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What makes a GOOD musican.


Big Red 67

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The Attitude.

 

Seriously. :D

 

To become a good musician you have to have the right attitude. A lot of "great" technicians of their instrument never become "good" musicians because their attitude is all wrong. Listen to what you are playing. Make music, not a bunch of notes. Play with some feel, not like a machine (unless that is a specific effect you are going for).

 

My 2 cents.

Mudcat's music on Soundclick

 

"Work hard. Rock hard. Eat hard. Sleep hard. Grow big. Wear glasses if you need 'em."-The Webb Wilder Credo-

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Originally posted by BiC:

The unflinching support of the wife/girlfriend or husband/boyfriend. :thu:

Hold the phone....I had that till she met her new boyfriend,then it was that's all you think about.

Also I would like to thank her new boyfriend,

because of him I have the Les Paul I always wanted.

The story of life is quicker then the blink of an eye, the story of love is hello, goodbye.
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Originally posted by Darklava:

Originally posted by BiC:

The unflinching support of the wife/girlfriend or husband/boyfriend. :thu:

Hold the phone....I had that till she met her new boyfriend,then it was that's all you think about.

Also I would like to thank her new boyfriend,

because of him I have the Les Paul I always wanted.

Well then , it all worked out to your advantage afterall, thus making you a "good musician"! ;)

"Treat your wife with honor, respect, and understanding as you live together so that you can pray effectively as husband and wife." 1 Peter 3:7

 

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Originally posted by BiC:

Originally posted by Darklava:

Originally posted by BiC:

The unflinching support of the wife/girlfriend or husband/boyfriend. :thu:

Hold the phone....I had that till she met her new boyfriend,then it was that's all you think about.

Also I would like to thank her new boyfriend,

because of him I have the Les Paul I always wanted.

Well then , it all worked out to your advantage afterall, thus making you a "good musician"! ;)
Thank You! BTW don't change your avatar BiC

it's a classic. :thu:

The story of life is quicker then the blink of an eye, the story of love is hello, goodbye.
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Practice, patients, persistence.

 

Practice your chosen craft, whatever that may be.

You must be patient. You won't get good at it in a week; it'll probably take a lifetime. Don't quit after that week you thought you'd be there. It'll take consistance in order for you to build on the craft. Oh, I forgot: don't forget to have fun wit it!! :o ) My 2 cents.

What am I doing tonight? Samething I do every night: TRY TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD!!!
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I'd say what makes a good musician is the ability to play what's in your heart. You don't have to be technically great, although you do need to be proficient enough to achieve what you are trying to accomplish. The key, I believe, is to be able to communicate and convey the feelings that are inside you to others through your music.

 

And if that fails, just wear a funny hat. :P:D

May all your thoughts be random!

- Neil

www.McFaddenArts.com

www.MikesGarageRocks.com

 

 

 

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Originally posted by NMcGuitar:

I'd say what makes a good musician is the ability to play what's in your heart. You don't have to be technically great, although you do need to be proficient enough to achieve what you are trying to accomplish. The key, I believe, is to be able to communicate and convey the feelings that are inside you to others through your music.

 

And if that fails, just wear a funny hat. :P:D

:thu::D
The story of life is quicker then the blink of an eye, the story of love is hello, goodbye.
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Before reading everyone else's responses, here's my take on the subject of this thread:

 

What are the qualities of a great player?

 

Time. A great player has great time and "groove". I don't care how many notes per second you can play and how impressive your technique is if you can't play in time.

 

Tone. A great player understands good tone and works his / her butt of in the pursuit of it. The truely great have an instantly identifiable "signature sound" - and it's not usually just from the amp and gear they use - the tone starts in the head and the heart and is transmitted through the hands... that's why I wouldn't sound anything like (insert name of your favorite player here) even if he / she handed me their rig and said "paly a few bars".

 

Dynamics. I know - in this day and age of hyper-compressed mixes, "dynamics" might seem like a quaint and out of date concept, but the fact remains: a great player knows how to play with musically relevant and appropriate dynamics and doesn't play flat out all the time.

