Blazed And Confused

Yes of course you can be a music lover if you dont play an instrument, however i think you do need to play an instrument inorder to be a music connoisseur. knowing how to make what sound your looking for by knowing music theory and applying it on any instrument in the world at anytime really changes what your perception of "quality" music i find. i dont really consider producing beats infront of a computer that impressive anymore, sure it sounds good but even a very poor musician could do it. Since i learnt music theory i more understand that its really easy to come up with a repeating 4 chord phrase that sounds kinda catchy. its the transitions between phrases that makes a song truly creative and good.

not to be to critical or anything thats just my opinion

million dollar basher

I respectfully disagree with you on the idea that people can't be "connoisseurs of music" if they're not proficient in actually writing or playing music. There are people who literally make careers, hobbies, and who are just passionate about collecting--if you can really "collect" an abstract thing--and enjoying music. Music appeals to emotions. It appeals to your mind's eye. and to say that somebody may not be able to enjoy something as thoroughly as somebody who is versed in the mechanics of it doesn't really make much sense to me.

And there are days when I literally can't stand to listen to music. Those days are few and far between, but I find that sometimes when I approach music as a musician, it seriously impedes my ability to enjoy it. I find this especially true if I'm in the process of writing and I'm trying to emulate the dynamics of other musicians.