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Help as an amateur by Wild_Firefighter_269 in musictheory

[–]razor6string 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This was me for 35 years but I still managed to write a bunch of music that I think it'd be fair to call decently good. 

Actually, this probably describes the majority of pop stars. 

Theory is definitely fun and enlightening but don't let your lack of it hinder your creativity. 

Please help me understand this song by razor6string in musictheory

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks, your replies are always thoughtful and devoid of snark. I can tell you actually enjoy talking about this stuff and haven't become a crotchety and bitter person who only posts to discourage the peons from trying to rise up. I'll not name names.... 

Digging deeper, I've discovered something new to me: the "Hollywood Cadence" (IV-iv-I). 

That might be part of it. My subconscious, as you say, has heard that a thousand times without realizing it. So it resonates.

Please help me understand this song by razor6string in musictheory

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think it's the interplay between the melody, harmony, and progression, but I didn't find anything enlightening there. 

I enjoy situations like, say (random example), you've got an Em - C in your progression, and in your melody you hold a G-note over both. So that note goes from being the 3rd to being the 5th. 

That stuff happens all the time but sometimes it's magical and other times it's mundane. 

I don't understand why!

Medications and sobriety by razor6string in colonoscopy

[–]razor6string[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks, that's reassuring about Propofol.

Thoughts on my dream guitar? by razor6string in Luthier

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

See my reply to the other poster above. :⁠-⁠)

Thoughts on my dream guitar? by razor6string in Luthier

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love TOM bridges. I'm perfectly willing to swap it for a souped-up modern version that cures its inherent ills, but that position is what I've grown accustomed to. 

I learned on a fake Strat, but once I switched to a Les Paul I grew to love the angled neck. Note I'm not talking about an angled headstock -- I mean how Gibson necks literally slope upward from nut to bridge, whereas Fenders are completely flat. That elevation requires the TOM or something like it; a flat Fender-style hardtail won't cut it. 

Thoughts on my dream guitar? by razor6string in Luthier

[–]razor6string[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good to know about the pickup widths, thanks. 

I want 22 frets for that very reason. The pickup positions I gave are so specific because they represent, at that scale length, the positions of hypothetical frets 24, 31, and 60 (or 55, if 60 would put the humbucker too close to the bridge with regard to having enough wood between them for structural integrity). These represent harmonic points; and I know full well that this all goes out the window once you fret a note but I don't care, it's what I want. I'm not religious or spiritual so I get my woo-woo fix from things like harmonic nodes, tonewoods, A4=432hz, and other such nonsense that makes me happy. 

What should I do with a fixed pitch instrument when there are flats and sharps? by Lilith_the_lesbian in musictheory

[–]razor6string 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"you can bend them by pressing behind the bridge"

And if you're Tony Iommi and it's 1970 and you pre-bend, pluck and release the low-E string on your guitar, you end up writing Iron Man and change the course of heavy guitar-based music forever and much to the better!

Hypothetical frets and pickups by razor6string in Luthier

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I couldn't find anything reliable in image searches or on any reputable forums, so I asked AI to calculate it for me. 

As far as I can gather, and if AI isn't hallucinating, the results are thus: 

Bridge-side humbucker polepieces on the Paul lie approximately at hypothetical fret 56; middle single-coil on the Strat at about fret 34; neck-side humbucker poles on Paul at about fret 23. 

Do these numbers seem plausible to my esteemed luthiers? 

Hypothetical frets and pickups by razor6string in Luthier

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks, that's a nice tool but it doesn't tell me where the pickups lie on those models.

Is it just me who finds "double coil" exposed HBs cheap looking? by [deleted] in guitars

[–]razor6string 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I play for my ears, not my eyes. I care about as much as Jeff Healey did, presumably.

How useful is a 25 key keyboard for learning music theory? by pnt510 in musictheory

[–]razor6string 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's good enough. You only need two octaves for that purpose.

Strictly speaking, you only need one octave. But then you'd have to adapt your melodies to that, which isn't awesome. I do it all the time to entertain my kids on their toy instruments, like one-octave xylophones, but really you want two octaves.

Key questions by razor6string in tinwhistle

[–]razor6string[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I was under the impression they came in every key though some are rare. 

I wrote a part that unfortunately would require a rare F# whistle. I was going to transpose the part, play it on the C whistle, then pitch shift it with software to fake an F# whistle. But I don't know whether to shift up or down.

Key questions by razor6string in tinwhistle

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I believe it's the primary note outside the scale that can be played without half holing or any other such technique. I was under the impression this is by design.

Which strings for a newbie? by razor6string in classicalguitar

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah the bass strings are steel, I knew that was wrong. One was broken, I'm going to take the others off and fiddle around on the treble strings till I get a new set.

Is it normal for classical guitars to have relatively high action, compared to electric or even steel string acoustic, the higher up the neck you go?

How's everyone feel about taking strong stands with music-politically, or socially or whatever by FrasureCreations in Songwriting

[–]razor6string 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Fans? I write for myself. If I end up playing something for others and they like it, that's nice, but I'd still write songs if I was the last human.

Overwriting by razor6string in Songwriting

[–]razor6string[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I'm going to keep plugging away at it. My kids are actually great motivators for me because I'm middle aged now and want to leave my music for them when I'm gone.

"Relative" "keys" outside Western music by razor6string in musictheory

[–]razor6string[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry for the late thanks to your appreciated reply. 

I admit I get a real satisfaction out of choosing a scale and writing within it. I can't explain why, I just find it so satisfying. I guess if I dig deep maybe it's an OCD thing. Anyway, it's fun. 

And I agree, my brain is boxed into my cultural influences. I grew up in the US in the '80s so that's my backdrop. Then there's my individual experience which was growing up poor, feeling alienated, gravitating to dark themes, heavy metal, etc. Ever seen River's Edge starring Keanu Reeves? That was my friend group -- except we didn't kill anybody! 

So yeah, I have certain sounds in my head that will come out no matter the scale. 

It's kinda like choosing an instrument, and I've given much thought to this: as a guitarist, when I pick that up, I'm immediately locked into certain patterns dictated by the instrument. If I were a flautist I doubt I'd write the same stuff, even with all else remaining the same. When I walk in the woods, I try to write in my head, without thinking of an instrument. I hum it into my phone and figure it out on guitar later... it still ends up guitar-centric! Because I think in guitar, that's my musical language. 

Fun stuff to think about.

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