Same here, I've been playing various instruments/making music for 10 years, and I literally could not tell you what the notes on a keyboard are without thinking it through... pretty sure music theory and math use similar parts of the brain. I still count on my fingers at times... age 29.. mind you, when something is unreasonably hard to learn for someone, there’s an element of laziness and “fuck this shit” too. But yeah, Adam is a really interesting person to listen to, and (along with a bit of "growing the fuck up" as a musician, for lack of a better term), I’m using his videos to work out what parts of music theory are worth my time struggling to learn! A lot of music theory is so stupidly hard for my brain to pick up that it's not worth me learning until I'm sure of how useful it will be... I will quite probably never benefit from being able to read music, but I'm starting to understand how insanely valuable many other areas are. Plus Adam does unleash some life-changing burns from time to time, with hilarious video editing... the word "SUNSTINANCE....." will be something I chortle at on my deathbed or some shit.
Hey Adam, a question. Are you aware that your channel is great for non native English speakers for learning English? I mean, the way you speak is fast paced yet clearly articulated, and - what's more important - you're using quite tricky vocabulary and phrases (sometimes I even write it down and remember - hope it doesn't make you feel awkward). Yeah, I know it's about music but do you have some kind of lingustic skills yourself? Hace you ever tried to learn some foreign language ? A musical ear is really helpful at it. Greets from Warsaw.
You're so right about musicality being good for learning languages. My experience with music helps me so much when I study languages. Greets from Japan!
Jorge Borges' advice for a young writer on the topic of "How do I write modern literature?": "Let him not try to be modern, because he already is; let him not try to be a man of a different epoch, to be a classical writer, because, indubitably, he cannot be this, since he is irreparably a young man of the twentieth century."
Damn, it had me laughing too, spot on. Wish I could hear Adam do the same in private regarding all the BS that's been emanating for months from La Casa Blanca.
That particular rant, and its lack of grounding in objective reality, is what is sometimes called "not even wrong". en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Not_even_wrong
Nick, my dude, why are you sending idiots to taunt poor Adam? New rule: idiots are to be ignored. If you give them attention, they feel validated and their idiocy multiplies. It's internet cancer. :)
nowadays the phrase "you're the best" is hugely devalued, but I still want you to know, Adam, that you - you, not anyone else - are the single best go-to person for amateur musicians today. You should be proud (and inspired to do even more of your amazing stuff, but I guess you got that covered)
$40 for a three hour gig in New York. Wow, I thought my earnings were meager. My typical Saturday night in Minnesota is as follows. I load $5000 worth of gear into a $500 car and drive 200 miles for a $100 gig. It never occurred to me that I might be making New York musicians jealous.
Jeff Johansen I load a $2000 bass into a $30k car every week to play for free. The perils of playing in a church band 😁 Also, currently jobless, so I can relate to the pain.
Compared to Brazil, you guys are in heaven (just kidding, each with its own pains haha). It's inconcievable for us to drive 200 miles, or even 30. It would make any gig unviable. We can take the train for 3 bucks but only if your instruments are made of paper and you have A LOT of time available.
As a musician, composer, sound engineer, and recording engineer, I have many gigs. One of my gigs is at a major cathedral in the Pacific Northwest. I sing in the choir, ring handbells in the Bell Choir, record all the anthems for broadcast on the local public radio station, and manage the sound reinforcement systems. I don’t get paid for any of these efforts. However, they do pay me $50 a week to duck out of the service and play guitar for the Sunday School lessons. You know, “This Little Light of Mine” and such. I also get payed to be the Stage Manager for the occasional classical music concert. So I rehearse a lot, perform a lot, and spend hours mixing live recordings in Pro Tools; for no pay. However, these efforts have guided me to many other gigs as an engineer, performer and composer. And I do love playing for the kids! “Let it Shine.”
I'm not musical at all. No musical skill, knowledge, training, ability, at all, zero, zilch, nada. I understand almost nothing of what Adam says, yet I click on his videos and watch the entire thing. I guess I just enjoy listening to someone knowledgeable that has excellent communication skills.
Totally agree with your capo comments. I find it really inspirational when using one. I have written lots with a capo on 2, 3 or 5 that I would never that written without one. The open strings just sound different. Would nt leave home without one!
According to Glen Campbell, he was sought after as a session musician because of his use of a capo. With the capo, he was able to play the standard "rock n roll surf" rhythm patterns in different keys, and he famously contributed the beautiful guitar part on Sinatra's Strangers in the Night with the help of a capo. My brother (a guitarist) held the belief that capos were for people that couldn't play barre chords, and I shared that belief until a few years ago when I realized there were some things on guitar that just sounded better using open strings. Thanks for explaining the capo thing - if you had been making these videos 5-7 years sooner, I may not have gone on so long with that misconception!
Adam Neely (probably, haven't watched the video yet): "I did. I made myself an authority by studying for years and dedicating my life to music." End of video. Seriously though, I hate this kind of behaviour. By now it's a common fact where AN got all this knowledge (Berkley and NYC scene) so what's with these arrogant questions? We all know (and love) how he puts things into perspective by mentioning (when necessary) that certain things are his opinion, related to his experience or one of multiple viable solutions. I somehow doubt that question cane from someone who could be considered an intellectual peer.
This is because people need certifications to "trust" someone's knowledge, intead of just checking their facts. This is very common among academics (which sometimes have an elitist, exclusivist and exclusionist atitude towards non-academics) and non-academics (which sometimes look at academics with scorn because of the atitude described earlier).
That actually makes a *lot* of sense, damn. I guess I was subconsciously pandering to the first kind of group then, wasn't I? Thanks for the input my dude!
About 14:34 "Is it better to use different keys or the same key a majority of the time on an album?" Have you listened to Dream Theater's Octavarium album? Each song is in a tonality, and the transitions between them have the sharp tonalities. The first song, "The ROOT of All Evil", is in F, and the last "OCTAVarium", is also in F.
Anyone who is suffering from wrist/hand pain and attributes it to their daily activity (playing an instrument, typing on a keyboard, etc.) should first see a doctor to confirm that there is no structural damage to their body (using x-ray and so on). If you take a break from the activity but the pain does not recede, and it is found by your doctor that there are no such structural abnormalities, you should investigate the possibility of it being a psychosomatic symptom. RSI/carpal tunnel is often an ultimately physically harmless disorder resulting from a mindbody syndrome (e.g. tension myoneural syndrome). Most people won't buy into this explanation, but as a guitarist and a programmer who suffered from pain for 2 years and practically lost their career/hobby, I'm always compelled to try to educate.
anonymousfigure37 Thank you for sharing your knowledge, personal experience, and compassion. I hope Adam can raise awareness by addressing this in a future video. 😊
One thing about drawing inspiration/studying from the past (at least for me) is that it feels a little clearer, a little bit less chaotic. That's probably because we've had time to reflect on it. Not to say you're wrong I 100% agree with you on being aware of your contemporary musical surroundings.
Love your first answer! So many people get disillusioned, thinking their going to be the next Beatles. It's always important to know what came before you but to always look toward the future
The pineal gland was a big part of philosophy of mind during the renaissance. Philosophers like Descartes considered the mind to be separate to the body, but the problem was the question about how something outside the universe could influence the body. As medicine couldn't explain the pineal gland at the time, many made the jump to using it as an explanation of how this happened. The thing with that though is the pineal gland doesn't work that way. Sounds like 432ers have heard something along the lines of the above but don't realise music doesn't work that way either.
You really make me wish I stuck with piano after 5th grade. But I can honestly say- taking up the bass more than three decades later, the things I learned as a child about reading music, and indeed, my ear for music has always stayed with me, and now that I'm older and more mature, I have the patience to really appreciate and study music theory in a way that ten-year-old me never could.
I don't remember where I have heard/read these "definitions", but I find them amusing, so hereby I share the knowledge: "Groove" - The reason why guitarists feel bad about not choosing the bass or the drums. "Riff" - The thing which you want to play Instantly after you have heard it, and you will be angry if you can't. (not a native speaker, please be kind about grammar, thank you)
WOW! Well said Adam...came only for the question on the title! You said it very well! You're the best Adam! Got motivated into learning theory which was previously the worst part for me.
