Is Henry listening to Gibson fans?

[Dave W]

A good automatic tuning system could handle all those tuning nuances and even detect when something needs to be tuned a little flat or sharp. You guys argue a bit like people used to argue against safety belts: "And what if the car catches fire?"

You have to yet convince me, my luddite friends, that this will not be a lot more commonplace in the future. A future tuning system would even be able to detect from the chord fretted what tuning is the optimal well-tempered one and make micro-adjustments on the spot. You just wait! 

Now you're just being contrary for its own sake.

It would be possible right now to create a programmable tuner that would make adjustments that slinkp and I mentioned above. That would be great, wouldn't it? While you're in the middle of a gig up there on a dimly lit stage, you could start scrolling through multiple menus to get to the patch you programmed, while your audience waits. That would surely be better than having to spend a second or two to twist a tuning key a tiny fraction of an inch! 

And if we ever get to the point that a player needs a tuning system to automatically decide the optimal temperament for him -- instead of deciding for himself when and where he needs to change -- then he should consider giving up playing.

[doombass]

A good automatic tuning system could handle all those tuning nuances and even detect when something needs to be tuned a little flat or sharp.

Aah, that would be perfect. When the guitard is a lousy bender there's a quick cpu recognising it and correcting it without anyone noticing it.

[westen44]

Now you're just being contrary for its own sake.

It would be possible right now to create a programmable tuner that would make adjustments that slinkp and I mentioned above. That would be great, wouldn't it? While you're in the middle of a gig up there on a dimly lit stage, you could start scrolling through multiple menus to get to the patch you programmed, while your audience waits. That would surely be better than having to spend a second or two to twist a tuning key a tiny fraction of an inch! 

And if we ever get to the point that a player needs a tuning system to automatically decide the optimal temperament for him -- instead of deciding for himself when and where he needs to change -- then he should consider giving up playing.

A number should consider giving up playing even without problems like that.  I don't know when it was that everybody and his mother decided to become a guitarist.  Of course, for the ones who are good, that's fine.  But an unfortunate number are not good, IMHO. 

[nofi]

the beatles on the ed sullivan show started the guitar plague, imo.

[Highlander]

How about Chuck... must have had some kind of influence...

[Lightyear]

the beatles on the ed sullivan show started the guitar plague, imo.

Agreed, if you're a red blooded American teen aged male and you see the Beatles on Ed Sullivan you can't help but notice thousands of delirious, ecstatic, shrieking girls.  Pretty easy to connect the dots:  Play guitar in band = GIRLS 

Some of us stuck with it even after we realized the formula was flawed 

[nofi]

i think berry's influence was minimal. kenny you are
probably  to young i think but after that tv show everyone i knew wanted a guitar, me included. i might include the ventures, too. they were at peak of their career in the early to mid sixties and were quite popular, getting lots of airplay.



and of course this

[westen44]

Agreed, if you're a red blooded American teen aged male and you see the Beatles on Ed Sullivan you can't help but notice thousands of delirious, ecstatic, shrieking girls.  Pretty easy to connect the dots:  Play guitar in band = GIRLS 

Some of us stuck with it even after we realized the formula was flawed 

But when the Beatles came out with Sgt. Pepper, it was a whole new ball game.  From that point on, I was only interested in bass.  I waited till our bassist joined the military, then jumped at the chance to take his place. 

[Highlander]

... kenny you are probably to young ...

My Hero...!

[Dave W]

The Beatles gave a big boost but only for guys of a certain age range. It goes in cycles.

I'm older. When I started, all I wanted to do was to be able to play like Chuck Berry. That was hard to do on cello.

A little later on, the Ventures inspired some, then came the folk music boom, all before the Beatles hit. Each had their influence, and the same goes for artists since.

[uwe]

Now you're just being contrary for its own sake.

It would be possible right now to create a programmable tuner that would make adjustments that slinkp and I mentioned above. That would be great, wouldn't it? While you're in the middle of a gig up there on a dimly lit stage, you could start scrolling through multiple menus to get to the patch you programmed, while your audience waits. That would surely be better than ! 

And if we ever get to the point that a player needs a tuning system to automatically decide the optimal temperament for him -- instead of deciding for himself when and where he needs to change -- then he should consider giving up playing.

To follow your example for sake of argument, lieber Dave: I believe that the philosophical difference between

(i) your guitar tech tuning your guitars to your liking manually and handing them back to you

(i) him (or her) scrolling through the menus and sending your guitar a signal to tune up on stage from wherever he's sitting behind the stage

is miniscule. And it's been a long time since I've seen professional performers regularly correct tuning on the stage themselves. I just see them hand their guitars to their techs and get a new one. Your lovably archaic "having to spend a second or two to twist a tuning key a tiny fraction of an inch" sounds easier than it is when 10,000 people in the arena are watching. It still happens, but rarely. Joan Baez did it when I saw her in Bonn two weeks ago, but she was alone on stage and had an audience of aging baby boomers eating from her hands who would have given her 10 minutes of tuning up time just to listen to the stories she was telling while she was doing it.

I've been to Eagles concerts - those beloved or derided purveyors of perfection - where an acoustic guitar was out of tune and I bet Glenn Frey (who can probably tune a guitar quite well, but choses not to at concerts I've seen) and his guitar tech would have appreciated automatic tuning in the middle of the song to get the tuning just right. And I've only recently been to a Blackmore's Night concert where one of the stringed instruments - it was baking hot in that hall - was so badly out of tune it kept Herr Blackmore from playing that particular song which put him in a pissed off mood for the rest of the evening (and had his guitar tech probably fear for his life), he is difficult that way. Now I know that mentioning him is a bone of contention here and that is why I regularly avoid it, but last I heard I believed we were all in agreement that he can tune a guitar. He used to do so in the 70ies quite often on stage after having put his Strat through the usual tremolo arm rigours.

All this just to point out: It ain't necessarily so.

[Dave W]

I wouldn't know about Eagles concerts. The vast majority of working musicians aren't playing 10,000 seat arenas and don't have techs to hand their guitars to.

You'll have an easier time convincing all the T-Bird lovers here to ditch their chrome than to convince me that built-in robotuners will replace real tuning keys.

[uwe]

Töday ze wörld, tömörröw ze chröme!

[Granny Gremlin]

A number should consider giving up playing even without problems like that.  I don't know when it was that everybody and his mother decided to become a guitarist.  Of course, for the ones who are good, that's fine.  But an unfortunate number are not good, IMHO.

Being good presents it's own hazards.  Often these are not the best team players.

A shitty guitarist (exceptionstfor those in denial; same pitfalls as good guitards apply) with perseverance and chutzpah can grow to become a really good, in the sense of usefulness to a band, player.  Innovative and interesting even.  Everyone has to start somewhere, and just because you start with some sort of talent or skill advantage doesn't mean you can go further in the long run.  This includes one's ear and sense of timing (these can be developed).

I mean, I can tune by ear, if I have to.  The guitar/bass will be in tune with itself but not necessarily with everyone else.  So I use a tuner.

[TBird1958]

Töday ze wörld, tömörröw ze chröme!

Kamerade, for you ze war is over!