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When you sit there with your guitar. Then somebody asks you to "play this".
Maybe the simplest thing would be the note "C". And you play a "C".
So. The question is.. Under the hood - how much real processing does it take? Like.. the amount of brain cells to to make this happen? - but that'd be boring and kinda measurable. And so vague.
But. How many lines of instructions would it take to explain your wish to someone new to music?
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08-19-2022 02:43 PM
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You have probably heard that "people only use 10% of their brain"... but that is not strictly true. All of the brain is in use all the time. Every neuron has a minimum spontaneous rate of depolarization. Both excitation and inhibitory influences are sent, so just because a neuron is "not firing" does not mean it is sitting things out... like saying, "A show of hands, who agrees?", those not raising their hands are also sending you a message.
The important thing is organization. After learning how to do something and repeating it for a long time, the instructions are converted to organization. This is the feeling of something being internalized where you no longer do it by a stream of instruction steps, but rather you just point to an organized place within yourself that already has all the details worked out and ready to execute. There is a hierarchy of layers of this, so from the top down you just will it to happen, completely out of the instruction steps domain.
...to someone new to music? Just talking someone through producing a C note from the guitar could take a while... define the string numbers and their order/orientation, define fret numbers, explain how to hold a string behind the fret, how to pick the string, then give the instructions:
-string/fret location
-place finger
-pick string
To get that to happen the first time successfully (right pitch, no buzz, no other anomalies) a very fast talker encouraging a very bright listener might be able to do it inside of thirty seconds.
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Ummm... Which C? Which string? What range? Is it a sax player asking me? Alto or Tenor...do I transpose up or down? Wait, if it's a pianist, there's an octave transposition isn't there? Wait, if it's a violinist, they're not transposing, are they talking C the sound they know or C the sound I know? Wait, now I'm visualizing a C on a staff... is a written C without dynamics pianissimo or forte? Hmmm, philosophically, someone asks me for a C and they don't have perfect pitch, is "C"-ness just a construct? Does any note become C if your brain thinks in relative C?
Originally Posted by emanresu
I'm getting a headache. That question is taking up ALL my brainpower.
I hate you
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Yeah. I thought about this what Pauln said before.
There are soooooooo many bits of info about any single element we do here.
Yet, it all goes away and the request of "play C" could be performed without a single thought.
I mean... the amount of information gathered is 1000x more than gets used consciously eventually.
It's magic.Last edited by emanresu; 08-22-2022 at 04:01 AM.
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Very little thought.
I know where the C's are, close enough to instantly.
OTOH, if you asked me to play one on the 20th fret of the low E string (a note I'd never used) I'd probably have to think a bit to make sure I found the right fret.
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Aside from very simple things, I’d sing or play it to them. Originally Posted by emanresu
Verbal information about music is highly inefficient (which is why this forum is so bad at communicating musical ideas and why people get so verbose).
If you play something to someone, or sing it’s the way you want to hear it, it has a better chance of being understood.
Notation is not perfect but is also a better medium than explanation.
In terms of taking information I always get a bit frustrated when someone tries to explain to me how to play something; play it to me and I’ll get it faster - My brain tunes out when people start explaining stuff.
Some people insist on doing this though so it’s tough. I think some people find it helpful too.
or give me a chart (but not one with tab on please oh my god that so so distracting).
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I play all the Cs before I start playing music.
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The more inclusive and comprehensive your musical awareness is, the more "brainpower" you engage, even with something as simple as a C. To a non musician, it's noise; peripheral background to an otherwise unrelated world. To a lesser musician, it's a place to put your finger. To a constant musician, a C is a door to infinite possibilities.
Rhasaan Roland Kirk was a blind sax player with an exceptional musicality and a blind man's heightened sensitivity to the sound of music. A story was accounted by John Klemmer, a fellow horn player that the two of them were talking as a bus passed. Rhasaan stopped and raised his hand for silence. As the bus faded, he said "That was a major fifth". He was hearing the overtones of the bus's engine as music.
That's brainpower.
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John Klemmer 'began playing guitar at the age of five and alto saxophone at the age of 11. His other early interests included graphics and visual art, writing, dance, puppetry, painting, sculpting, and poetry.'
Also brainpower.
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No idea but I can promise you that you'd be better served by not thinking about it and spending more time practicing and playing. Originally Posted by emanresu
An audience doesn't care or even think about how long it took a performer to master a piece, they only care about what they hear. Nor do they care or award you brownie points for being an astrophysicist and chess grandmaster. What you just played is their sole interest. Pat Metheny has labeled himself a slow learner. Maybe it's true and that's why he practiced 12 and more hours a day for years. Only thing that matters is that he did do what was necessary for himself to " get there".
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I've found the best approach to be: all of it! If you concentrate, and really listen to what you're playing, everything will sound better.
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