David Armstrong not the only thing. The open strings sound better and you can create chords because of it. If you are on Eb, you can't use the 1st and 2nd strings open. If you place the capo on the 3rd or 5th, you can play chords with those strings open; or you can place the capo on the 3rd and open the 1st and 3rd string... and so on.
I started this video up explicitly to hear how Adam would answer the question in the title, and to my great pleasure, he recited the answer I'd already drawn up in my head pretty much verbatim. Of course, the piece of paper I got was an English degree, and subjects like, "What is authority, and who has it?" were pretty much the first year or two of classes. tl;dr: nailed it.
music is a dynamic creature that is constantly changing. it helps to know what the current trends are if you, the musician, is either making or attempting to make a living performing music in various ventures such as events and parties. if you don't change with current trends, it is very easy to get passed up by someone who does keep up. i observed this back in the 70's in the club scene. as music being performed transitioned from the rock music to the dance music (disco) many of the local bands in our circuit either wouldn't or couldn't make the transition and thus became extinct. that's not to say that if musicians find a niche market they shouldn't pressure it. but what i have found that works for me is not living in a bubble where only one genre exists. along with being an art, the ugly truth is that music is also a business. a business must have a product that is in demand and sells. this is why i try to keep up with trends no matter how nauseating i think the music is.
About authority, you gave such a great answer. Yes, it's about trust. Your answers when about things I know are the same as mine, so I trust that would be the case about things that I do not know anything about. However, if I'm not sure about your answer, I still do my own research.
The Hard Problem There's a capo called The Spider (if I recall correctly) that lets you capo different strings to different frets. Might want to look into it.
I know I'm late to the game on this, but capos are also the best thing ever for laying different chord voicing during recording. Say the first chord of a chorus is a Gmajor on an acoustic ballad and the chord is played open in a progression. Layering guitars over the top just playing the same open G is fine, but capoing at the third fret and playing the chord as an open G will create a deeper, wider sound that will create a level of seperation that your mix engineer will love working with.
I never viewed the capo as a crutch, but never saw it as a useful tool until recently. I don't use it that often, but it sure comes in handy for certain things.
You've mentioned a lot a times how it's best not to fetishize the past. How to move on and all. I completely agree, and honestly hearing you put it that way has helped me break out some crappy habits; however, there are a lot of modern artistic endeavors that utilize mindsets and practices from the past (take for instance the resurgence of analog synths and drum machines, or recording to tape) that yield some pretty satisfying developments. How would we know to strike a balance? Aren't there things that weren't fully explored before they fell out of style?
It helps to understand what repetitive strain injury is doing to your tendons. We used to think of tendinitis as an inflammation of the tendons. What we now know is that tendinitis is a disorganisation of the tendon fibres. Normally they are all laid down in neat parallel lines. All the cells in you body are constantly dying off and being replaced. Overuse causes the tendon fibres to be replaced in a disorganised way. The *only* cure for this is to allow them to grow back outside of the conditions that caused them to grown in all jumbled up. I suspect that with corrected technique you could heal from mild repetitive strain injuries. But the quickest and surest way is to stop playing until you heal. And then get good instruction to prevent re-occurrence. A big caveat here: this is only for tendinitis. I'm sure that there are other RSI's that have different mechanisms and treatments. I haven't researched any of those, and really, don't take advice from a youtube commenter. Go to a RSI specialist and ask lots of questions to make sure that they are up to date on the latest research. General practitioners often are behind in the latest science so a specialist is a must.
I got RSI in my forearms from drumming. It wasn't until I switched majors and stopped playing that it went away. So you're completely right about that.
In regards to your comments on the economics of sideman and jazz gigs - when I was in college The Bad Plus played a concert at my university and then gave a talk/class. The problem of making money vs. keeping a band together came up. In their case it required committing to the trio in the long term at the expense of some better paying gigs. I even remember one of them saying that they took a part time job at a grocery store or something like that. Obviously these 3 musicians believed they had something worthwhile and together chose to make some sacrifices in order to nurture it. Lucky us for us, it paid off!
I remember when I started learning guitar, I learnt Hotel California by The Eagles without a capo, just barring the chords on a steel string acoustic because I didn't know what a capo was. That's the day I became a man.
I get so into that lo-fi no tension and release stuff. I don't know why, but it speaks to me on a deep level. Something about how even and calm it is just makes my brain happy.
I love your channel and watch your videos at all opportunities. Thank you and keep up the excellent work! Composer that wasn't a product of his time: I can only think of one. J. S. Bach. His style was passé and everyone else had moved on. His music was unpopular in its time (though always recognized for its virtuosity) and languished in obscurity until another famous musician, Felix Mendelssohn re-discovered it 80 years after Bach's death. I suppose it could be argued that Bach was still a product of his time (i.e. he was a devout Lutheran) but his music was *by contemporary acconts* rooted in another era, perhaps a century earlier.
Jeez! Your uploads are relentless … but brilliant … so much stuff to take in …. all bear re-watching and re-listening. Your collaborations with other channels are excellent also.
Eloquently said Adam, as always. In A Perfect Union of Contrary Things Maynard talks about how he's sitting around at shows bitterly and saying how they're doing it all wrong and someone tells him "Well if you can do better do it." well he did in my opinion he did. All I'm saying is I'm glad you're an authority in music theory on youtube. Thanks for sharing knowledge man.
Hey Adam! I like what you said about musicians being products of their time, but I think that's misleading since history has such a selective memory. Couldn't it be argued that the musicians of the era originated ideas that became the voice of their time period, rather than the other way around?
The point he is making is that if I were to compose classical music as if I was Bach right now, even if I was as good or better than Bach I would not be nearly as famous because It is not of my time. People will say "Oh well Bach already did that". Being a product of your time means contributing to the innovation that defines the style of your era. You have to do something unique, but not so unique that it alienates your generation who has their own musical biases if you want to be remembered or famous.
So cool to see you reference Dr. Roholt - he was my professor at Montclair State! Very cool, very brilliant dude. His Philosophy of Art class was one of my favorites as a philosophy major. Maybe you could interview him for a future video! I feel like you two would have a very rich conversation.
16:52 I think the "local" element that makes a particular ethnic music believable when played is a) the vocabulary played at the right time b) the particular techniques played precisely c) most importantly the time/beat "nuancies" that, especially for danceable ethnic music (most often the case) give the sense of danceability, movement, style, to this particular ethnic music style. Like minor adjustments to playing particular moments in the beat slightly off beat, a little "lazy", "hazy", sooner, or later that they were supposed to. This last element is extremely important, though quite subtle and therefore harder to grasp for a non-natìve (it might take an actual teacher to show you).
Hey Adam! Saw you have a record player on the table in the background. What really caught my attention was the fact that your record player was sitting on the same table as the speakers. I know this may be the only way you can set your rig up, but having your speakers on separate stands or just on a surface other than the one which record player sits on makes a good difference for your listening experience. You'll avoid a fair bit of problems by doing it that way. Amazing video as always! :)
You have authority partly because TH-cam wants to give you authority because they've found an arrangement that's good for them, good for you and good for viewers. Your existing viewers give you the authority which you earn with your quality content.
Hey Adam, my uncle is a veteran jazz musician (he jammed with Bird and Lester Young in the 40’s, played with Chet Baker and was a first call session musician as well) and he has a critique of contemporary musicians’ articulation. According to him the rise of microphones and amplification led to a deterioration of articulation as it has been increasingly less critical to articulate sharply to be heard. For example, during his era, double bass player tended to set the bridge higher than today and to attack the string closer to the bridge and stronger than today. Note that this is not about loudness but really articulation, a comparison he often makes is that a seasoned stage actor can be heard whispering from the back of the room, thanks to a proper articulation. I feel that I can notice the difference between a contemporary jazz player and one from the 50’s in a record. 50’s players seem to articulate sharper and cleaner. Do you think it’s true? If so how come don’t musicians try to fix this problem (for example by training themselves to play without amplification?). Thanks in advance.
