Dad3353

Indeed we would; would that it would come about. Meanwhile...

Steamy enough..?

Anyone else notice the wallet floating around on the drummer's snare drum, to 'tighten up' its sound..? He has to push it away from time to time. It's an old trick, seldom seen these days. Good Stuff.

The Yellow Pages will suggest carpet cleaners, or wallpaper strippers. ...

In the same way as some modern music only makes 'sense' with its visuals, either as videos or with uber-produced live shows, opera has its fuller impact when assisting at a 'live' production, where the costumes, the storyline, the theatrics are all an integral part of what's happening. When listening to a recording, one's 'mind's eye' is visualising the scene, giving the whole experience context and meaning. Having the subject translated helps, of course, so that one may identify the characters and the plot; many are intense, and the spectacle adds to this intensity. I don't listen to extracts from Aida as background music in the car, but re-living the emotions of the full opera make a joyful, though thoughtful, evening, often with eyes closed. When I listen to my favourite 'live' Jefferson Airplane album, from start to finish, I'm 'seeing' and hearing my memories of their 'live' concerts at the Isle of Wight and London's Roundhouse. If there's a personal connection it helps; my late father-in-law was a splendid amateur tenor, and his renderings of opera and operetta extracts at family occasions were memorable, especially when accompanied by other family members at the table. On suitable occasions, the lyrics were often 'adapted', to comic (and scabrous...) effect. Happy daze..!

Hmm... Sounds a lot like much 'death metal', then (Cradle of Filth, Lamb of God... The list could be long...). In much opera, there are also orchestral parts, some, even, without the singing (overtures, anyone..?), and chorale parts. I will gladly admit that screeching soprano is not 'easy on the ear', but there is so much more than that, in many (but not all...) opera. Still, as has been pointed out, 'to each his/her own'.

Could be worse; could be reggae. ...

My main instrument is drums; the limitations are certainly not my tastes, but my own ability, steadily reducing over time. I have rather wide tastes in music, culminating in the likes of Terry Bozzio, Dave Weckl, Christian Vander, Joe Morello, Dave Mattacks and many more; never have I been anywhere near their proficiency. The limitation is not my tastes, but me. For other instruments, such as the bass, I compose, and to do so I listen to all sorts of inspirations, gleaning something from almost any and every genre, whether or not it's anything I'd ordinarily choose to listen to, or even enjoy. I find that there is much of interest in most music, but will admit to having little time for rudimentary dross such as repetitive EDM, disco, 'funk' and others. Doubtless great to dance to, if well lubricated and physically fit, but with little for the ear alone, for the most part. If this means that I'm limited by my tastes, so be it; I'll accept that as a bonus.

A frightening prospect, but intriguing, so I'll listen to what's selected, and maybe comment on what I think of it. My tastes are wide, but there are certain genres which, over the decades, have proven themselves to be 'not for me'; here's hoping there's not too much of that drawn out of the virtual hat. To be continued, then...

Again, embedded for ease of access (What's happening to this embedding stuff..? Is it all iPhones and the like that don't do it, or what..? )

Hmm... Not many opera lovers, that's certain. (Other unloved genres are available ...)

Embedded, for ease of access...

To judge from that one performance, some of them had their paper upside down.

For many people, this could be a big saving. A 50l fill saves £2.50.

I was asking the question in relation to the video posted by Lenny, as I see the drummer looking at his scores. Are they his composition or are they handed to him, pre-composed..?

It's rare to have such quality captured for posterity. I suspect that the hardest thing is thinking up the 'track' titles. I wonder... Does the drummer write his own scores, or are they handed to him for him to learn..?

Bruckner's 3rd, 1889 version...

To better evaluate progress, and also see how the video process works, it's a Good Idea to do a 'Before' video, showing the starting point. Does it show up how 'bad' one is..? Yes, of course; that's the point. From then on, progress is easy to recognise, and it's good to look back every now and again as a reminder of how things were in the beginning. No need to be brave, either; we all started from exactly the same point at one time or another; we've all been there. We can give helpful tips and pointers that may not be obvious right now, or you may already be much better than you give yourself credit for. Show us your basic stuff, on that excellent kit, please..?

Sorry, nothing first-hand here (I learnt decades ago, from drum method books such as 'Modern Techniques for the Progressive Drummer', by Max Abrams...), but Jared Falk does some very decent stuff. See here and browse..? Free Drum Lessons... In passing, that's a very good kit (I have that same model...). Depending on what you want to learn, I always recommend spending some time (half of one's practice time..?) on snare drum rudiments; it takes time to develop the physical side of drumming, and rudiments speed things up a lot. Oh, and whilst I'm here, I'd add that the fastest way to build up drumming is to go slowly, very slowly. Speed comes all the faster from going slowly. Look at other beats, too, not just the old 4/4. Latin stuff is fun, and teaches us a lot. Bon courage. Douglas

Good work indeed, but still ...

Received a new (to me...) Yamaha A-520 amp today. Connected it up to my Electro-Voice Interface Series II speakers, so hearing a new (to me...) rendition of Schubert's Ninth. It's glorious, to hear it this way. My previous amp (Teac AG-H300...) is good, but the Yamaha puts out the wattage needed to drive these speakers as they require. Full-fat trombones..! What's not to like..? (No, s'not just a case of phonic volume; it's the whole musical spectrum that comes alive, at all listening levels ...).

Size needs checking, but it looks to be very close...

This is close; might be able to adapt its dimensions..? Battery hatch for Roland Micro Cube, Stl file ... Street ... Micro Cube ...

To be fair, it was a very good match; Freddy Mercury played well, and seemed to enjoy it, too.