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Looper's Delight
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I feel the same way Ted,i go through periods of time turning on my looping devices and concentrating on my playing or songwritting,ive done a couple of gigs where in the first set i just played and sang with my acoustic guitar and during the second included looping, as i asked a couple of people said they liked the first set better!The other time an older guy came up to me and said hey i liked your playing but some of it didnt seem real when u were playing to those recordings;-)in the end people care less about all of this gizmos really! i just discovered an acoustic guitarrist named Jon Gomm and i was floored when i found out he doesnt loop because this guy is amazing,he does melody,rythm,drums,solos and sings as if he was looping but all done without it,this gave me an idea to try using looping also as a practice tool to analize and play simultaneous things without looping... Luis > Hi there, > > > > For the first time in several years now I DID NOT > > get to go to the NAMM show. In one sense it was > sort > > of a relief not to have to go and fight the big > > crowds, breathe the smog, endure the gawdawful > > noise, big hair, the flash, the flesh and the > > spandex of the thing. But I do miss meeting up > with > > many of my looper and other musical cohorts and > > colleagues. And, I did miss out (it seems) on the > > debut of some interesting new looping devices this > > year -- at least one of which was from a major > > manufacturer (Roland). Anyhoo, all of which has > > caused me to muse a little, philosopically, on the > > practice and possible future of looping. > > > > There once was a time when any doofus with a > guitar, > > or a synth, or a kazoo for that matter, could > cobble > > together some sort of looping rig from an array of > > tape loop machines, modified or homemade analog or > > digital delays and set themselves up as > "avant-garde > > musicians" of some sort. It almost didn't matter > if > > the individual was particularly proficient on > their > > "input" instrument, the fact that they were using > > echos and loops and processing what they were > > playing in a still fairly unorthodox way (for the > > time) was enough raison d'etre. It was exerimental > > and at least it SEEMED like art at the time. > > > > Now it appears like technology has caught up with > > us. New devices are popping up all over. Most > > popular music seems to be loop-based (even if > still > > assembled after-the-fact of an actual in-studio > > performance). The loop concept is getting out > there > > in one form or another. One-man/woman-band > > singer/songwriter types are starting to appear as > > solo touring entities in clubs, bookstores and > > coffee houses. Times are changing. The banner of > > looping will soon likely no longer be carried, > > practiced and promoted by an elite and funky cadre > > of amature-to-semi-pro avant-gardists and musical > > non-conformists. It's going to be carried by the > > meat-and-potatoes weekend rock warriors, church > > worship band musicians and neo-jambanders and > hippie > > vegan campfire song strummers. > > > > Personally, I've believed for a long time that > just > > being a "looper" was not reason enough for my > > musical activites to persist and exist. Although > > looping is still damn fun and a significant part > of > > "the thing that I do" I have made a conscious > effort > > to actually try to do less and less of it -- or at > > least not make it the MAIN FEATURE of what I do. > > It's been a process that has taken me about 10 > years > > to wean myself away from complete dependence on. > It > > was like going through some sort of withdrawal > > process in many ways. > > > > To those of you who've had "musical lives" long > > before discovering looping this will seem a little > > srange perhaps. But my experience was really not > > that way. I had a long infantile period of being a > > musician wannabe 'til I was able to start looping > > myself in the late '70s and early '80s. The > looping > > helped me blossom and mature so-to-speak, and > > enabled me to gain confidence as well. I had no > real > > musical life before I discovered the possibilites > of > > looping. I, essentially, was that "doofus" of > > incomplete skill with a guitar I refered to > earlier. > > > > > > I was really sort of "masquerading" as a musician > > through the back door of the avan-garde. I was > lucky > > early on and fell into a circle of artists and > > musicians who were "the real deal" as far as I was > > concerned. From them I learned . . and (hopefully) > > have somewhat become something approximating "the > > real deal" now myself -- or at least a resonable > > facsimile thereof in my "better" moments. I have a > > good (if excentric) command of my guitar and I > know > > my FX gear well enough to know when (and when not > > to) use them. And . . . it's no longer enough just > > to be a "looper" for me. I want to be a musician . > . > > .even a composer. > > > > I think we will see a time in the near future > where > > "looping" will be just another technique that a > lot > > of musicians use to do what they do. It will have > no > > special "cache" in and of itself -- no market > value > > as a label for what musicians do. It will be like > > the advent of electrical amplification for > > instruments. Someday soon, a performer will appear > > at you local Barnes and Nobel bookstore and will > be > > playing in the coffee franchise space and the fact > > that they are "looping" will not need to be > "demoed" > > or explained (except maybe to really old folks) > and > > will go largely unmentioned or commented on as > being > > a musical "distinctive." > > > > I don't know about you all, but I think it's high > > time we all "got over ourselves" as a general > > sub-category of musical activity. Yes, it will be > > useful to continue to talk about equipment (or > > software) developments and techniques. It will > > continue to be helpful to bandy about the wheres > and > > whys and hows of looping. It may be comforting to > > know that there is still a community of us here in > > cyberspace. It will be great to get together and > > play at "Loop fests." > > > > But soon (very soon I think) looping will be > > everywhere. It will be done by the Xmas carolers > at > > the mall. It will be done by bluegrass fiddlers, > and > > country musicians in big hats. It will someday be > > done down at the local Baptist church. It will be > > done by streetcorner buskers with no more than a > > harmonica, a Pignose amp, cheap microphone and a > > pedal looper. It probably already has been. > > > > When that day comes I wanna have a reason for > > artistically being and for making new music other > > than simply exploring and exploiting the next new > > wrinkle in loop technology the industry has to > > offer. When that day comes I don't want to find > that > > my musical identity has been defined by what > > particular FX box I owned or didn't own. > > > > I am not sure if my writing is making much sense > > here. But I am working really hard these days to > > make sure my musical epitaph reads somthing other > > than "Beige Faceplate Oberheim EDP Owner" as > though > > what I used was my reason for being. I'd like to > > think it's a little less simplistic than that, a > > little bit more complicated, and perhaps deeper . > . > > . maybe. I should be so lucky. > > > > Anyway, I'm just an old fart rambling now. But for > > some reason I felt the urge to set down the idea > > that we all ought to start thinking about how we > > define ourselves as musicians. I sort of see a day > > coming when the term "looper" will begin to lose > > some (if not all) of it's meaning in terms of > > refering to a category of musician. I myself, and > > many of you have invested a lot of time, sweat and > > ink promoting ourselves as such. > > > > Like the first species of animal that wriggled > > itself up from the ocean to live on the land, we > > look around now and see that we are increasingly > no > > longer alone on dry ground. It's going to get more > > crowded still soon. Maybe . . . just perhaps . . . > > it's time to start thinking about what the next > > evolutionary step will be. > > > > Best regards, > > > > tEd ® kiLLiAn > > > > "The only true free-thinker is he whose intellect > is > > is as much free from the future as from the past." > > -- G.K. Chesterton > > > > http://www.pfmentum.com/flux.html > > http://www.CDbaby.com/cd/tedkillian > > http://www.guitar9.com/fluxaeterna.html > > http://www.garageband.com/artist/ArsOcarina > > > === message truncated === > > > www.luis-angulo.com > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Tired of spam? Yahoo! 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