I think it is important for a complete guitarist to be able to play with or without a capo - Saying that I own several, one per guitar as I've found all capos intonate differently on different guitars. Some tunes I wrote to use the blasted thing. Can I transpose tho? yes. Sometimes it is simply faster, sometimes it sounds better, sometimes I like the guitar neck bling.
Can you give a rough layout of what percentage of your income comes from where? Example: 20% patreon, 10% online album sales, 20% gigs, 20% teaching, 10% session work, 20% Walmart greeter/meth dealer
Pssh.... I watch this TH-cam channel because of the awesome animation intro. Adam, I know you love talking about really complicated music theory, but it would be awesome if you could do a video on more basic music theory (specifically what are chords, why are they named funny things, etc). Thanks and keep up the awesome channel!
Question for the next Q&A: What happens after postmodern music? I just really wonder a lot of times about how varied and abundant music is today, I mean there's a sub-genre to this sub-genre to this sub-genre (and so on) pointing down to this genre and what any more kind of music do we have "to innovate" to sound fresh and original (borrow some elements from influences)? How much more in the future? Will we ever run out of combinations? What does 50 years later sound like? It is very interesting to know what sort of route you're foreseeing.
There is a trend in society of neglecting the original meaning and history of words and that can lead to confusion. Groove is what causes music to assist field slaves to keep ploughing the grooves into the field, on and on, like a machine, without mental exhaustion. I would say it is the rhythmic twin of "flow". It is a property that keeps you going, pulls you in, makes you a part of it.
@@Dowlphin This is just silly. 'The term 'groove' has nothing whatsoever to do with slavery - there's no evidence that it had currency in music prior to the twentieth century. Besides, the trenches cut by ploughs are called 'furrows' not 'grooves'. I think the confusion is all yours.
I'd say questions of authority are largely beside the point, since you present material in a way that rests not on authority, but on facts that are presented in an insightful manner, as well as stories that people find compelling. There's an insightfulness in the way questions are explored that seeks to go a bit deeper than the easy answers. I don't come here so much because I find the content agreeable, it's because it passes the "tell-me-something-I-don't-know" test. The thing about different keys used to drive me nuts -- some of the early thrash metal bands were so badly wed to open-string riffing that at the time I derided them as "open-string-thumpers". The more notable bands would move the key around for a bridge or modulate it for solo passages (metallica, slayer, and death who would more or less change key with each riff) but there were many wannabes that leaned a bit too hard on the E string (or D or C# or even B ... ). It's one thing to have every song resolve to E (or D or C# or B ... ) but yet another to be pinned to that key for an entire album
As for changing keys throughout an album. I try to use different modes when I have multiple songs relying on the same "chug" note. I let that change in tonality keep the album interesting and it's enough of a change in feel to disregard the need for a new key as it can still convey a harmonic narrative throughout the album.
HEY ADAM! one thing i would add to the Who made you an authority to speak on anything. i think a big part of the authority you have here on YT, and is because, we the viewers consider your content as great and your knowledge as valid, what I mean is, if we are sending you stuff (videos, sheets, or what ever) for you to critique, its because we believe that you have knowledge that will to a certain degree makes us better in the long run. we give you this authority because we see the knowledge as worthy of it! cheers and good look!
Loved the point about different tonalities helping to create a dynamic arc on an album. As a metal musician playing in drop tunings with an occasional chug, it's always been in my mind to write in different keys for variety and to make the songs (especially on one record) have their own world. Too often Metal records are in 1 key and a whole album becomes a harmonic snoozefest.
After many years of playing in bands with the same members all of the time, I have found myself doing the occasional sub gigs with people I don't usually or have never played with. Perhaps having hosted open mikes for a few years has given me more comfort with playing with "strangers". What is also happening is some of my regular bandmates will have outside gigs and need to be absent from some jobs. There have been many instances when we threw a band together for a gig, with some of the players having never played together before but rely on our common experience of having played a lot of the same music over the years. 30 or 40 years ago I would have not felt comfortable with this.
agreed, it should be 450 ray.tomes.biz/alex.htm ;) Tho' I kinda scoff, I do find resonance - sympathetic, harmonic, beats etc - as a subject to be really interesting... throw in some Tesla & a few pyramid tales and I'll bite that bait :D
now seriously (just couldn't resist the above post), show us please a song written in this pitch? i have nothing against changing pitch, one of my favorite tunes was writen in 432 (blackhole sun by soundgarden), i like the way it sounds, i feel it's a recourse, soundgarden have always played with different tunnings this was one of them, period. it won't enlighten you or hinder your ~spiritual progress or chain you to agenda of the meanies of the YLLUMINATYSHH
What's your opinion on the non-competition when it comes to knowledge about theory? All the bands I've tried to join or start have some sort of theory problem: none of them can apply or understand it. I bring up the question "what key are we in", and the response in every single one of my experiences has been "there isn't one". Even when I point out the root note and tonality of their music, it's still just "I didn't want one because we don't need theory." I understand scales, and chords aren't always necessary; primus being an example of "repetition legitimizes", but there is still a measurable amount of harmonic/melodic theory happening in every primus song. Is it worth it to deal with it, and just work with what I can to be in band? Or am I really stuck working with myself on every piece of music so that I can get some songs written?
27duuude I feel your pain. Like asking, "what's that chord you're playing there?" I got the answer, "it's just one I made up." Lol and smh. Guy found it hard to believe that every combo of notes is already a chord with at least one name. I'm no expert, but I tend to be that guy with most of the knuckleheads I play with. Even thought about having them pay me a nominal fee for music instruction at practice and rehearsal. I'd also like to hear Adam comment on the topic. Cheers
There could be other reasons he's asking. They could be playing a chord that clashes or is dissonant or they could just be making shit up. Sometimes you have to ask that so that the others in an ensemble figure it out, especially if they're improvising/writing an entire song and they say things like "it's just one I made up" Now be nice.
ChocolateMilkMage right. Or it's too dark to see, or it's the first time you're jamming with them. Lol. I can just hear the snark. "If you were any good..".
You can only teach things to people who actually want to learn them. The fact he says you don't need theory shows that talking about it won't get you anywhere.
REPETITIVE STRESS CURE: develop proficiency playing your instrument upside down with your non-dominant hand. This reverses the torque placed on the shoulder girdle and relieves nerve compression. Your journey to understand why your wrists don't work properly in this reverse orientation will also be your journey to bring your body back to balance from the damage of learning our instruments young and without postural mindfulness. Switch-playing becomes a cool party trick when you get good at it, and is especially easy with bass.
I never use a capo, because I use a maccaferri guitar with a wide neck and soft strings, which always seem to get damaged when I use one. Also, Gypsy Jazz doesn't really use capos, you want to be able to use the full range of notes for arpeggios etc! But for most acoustic guitar music, there's definitely a use for it!
Some people do use a capo as a crutch, I’m sorry to say. A few years ago, I regularly attended a local jam. Like with many jams, the musicianship varied from competent pro the completely green. One jammer in particular would show to every session with her guitar, mic and list of tunes she wanted to do. Every song she played was either in the key of G/E min or transposed with me a capo to accommodate for those open changes. Generally any of the other musicians would over look this kind of thing, but the player in question carried a large ego and bad attitude toward other, less experience musicians. So we set her up. We invited her up to play a simple 1 6 2 5 in the key of A. We asked her to lose the capo because we wanted her to play the open E7 in the tune. She didn’t know the changes without the capo. Her ego took a hit that night, but she really did have it coming considering the way she treated other, less experienced musicians.
Tension and Release: Eminem particularly but Dre's production in general - and Cube with him - absolute masters of tension and release and they do it like lead guitarists over a repeating chord progression. Not lo-fi, but my tuppence.
Bonjour Adam! I've seen a lot of musicians using tablets to read their music and it seems to be a great way to save paper. Since i'm running a music club at my school, I've been wondering which software/application could be efficient at sharing, organising, marking sheet music and save me the hassle of making sure everyone has their parts. Si une telle chose n'existe pas, je saurai alors quoi développer comme application...!
