I myself am a writer, vocalist and play some guitar. I use Cubase to produce all kinds of music, I like pop, trance, electro, retro { 50’s and 60’s} and a huge variety of other styles…
In essence I consider myself to be writer/producer/arranger
Now although I can write, arrange and produce complete tracks I “cannot” play keyboards live. I can though play chords and melodies when using cubase, I can also take care of all the other instrumentation.
I wondered how many of you would consider yourself to be the same category as myself? also do you “real” keyboard players consider folk like myself to be frauds. I won’t be offended if you do as I have often struggled with this question myself, it will be interesting to read peoples views on this. Oh and are there any well known artists who would fall into the category of “non” playing keyboard user…
I also consider myself to be a writer / producer / arranger. My keyboard skills are average, in my opinion, and I don’t care if “real keyboardists” consider me to be a fraud. My logic is that, at the end of the day, the audience wants to hear good music and see a performance. So if I use Cantabile Performer to assist in ensuring that the music sounds good so that I can focus a bit more on the performance aspects of the gig then that’s a rational sacrifice that I’m willing to make.
I think Fraud is a bit extreme. Can every classical composer actually play every instrument in a symphonic orchestra?
If not, does that composer really have a right to be writing music for an instrument they can’t in fact play?
I think intent has a lot to do with it - if one is trying to convey the impression that they are a great flautist when in fact they are actually only using samples then that would be fraudulent. Using technology to overcome ones limitations is does not necessarily infer fraud - it depends on intent. Using the available technology to concretize or realize some fleeting musical concept which was going on in your head is what it’s all about. The proof is in the pudding.
As for me, I’m a JOATMON (Jack of all trades - master of none)
i use a guitar midi controller when i want electronic keyboard sounds ,tracking can be a bit dodgy at times like weird notes popping out when they shouldnt but i get by.when i use the midi - blend on the transport panal i can do the left hand part first and then do the right hand part and they blend together making it sound like a real keyboard player....well in my dreams .but im glad im in this predicament and not the other way round cause i think its harder to simulate an authentic guitar sound from a keyboard .although it would be the same for a guitarist trying to sound like a concert penist , ive really only ever used a keyboard for banging out a drum rhythm or keeping a door open lol. guitars are seksi.
Thanks for the replies, I probably should have used a better word than fraud lol… I always tell people I am a singer songwriter above everything else, I suppose arranger is also another good term… I always wondered how many cubebase users were like myself, non keyboard players…
I play the guitar parts and bass parts on my stuff, but I play the keyboard parts slowly into midi and fix them as I need to. Same for drums. I don’t think that’s fraud as long as I’m open about it. I probably could play the keyboard parts in real time if I rehearsed them, but no way I could play the drums.
Guitar is my main instrument, and to a lesser extent, I play bass, keyboards, drums & sing on my own music. When I used to gig regularly, I played out as a ‘guitarist’ who did back round vocals. I’m sure I could pass off on anyone of these instruments on a limited number of songs if I played live…in fact, I passed off as a bass player on an entire gig a while back.
I like to consider myself as a songwriter/guitarist who produces his own music…to a lesser extent, a singer/multi-instrumentalist. As for a “producer” …dunno, I never really liked that term…to me a guy who calls himself a ‘Producer’ is often just a phony bologna…unless there’s some REAL credentials involved of course. Though some use the term ‘producer’ meaning they make music electronically and/or on a computer.
It’s not been that many years that I’ve really got into using midi. I now use midi on every song I do. The midi controllers I use are a keyboard, midi guitar & edrums. I’m passed the point where I feel I’m “cheating” with midi, VSTi’s etc. Just because I may have to fix everything I play from any of the above controller/instruments, that doesn’t make me less of a player…no, wait it does actually! Hey, anything to get my song idea’s down to something that can be heard…even of that means manually writing a midi part with a mouse if I have to…and I have!
ive had some funny encounters with some keyboard players ,some look down on guitarists ,some think they are the only ones who know how to play chords .i met this one keyboard player for the first time and he was playing a tune and i asked him "whats that chord there please" and he looked at me with an attitude and he replied "oh its just a keyboard chord ,dont you worry about it", i thought what a pri-k and after a bit of fumbling around on my guitar i sussed what it was. he was the type of guy who i would love to see being put out of work by a midi kazoo player. it dosnt matter how you create music, even if it is created on that pri-ks keyboard ,if it makes you feel good, it is.
Modern keyboardists have been a little touchy ever since they realized they can’t do, on a keyboard, what Eddie Van Halen does on a fretboard. They counter that inadequacy by learning to play Yngwie Malsteen lines.
On the other side of the coin … there are NO guitar players that can play what Art Tatum played in one pass:
If a player can play Art Tatum stuff, they are a bona fide “Keyboardist or Pianist”. If they can sequence a piece, like Art Tatum played, they are a “Composer” … and quite possibly a “Genius”.
Whoa, did guitar players suddenly declare war on us keyboard guys?
BTW, I play guitar too. I’m not nearly as good as I am on the piano/keyboards, but really studying guitar opened up an entire new world to me. Having to cope with the harmonic limitations of the fretboard actually helped my creativity.
There are good and bad guitar players just like there are good and bad keyboard players. I don’t think the best keyboard players in the world could ever snub someone like Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell or Al Di Meola.
