I learn from a book mainly but once in a while a friend teaches me some stuff.
(guitar)

I took 3 years of piano lessons when I was like 6-9. I sucked back then. But it was enough that now when I look at a piano I see the keys as notes. Now I entirely teach myself, I can read sheet music but I prefer to make things up. I just kind of play things that sound good and it ends up working out. You just have to hear what's coming a few seconds before you get there, if that makes any sense. And the more you play, the more complicated things you will be able to do. It's as easy as that.

I think the best (or maybe the worst?) think that happens to self-taught musicians is that they (we) have a completely unique, own style. Instructors unintentionally force their own style into the playing of their "grasshoppers"; I can't say which one is better, it kinda depends on you.

Not exactly. it just means they take their style from elsewhere, its not necessarily a good or bad thing, but its just as limiting in the end. And besides, nobody has a 'unique' style on their own. Its kind of pretentious to go around saying 'I am original and unique, a special snowflake', considering a whole bunch of people probably sound very similar to you in the end.

Very well said,sir.Its pretty difficult IMO to be original nowadays.So much has been done already.

You should read up on postmodern musical theories. I'm studying them at university right now and they basically hold that there is NO original music anymore, only different sounding bric-a-brac made from other bits of music.

but when you've spent the better part of a decade working towards a unique sound and you get proper musicians asking you 'no offense, but do you actually know how to play guitar like a normal person?'. i don't think it's pretentious to say you've managed to develop a unique and original style :p:


and in terms of post-modern theories. yes, all styles draw from other elements, then again if you look back enough all music goes back to the first cavedude who tapped rocks on a log to get some cavechick to dance for him. then again we also live in a heavily categorized society so even when you do manage to create something new someone will create a new sub-genre by mashing a few relatively close styles into a new term, like post-hardcore-freejazz-shoegaze-surf rock... but that's only if you tremolo pick single note leads a lot otherwise it's just post-hardcore-freejazz-shoegaze-garage rock. there's a DIFFERENCE... sub-genres are IMPORTANT... :rofl:

No, that just means that the person in question hasn't heard anything ELSE that sounds like that. It still more than likely exists.

i'm self teaching myself to play guitar and drums 'cause it's awesome and i wouldn't have to apply playing with a sheet paper to playing by ear. anyways, my elective at school has a teacher for trumpet.

well, until someone can name drop a single person that sounds like me i'm gonna keep thinking i achieved uniqueness :p: (besides my comment was supposed to be a funny)