Published on: 23 November 2018
Last Updated on: 24 July 2024
In the 21st century, an odd pattern has emerged in the field of music sales. While the sales of CDs have plummeted since the inception of mp3s and digital streaming services, the sales of vinyl record. Once looked upon as a curious novelty from times past – has seen a significant uptick.
The uptick, in fact, has been so significant that most vinyl record pressing facilities are overloaded with orders. Therefore, bands and labels need to get their orders in well ahead of the schedules release date. Casual music listeners who stream on Spotify or Apple Music may be asking, why on earth would anyone pay for a clunky, cumbersome record? This post has your answer.
Quality of Sound From Vinyl record :
Music connoisseurs care immensely about high fidelity in their listening experience. It may pay immense amounts of money for a tube-driven amplification system and high-quality speakers. Not only do records offer an analog warmth, they also offer a rich listening experience that lets you hear the attention to detail in the mix. Aficionados might liken streaming services to watching a film that was designed to be seen in 3D in 2D.
Even if you buy a scuffed record second-hand, there’s still something pleasant about hearing a bit of crackle on an old Duke Ellington LP. Furthermore, most re-issues and new albums come with a code to download the music in mp3 format. Or else it would become lossless FLAC format for the true geeks. Rather than streaming on Spotify, most music nerds would prefer to load high-quality files onto an iPod for listening on the go.
The ‘All Or Nothing’ Approach:
The general attitude of the vinyl record buyer is that they either want no physical object at all (streaming/ mp3s). Or else they want a very large physical object to incorporate into their collection. If you really care about an album, andshelling out thirty bucks is not so insane. You can actually appreciate the album art, rather than squinting at a tiny thumbnail.
The Elegance of the Object:
Many bands and musicians take great pains to design their album covers or commission an image from an artist they admire. Bands with a particularly savvy sense of promotion may even engage professional graphic design services to design the album art. This integrates it into an aesthetically cohesive marketing campaign. Like the quality of the actual music, the quality and details of the album art are also lost when it appears in miniature on a smartphone. When you buy a record, you’re not just buying the music, you’re buying a physical piece of art, as well.
Paying the Band (a compliment):
When you go and see your favorite band live, the biggest compliment you can offer them is purchasing their album on vinyl record. Because there is no middle-man in this transaction, you can feel secure knowing that the money is going into the project you love. Also, often the band works their own merch table, so you may get an opportunity to chat with them!
Whether not this post has converted you to the cult of vinyl, hopefully, you have a better sense of what is driving the trend.
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There are certain things in life that everyone would like to do. Most people would place ‘learning to play an instrument’ at the top of this list. After all, it is an impressive skill that can easily be used to entertain and wow people.
Well, the good news is that if you are considering picking up an instrument and learning how to play it, there are a number of advantages at your disposal. See, scientists have discovered that training to become a musician can actually improve your brain in terms of memory, planning capability, and information processing speed. This is true, even if you are an older adult!
So, as you can see, you really shouldn’t wait any longer to pursue this passion. However, if you are a little confused as to how to get started with the learning process, don’t fret. Here, you will find all the information and details that you need to know.
What Instrument Should You Play?
Now, if you were to take a poll, you will quickly find out that everyone has their own idea of what the ‘best’ instrument is. This can make it a lot more confusing to figure out which you should actually take up. In this instance, it can actually be helpful to ignore the advice most people give. What you should do instead is to take up the instrument you are actually passionate about. This way, you are much more likely to stick with it and actually learn how to play it. So, if you have always wanted to play the drums, then this is exactly what you should do!
If you don’t really have an instrument in mind, what should you do then? Well, even in this case, there is a good chance that you have one preference over others. So, start with that to determine if you will actually grow to like it. If you find that it isn't the instrument for you, then simply give something else a try. You will find that the process of trial and error, despite being lengthy, will often help you find the answer that you are looking for.
How Should You Choose Your Instrument?
Even after you have settled on a specific instrument, you may find it challenging to determine what brand or model you should start with. Here, it is best if you look online for some expert suggestions. This will allow you to get the perspective of experienced, talented musicians, increasing the likelihood that you get the right instrument for yourself.
Another option would be to head down to your local music store. You are bound to find employees that are well-versed in advising novice musicians on what instrument to buy. This avenue will also provide you with the opportunity to try out some of the brands and models for yourself to see if there is one that clicks with you. Nonetheless, you may not actually want to buy an instrument from such a store. To help save money, you may want to check out prices online. You will probably be able to find what you are looking for at a lower price.
Understanding Your Options for Learning:
So after narrowing down your instrument options and purchasing one, the next thing on your list would be to learn how to play it. Once upon a time, your only real choice would have been to find a music teacher who operated in the same area as you did. While this is still one of the more popular options, there are also a number of other avenues.
These days, you have the opportunity to decide how you want to learn to play an instrument. For instance, if you do want a teacher, there necessarily isn’t a need to have to go to a physical studio. Instead, there are now a number of tutors who operate over the internet, mostly over platforms such as Skype. Here, you will be taught how to play your instrument without ever having to leave the comfort of your home.
