Why Don't More People Into Music Reproduction At Home Play Around With Musical Instruments


 In the pursuit of music reproduction in the home it is my firm belief that you must listen to live music every now & again so that you know & understand how real music,with real instruments,in real physical spaces sounds...
 With that as a foundation I used in judging equipment's "voice" I also believe that playing around with a musical instrument is an excellent way to gain first hand experience with musical sound...EVERY person that reads this can learn a few musical notes,on ANY musical instrument on the planet..For instance I play around with electric guitar.NO I can NOT play,but I can play the notes EFG,on first string & BCD on the second string...Now  I know those few notes & easily recognize them in any song..I am just this coming week going to start playing around with an electric keyboard....So I wonder,why don't more audiophiles simply play around with real instruments as part of their pursuit of honest reproduction in the home?Surely the education in reality is worth the $100.00 it takes to get an entry level guitar,keyboard,horn etc...
freediver

Showing 1 response by richopp

No talent from whomever hands out the musical talent gene--and either you have it or you do not, period.  I played several instruments starting in about 2nd grade, but was never that good at any of them. 

Fast forward to college, and guitar and drums became my choices and I played in several bands, but was the only "non-musician" in any of them.

Forward again to the early 1970's when I opened my shop.  What a revelation is was to stumble through a song myself and and then listen to a reproduced version.  Taught me that box speakers of the day, while fine, were not capable of accurately reproducing the sounds that I played on the actual instruments, even at a basically beginner level.  Closest to real were speakers from Magnepan, and they have improved quite a bit since the early 1970's.

That's what messing with instruments did for me, and I still have a few around that I mess with now that I am retired.  It is relaxing and enjoyable, but of course no one else has to listen!

Cheers!