About the capo / transpose thing: I'm a keyboard player and I find myself playing different keys in different ways. I play C for "happy" or jazzy pieces, my organ tunes are all in E, Eb when playing clavi sounds (mainly from too many Superstition jams) and so on. I often use the bad habit of the (and here i'll get the hate) transpose button so I can get the ~feel~ of those shapes I'm already used to in other keys. I know it is a bad thing but in the end it helps my brain going through different styles.
Hey Adam, i love yr channel, very informative and u have the perfect personality for it: not overly friendly, but hardly unfriendly either! Great ballance! ☺ I've been playing Piano for 46 years this year and teaching about 36. Ive been playing in a restaurant/ supper club in NJ for a little over a year now. I get $100 for 3 & 1/2 hours + tips, so i guess by standards, I'm doing well! :-) Good to know! Thx! Peace always ern ☺🎹🎤
Q&A Question: What is the difference between scales and scales? I mean if we have the 12edo scale we can play those 12 notes and that is the chromatic scale, but we can also play a subset of those notes, say the C major scale and that is then also called a scale. When I see microtonal scales being mentioned you always see them discuss the scale in the same context as 12edo, but I guess you could might as well play the C major scale on 19edo or 31edo? So how do you distinguish from your "musical universe", that is all the notes available to you and the subset of notes you choose to use in your scale? Also how much better can we do than an equally divided octave scale if we arrange the scale according to the root and only play with that scale in one key? With modern electronic instruments, this shouldn't pose a major obstacle, so can we do much better? Any tips for literature that goes into detail in the use of microtonal scales and the history of why and how they where constructed?
I try not to be too analytical about music, especially about subjects like groove but this is how I explain it: The drummer keeps the beat and in a split second (unintentionally) he will maybe play the snare a little faster, then the next snare hit he will try to catch up maybe playing it a little slower, and maybe he'll have 2 or three hits before he gets perfectly right on track (we're talking milliseconds here so to the human ear it doesn't sound off beat), that ebb and flow makes the beat groovy. Same goes for the bass player. Those little "mistakes" make the music sound more "human" and less sterile. This is just the way I see it I might be wrong as I am not an expert at all. Nice videos by the way, keep it up.
15:10 Perfect example: Octavarium by Dream Theater. Going along with the concept of cycles and ending where you begin, the first song is in F, the next in G, then A and so on, until it ends on F again, completing the octave (Octavarium, get it?) Check out the analysis by Chris Newhouse, it's insane.
Hey Adam! It seems a lot of people have strain injuries because of poor technique, myself occasionally included. I've seen your videos "Developing Safe Left/Right Hand Technique for Bass Guitar". However, that was 7 years ago and I'm sure you learned more on that subject. Perhaps you could revisit safe technique in a newer video, or add a guitar technique as well, I'm sure a lot of people could benefit from that. Keep up the good work!
Here´s how you learn groove. You need to feel it first. Feel it in your body, in your chest, in your mouth, in your stomach. That´s it. Now, in order to feel it you´ll need to spend x amout of hours in your instrument. I´ll more for some, less for some. Don´t worry, you´ll get there. Just keep pushing. That´s it. No need to read books or fantasize about it....
1:44 - Don't you think that the time adjusts to the iconoclasts and absorbs them? Not dissimilar to a chemical reaction where the two reactive components are reduced to a salt. If something is unique and influential, it influences that around it and after it for a point of time so that looking back all the things around it fit in a way that it appears they influenced it rather than the other way around. Having said that Brian Eno talks of the parallel similar reaction to something by many as Scenius.
Question for the next Q&A Hey Adam, out of all the cover songs you have learned in your musical career what was the one that surprised you the most and gave you a newfound respect for the artist/band? The one for me was Mr Brightside by the killers.
I think I remember Pitch Axis Theory being described something like this: if your axis is the tones of the mother major scale, then as soon as you shift your root note some degree along that axis, still playing "major scale shapes" but continue to drone the major root under your first note, you'll be playing the according modal sounds of the major scale instead, because it's all about the way the ear hears the first interval, the contrast that sets the "rhyme and reason" for what follows; with the same starting point, you'd otherwise just sound major with that scale shape. Similarly I think if you start playing, say, Dorian scale shapes in A but play a B first note of the A Dorian shape over a lower A, now it sounds Phyrgian. The idea is that, ultimately, it's a "scale shape" way to play any sound anywhere on the neck, because the neck is just a finite part of an infinite set of notes where a limited set of shapes keep popping up in all the different modes in different places. So perhaps it's quite useful for those like Joe Satriani who like to compose his style of music in modes. You've got most strings of course to your shapes when the low E is your appropriate "underneath" note.
Would you say that Accordion by Madvillian uses the element of tension in the drum groove? In a transcription I did of the drum groove, I realized the snare hit (that would be on beats 2 and 4), was put a 32 septuplet before the beats 2 and 4 proper!! This creates an incredibly engaging tension that is also reflected in the complex rhythmic delivery by MF DOOM on the track.
I tuned my guitar to A=432Hz and six octaves fell out. Now I have octaves all over the floor. Someone help me.
Mickey Burns You can't believe how much I laughed with your comment.
Did you try turning it off and on again?
Keep the octaves safely in a sealed box so they won't degrade. It is really important to do so if you want to go back to 440Hz
What do?
tune 440 and you sound more in tune with humans who play POPULAR music that humans want to listen to.
Honestly, 90% of the time I have no idea what Adam is talking about. But something about how he explains music theory and shit is pretty dope.
I believe it also comes from his voice that is really soothing
Metoo
Same here, I've been playing various instruments/making music for 10 years, and I literally could not tell you what the notes on a keyboard are without thinking it through... pretty sure music theory and math use similar parts of the brain. I still count on my fingers at times... age 29.. mind you, when something is unreasonably hard to learn for someone, there’s an element of laziness and “fuck this shit” too.
But yeah, Adam is a really interesting person to listen to, and (along with a bit of "growing the fuck up" as a musician, for lack of a better term), I’m using his videos to work out what parts of music theory are worth my time struggling to learn! A lot of music theory is so stupidly hard for my brain to pick up that it's not worth me learning until I'm sure of how useful it will be... I will quite probably never benefit from being able to read music, but I'm starting to understand how insanely valuable many other areas are. Plus Adam does unleash some life-changing burns from time to time, with hilarious video editing... the word "SUNSTINANCE....." will be something I chortle at on my deathbed or some shit.
He sounds like wikipedia sounds in my head
Great work again Adam. I'm self taught and your videos help a lot in filling in the academic gaps.
"Capos (capoes?) are cheating, bruh." *kicks on distortion*
Don't forget to let your EQ have a big smile.
A happy EQ is a heavy EQ
Scoop the mids? HA! I turn all the knobs to 0. It's so heavy you can't hear that shit. Imperceptible to the human ear. HEEEEEAVYYYYYYYYY!
lol
NO MIDS!
ALL THE GAIN!
METAL ZONE!
SLAYER!
Hey Adam, a question.
Are you aware that your channel is great for non native English speakers for learning English? I mean, the way you speak is fast paced yet clearly articulated, and - what's more important - you're using quite tricky vocabulary and phrases (sometimes I even write it down and remember - hope it doesn't make you feel awkward). Yeah, I know it's about music but do you have some kind of lingustic skills yourself? Hace you ever tried to learn some foreign language ? A musical ear is really helpful at it. Greets from Warsaw.
Noticed the same. Greets from Bytom, also Poland as above. ;D
Its one of the few channels that I dont use the automatic subtitles. Greets from Brazil!
Konifer Hey K, i agree thats its easier to decifer accents and foreign languages through being Musical! I've proven it to myself many times! Peace 😁
You're so right about musicality being good for learning languages. My experience with music helps me so much when I study languages. Greets from Japan!
I agree! From the Philippines!!
Jorge Borges' advice for a young writer on the topic of "How do I write modern literature?": "Let him not try to be modern, because he already is; let him not try to be a man of a different epoch, to be a classical writer, because, indubitably, he cannot be this, since he is irreparably a young man of the twentieth century."
