Ask anything you like people. Range from what schools are like and what crap students are being taught that will probably never be used to why I habe no life due to music. I apologize if this is the wrong forum section or if this seems immature(I’m in high school so that’s my exuse).
How old are you and what grade are you in? What instruments do you play? How long have you played them? Have you had any sort of formal instruction (private lessons or within your school’s curriculum)? Do you participate in any school ensembles like band or orchestra? If so, why? If not, why? Do you participate in any non-school ensembles – anything from a community band or youth orchestra to jamming with friends? If so, why? If not, why? What are your plans after high school? What do you want to do with your musical talent? What do you think will get you where you want to go?
Oh, and what’s your GPA?
Why, yes, I am the mother of a high school multi-instrumentalist! Why do you ask? 
So what really happens at band camp?
I’m an old fart who studied music 40-plus years ago who wants to take it up again as a hobby. I want something simple and easy to start with, so I bought a recorder like the one my son used when he was in middle school music class. Should I try to teach myself from a book, or should I find someone to teach me?
15 in 9th grade, taking 10th and 11th grade classes because I’m in IB.
I play guitar, electric bass, upright bass, piano, xylophone/bell set(they may as well be the same), mandolin, banjo, and very little cello and violin.
Guitar I’ve been playing 5-6 years, bass 3 years, piano, xylophone, bell set for 2 years, mandolin, banjo, cello and violin on and off for 3 years.
I had guitar lessons for a year but that just taught me a few chords, I progressed much faster on my own. Piano lessons for 3 months but I wasnt into that kind of basic music so I quit and learned Home Sweet Home by Motley Crue and Dream On by Aersmith within two weeks. For school I learned to play upright bass by the teacher giving me a book and telling me to learn from that. I work better self taught.
I’m in orchestra at school because in middle school the teacher was nice, and I love to play music. I had to choose bass though so the BAND teacher could let me use an electric bass to be in the schools “rock band”(you can find a performance on youtube by looking up "Crazy Little Thing Called Love School Cover. Itll be submitted by wisthekiller, I’m the one playing bass with long hair, which I’ve had cut much shorter since then. And this was my first real performance so I know I look nervous.)
I’m now lead guitarist for a band with one of my best friends that is a great singer and rythym guitarist. I started out as bassist cause someone else already knew the lead guitar parts but my friend taught me them and the original lead moved.
I plan on going to college, doing something medical, rehab-related(my family is an alcoholic one, usually under control but right now my aunts in the hospital with a swollen liver from a mix of not eating for weeks and drinking instead), or perhaps even musical. I’ve been told I’m good at songwriting, singing, guitar and bass. Other instruments require some work though.
My GPA is not very good, around 2.5. Im in football and IB so theres my excuse.
And I’ve never been to band camp.
If you took the time to read this then good job!
I would recommend going from a book at first. Just remember, if you don’t care about what you’re learning you won’t want to. Form a system: learn one basic thing, then something you actually want to learn.
I played piano and then clarinet as a kid, but I could never make myself practice sufficiently (and I mean sufficiently only in the loosest sense). How much do you practice and do you enjoy it? When you don’t enjoy it, do you make yourself do it?
To what degree is it true that band in high school (and in college, from what I’ve seen, though you might not have seen that yet) is just an excuse to socialize?
If you haven’t checked it out yet, here’s the Great Ongoing Guitar Thread. And see Post #33 in this threadfor a list of guitar-related threads…
You should jump in and tell us about your rig…
Good on you for finding something you like and sticking with it.
Do you get any grief from your music instructors about playing more than one instrument? When I was in high school, I played clarinet and trumpet. The woodwinds instructor was under the impression that playing trumpet would wreck my clarinet embouchure.
Music is a gift, that’s for sure. Not a day goes by that I don’t cherish my ability to read music and play the guitar.
I was never in a school or college band; I don’t play that kind of instrument, and neither could I read very well back then.
I happen to live near a middle school, and I’m at home in the afternoons. With all the dire news about school budgets and cutbacks, I rejoice to see many of the kids heading home with their band instruments. At least we can still afford some music programs. Play on!
Did you find that your ability to play one instrument helped to learn others? Do you think it’s easier for you to pick up a new instrument than it might be for others?
Do you come from a musical family?
I enjoy practice and do so for 1 or 2 hours a day not counting the hour in school. I never actually hate to practice and I make myself practice anyway when it gets repetitive because it can always be better. And music programs aren’t really an excuse to socialize to MOST people.
My orchestra teacher loves that I play multiple instruments because she makes me play different parts. For an upcoming concert we have “Pop Knight”(our mascot is a Knight) so I play bass with orchestra and guitar with my band and a few kids from orchestra for a few quick covers.
I LOVE that we have the largest orchestra program in our county so we have a large budget.
I find all instruments are similiar to me. I played guitar for 3 years before bass, and within 2 months I was first chair over someone thats been on bass for 2 years. Along with that, I pick up new instruments better than most.
No one in my family is musical except my grandma that plays harmonica, my grandpa used to play guitar but has quit, and my dad can play 12 bar blues on a keyboard. Thats all though.
Eh, multi-instrumentalism isn’t all that uncommon, to be honest. When I was in high school, there were at least a dozen, if not two dozen, students in my band that could play multiple instruments (not including percussionists who only played percussion, who are by default multi-instrumentalists). Most of them were pianists in addition to their primary instrument; around 10 or so (myself included) played 3 or more.
Not to impugn your dedication or talent. Music is a gift and a beautiful way to express yourself. Perhaps, though, you should take some of that practice time to swing by one of the English classes and brush up on punctuation and avoiding run-on sentences. Writing well is a skill that will probably serve you better in the long run than being able to play a bunch of string instruments (and bells!).
Perhaps I do have one question, though. How many hours do you spend in music class? Do you take one hour of orchestra, one hour of band, one hour of music theory, etc.? How many music classes do you take in a given day?
Funny, I’ve never heard this before. One of the things about being in a performing organization is that there’s an abundance of downtime where one might hang out and chat or whatever, but I’m unfamiliar with the notion of people joining band as an excuse to do specifically that.
For the run-on sentences even my English teacher says it’s ok. People have different styles of writing. And I take on hour of orchestra per day and one or two hours of my own practice after school.
HAVE YOU STUDIED RECORDING?
My primary axe is banjo, and I play guitar, keys, percussion, and I sing.
I grew up playing with open-reel tape recorders, and studied recording engineering after I first went into a studio to record my first bluegrass band album. I have been a studio engineer and producer for over 30 years, and the business has changed, A LOT!
Albums can be recorded at home with most of the same kind of tools big studios use. A treated room is still something that most home recordists don’t have access to.
Have you recorded multi-track overdubs? Have you recorded yourself with other musicians?
Have you recorded in professional studios?
I have described to people that I record like I play. that I play the studio the same way that I play banjo.
To me the studio is another complex instrument.
David
I have recorded a few things, but it was just a little expierimenting, nothing major. Just Cubase software on a computer.