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Well my head is still spinning from all the information in Matthias' post. It is interesting to have an historical perspective on this topic on this list.. I'm new to this list (one day strong) and can't believe that it's never occured to me to seek it out before. I've been 'looping' for about seven years now in several different combinations of instruments and musicians, most commonly however, by myself with my guitar and keyboards. Traditionally, I used a series of delays to create my layers, I always wanted a JamMan and later a Boomerang, but never seemed to have adequate funds to do so.. The first time I saw a Boss Loop Station I bought it without even trying it out. I've found that having a sample based looper has expanded my concept of what looping is to me as a musician. That said, I don't really know if there is a general classification that can be made for looping as an art form (I do believe looping to be it's own unique art form), but do you really want a generalization to be made?? The moment that you categorize something is the same moment that you create boundries and parameters. Looping is a very open ended form, which is why it exsists in so many aspects and styles of music which may be why it's so endearing and has become a passion for many of us. So I've failed to provide an adequate definition for what we do, I know what I do, but if I speak for all of us, then I'm immediately placing limitations on what the rest of you do musically, which I'm certain in some way differs from what I do musically. I do wish to explain why I define looping as an art form. The playing of any individual instrument can be defined as a form of art, playing guitar requies a different type of artistry from playing the bassoon, both are valid artistic skills, thus in my mind can be defined as unique art forms. I view the loop as an instrument in itself, whether it's a drone, or a snippet of speech or a scale of notes. The creation of the loop requires a certain degree of technique and artistry, certainly with practice anyone can do it but the artistry is what differentiates between what your loops sound like and what my loops sound like. Thus, in a way, the loop becomes an instrument onto itself unique in the players hands, making it a unique art form. Just as painting in oil and acrylic are unique art forms... I'm sure I've contradicted myself in here somewhere, I manage to do that quite a bit... Glad I'm finally here!!! I hope my post can contribute to this line of discussion as I find it very interesting.. Cheers, Ryan _________________________________________________________________ Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.com