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Updated: August 2018 |
I started on the piano at age 3½, so I have played for over 35 years. I had around 13 years of classical experience before moving on to more modern styles such as jazz, pop, and contemporary music.
During my high school and college years, my emphasis was on using MIDI (sound modules controlled by computer). That's where transcribing and arranging music came in.
I have several legacy pieces of gear in the music studio. The first is the Roland SC-8850, a beautiful sound module with over 1600 sounds and 63 drum kits. For grooving and bumping, I use a Roland MC-909 GrooveBox for dance, trance and techno. Both of these complement a Roland RD-600 keyboard. All of these are close to 20 years old and past their prime, but they still produce quality sound.
As far as recreation, I listen to most genres, with the ultimate favorite going to euro-styled Vocal Trance, an offshoot of the techno genre. Now hear me out before you instinctively think of all techno as crap. I don't like progressive (defined as a bunch of non-melodic beats repeating over and over forever, which gets annoying real fast). Anything with a trademark techno beat, a moving bass line, tinny square/saw/synth waves, and optional vocals is my jam. Favorite artists in this genre of mine would include (first and foremost) OceanLab, Armin van Buren, Ferry Corsten, Michael Woods, and Kenny Hayes, to name a few.
If you head over to Digitally Imported and stream their Vocal Trance channel, there are great examples of what I like. It's all about that bass. The weird thing is that I hardly rave or dance at all. I mostly just like grooving to it. Backup music choices would be alternative and pop. (And of course, I dig a great deal of the old pop/synth 80s music that defined my childhood.)
Finally, there's certain types of music I'd rather not listen to. Sorry but this stuff makes me run screaming from the room: Country, Modern R&B, Hip-Hop, Rap, Opera, Classic Rock, and Oldies. Granted, there are exceptions to all of these, but for the most part it's not my style. I can't help noticing that if it was produced before I was born (again, with a few exceptions) then it's pretty much off my list. Didn't really mean for it to be that way, but that's how it works.
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