Which makes "Pierre Menard" such an interesting story.
yeah, I love that story!
Jorge Luis Borges!! The last thing I thought would happen is finding one of his quotes on an adam neely video lol. Viva luisito!
Your responses to 432 rants amuse me immensely :D
Damn, it had me laughing too, spot on. Wish I could hear Adam do the same in private regarding all the BS that's been emanating for months from La Casa Blanca.
I say we drop both 432 and 440, and start tuning at A=420
@Maj. Peppers: ~coughs~ Already there dude.... Pfffss... this shit is sharp. ^o^
+Aylbdr Madison
I think you mean flat.
Badumtsh.
That particular rant, and its lack of grounding in objective reality, is what is sometimes called "not even wrong".
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Not_even_wrong
13:49 lol I sent the 432 guy to your channel, I found him him on Instagram going on some crazy rant. He also thinks the earth is flat lol
It makes sense that a flat earther would also be a 432 believer. That is the same kind of stupidity-- being proud of ignorance.
I can’t even.
Jeremy Anderson but you can odd
@@QS1597 Dad, how many times do I have to tell you to stop commenting puns on Adam Neely videos?
Nick, my dude, why are you sending idiots to taunt poor Adam? New rule: idiots are to be ignored. If you give them attention, they feel validated and their idiocy multiplies. It's internet cancer.
:)
nowadays the phrase "you're the best" is hugely devalued, but I still want you to know, Adam, that you - you, not anyone else - are the single best go-to person for amateur musicians today. You should be proud (and inspired to do even more of your amazing stuff, but I guess you got that covered)
$40 for a three hour gig in New York. Wow, I thought my earnings were meager. My typical Saturday night in Minnesota is as follows. I load $5000 worth of gear into a $500 car and drive 200 miles for a $100 gig. It never occurred to me that I might be making New York musicians jealous.
Jeff Johansen I load a $2000 bass into a $30k car every week to play for free. The perils of playing in a church band 😁
Also, currently jobless, so I can relate to the pain.
Jeff Johansen I get two 150€ instruments on my shoulders and take a 15€ train to play three hours, get home 12 hours later, and get paid 50€.
those are heavy instruments mate.
Compared to Brazil, you guys are in heaven (just kidding, each with its own pains haha). It's inconcievable for us to drive 200 miles, or even 30. It would make any gig unviable. We can take the train for 3 bucks but only if your instruments are made of paper and you have A LOT of time available.
As a musician, composer, sound engineer, and recording engineer, I have many gigs. One of my gigs is at a major cathedral in the Pacific Northwest. I sing in the choir, ring handbells in the Bell Choir, record all the anthems for broadcast on the local public radio station, and manage the sound reinforcement systems. I don’t get paid for any of these efforts. However, they do pay me $50 a week to duck out of the service and play guitar for the Sunday School lessons. You know, “This Little Light of Mine” and such. I also get payed to be the Stage Manager for the occasional classical music concert.
So I rehearse a lot, perform a lot, and spend hours mixing live recordings in Pro Tools; for no pay. However, these efforts have guided me to many other gigs as an engineer, performer and composer. And I do love playing for the kids! “Let it Shine.”
I'm not musical at all. No musical skill, knowledge, training, ability, at all, zero, zilch, nada. I understand almost nothing of what Adam says, yet I click on his videos and watch the entire thing. I guess I just enjoy listening to someone knowledgeable that has excellent communication skills.
I want to be adamistic. Honestly, I've never seen anyone handle trolls in such a mature and convincing manner.
Totally agree with your capo comments. I find it really inspirational when using one. I have written lots with a capo on 2, 3 or 5 that I would never that written without one. The open strings just sound different. Would nt leave home without one!
You and Beato are my music gods.
According to Glen Campbell, he was sought after as a session musician because of his use of a capo. With the capo, he was able to play the standard "rock n roll surf" rhythm patterns in different keys, and he famously contributed the beautiful guitar part on Sinatra's Strangers in the Night with the help of a capo.
My brother (a guitarist) held the belief that capos were for people that couldn't play barre chords, and I shared that belief until a few years ago when I realized there were some things on guitar that just sounded better using open strings.
Thanks for explaining the capo thing - if you had been making these videos 5-7 years sooner, I may not have gone on so long with that misconception!
>2017
>Doesn't use Pineal gland
What are you even doing with your life?
Being dead
I, too, enjoy sleep.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pineal_gland
Adam Neely (probably, haven't watched the video yet):
"I did. I made myself an authority by studying for years and dedicating my life to music."
End of video.
Seriously though, I hate this kind of behaviour. By now it's a common fact where AN got all this knowledge (Berkley and NYC scene) so what's with these arrogant questions? We all know (and love) how he puts things into perspective by mentioning (when necessary) that certain things are his opinion, related to his experience or one of multiple viable solutions. I somehow doubt that question cane from someone who could be considered an intellectual peer.
This is because people need certifications to "trust" someone's knowledge, intead of just checking their facts. This is very common among academics (which sometimes have an elitist, exclusivist and exclusionist atitude towards non-academics) and non-academics (which sometimes look at academics with scorn because of the atitude described earlier).
That actually makes a *lot* of sense, damn. I guess I was subconsciously pandering to the first kind of group then, wasn't I? Thanks for the input my dude!
I was going to answer something similar but you nailed the point. Haha
Totally agree, Dunk
Don't forget, Adam also has a master's from the Manhattan School of Music.
And he's a pretty badass dude overall.
About 14:34 "Is it better to use different keys or the same key a majority of the time on an album?"
Have you listened to Dream Theater's Octavarium album? Each song is in a tonality, and the transitions between them have the sharp tonalities. The first song, "The ROOT of All Evil", is in F, and the last "OCTAVarium", is also in F.
Adam, thank you so much for speaking to us. I personally really like the analytic aspect of your videos. Hope you continue making them!
Anyone who is suffering from wrist/hand pain and attributes it to their daily activity (playing an instrument, typing on a keyboard, etc.) should first see a doctor to confirm that there is no structural damage to their body (using x-ray and so on). If you take a break from the activity but the pain does not recede, and it is found by your doctor that there are no such structural abnormalities, you should investigate the possibility of it being a psychosomatic symptom. RSI/carpal tunnel is often an ultimately physically harmless disorder resulting from a mindbody syndrome (e.g. tension myoneural syndrome). Most people won't buy into this explanation, but as a guitarist and a programmer who suffered from pain for 2 years and practically lost their career/hobby, I'm always compelled to try to educate.
anonymousfigure37 Thank you for sharing your knowledge, personal experience, and compassion. I hope Adam can raise awareness by addressing this in a future video. 😊
sky thx sky check out the book and movie The. Secret and also Anrham/Hicks videos on youtube it will blow yr mind!! 😂
One thing about drawing inspiration/studying from the past (at least for me) is that it feels a little clearer, a little bit less chaotic. That's probably because we've had time to reflect on it.
Not to say you're wrong I 100% agree with you on being aware of your contemporary musical surroundings.
Love your first answer! So many people get disillusioned, thinking their going to be the next Beatles. It's always important to know what came before you but to always look toward the future
The pineal gland was a big part of philosophy of mind during the renaissance. Philosophers like Descartes considered the mind to be separate to the body, but the problem was the question about how something outside the universe could influence the body. As medicine couldn't explain the pineal gland at the time, many made the jump to using it as an explanation of how this happened.
The thing with that though is the pineal gland doesn't work that way. Sounds like 432ers have heard something along the lines of the above but don't realise music doesn't work that way either.
You really make me wish I stuck with piano after 5th grade. But I can honestly say- taking up the bass more than three decades later, the things I learned as a child about reading music, and indeed, my ear for music has always stayed with me, and now that I'm older and more mature, I have the patience to really appreciate and study music theory in a way that ten-year-old me never could.
You really have lots of philosophical insights into music! I have tons of respect for you as a musician and a philosopher.
I don't remember where I have heard/read these "definitions", but I find them amusing, so hereby I share the knowledge:
"Groove" - The reason why guitarists feel bad about not choosing the bass or the drums.
"Riff" - The thing which you want to play Instantly after you have heard it, and you will be angry if you can't.
