What is your level of musical activity

What is your level of musical activity/experience? You may choose more than one, if applicable.

  • Beginner, regardless of age

    Votes: 7 15.6%

  • Blow the dust off my flattop a couple times a year

    Votes: 4 8.9%

  • Jam with my buddies several times a year

    Votes: 1 2.2%

  • Not professional, but proficient

    Votes: 6 13.3%

  • It’s a decent second income

    Votes: 2 4.4%

  • I’m secretly a studio phenom

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • I have way more stuff than I need or will ever use

    Votes: 6 13.3%

  • I support myself and my family with music

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • I can play the crap out a radio!!

    Votes: 26 57.8%
  • Total voters
    45
1911gobang

1911gobang

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So I thought this would be interesting to poll….

What’s your level of activity or experience?

Is your musical talent just a pastime? An occasional thing? Secondary income? Is it your primary income?

Doesn’t really matter HOW you use your talent, just that you DO use it!! 😎
 
I played all the low brass (tuba, trombone, baritone/euphonium), percussion, and upright bass. I gave it all up when I graduated college. I wish I kept up with some of those. My son plays piano and guitar, my daughter plays piano. Both are excellent. My daughter teaches beginner-to-mid level piano. I have thought about taking up mandolin.

I was good enough to play in some brass quintets (tuba) and a jazz group (bass).
 
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Chuckman said:
I played all the low brass (tuba, trombone, baritone/euphonium), percussion, and upright bass. I gave it all up when I graduated college. I wish I kept up with some of those. My son plays piano and guitar, my daughter plays piano. Both are excellent. My daughter teaches beginner-to-mid level piano. I have thought about taking up mandolin.

I was good enough to play in some brass quintets (tuba) and a jazz group (bass).
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So what’s holding you back, now? 😎
Jam, my brother, jam!!!
 
Cape Fear said:
Allen I don't see my poll choice: "I can play the radio".

Seriously I love music, but I can't clap through a whole song without losing my place and resetting.
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I hear ya brother!! Hey, the dudes with the beer in one hand, rock horns on the other hollerin’ “FREE BIRD” are part of it!! 😆

Your poll choice has been added!! 😎👍
 
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I was so bad in music classes in grammar school, that I was sent to the library to do reports on the solar system, dinosaurs, cool stuff like that. I have no sense of rhythm - "row row row your boat" exploded my brain. And why are there half-steps in some places, not all?

Ironically, Household 6 holds a DMA.
 
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Played trumpet through high school, but haven't owned one for 30 years. I have a guitar but have never been any much good at it. I have some harmonicas and am OK at playing irish tunes and such, but don't improvise or do bluesy stuff. I would never inflict my performances on anyone.
 
High school few buddies and I would uh... hang out and play acoustic guitars. We would practice soloing while others played the rhythm. Got older and sold the guitar. I pick one up in a flea market every few months and play tears in heaven or the intro to a zeppelin song. I was never a wizard but I haven't seemed to completely lose the skill in 10ish years.

Maybe if I make it to be old and cannot shoot anymore I'll buy another guitar. Guns and ammo are just too expensive to have an additional hobby.
 
I think I'm down to four guitars, one for each chord that I know.
Two banjos, just beginning to tinker with them, but it seems easier than guitar to me even though it's finger picking.
At least a dozen Native American Flutes. No attempt to learn existing songs, as most aren't what I like to hear/play on such an instrument. Have made up a few of my own, but I really want to
make sketches or take pics of mountain ranges with peaks being high notes and valleys being low notes and distance being how long to hold the note...the way them injuns used ta do it. Even the flight of a bird can be a song.
One of the most beautiful flute songs that I've heard was depicting the emotion of an unwanted pup, living in a shelter, being considered for adoption but not chosen, to finally finding it's furever home. The songwriter sent it to me.
He laid down a flute track, and then an acoustic guitar track to accompany it. Really really cool!
 
I sound kind of like an older Johnny Cash when I have a sinus/upper respiratory infection. Other than that, I haven't played a note beyond "Hot Cross Buns" on the recorder in third grade.
 
The only way I could carry a tune is in a bucket.

when I was a kid, I was in piano lessons. The teacher kept getting very frustrated with me in that I couldn’t get the timing. She kept saying NO it’s this and play something. I’d repeat what I heard and she’d again get angry and say NO. I just couldn’t distinguish from what she was doing and I was doing.

I was also born mostly deaf in my left ear. I wonder if my impaired hearing impacts my ability to hear subtle things like that in music?
 
I started out on guitar, got far enough to feel comfortable and got complacent. Was needed on bass, so I learned to play that, and it was my primary interest for quite a while. Plateaued out on bass and decided to learn piano, which is still my primary musical love, but also have played organ for several years now, and am also slowly learning to play percussion.

One of the coolest things about pursuing multiple instruments is that what you learn about any specific one will usually inform all the others and you'll find yourself improving on several instruments at once.

I also sing, but it's nothing remarkable.
 
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Before covid hit, I sang with an orchestra and chorus in Moore County. We used to do Handel's Messiah each December. I have no other musical capability, I can't even read music, but I can memorize the heck out of things I need to sing.
 
I often tell folks “my wife’s says I can sing like a bird, that’s how I lured her in”. But in reality I couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket.

I do sing along to Disney movies and older songs while driving with my young daughters. Especially in my old single cab 4 speed. They love riding in daddy’s pickup.
 
Volume over talent is what I live by. I've suffered with my playing for years so now I'm gonna make the rest of y'all suffer!!!

Started playing guitar and bass "seriously" in high school thinking girls would think I'm cool. That didn't work, but I kept with it. Played in some original metal bands. Played bass in some classic rock/blues bands for some extra cash here and there. Got tired of that after a few years and went back to the metal bands. Haven't really done anything since the Rona shut everything down, but I have been feeling the itch to get something going again.
 
noway2 said:
The only way I could carry a tune is in a bucket.

when I was a kid, I was in piano lessons. The teacher kept getting very frustrated with me in that I couldn’t get the timing. She kept saying NO it’s this and play something. I’d repeat what I heard and she’d again get angry and say NO. I just couldn’t distinguish from what she was doing and I was doing.

I was also born mostly deaf in my left ear. I wonder if my impaired hearing impacts my ability to hear subtle things like that in music?
Click to expand...

I am pretty tone deaf. When I played, I had to use an electronic tuner because I could not hear the right pitch or note to adjust myself to be in tune. Music majors have to take sight singing, someone would play something on the piano, and they would have to repeat it by singing the notes. My roommate/best friend was a music major, and he would try that with me and in no way could I ever replicate what he was playing.
 
Pbj ak said:
I often tell folks “my wife’s says I can sing like a bird, that’s how I lured her in”. But in reality I couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket.

I do sing along to Disney movies and older songs while driving with my young daughters. Especially in my old single cab 4 speed. They love riding in daddy’s pickup.
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I can't carry a tune in a bucket, but I sing while driving alone.
The exception being that I used to sing to the kids when road tripping....always "The Battle of New Orleans".
Our kids now ask me to sing it to the grandkids, but only in the car/truck.
I did sing in the youth choir at church as a young'n.
 
Too much "stuff" I just end up fiddling with it instead of actually playing and practicing. Which is why I have gear to unload!

Wonder if I should have those threads moved from BST/Other to here? Yall can have like, 50 bucks off anything by being here lol.

Except the pedals... that would be 50 dollars off the lot. Heckuva deal if it was 50 off individuals.

God please take the pedals; they kill practice like you wouldnt believe.
 
I have good gear but not the talent to go with it if you ask me. I tell people I just plug in , turn up , hit the strings and make noise
 
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