin has always been playing at some point in my life. They look like they'd be super hard to play
hard covers many dimenssions.
The strings are tighter and in pairs so pressing needs more strengh than anything else I've tried. No bending either. If you are worred about finge strength it is is about the worst choice.
it is tuned very logically in fifths and so much easier to pick up in any key than a guitar which isn't consistent. You only need to learn I few chords and then move them wherever you want them. But guitars are much more likely to use a capo so this may not matter.
it is light. If you are carrying it this might matter (compare to a solid body bass with amp).
now forget everything above: while it is true it is irrelavant. time spent practicing is the largest factor in playing anything. If you are willing to practice the 'hardest' instrument for 8 hours a day for years but the 'easiest' one you find boring and won't practice more than ten minutes per year: the hardest instrument is going to be easier for you. So pick something - anything and commit to sticking with it.