 

Note selection. No, you're not going to impress me by running nothing but a bunch of scales all the time. The truely great players are masters of note selection, and specialize in the "tasty note, played at just the right time".

 

Ears. Yup, ears. A great player LISTENS. To themselves, sure... tone and timing... but more importantly, they listen to the SONG and play what is appropriate for the SONG. THE SONG is KING! And going one step further, they listen to what the OTHER musicians are playing and interact appropriately with them. For a "great" player, it's not all about "them", it's about the song and the interaction with other players. Which leads me to...

 

Attitude. I've worked with some really good players over the years. The best of them are super easy to work with. They are not all about "ego" and personal gratification, but rather, get their satisfaction from being part of the team effort.

 

Communication. A great player has the ability to communicate well with others - musicians, producers, engineers, whatever - and they know how to quickly and clearly get their thoughts across.

 

A player might excell at a few of these points, but IMO, that doesn't make them a great player.... ALL of these elements are essential to master if you are striving for "great player" status.

 

That's my take on it. :) Now I'll read everyone else's responses. :)

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I think another aspect of what makes a good musician that has not really been explored in depth, is the ability to play well with others. (if you are in a band situation)

Obviously if you are a solo act, then this does not apply to you. You have to learn to be a "team player" in a band and that is where I think a lot of guitarists and other instrument players have a tendancy to fall short.

 

You have to realize that there is more to the overall sound than just the guitar, piano, drums, bass, etc. (whatever instrument it is that you play) The main sound is all of those musicians playing in harmony and complimenting each other....not trying to run over each other in a song. That is easier said than done, but it is possible if each musician practices restraint and doesn't "jump out" every chance he or she gets in a song.

 

I remember reading a statement from an old rock school book that was made by Herbie Hancock (played keyboards on numerous albums for very famous people)....He was talking about the rest clef in music and he said "remember, it is just as important to know WHEN NOT TO PLAY as it is to know WHEN TO PLAY!" That pretty much sums it up. To me, a good musician is one that has good manners in music as well as good ability. Those two traits combined are a powerful combination.

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i think it only takes one thing... a love of music. If you have that nothing else matters.

 

What is the meaning of GOOD? Wats good to me? Wats good to you? Who knows? I consider myself good because I love playing the guitar.

 

Just thought I would point that out :thu: But when we talk SKILLED, or technically good, I agree with Phil completely

The forumite formerly known as Cooper.

 

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." John Lennon

 

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will finally know peace." Jimi Hendrix

 

"Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens." Jimi Hendrix

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Originally posted by :

(or cucumber

hah makes me think of spinal tap, i think that scene with the metal detector is one of my favorites in the movie. yeah i gotta agree guys, i think everything i could say has pretty much been covered. some really great comments on here.
Then you'll never hear surf music again...
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its funny, most people here would agree that mozart, beethoven, bach....etc....were great musicians but if you ask alot of younger and even some older people, they say it sucks....to me it is very great music, not my preffered choice i listening but it is very very good. but why do we think its good? cause were cultured more than others in this area? maybe, i dont really know, but i guess what im trying to say is a good musician to one genre can suck to another, so to us cultured folk, i would have to say a good musician is one who plays what they feel and plays for their own enjoyment....could be wrong...
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The path to becoming a good musician probably doen't require worrying about M Manson, hand wringing about rap, or treating EVH periods like baseball trading card debates... Maybe talking about Allen Holdsworth isn't so bad though.
.
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Did anybody say "Honesty" and "Sincerity"?

 

I think a good or great musician must possess honesty and sincerity in what they do. If you have great technique, dedication, and an open attitude, you can have a lot of opportunities to play music for a wide audience, but if you are only playing to what you believe will gain exposure, you may be ignoring what you truly want to pursue musically.

 

I don't mean popularity is to "sell out". It is possible to be honest and sincere in pursuing popular styles.

 

It is also possible to pursue unpopular styles for insincere reasons. The thought pattern of "if I do something weird, people will think I have edge"

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