Interesting questions. It's my belief that quality musicians can play any type of music reasonably well, but that the best musicians in any type of music ony sound their best when they play their specialty. However, the difference between playing music reasonably well and the best is enormous. An analog can be made to professional athletes. NFL players are tremendous athletes who in high school and college usually also excelled in baseball and basketball, but virtually nobody can play at the professional level in more than one sport.
Implicit in your musing is the assumption that classical music is somehow above both jazz and rock. While at some intellectual level there is certainly some truth in such a statement, each type of music presents its own specific challenges. The ability of a classical musician to read and interpet a written score in no way translates to an ability improvise interactively with other musicians while playing "Giant Steps". I don't know why, but these are two very distinct talents. Rock covers a fairly wide range of music types, and while their are exceptions, most rock does not require a high degree of technical ability. Rock is more about attitude and aggression.
One last point. Both jazz and rock, historically speaking, at their cores are products of the American black experience. As such, the music contains the experience of slavery, lynchings, the rural south, segregation, the civil rights movement, urban ghettos, etc. Some musicians (of any race) are better to bring out these elements of the music than others. But then again, Ray Charles once said that "it's all folk music, 'cause donkeys don't make music."
The absolute best way to become a rock musician is to play in a band. This is also true about becoming a jazz musician, but a little formal training would go a long way.
Implicit in your musing is the assumption that classical music is somehow above both jazz and rock. While at some intellectual level there is certainly some truth in such a statement, each type of music presents its own specific challenges. The ability of a classical musician to read and interpet a written score in no way translates to an ability improvise interactively with other musicians while playing "Giant Steps". I don't know why, but these are two very distinct talents. Rock covers a fairly wide range of music types, and while their are exceptions, most rock does not require a high degree of technical ability. Rock is more about attitude and aggression.
One last point. Both jazz and rock, historically speaking, at their cores are products of the American black experience. As such, the music contains the experience of slavery, lynchings, the rural south, segregation, the civil rights movement, urban ghettos, etc. Some musicians (of any race) are better to bring out these elements of the music than others. But then again, Ray Charles once said that "it's all folk music, 'cause donkeys don't make music."
The absolute best way to become a rock musician is to play in a band. This is also true about becoming a jazz musician, but a little formal training would go a long way.