Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange
Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange

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1500 questions
63
votes
3 answers

Found in an 1800s newspaper--what kind of march notation is this?

Does anyone recognize this musical notation? It looks like a bunch of vertical bars. Is it supposed to be read by a machine? It was found in an issue of Scientific American from 1846. I'm guessing the "C" at the beginning means common time, as it…
keej
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12 answers

A (440 Hz) and A (880 Hz) are completely different sounds to me. Does this mean I'm tone deaf?

A recent episode of the podcast Surprisingly Awesome about music theory featured the line: So just to be clear, pretty much every human, when they hear a 440 or an 880, it’s going to sound like the same note. But they don't sound the same to me.…
laffoyb
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10 answers

Will learning to play another instrument help me to become a better guitarist?

I am a programmer and I do this for living. As a programmer, I've noticed how much difference it makes to learn another language - the quality of your work improves greatly, just because you know how things are done in different environments.…
Silver Light
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8 answers

Why does string strummed with finger sound different from the one strummed with pick?

What is the physical reason for difference in sound when using fingers instead of pick and vice versa?
zduny
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61
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4 answers

(1/√π)/√⅔ as a time signature?

I recently found this article on wikipedia about lists of musical works in unusual time signatures and the first unusual time signature is (1/√π)/√⅔. I looked up the piece that was listed as having that time signature which was Conlon Nancarrow's…
Dom
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59
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10 answers

Have orchestras included any modern instrument lately?

Over the years orchestras have added various new instruments to their set and I'm thinking that there are quite many modern interesting instruments that might be included in an orchestra set. Have there been any such inclusions of modern…
SovereignSun
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59
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9 answers

Is there a "standard" or "typical" drum kit layout?

I am dipping my toes in the water of getting a "real" drum kit -- by drumming standards, it's still pretty crap since it's (basically) the Alesis DM6 entry level electronic drum kit. But one thing I didn't even consider when making the leap is that…
Jeff Atwood
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58
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8 answers

Are there any games useful for ear training?

There have been several popular music games in recent years, but they seem to be most useful for developing a sense of rhythm. Are there any games that are helpful as ear training exercises? What would you recommend?
Brian Slesinsky
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57
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8 answers

Which notes are optional in jazz chords?

I have a question on jazz chords, and what notes can be removed from the chord. My understanding is fairly superficial - mostly from what I've read in books. This is what I understand: In some chords, it is necessary to omit some of the notes in…
asgeo1
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57
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6 answers

Is there a standard width for piano keys?

Is there a standard width for piano keys? If not, how much variation is there? Do other keyboard instruments have significantly different widths of keys?
Bob Broadley
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56
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11 answers

Do advanced musicians still practice scales every day?

I'm wondering if you're ever "done" or do you just go practicing them forever?
user34288
55
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7 answers

Why do Guitar chords work the way they do compared to a Piano?

I'm a Tabla (North Indian percussion instrument) player and I know just the basics of western music because I'm learning it bit by bit. I borrowed a Piano to learn music theory and it's going pretty good. My friend plays Guitar and we were jamming…
radiantshaw
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55
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7 answers

Does it really make difference to play a song in a different key?

I hear sometimes players and composers say that this song won't sound good in F Major for example, and you should play it or write it in G Major (this was just an example). In other words, it seems that they assign aesthetic attributes to keys. My…
Saeed Neamati
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55
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4 answers

What are some chord substitutions for a I-IV-V blues progression?

I was watching a video of SRV and one of the things that really stood out was the fact that he seemed to have a different iteration of the I-IV-V turnaround - and made it look/sound effortless. Any starting points/suggestions for substitutions for…
JustnBeaver
54
votes
12 answers

The major scale - why and how?

background: I am an amateur guitarist. I was trained in Indian classical music as a kid. Most of what I know in music theory is from books or Google. So please feel free to correct me or tell me if I'm wrong. One thing that always bothered me is how…
tinkerbeast
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