If you feel like a tutor is a little bit too expensive, then you can go down the self-teaching route. If you prefer an old-fashioned method, you can always opt for music books – of which there are many. These days, however, free online tutorials are often a much better alternative. Here, experienced musicians will walk you through how to play various instruments. In many instances, they will even break down how to play some of your favorite songs.
In the end, it is all about determining what option works for you best. Some people thrive under close and strict instruction while others need the freedom to learn at their own pace. Just try out both options and figure out which one affords you more progress.
Set a Goal for Yourself:
Before you actually start playing the instrument, it can be useful to set a goal for yourself. What this is, is entirely up to you. For some people, their main goal is to learn how to play their favorite music. Others, want to master every aspect of a particular instrument. Once you have narrowed down your long-term goal, you should try to break it down into smaller objectives. This can help you to track your own progress and can even act as motivation for you to keep going. So, try to set an aim for yourself every week if you can so that you can stay consistent in terms of practice and effort.
Prepare for Disappointment:
Everyone has an idea of what a particular instrument should sound like. For instance, in your mind, you will be able to imagine the tinkling of ivories or the light tapping of a drum set. Well, the truth is, in the beginning, you probably won’t sound anything like what you imagined. In fact, you may end up creating truly horrific noises when you first get started playing. Now, it can be easy to feel discouraged at this point and want to give up immediately. However, you should keep in mind that even the greatest musicians sounded awful in their early years.
The other thing that you shouldn’t worry about is the fact that you may not make progress as quickly as you would like. It is vital to remember that it isn’t easy to learn how to play an instrument. Your mind and body have to be able to grasp a number of different techniques and then figure out how to coordinate with each other. Due to this, there is a good chance that it may take you a bit longer than you first anticipated to master an instrument. Well, there is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of – it is completely natural. The only thing you should focus on is succeeding at your current task, regardless of how long it takes.
Remember That Practice Makes Perfect:
When you watch other people play an instrument, they can often make it look so effortless. This is why a lot of people forget that it actually takes quite a bit of practice to become so good. Most professional musicians practice around six to eight hours each day. Of course, you probably don’t have so much time to spend on your hobby but you don’t need to practice this much either. The key here is to set a realistic practice schedule for yourself so that you are actually able to stick with it.
Depending on how much free time you have, try to spend at least 30 minutes to half an hour each day, mastering your musical instrument. If you don’t have a lot of spare time, try breaking your practice up into smaller time slots. Try to practice for 30 minutes in the morning and then spend another half-hour in the evening perfecting your skills.
Don’t Forget to Have Fun:
When you are focused on becoming better, it is easy to be overtaken by the technical aspects of the process. As a result, you might forget to actually enjoy yourself and this can be a real shame. It is important to keep in mind that you are learning to play an instrument for yourself. So, you really should be enjoying this time. If you find yourself getting frustrated, try to switch tactics for a short while. Take a break and try to learn a short, crazy tune just so that you can help yourself ease up a bit. After all, there isn’t too much sense in continuing if you aren’t having fun.
Join Other Beginners:
If you are used to playing by yourself, it can be easy to lose your passion for the project. This is why you may want to try joining up with other musicians every now and then. Since this can be a rather daunting thing to do, it may be best to meet up with others who are at a similar learning stage. This way, no one has to feel embarrassed or self-conscious. Instead, everyone can just focus on having a good time and putting together a fun jam session.
So, this is all you need to know about learning to play an instrument. While it can be a bit tough in the beginning, you should keep in mind that it does get better – and so will you so. Trust in yourself and never give up!
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I can still remember sitting at my ancient desktop computer in the early 2000s risking not only my computer's health but also getting into a huge fight with my parents once they realized I had given my computer yet another virus to download my favorite band’s album off of LimeWire. Now I, like everyone who used LimeWire or any other site to download free music, knew I should have been paying for the music, but I was a kid and who cared- it was free! After all, Nelly was rich enough, I shouldn't have to use my own money to listen to Hot In Herre on my Walkman CD player on my way to the bus stop. I, along with what seemed like everyone else in the world, was contributing to the decline in profits for those in the music industry.
Now that LimeWire and sites alike are practically extinct, you would think that the music industry would be on the rise again, but you would be wrong. Today, you can get “free” music without crashing your computer or risking any trouble from illegally downloading music. Apps and websites, like Spotify, are completely legal and can be completely free for users. Spotify makes streaming easy, convenient, and affordable, whether you pay $10 a month for a membership or listen to an ad every other song.
However, Spotify still makes money off of you whether you pay a membership fee or not due to those advertisements. You would think that money would go straight to the artists and Spotify would keep only a small percentage (after all it’s their music you’re listening to) but that's just not the case. Even with millions of people streaming music on Spotify each month, the artists are not being compensated nearly as much as they should be for their music. That being said, unless you’re a superstar, you’re making next to nothing compared to what you should be making from Spotify. So basically unless you’re a Drake or Nicki of the world, that check may never come, and if it does you’d be lucky if it was enough to afford you your morning coffee.
