R/E/P Community

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

Pages: 1 [2] 3 4 5   Go Down

Author Topic: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?  (Read 14907 times)

John Ivan

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 3028
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #15 on: February 06, 2006, 11:52:34 AM »

Well, I wasted my 20's partying my ass off. I also worked my ass off learning musical instruments though. From about 5 years old forward, all I did was sit in front of the drum kit, play guitar, bass and sing in our basement. I also tweaked around on the audio gear laying around the house. {lots of it}. It even turned into a big issue at home and at school. I simply would not go to school anymore starting at 15. The last year I spent at school, I spent in the music building. The band Director was a great guy who looked the other way for a long time but I finally was kicked off the property for good and started playing for a living.

I knew nothing about the Business end of all this and like I said, wasted a lot of time.. In my 30,s, I started coming out of my Coma and got Married. Then we had our Boy. ;-}. I never stopped playing music,except for two years ago when we moved, I came apart !! I lost it. I stopped for about 10 months, {I did about 3 gig's per month. Compared to 4 or 5 nights per week, is 0}.. Well, I guess I needed this because when I moved back to Michigan to take my current gig, I felt like playing again. The guitar felt good to me.

I am now, perhaps for the first time in my life, having the gut's and work ethic to write everything that comes into my head. I used to be afraid of this. Not any more. I am in the first year of making record's for the band and myself. I want the band to do one record every year,{multiple writers} and Me to do one record every year {just me doing everything}

I have no Idea what will come of all this but I know I can't stop, never could stop completely. This is all I know and I must say, the more I look around this world, the less interested I am in other things.

I do have silly hobbies. When I was 17-18 and in Florida I started doing a little flying and wanted badly to get my Private to fly. This is the only other thing I can imagine doing for a living and It's WAY to late in my early 40's.

I am reading a lot about basic Electronics and might finally this year go to school to look closer at this... I don't know........
Logged
"Transformation is no easy trick: It's what art promises and usually doesn't deliver." Garrison Keillor

 

covert

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 119
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #16 on: February 06, 2006, 11:56:23 AM »

Tough question.  How do you define a hobby?  I got into making music because doing it made me happier than I was when I wasn't doing it.  There was a time when I thought, or at least hoped, it would be my life's work.  The realities of that seemed to fade away, butt I still take some hope from the existence of Bob Pollard.

The recording side of things sort of snuck up on me.  I've always been the guy that could figure out a pa, or a tape rig.  I've earned my living as a theatre tech, and done some tv work.  

I'd like to get to the point where the recording thing pays some, at least for itself.  So, the IRS would call it a hobby, I guess it's a hobby with pretensions.
Logged

Dave Martin

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 331
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #17 on: February 06, 2006, 05:36:54 PM »

ivan40 wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 10:52

 
I do have silly hobbies. When I was 17-18 and in Florida I started doing a little flying and wanted badly to get my Private to fly. This is the only other thing I can imagine doing for a living and It's WAY to late in my early 40's.



Nah, it's not too late - when did Steve Morse get his commercial license (after the Dregs), and start flying for a regional airline? And then quit that to do Deep Purple?

My dad retired from his 20+ years as a corporate pilot last year - at 71. And he could still pass as Class A physical - it was the companies insurer's who forced him out, since he was essentially the oldest commercial pilot who was still flying a King Air without a co-pilot in the state... If you love to fly, then you should fly. And if you love to play, then you should play - no reason to not do both...
Logged

smorgdonkey

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 70
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #18 on: February 06, 2006, 07:52:46 PM »

I would loosely define my 'music thing' as a hobby but it is more accurately a passion.
I think that I am a very good songwriter but that is MY opinion, even though many people say that they think that I am too, I don't put any weight in what they say really. I feel that I KNOW where I am in that capacity. I don't feel that the current 'industry' really has a place for me because I see what sells and I know I don't have much in common with that and I know that the industry is purely driven on sales presently.
As far as playing and recording the songs that I write and arrange...I do that out of a drive to see the vision come to something tangible. I guess it is like a painter who does not want to leave a canvass unfinished. I also enjoy sharing my songs with people because there is often a mesage/story/perspective in there and even when listeners don't connect with that they seem to be able to immerse themselves in the 'mood' of the song.
I do have a plan:
-Keep on living.
-Stay open to inspiration and write based upon that.
-Record whatever I can that is produced by the former.
   