(not a native speaker, please be kind about grammar, thank you)
WOW! Well said Adam...came only for the question on the title! You said it very well!
You're the best Adam! Got motivated into learning theory which was previously the worst part for me.
Play an open G chord on guitar (320003). Now play the very same voicing up a semitone (431114). This is why capos are useful.
TheTortoise what's your point, I mean I agree that they're useful but are you just saying that the fingering is tricky?
Yeah, it's an awkward chord to finger.
David Armstrong not the only thing. The open strings sound better and you can create chords because of it.
If you are on Eb, you can't use the 1st and 2nd strings open. If you place the capo on the 3rd or 5th, you can play chords with those strings open; or you can place the capo on the 3rd and open the 1st and 3rd string... and so on.
For me C is even worse.
I started this video up explicitly to hear how Adam would answer the question in the title, and to my great pleasure, he recited the answer I'd already drawn up in my head pretty much verbatim. Of course, the piece of paper I got was an English degree, and subjects like, "What is authority, and who has it?" were pretty much the first year or two of classes.
tl;dr: nailed it.
music is a dynamic creature that is constantly changing. it helps to know what the current trends are if you, the musician, is either making or attempting to make a living performing music in various ventures such as events and parties. if you don't change with current trends, it is very easy to get passed up by someone who does keep up. i observed this back in the 70's in the club scene. as music being performed transitioned from the rock music to the dance music (disco) many of the local bands in our circuit either wouldn't or couldn't make the transition and thus became extinct. that's not to say that if musicians find a niche market they shouldn't pressure it. but what i have found that works for me is not living in a bubble where only one genre exists. along with being an art, the ugly truth is that music is also a business. a business must have a product that is in demand and sells. this is why i try to keep up with trends no matter how nauseating i think the music is.
About authority, you gave such a great answer. Yes, it's about trust. Your answers when about things I know are the same as mine, so I trust that would be the case about things that I do not know anything about. However, if I'm not sure about your answer, I still do my own research.
I often use two capos (one full capo and one partial capo).
The Hard Problem There's a capo called The Spider (if I recall correctly) that lets you capo different strings to different frets. Might want to look into it.
I know I'm late to the game on this, but capos are also the best thing ever for laying different chord voicing during recording.
Say the first chord of a chorus is a Gmajor on an acoustic ballad and the chord is played open in a progression. Layering guitars over the top just playing the same open G is fine, but capoing at the third fret and playing the chord as an open G will create a deeper, wider sound that will create a level of seperation that your mix engineer will love working with.
I never viewed the capo as a crutch, but never saw it as a useful tool until recently. I don't use it that often, but it sure comes in handy for certain things.
You've mentioned a lot a times how it's best not to fetishize the past. How to move on and all. I completely agree, and honestly hearing you put it that way has helped me break out some crappy habits; however, there are a lot of modern artistic endeavors that utilize mindsets and practices from the past (take for instance the resurgence of analog synths and drum machines, or recording to tape) that yield some pretty satisfying developments. How would we know to strike a balance? Aren't there things that weren't fully explored before they fell out of style?
It helps to understand what repetitive strain injury is doing to your tendons.
We used to think of tendinitis as an inflammation of the tendons. What we now know is that tendinitis is a disorganisation of the tendon fibres. Normally they are all laid down in neat parallel lines. All the cells in you body are constantly dying off and being replaced. Overuse causes the tendon fibres to be replaced in a disorganised way. The *only* cure for this is to allow them to grow back outside of the conditions that caused them to grown in all jumbled up.
I suspect that with corrected technique you could heal from mild repetitive strain injuries. But the quickest and surest way is to stop playing until you heal. And then get good instruction to prevent re-occurrence.
A big caveat here: this is only for tendinitis. I'm sure that there are other RSI's that have different mechanisms and treatments. I haven't researched any of those, and really, don't take advice from a youtube commenter. Go to a RSI specialist and ask lots of questions to make sure that they are up to date on the latest research. General practitioners often are behind in the latest science so a specialist is a must.
I got RSI in my forearms from drumming. It wasn't until I switched majors and stopped playing that it went away. So you're completely right about that.
In regards to your comments on the economics of sideman and jazz gigs - when I was in college The Bad Plus played a concert at my university and then gave a talk/class. The problem of making money vs. keeping a band together came up. In their case it required committing to the trio in the long term at the expense of some better paying gigs. I even remember one of them saying that they took a part time job at a grocery store or something like that. Obviously these 3 musicians believed they had something worthwhile and together chose to make some sacrifices in order to nurture it. Lucky us for us, it paid off!
Groove is not simply playing on the beat. Groove is a feeling. Groove is in the heart!
I remember when I started learning guitar, I learnt Hotel California by The Eagles without a capo, just barring the chords on a steel string acoustic because I didn't know what a capo was. That's the day I became a man.
Love your takes on process and art. Love listening to you while I paint and play.
I get so into that lo-fi no tension and release stuff. I don't know why, but it speaks to me on a deep level. Something about how even and calm it is just makes my brain happy.
i love your intellectual dignity when responding to unfair and uninformed criticism.
what is your general opinion on the progressive rock of the 70s, so the likes of (early) Genesis, King Crimson, Yes, and the others?
Cornelius Fastie Also influences and comparison between ProgRock and Neoclassical Metal
I love your channel and watch your videos at all opportunities. Thank you and keep up the excellent work! Composer that wasn't a product of his time: I can only think of one. J. S. Bach. His style was passé and everyone else had moved on. His music was unpopular in its time (though always recognized for its virtuosity) and languished in obscurity until another famous musician, Felix Mendelssohn re-discovered it 80 years after Bach's death. I suppose it could be argued that Bach was still a product of his time (i.e. he was a devout Lutheran) but his music was *by contemporary acconts* rooted in another era, perhaps a century earlier.
Jeez! Your uploads are relentless … but brilliant … so much stuff to take in …. all bear re-watching and re-listening. Your collaborations with other channels are excellent also.
Eloquently said Adam, as always. In A Perfect Union of Contrary Things Maynard talks about how he's sitting around at shows bitterly and saying how they're doing it all wrong and someone tells him "Well if you can do better do it." well he did in my opinion he did. All I'm saying is I'm glad you're an authority in music theory on youtube. Thanks for sharing knowledge man.
Hey Adam!
I like what you said about musicians being products of their time, but I think that's misleading since history has such a selective memory. Couldn't it be argued that the musicians of the era originated ideas that became the voice of their time period, rather than the other way around?
The point he is making is that if I were to compose classical music as if I was Bach right now, even if I was as good or better than Bach I would not be nearly as famous because It is not of my time. People will say "Oh well Bach already did that". Being a product of your time means contributing to the innovation that defines the style of your era. You have to do something unique, but not so unique that it alienates your generation who has their own musical biases if you want to be remembered or famous.
So cool to see you reference Dr. Roholt - he was my professor at Montclair State! Very cool, very brilliant dude. His Philosophy of Art class was one of my favorites as a philosophy major. Maybe you could interview him for a future video! I feel like you two would have a very rich conversation.
16:52 I think the "local" element that makes a particular ethnic music believable when played is a) the vocabulary played at the right time b) the particular techniques played precisely c) most importantly the time/beat "nuancies" that, especially for danceable ethnic music (most often the case) give the sense of danceability, movement, style, to this particular ethnic music style. Like minor adjustments to playing particular moments in the beat slightly off beat, a little "lazy", "hazy", sooner, or later that they were supposed to. This last element is extremely important, though quite subtle and therefore harder to grasp for a non-natìve (it might take an actual teacher to show you).
Hey Adam! Saw you have a record player on the table in the background. What really caught my attention was the fact that your record player was sitting on the same table as the speakers. I know this may be the only way you can set your rig up, but having your speakers on separate stands or just on a surface other than the one which record player sits on makes a good difference for your listening experience. You'll avoid a fair bit of problems by doing it that way. Amazing video as always! :)
Hey Adam, I think I asked you about groove in another video. I haven't watched this one yet, so now I feel answered! Thanks, by your way!