So, what about new or local artists? Forget about it! Big musicians, while still being affected by Spotify negatively, are not hurting as bad as new talent. There isn’t even an option to search for new talent or artists in your area on Spotify. If you’re looking to discover some local gems you’re better off googling live music near me and hitting up a local bar or music venue. At least that way you know they’re making money from it whether the venue is paying them or you’re putting money directly in their tip jar. These new and local artists aren’t even getting a fair chance at streaming on apps like Spotify to make the small fraction of a penny per stream they are paying.
These free music apps like Spotify may be convenient and cost effective for us to use, but if we don't support local and growing artists with our dollars they may not be able to continue creating music. With many excellent musicians today struggling to make it, you may not even get the chance to hear their music, especially if your music collection consists solely of the playlists you made on your Spotify account.
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You want to be rock stardom or a laid back passionate guitarist? Taking a deep breath not to just hear the music but listen keenly and deeply is art learned over time. It takes time to perfect how to tune a guitar.
Whether you own an acoustic or electric guitar, if you want to play a classical etude or just anything about the notes in mind, getting all the notes right while on your frets can be a passionate experience to compliment the mantra.
The last thing you need is an out-of-tune guitar that sends your practice session into a mess or ruins your much-anticipated gig.
Therefore, besides many apps available today to see you through the bustle you need to take time to understand the basics from finger positioning, strumming, and using the frets to adjusting the pitch of a note or altering the note of a string to a completely whole new sound.
Additionally, surrounding humidity, temperature fluctuations, your expertise and so many other factors do affect the notes you are going for at any given time.
How to learn all the notes on the guitar
The process of getting the notes right should be fun and rewarding in the aftermath. Pay attention to these steps to go about your notes without any much strain.
Step 1: Basics when getting your guitar
Firstly, you just need to learn how to hold your guitar right. Before opting to buy one, consider hiring or borrowing one for the sake of learning.
You can equally seek expert advice to understand the notes quickly. I started with a hired acoustic guitar before advancing to my own electric guitar. I ultimately ended up liking electric guitars because they produce a wide range of sounds and tones.
Remember, a cool guitar isn't necessarily a great one for your notes. Test out your guitar on how it responds to your hands before buying it.
Step 2: How to pick up into learning all the notes
The notes on your guitar are produced by the strings of your guitar. Simply, start by learning notes one string at a time instead of all them on the fretboard at once.
Most experts equally advocate the use of mnemonic devices for quick memorizing of all the guitar notes.
I suggest at this point you place your guitar right in front of you do this. I have always noticed playing every specific note while rehearsing it out loud helps a great deal.
Start with open notes (the act of strumming a string without necessarily fretting). Understand the natural notes first before proceeding to the sharps and flats on your fret.
You can equally memorize the notes by going through them both forwards and backward for easy identification of the note you need quickly.
Learn the names of the notes vertically, fret at a time. Visualize the notes on the string on your head with regular practice to help you understand all the notes.
Additionally, remember guitar strings are tuned in intervals of quarters, by beginning with the lowest pitched string.
Get to know the basic picking and fingering techniques. For normal tuning, the strings that usually are close from you will be represented by E, A, D, F, G, B and E notes.
You can feel other notes while pressing the strings downwards before the metal fret as you pluck the string or those close to your guitar neck, the body of the guitar or high notes by trying those strings that are close to your guitar head.
Step 3: Tips to getting to know specific notes
Usually, the E string, located at the top of your guitar is the heaviest and deepest. Remember, when going about your desired notes, strings get thinner increasingly as their notes increase higher in pitch.
You can easily achieve your notes of interest by utilizing the A, D, G, B, and E notes correspondingly.
I need of a two octave up note away from the E note, use the thinnest string, usually positioned on a standard guitar at the bottom.
Check out the diverse fret marks on your guitar, one and a half step representation on the guitar musical scale.
Place your hand on a fret close to the guitar bridge if you want to play a high notched pitch. Normally, you can also use the low E to bring out an F sharp note.
By holding down the first fret while keen on the low E string, you can be able to produce an F, holding down the second fret will enable you to produce an F#.
A third fret will produce a G while the fourth a G#. While on the low E string, utilize the seventh fret to realize a B note.
Lastly, if you want a C note, use the eight fret. The same can be practiced or applied on all the remaining specific five strings as you advance and adjust into the notes that suit your taste, style of play and preferences.
Whether you are a novice or a beginner, understanding all the notes and how they coordinate together. This will help you also be a step ahead in creating chord progressions and finally achieve the right sound for your song.
To become a great guitarist, once you have perfected the art of playing along with fingering within an octave, try always doing the same reverse. You can start with the first note on the first string and work down in pitch in the same interval of fingering too. Don't forget to listen to your sound for the right progress.
Practice patiently while utilizing your fretboard chart for an overtime mastery of every note. An expert advice is to look regularly at your notes while playing. You can use a tuner to help you measure the toe of all the notes. This will also assist you to get to know how exactly each note sounds when tuned as preferred with time and how the notes connect to the specific strings when strummed.
Whichever way you like it, this leads to a thrilling experience even with different types of guitars. This is how playing all the notes can help you become an informed guitarist passionate to the songs that are infectious to the souls.
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