Farfisa

over 30 days ago

Say Brent this is my 2nd visit I found the site to be of great interest. I really somehow landed here without knowing, ( What was happening here ?
( What it is or, was then ain't exactly clear
( But there was a man with a Gun sorry its a Tele he's a hired Gun over there
( and I said Stop Baby what's that Sound does anybody know what's going down

Then to add even more interest. I suddenly see & hear ! One of my dearest, my life long friend and
a one of the most honest and the most generous men on our planet. My friend who has proven to be better to me than a blood relative Joe Stopka. I must also add, he is one of the best Musician's who was always there to inspire and to challenge me. He was also there to push me as I progressed with my own Musical skills & knowledge. He wasn't a bully or a jerk to anyone. Joe was one of those kids who had the ability to play like an adult at an early age. He was very quick to understand those more advanced concepts during our learning years.

You know things most of us lazy kids ignored as we tried to hide from our music teachers and parents.
Oh what types of things well for example : Learning how to read the sheet Music for Piano could be quite overwhelming for a kid. A kid who wanted to play Baseball ? Not the truth. Once we learned that the Dugouts were a great place we could take our potential Girlfriends to make kissy face. The Dugouts just far enough off the road, behind the greenery of the park was the place to hide. Unless you were blessed with an 8yr old sneaky little bratty sister. The one who was gonna tell ? Who ? My Dad he would be proud of my seduction rate of 14 yr old girls the kiss was a win. But it did take time away from the time I should have been studying about the circle of fifths. That was the kind of stuff that hurts your brain, besides I have to write down all the notes in pencil. Then memorize those parts and erase all the pencil work before the next lesson. I could have done it the right way and stopped my hard headed reluctance to reading the music. I had a great ear, I could almost always learn a melody after hearing a new song once or twice. But that only got you out of the house and to the Dugouts quicker. My Dad would ask have you learned that new Song ? Why yes I have wanna hear it ?
Sure I'd pound out a verse or two and say see I've nailed it. What I didn"t know was that damn Piano teacher was on to me. She knew I would certainly asking for her to play it through for me, before she left for the day. I would typically memorize it with in the first few lines. These songs were usually the theme songs for the most recent & popular Movie of the week. Something that was almost always on the top 40 pop tunes and played several times a day on the Radio.

Now this was one thing I wished I had never heard. All it did was gave me the perfect excuse and then have a great excuse as to why I didn"t care about learning to read Music Notation. Someone Dick Clark perhaps often had the only interviews with our favorite Musical Groups of the day. They would always ask about their Musical backgrounds how did you become interested,did you take lessons, do you know how to read Music ? Well we learned that the Beatles and other favorites at least Paul and John did not read Music. Hurray !

If you've ever had the pleasure, to have seen any one of the interviews of the Beatles they were often very very funny. Watching them be interviewed could be seen as a comedy bit. They were quick witted and they always had a silly story to tell. Now they weren't our parents age so our parents saw them as some goofy kids. They were also 15 yrs older than ourselves so we saw them as adults who could get away with the funny stories. But they also seemed to be closer to our age, than our parents so we got a big kick out of their antics and the stories they would tell. So when my parents would ask me if I loved playing Music and I'd answer of course I do. So do you think you want to grow up and have a group or a band like the Beatles or anyone of the other pop groups. Again saying yes I do want to be like them in the future.

By now we had been playing for a few years and we had our own Guitar's Amps, Drum kits, I had the most expensive and hard to come by instrument of all Piano & Organ plus an amp. I was always told well if you think were gonna buy a New Combo Organ & Amp for you. You better prove to us that if you're so serious that you should be practicing 6 or 8 hours a day. What ? Yeah how do you think the Beatles or The Hollies got to be where they are today ? They had to learn to read the Music just like you have to do and you'll have to have a job to pay for your own gear. Oh yeah well we were watching a show and the Beatles were there. They asked them if they knew how to read Music and they all said no we don't but we have people who are trying to get us to learn that now. But its only to make it easier for George Martin the producer who records and arranges the songs for them. Even the older and more seasoned players that our parents looked up to were asked if they read Music and also answered no I don't. Our parents thought that if they could tell us that we could never become a star like those Musicians that we admired. That it would always be the one thing that they thought they could use to make us become more serious about learning to read the Music as if that was the one key to success. But everytime that question would arise and a Variety Show Host would ask so you have been playing for many years by now. Tell us how hard you had to study to learn to read the Music and how many hours a day you practiced playing scales in every key. And then the Musician with 5 top of the charts Hit Songs at number 6 for 15 weeks. Replies well the truth is we don't read Music only Jim does. Ok so out of the 6 of you in the group only one can read the Sheet Music ? Yes where's Jim and we hear your the only one who learned to read Music. Yes sir, so Jim what do you play? Oh I'm the drummer what ? Wait lets show Mike Douglas & our audience just what Drum Music looks like its not the same as the other instruments in fact its the only Music that's different than the rest. Then they show it and every one laughs. Even Mike Douglas chimes in and says well guys the truth is I didn't know how to read Music until I was 30 yrs old, and I was embarrassed by the Horn section of the Band teasing me for 10 years. That I finally did learn.
And so aren't you proud that you can now and that no one can make fun of you. He said after all the
other people who were so concerned bout me not reading the Music in the past 20 yrs I have only used this wonderful skill of reading Music about 3 times. And it was done to settle a bet and I won $120.
The rest of the guys in the Band all figured I didn't know a thing about it they just remembered the time when I didn't know how. Forgot that I had learned since all lost $5 bucks each. And the Beatles told me that when they were still in High School and they were writing a song but couldn't figure out
a chord that would sound good in this progression. But we didn't know what it was and George said I know a guy he can't play very well but he can read and write Music. It's like breathing air for him so we went off to see him and to figure out what the hell this chord should be. We got on the Bus for an hour then a Train and a second Bus to go see the guy. It took up most of our day it was time for dinner
by the time we got back. So what happened did the guy know the Chord you were looking for ?
Oh yes he knew what it was and he figured it out in about 20 seconds after we played the rest of the song for him. He said that's an F# major 7th here's how to hold your fingers to play it. Paul asked him if we owed him anything for his time ? He wouldn't take a pence he said just keep on writing all these wonderful songs that's good enough fair trade to me. All day to learn a chord we already knew by the wrong name, played in a different position on the neck. What a bunch of rubes we were to dumb to be embarrassed that we all ready knew it F# maj7. We laughed, Paul said see me Mum would say if you only learned to read that Music ? We still would have been lost & that's worse that we knew that chord just didn't have a name for it. Cost us a day 6 Bus passes & 3 Train tickets times 2, about $8 lbs.

I wish you and Broadjam the best success. Having a great Guy & Musician here to help promote your site will only help. I will continue to watch as your site grows I have seen the fine Software titles that you have here to offer the VST & plug in all in one location my take a bit of the mystery out of how to put a home studio together. A few yrs ago people were asking me so many questions about putting a DAW & the other components together was quite confusing people were so unaware to make a project by pulling together several pieces of software felt funny to most. Their thinking was that they should be able to get all the parts from the same company. They were very confused and after reading more they were more confused yet. Now of course I can laugh after all the crazy questions I was asked and I thought I was helping make things easier demystifying the puzzle to DAW recording.

Again great luck with this new venture of yours I'll be watching to see what happens