Comments on: Keep An Open Mind About Music

By: Josh

Josh — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 01:22:30 +0000

@Peter – Great idea about listening to different rhythms. I find myself drawn to rhythms in music, not necessarily the lyrics or the solo work, but the rhythms.

Also, great idea about listening to nature. At the recent Tommy Emmanuel concert I went to, he did a great atmospheric piece recreating many of the natural rhythms of the native Australian indigenous people.

By: Peter H.

Peter H. — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 17:42:40 +0000

I forgot to mention that you could even be inspired by nature if you keep an open ear wherever you are and just listen. This is something many of us forget when they are making music. Nature is so rich of ideas and we should keep an open mind about all these things too because they can have an enormous influence on us.

By: Peter H.

Peter H. — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 17:37:31 +0000

yeah, you’re totally right. I am a guitarist too and I love to listen to many different styles of music. I especially inspire myself alot from african rhythms or classical music. I have found out that rhythm plays an essential part when you are making music and it can be incredibly useful to be inspired by different rhythmical structures. Things you would have never taken into account if you weren’t open minded about music could give your music a very unique and interesting taste if you develope your own style.

By: Josh

Josh — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 02:19:25 +0000

Thanks Tennyson and Lex for stopping by!

@Lex – Great idea about listening to other, unfamiliar music to break out of creative blocks.

@Tennyson – I agree that it’s often nice to listen to non-guitar music to hear how other musicians phrase their lines. There’s something to learn from all great musicians, IMO.

By: Lex

Lex — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:14:31 +0000

Great post, Josh. Another thing in which listening to music styles other than your favorites can prove useful is taking you out of creative blocks. I use this trick every time and it works like a charm for my own music creation.

By: Tennyson Williams

Tennyson Williams — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 16:05:16 +0000

so good to hear you say all of that. There’s a real ignorance/arrogance in the guitar world right now and its starting to really get to me. The range of music that is in my collection is extremely broad, and I jam with all of those albums, even if its India Vibes. I’m always trying to encourage people to just shut up and listen, and to listen to music that doesn’t have guitar in it as well. So thank you for this wonderful post! I’ll be checkin’ back