You have authority partly because TH-cam wants to give you authority because they've found an arrangement that's good for them, good for you and good for viewers. Your existing viewers give you the authority which you earn with your quality content.
Hey Adam, my uncle is a veteran jazz musician (he jammed with Bird and Lester Young in the 40’s, played with Chet Baker and was a first call session musician as well) and he has a critique of contemporary musicians’ articulation. According to him the rise of microphones and amplification led to a deterioration of articulation as it has been increasingly less critical to articulate sharply to be heard. For example, during his era, double bass player tended to set the bridge higher than today and to attack the string closer to the bridge and stronger than today. Note that this is not about loudness but really articulation, a comparison he often makes is that a seasoned stage actor can be heard whispering from the back of the room, thanks to a proper articulation.
I feel that I can notice the difference between a contemporary jazz player and one from the 50’s in a record. 50’s players seem to articulate sharper and cleaner. Do you think it’s true? If so how come don’t musicians try to fix this problem (for example by training themselves to play without amplification?). Thanks in advance.
I look forward to your videos every monday! Keep up the good work!
I think it is important for a complete guitarist to be able to play with or without a capo - Saying that I own several, one per guitar as I've found all capos intonate differently on different guitars. Some tunes I wrote to use the blasted thing. Can I transpose tho? yes. Sometimes it is simply faster, sometimes it sounds better, sometimes I like the guitar neck bling.
Can you give a rough layout of what percentage of your income comes from where? Example: 20% patreon, 10% online album sales, 20% gigs, 20% teaching, 10% session work, 20% Walmart greeter/meth dealer
nice try, fbi
@@Fruitysfaction *IRS.
Pssh.... I watch this TH-cam channel because of the awesome animation intro.
Adam, I know you love talking about really complicated music theory, but it would be awesome if you could do a video on more basic music theory (specifically what are chords, why are they named funny things, etc). Thanks and keep up the awesome channel!
I watch this channel for the paper. I've been waiting 2 years to see it. Today my dreams are fulfilled.
Question for the next Q&A:
What happens after postmodern music? I just really wonder a lot of times about how varied and abundant music is today, I mean there's a sub-genre to this sub-genre to this sub-genre (and so on) pointing down to this genre and what any more kind of music do we have "to innovate" to sound fresh and original (borrow some elements from influences)? How much more in the future? Will we ever run out of combinations? What does 50 years later sound like? It is very interesting to know what sort of route you're foreseeing.
Groove is how much fun the band is having
There is a trend in society of neglecting the original meaning and history of words and that can lead to confusion.
Groove is what causes music to assist field slaves to keep ploughing the grooves into the field, on and on, like a machine, without mental exhaustion.
I would say it is the rhythmic twin of "flow". It is a property that keeps you going, pulls you in, makes you a part of it.
@@Dowlphin This is just silly. 'The term 'groove' has nothing whatsoever to do with slavery - there's no evidence that it had currency in music prior to the twentieth century. Besides, the trenches cut by ploughs are called 'furrows' not 'grooves'. I think the confusion is all yours.
@@samjenkins9328 I'm sure you've realized this by now, but I believe that was a joke
I'd say questions of authority are largely beside the point, since you present material in a way that rests not on authority, but on facts that are presented in an insightful manner, as well as stories that people find compelling. There's an insightfulness in the way questions are explored that seeks to go a bit deeper than the easy answers. I don't come here so much because I find the content agreeable, it's because it passes the "tell-me-something-I-don't-know" test.
The thing about different keys used to drive me nuts -- some of the early thrash metal bands were so badly wed to open-string riffing that at the time I derided them as "open-string-thumpers". The more notable bands would move the key around for a bridge or modulate it for solo passages (metallica, slayer, and death who would more or less change key with each riff) but there were many wannabes that leaned a bit too hard on the E string (or D or C# or even B ... ). It's one thing to have every song resolve to E (or D or C# or B ... ) but yet another to be pinned to that key for an entire album
Robert Fripp, completely original and at least on the Discpline album very much timeless, sounds as fresh today as it did on 1973.
I enjoy the fact that Adam shitting on 432 is slowly becoming a meme
Thanks for the thoughtful reply. Exactly what I was hoping for.
As for changing keys throughout an album. I try to use different modes when I have multiple songs relying on the same "chug" note. I let that change in tonality keep the album interesting and it's enough of a change in feel to disregard the need for a new key as it can still convey a harmonic narrative throughout the album.
HEY ADAM!
one thing i would add to the Who made you an authority to speak on anything.
i think a big part of the authority you have here on YT, and is because, we the viewers consider your content as great and your knowledge as valid, what I mean is, if we are sending you stuff (videos, sheets, or what ever) for you to critique, its because we believe that you have knowledge that will to a certain degree makes us better in the long run. we give you this authority because we see the knowledge as worthy of it!
cheers and good look!
Thank you Adam! Great video, great answers =)
Loved the point about different tonalities helping to create a dynamic arc on an album. As a metal musician playing in drop tunings with an occasional chug, it's always been in my mind to write in different keys for variety and to make the songs (especially on one record) have their own world.
Too often Metal records are in 1 key and a whole album becomes a harmonic snoozefest.
After many years of playing in bands with the same members all of the time, I have found myself doing the occasional sub gigs with people I don't usually or have never played with. Perhaps having hosted open mikes for a few years has given me more comfort with playing with "strangers".
What is also happening is some of my regular bandmates will have outside gigs and need to be absent from some jobs. There have been many instances when we threw a band together for a gig, with some of the players having never played together before but rely on our common experience of having played a lot of the same music over the years. 30 or 40 years ago I would have not felt comfortable with this.
wow, 432hz people, YOU NEED TO LET GO!
dot0 is a shill for the illuminati
agreed, it should be 450 ray.tomes.biz/alex.htm ;)
Tho' I kinda scoff, I do find resonance - sympathetic, harmonic, beats etc - as a subject to be really interesting... throw in some Tesla & a few pyramid tales and I'll bite that bait :D
OH GOD IM SO ENLIGHTED NOW GUESS ILL TUNE MY BUTTHOLE PROPERLY SO I FART IN A SPIRAL HARMONIOUS FREQUENCE
now seriously (just couldn't resist the above post), show us please a song written in this pitch? i have nothing against changing pitch, one of my favorite tunes was writen in 432 (blackhole sun by soundgarden), i like the way it sounds, i feel it's a recourse, soundgarden have always played with different tunnings this was one of them, period. it won't enlighten you or hinder your ~spiritual progress or chain you to agenda of the meanies of the YLLUMINATYSHH
Ehh, just record at 440 and slow it down a tad in playback if its that important to you.
I have written a pitch-axis piece, on A actually. I did write it for an organ guitar drums trio. I did not think of it in these technical terms. MBB
What's your opinion on the non-competition when it comes to knowledge about theory? All the bands I've tried to join or start have some sort of theory problem: none of them can apply or understand it. I bring up the question "what key are we in", and the response in every single one of my experiences has been "there isn't one". Even when I point out the root note and tonality of their music, it's still just "I didn't want one because we don't need theory."
I understand scales, and chords aren't always necessary; primus being an example of "repetition legitimizes", but there is still a measurable amount of harmonic/melodic theory happening in every primus song.
Is it worth it to deal with it, and just work with what I can to be in band? Or am I really stuck working with myself on every piece of music so that I can get some songs written?
27duuude I feel your pain. Like asking, "what's that chord you're playing there?" I got the answer, "it's just one I made up." Lol and smh. Guy found it hard to believe that every combo of notes is already a chord with at least one name. I'm no expert, but I tend to be that guy with most of the knuckleheads I play with. Even thought about having them pay me a nominal fee for music instruction at practice and rehearsal. I'd also like to hear Adam comment on the topic. Cheers
BigWord If you were any good you could clearly see the chord he played and hear the notes separate in your head as well as figure out the root note.
There could be other reasons he's asking. They could be playing a chord that clashes or is dissonant or they could just be making shit up. Sometimes you have to ask that so that the others in an ensemble figure it out, especially if they're improvising/writing an entire song and they say things like "it's just one I made up"
Now be nice.
