Instrument For Songwriting?

[Joseph]

I've been playing piano before anything else, and it's a great way to write music. Very simplistic at times, and very relaxing.

When you're young, and there are so many other musical instruments available, the panio doesn't seem very exciting. As a young kid, listening to our favorite songs on the radio, it's safe to say all that we want to do is rock with the best of them.

But as the years have progressed, and being tha I've experimented with various instruments all over the world, I always seem to go back to the panio when it comes to songwriting.

It's just an old friend, and instrument that I feel very comfortable with. Regardless on whether or not most of my favorite song are panio oriented, it doesn't matter, because it's a great feeling when you can take your favorite songs from guitar etc, and alter the way it sounds on piano. Almost as if you're creating a new song!

Have any of you guys had any experience as a child, or perhaps throughout your life with the piano? If so, do you use the piano as a important instrument for songwriting? Or is it something that you've always wanted to learn to play?

-Joseph

[jarviss]

i took lessons as a kid (short lived)
and when i was older..
i loved em but couldnt stick to it
now, my father in law has a grand piano at his house
and when ever we go there...you can't pull me off of it
i love it.
someay! i will continue my piano lessons.
i just take what limited knowledge i have of the guitar
and apply it to the piano...
so its fun
:)

[educatedfilm]

Hopefully, I'm going to get my self a keyboard... I've tried teaching my self how to play piano, but i don't have acsess to one at home. It's a pretty cool intrument, but one of my DANCE music obsessed (which is ok, considering he's now signed to the UXB record lable, his little group is called "Connective Zone" if your intrested... why am i talking about this? oh yeah) has got some really really really cool keyboards, ones where you can playabout with the wave shapes, and managed to get some cool sounds out of it (there are some programmes that do this on PC, but i dont have a midi keyboard).
My only problem with piano is that, sylistically, it's too communist an instrument. There's no bias towards certain styles in the same way as you have on guitar, like for example you can't play certain chords on the lower fretts, as you cant stretch you're fingers far enough, but if you move it up to the 12th frett, you can, because of the smaller frett spacings. You dont really have this on keyboard/ piano...
My other problem, is the rich kids who's parents put in alot of time and money for lessons, learn to play, but ask 'em to improvise or compose they fall flat on their arse. I mean they treat the intrument like a type writter (look at paper, and then press the corisponding button type of way), than really like an instrument... i'm probably just jelous that i wasn't given the oppertunity...

[Edited by educatedfilm on 10-04-2001 at 04:37 AM]

[Raskolnikov]

When I was a whee little kid, my brother and I used to bang out random notes on my aunt's piano and tell stories about dinosaurs and what not.

Today, I can find "e" so I can tune.

[Snacktruck]

yeah me too! i have always wanted to play because they sound really cool, but i suck. i got tought some but you really have to take the time and sit down to make up some really cool progressions. but the thing is that i dont have the time. but i will learn.

[Joseph]

Trust me, it's never too late to learn, as long as you remember that you're not in competition with everyone else. Over the past few years I've taken a crack at the violin... Now I'm not the greatest, nor do I really have the right hands for this instrument, but it's something I've always wanted to try, just to see how far I could go. Hey, and after all I'm not bad, I may never play in a recital, right besides some of the great violinists of our time, but still I can say that I gave it a shot, and I'm still standing proud. There are various instruments at our finger tips, you never know when you just might come across the one that's perfect for you!

-Joseph

[stratman42]

Personally i write on my axe
However, although we never use piano in our songs, our singer uses it to write, then it gets transposed onto guitar. Its a cool way of doing things, and we now have a good song writing partnership going.

[i-vis]

I can't play piano because I don't have the technique for that, but I can find the notes that I want. So I got a KORG NS5R module (without the keyboard itself :) and write the song on a Sequencer, note by note. I did a small tune with it, that is very beaultiful, and some of my friends aked me: HOW DO YOU DID THAT??? I lie sometimes...I say that I played with my fingers...well, it isn't 100% lie, I did it with my fingers!! (and a mouse)

[i-vis]

its me again....forgot to tell you the url of my song:/

http://www.mp3.com/ib

Look for "Past and Future". It's beautiful.

[RKBMusic]

My vocal has over powered any other instrument but i also play guitar, bass, and keys and believe it or not i use whatever instrument i am on for song writing or i use my vocals, or my writing skills as i can hear everything in my head and i score it ... i have songs i wrote on bass, guitar and keys and as i have said just scored it then played it later or had someone else play it.

[hendrix_jimi]

As a general rule, my riffs come to me when I'm jamming on my electric, plugged in and turned on. Chord sequences seem to come out easier on my acoustic, and sometimes on my electric, unplugged. I can't play any other instruments, so I'm restricted to the guitar for songwriting.