Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it?

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - Printable Version

+- Southperry.net (https://www.southperry.net)
+-- Forum: Arts & Entertainment (https://www.southperry.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=12)
+--- Forum: General Entertainment (https://www.southperry.net/forumdisplay.php?fid=71)
+--- Thread: Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? (/showthread.php?tid=33007)

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - Spaz - 2010-11-20

I often hear people flame a certain band or genre of music by saying that they "have no skill" or the genre "takes no skill". I also sometimes hear people praise a certain musician or song by saying "they have a lot of skill" or "that song is so hard to play". I'm wondering if those people are just looking for excuses to like or hate a band or genre or if some people's perception of a song is legitimately affected by the amount of talent needed to write or play the song.

Personally, I don't care how much skill is required to play a song, I just care if it sounds good. One reason I like electronic music is precisely because it requires no skill of a performer to play (composing is a different story). The following quote accurately describes my feelings: "it [electronic music] has shifted the boundaries of music away from the limitations of the acoustical instrument, of the performer's coordinating capabilities, to the almost infinite limitations of the electronic instrument. The new limitations are the human ones of perception."

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it?

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - sicnarf - 2010-11-20

I don't care. Complex doesn't equate to enjoyable music. I like what sounds good to me.

Also, there's also the misconception of something "taking no skill" being easy to write. Playing music and writing music are pretty separate from each other.

Also, for the record, I play drums, piano, and (kinda) sing.

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - Fiel - 2010-12-17

Late to the partyhouse, but I thought I'd respond anyway.

I'm confused about what Spaz is saying - that it does not depend on the skill of a performer to play electronica. This makes me think that, for a live performance, they just get up on stage, slap a CD in the boombox, and leave. Electronica steals from Jazz in that each performer has to play completely off the cuff. A DJ must be able to use all of his tools, especially in a live performance, to create an atmosphere than his fans love. Since sets are rarely pre-rehearsed, this makes electronica vastly more difficult than any other kind of music. The ability to tinker with the music allows for unlimited creative expression, but requires the creative expression from the DJ to get there. As such, a person who DJs electronica must have skill as well, in composition and performance.

Personally, I love me some complicated music. I suppose this goes hand in hand with the fact that I love competition and pushing the human envelope. When I hear a very technical song that still sounds melodic I get the shivers just listening to it.

------------------------

Really, I get the opposite reaction from people with the music I listen to. Instead of saying, "It requires no skill!", they say, "It's just a wall of notes." (I listen to technical death metal).

[video=youtube;BhV5DrRvDqc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhV5DrRvDqc[/video]

But it's not a wall of notes.

Here are the first 17 seconds of the above song (in D standard tuning):

[Image: 2qxlxdz.png]

That is not a wall of notes. Far from it.

Though I suppose if you compare the above to "My Chemical Romance - Bulletproof Heart", it is a wall of notes?

[Image: 5d6xs7.png]

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - ChaosCorpse - 2010-12-17

Going beyond that, I don't know why people even bother being concerned with the performers themselves when evaluating the music. Why should I care if a performer of a song had a fall-out or an affair. If I enjoy the music, I enjoy the music. Simple as that.

I will admit though, that watching a good pianist play is something a bit different. But the quality of music isn't better in that case, so I can't say that it is the music itself that impresses me. In these cases, it is more of being at the performance itself and experiencing it.

Music has far too many facets now to limit one's listening pleasure to an artist simply because they are dexterous with their instrument.

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - Lumancer - 2010-12-17

I say yes, but indirectly. While simple pieces can be very fulfilling at times, for the most part they lack the richness I enjoy in more complex arrangements. In the same breath, there is music that is very difficult to perform but is jarring and unpleasant to listen to. It can go both ways.

In either case, I suppose it's more complexity that impacts my enjoyment. The fact that more complex music is often more difficult to play is only a secondary consideration.

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - Spaz - 2010-12-17

Fiel Wrote:Late to the partyhouse, but I thought I'd respond anyway.

I'm confused about what Spaz is saying - that it does not depend on the skill of a performer to play electronica. This makes me think that, for a live performance, they just get up on stage, slap a CD in the boombox, and leave. Electronica steals from Jazz in that each performer has to play completely off the cuff. A DJ must be able to use all of his tools, especially in a live performance, to create an atmosphere than his fans love. Since sets are rarely pre-rehearsed, this makes electronica vastly more difficult than any other kind of music. The ability to tinker with the music allows for unlimited creative expression, but requires the creative expression from the DJ to get there. As such, a person who DJs electronica must have skill as well, in composition and performance.

I was referring to the act of creating recorded music using a software package such as FL Studio, not live performance. The playing (that is, not the composing) is done completely by a computer according to the instructions it is given (with some exceptions such as vocals, which must be "played" by a human).

Does the skill required to play a song affect your enjoyment of it? - GunisBack - 2010-12-17

As a guitarist myself. The way I think of it is like this. The music I listen to depends on if I like it or not, not whether its hard to play. For a perfect example, I still listen to Fall Out Boy (Anything up to From Under The Cork Tree at least) and that's gotta be some of the easiest music on a guitar. However, the way I think of it is, I like listening to them. Do I respect them as musicians? Sure. Do I like it? Sure. Will I ever say they are good at their instruments? Probably not, because they aren't all that good.

I listen to what I like, but I only give credit where credit is due.