ChocolateMilkMage right. Or it's too dark to see, or it's the first time you're jamming with them. Lol. I can just hear the snark. "If you were any good..".
You can only teach things to people who actually want to learn them. The fact he says you don't need theory shows that talking about it won't get you anywhere.
100% correct on the capo.
REPETITIVE STRESS CURE: develop proficiency playing your instrument upside down with your non-dominant hand. This reverses the torque placed on the shoulder girdle and relieves nerve compression. Your journey to understand why your wrists don't work properly in this reverse orientation will also be your journey to bring your body back to balance from the damage of learning our instruments young and without postural mindfulness. Switch-playing becomes a cool party trick when you get good at it, and is especially easy with bass.
interesting perspectives as always Adam! Thanks again
I never use a capo, because I use a maccaferri guitar with a wide neck and soft strings, which always seem to get damaged when I use one. Also, Gypsy Jazz doesn't really use capos, you want to be able to use the full range of notes for arpeggios etc! But for most acoustic guitar music, there's definitely a use for it!
Some people do use a capo as a crutch, I’m sorry to say. A few years ago, I regularly attended a local jam. Like with many jams, the musicianship varied from competent pro the completely green. One jammer in particular would show to every session with her guitar, mic and list of tunes she wanted to do. Every song she played was either in the key of G/E min or transposed with me a capo to accommodate for those open changes. Generally any of the other musicians would over look this kind of thing, but the player in question carried a large ego and bad attitude toward other, less experience musicians. So we set her up. We invited her up to play a simple 1 6 2 5 in the key of A. We asked her to lose the capo because we wanted her to play the open E7 in the tune. She didn’t know the changes without the capo. Her ego took a hit that night, but she really did have it coming considering the way she treated other, less experienced musicians.
Tension and Release: Eminem particularly but Dre's production in general - and Cube with him - absolute masters of tension and release and they do it like lead guitarists over a repeating chord progression. Not lo-fi, but my tuppence.
I've been binging your videos. Love what you do mate, keep it up.
Bonjour Adam!
I've seen a lot of musicians using tablets to read their music and it seems to be a great way to save paper.
Since i'm running a music club at my school, I've been wondering which software/application could be efficient at sharing, organising, marking sheet music and save me the hassle of making sure everyone has their parts.
Si une telle chose n'existe pas, je saurai alors quoi développer comme application...!
This one time I tuned to 432 and 6 new octaves came out.
Do you even know how to use your pineal gland?
About the capo / transpose thing:
I'm a keyboard player and I find myself playing different keys in different ways. I play C for "happy" or jazzy pieces, my organ tunes are all in E, Eb when playing clavi sounds (mainly from too many Superstition jams) and so on. I often use the bad habit of the (and here i'll get the hate) transpose button so I can get the ~feel~ of those shapes I'm already used to in other keys. I know it is a bad thing but in the end it helps my brain going through different styles.
Hey Adam, i love yr channel, very informative and u have the perfect personality for it: not overly friendly, but hardly unfriendly either! Great ballance! ☺ I've been playing Piano for 46 years this year and teaching about 36. Ive been playing in a restaurant/ supper club in NJ for a little over a year now. I get $100 for 3 & 1/2 hours + tips, so i guess by standards, I'm doing well! :-) Good to know! Thx! Peace always ern ☺🎹🎤
Q&A Question:
What is the difference between scales and scales?
I mean if we have the 12edo scale we can play those 12 notes and that is the chromatic scale, but we can also play a subset of those notes, say the C major scale and that is then also called a scale. When I see microtonal scales being mentioned you always see them discuss the scale in the same context as 12edo, but I guess you could might as well play the C major scale on 19edo or 31edo? So how do you distinguish from your "musical universe", that is all the notes available to you and the subset of notes you choose to use in your scale?
Also how much better can we do than an equally divided octave scale if we arrange the scale according to the root and only play with that scale in one key?
With modern electronic instruments, this shouldn't pose a major obstacle, so can we do much better?
Any tips for literature that goes into detail in the use of microtonal scales and the history of why and how they where constructed?
I just am so grateful of being the 6th guy to watch this. Keep it up!
Bor Cobritas grateful? Seriously?
I think he meant something else
I think so. Grammar wasn't on point
I try not to be too analytical about music, especially about subjects like groove but this is how I explain it:
The drummer keeps the beat and in a split second (unintentionally) he will maybe play the snare a little faster, then the next snare hit he will try to catch up maybe playing it a little slower, and maybe he'll have 2 or three hits before he gets perfectly right on track (we're talking milliseconds here so to the human ear it doesn't sound off beat), that ebb and flow makes the beat groovy. Same goes for the bass player. Those little "mistakes" make the music sound more "human" and less sterile. This is just the way I see it I might be wrong as I am not an expert at all.
Nice videos by the way, keep it up.
Thanks for the videos. I really appreciate what you do.
15:10 Perfect example: Octavarium by Dream Theater. Going along with the concept of cycles and ending where you begin, the first song is in F, the next in G, then A and so on, until it ends on F again, completing the octave (Octavarium, get it?) Check out the analysis by Chris Newhouse, it's insane.
bygon432 Ho shit I never realized that that's sick
Hey Adam!
It seems a lot of people have strain injuries because of poor technique, myself occasionally included. I've seen your videos "Developing Safe Left/Right Hand Technique for Bass Guitar". However, that was 7 years ago and I'm sure you learned more on that subject. Perhaps you could revisit safe technique in a newer video, or add a guitar technique as well, I'm sure a lot of people could benefit from that.
Keep up the good work!
The groove resides in Plato's world of forms. We only approximate it when we play. It eludes analysis but must rather be felt, as in meditation.
1:43 Yes, Mark Knopfler and Django Reinhardt.
Here´s how you learn groove. You need to feel it first. Feel it in your body, in your chest, in your mouth, in your stomach. That´s it. Now, in order to feel it you´ll need to spend x amout of hours in your instrument. I´ll more for some, less for some. Don´t worry, you´ll get there. Just keep pushing. That´s it. No need to read books or fantasize about it....
There was a tiny wisp of smoke or vapor by Adam's right shoulder at 20:44
1:44 - Don't you think that the time adjusts to the iconoclasts and absorbs them? Not dissimilar to a chemical reaction where the two reactive components are reduced to a salt. If something is unique and influential, it influences that around it and after it for a point of time so that looking back all the things around it fit in a way that it appears they influenced it rather than the other way around. Having said that Brian Eno talks of the parallel similar reaction to something by many as Scenius.
i n e e d t h a t d r a m a
Question for the next Q&A
Hey Adam, out of all the cover songs you have learned in your musical career what was the one that surprised you the most and gave you a newfound respect for the artist/band? The one for me was Mr Brightside by the killers.
I think I remember Pitch Axis Theory being described something like this: if your axis is the tones of the mother major scale, then as soon as you shift your root note some degree along that axis, still playing "major scale shapes" but continue to drone the major root under your first note, you'll be playing the according modal sounds of the major scale instead, because it's all about the way the ear hears the first interval, the contrast that sets the "rhyme and reason" for what follows; with the same starting point, you'd otherwise just sound major with that scale shape. Similarly I think if you start playing, say, Dorian scale shapes in A but play a B first note of the A Dorian shape over a lower A, now it sounds Phyrgian. The idea is that, ultimately, it's a "scale shape" way to play any sound anywhere on the neck, because the neck is just a finite part of an infinite set of notes where a limited set of shapes keep popping up in all the different modes in different places. So perhaps it's quite useful for those like Joe Satriani who like to compose his style of music in modes. You've got most strings of course to your shapes when the low E is your appropriate "underneath" note.
One recommendation on groove, play together alot, hang out together alot, get to know each other like brothers within a band.
Would you say that Accordion by Madvillian uses the element of tension in the drum groove? In a transcription I did of the drum groove, I realized the snare hit (that would be on beats 2 and 4), was put a 32 septuplet before the beats 2 and 4 proper!! This creates an incredibly engaging tension that is also reflected in the complex rhythmic delivery by MF DOOM on the track.