The Re-Birth of Live Instruments?

[Anderton]

Interesting (albeit a little wordy) article that traces an artist's transition from hip-hop to EDM to live instrumentation...the comments about EDM feeling more like a business than music is telling.

 

Last year at the International Music Summit I was on a panel about how more and more live instrumentation is being integrated with EDM. I'm not sure it qualifies as a tidal wave yet, but things do go in cycles...

 

Any of you seeing evidence that live instrumentation is making a comeback?

[UstadKhanAli]

It's difficult to say because I almost always seek out music that has musical instruments played by human beings. But I hope it's a trend of some sort. I almost always find music more emotionally potent, interesting, complex, and satisfying when people are playing musical instruments.

[bookumdano4]

I agree that things go in cycles. As I remember, Depeche Mode went out on tour at some point in the 90s with guitars/drums etc and left all the keyboards at home. I think Tears For Fears did it too and maybe still do if they're still around.

 

I started gigging the week after the Beatles appeared on Sullivan. Right place, right time. At the time, the part of it I thought was worthless was that I was already trained as a guitar player, piano player, and could read music, trained in jazz. I resented that part at the time and with my new awe in a Beatles-world, I felt "see mom and dad.... why did I have to learn to read music from my stupid jazz teacher...."

 

In hindsight, it's the best thing that ever happened to me in the pre-beatles world and still creates my fortunes today.

 

But..... the appearance of real instruments on tracks in edm or anything else causes a re-appearance of the dilemma........

 

In the 21st century, you either KNOW how to play instruments and read music and DO it yourself .....OR.....you have a BUDGET (also previously known as money in the record biz) to PAY other guys to appear on your sessions.

 

Whoops...... that zaps out 89% of the population out there making "beats", using Komplete and samples and loops and ...... guys with NO MUSIC TRAINING in real acoustic instrumentation or ability to read. Much less arranging skills

 

Not necessarily a bad thing.

 

Real instruments= cool! Organic.... yummy. But a tidal wave ain't gonna happen. Not any more likely than 1940s style big band live rooms coming back into vogue. Unless all the loops kids go out and take trumpet lessons for a couple of years. Yeah, right.

 

I for one, would be glad to see untrained musicians (ie- beats/loops guys) thinned out of the "releasing" population. But I probably shouldn't say it cuz it sounds like I'm a meanie. Which I am but.....

 

By they way, the ref article reminded me how much I love Aaron Copland's work (the Clarinet Concerto floors me as much as listening to Beatles, Marvin Gaye, CCR, Yes or "Louie Louie")....and I remember reading the "How We Listen" thing years ago. Very cool.

[Anderton]

Real instruments= cool! Organic.... yummy. But a tidal wave ain't gonna happen. Not any more likely than 1940s style big band live rooms coming back into vogue. Unless all the loops kids go out and take trumpet lessons for a couple of years. Yeah, right.

 

The world is so unsettled in so many ways, nothing would surprise me

 

I for one, would be glad to see untrained musicians (ie- beats/loops guys) thinned out of the "releasing" population.

 

That's already happening, but by going in two directions. One direction is the "thinning out" as the DJ scene continues to coast and in some ways, looks like it's heading for a soft landing. The other direction is those who were raised as untrained musicians but want to take it further.

 

More and more, I'm finding that adding an acoustic guitar track to just about anything makes it sound better That strumming really helps drive a song.