Logged

Roadster

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 403
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #19 on: February 06, 2006, 08:04:04 PM »

You know what? I have asked myself these same questions for several years now. And although I might be inclined to do a dissertation on the subject one day, I think I'll just spare you that here.  Smile
I do what I do at home, simply because I can now. It's never a question anymore of why. It's more like, how much can I accomplish before my hands wear out or the hearing goes? (Or both!)
It's my musical memoirs. And they've been pretty fluid. With no agenda, no commitments or expectations from anyone, it simply revolves around experimentation, zoning out, and uncovering my creative side with no regard to an audience, the industry, or any marketing strategy.
It works for me in spades. I've become way more motivated in my later years than I ever had been in the role of human jukebox.
Logged
Rich
Road's End Studio
Musician, Songwriter, Research Technician on Creative Muse

maxim

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 5828
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #20 on: February 07, 2006, 04:41:14 AM »

why do dogs lick their balls?

darren wrote:

"If just one person comes along and says he/she likes it, it'll be worth it to me."

that's the truth
Logged

Trumpetman2

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 357
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #21 on: February 07, 2006, 07:40:40 AM »

Roadster wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 20:04

You know what? I have asked myself these same questions for several years now. And although I might be inclined to do a dissertation on the subject one day, I think I'll just spare you that here.  Smile
I do what I do at home, simply because I can now. It's never a question anymore of why. It's more like, how much can I accomplish before my hands wear out or the hearing goes? (Or both!)
It's my musical memoirs. And they've been pretty fluid. With no agenda, no commitments or expectations from anyone, it simply revolves around experimentation, zoning out, and uncovering my creative side with no regard to an audience, the industry, or any marketing strategy.
It works for me in spades. I've become way more motivated in my later years than I ever had been in the role of human jukebox.


VERY WELL SAID!  Exactly my feelings, hell with marketing, industry, the so-called "talent scouts," the record labels, the club owners, or anyone else.  I see my recordings as my musical memoirs also... Smile
Logged

Roadster

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 403
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #22 on: February 07, 2006, 11:10:50 AM »

Trumpetman -
Thanks!
I may have been able to cut to the chase even further perhaps by simply saying "swan song"?
Logged
Rich
Road's End Studio
Musician, Songwriter, Research Technician on Creative Muse

sonic dogg

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 6
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #23 on: February 09, 2006, 08:18:13 PM »

Interesting question. Thanx Dave!

 Everytime I write down all the resons I did or didnt do this or that, it bums me out.And then I realize its all for a reason. I guess it all came down to life choices back in the day....ya know, pay the rent... feed the kids....fix the car...show up at work on time...OR  play yer ass off at some smokey venue with ya-yas everywhere, dig deep into the wheres and whys of making this stuff stick to a piece of mylar, get up at noon, howl at the moon.....

 I chose to feed my kids AND try to keep a hand in it ..I've always owned recording gear of some sort, or a PA,or both...I've always recorded my own bands and some projects for a bit of cash....I've always had a talent for it...I just didnt pursue it and thats what makes me a hobbiest. But NOT a noobe!

 I still play out weekends with the cover band...We're really tight and have a great time.  Practice is once every three months or so...We're booked for 45 dates this year already...

 I still have 24 tracks of decent gear though the tape machine is now a stand-alone harddisk...Most things are still analog.I believe in certain parts being as good as you can afford while other parts of the chain only have to be as good as you are clever.
 
 I DO still record records with my other band. Seven years and lots of songs. I mix at a pro facility, I want to produce songwriters but cant seem to find the time. But I will.

 Because I couldnt stand my life without music in it.
Logged
"What Kind of fool am I?"---Anthony Newley

Consul

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 226
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #24 on: February 10, 2006, 10:49:26 AM »

sonic dogg wrote on Thu, 09 February 2006 18:18

I believe in certain parts being as good as you can afford while other parts of the chain only have to be as good as you are clever.


That has to be one of the best lines I've ever read on these forums. Thank you.  Thumbs Up
Logged
Darren Landrum

"Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic." - Dave Barry

ktownson

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 1950
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #25 on: February 15, 2006, 01:26:01 PM »

I thought I was reading my own biography until I saw it was Consul's name on the post.

I have always had a passion for music, though not blessed with an abundance of talent. Son of a band director, started playing in rock bands in high school, always thought record producing would be a great job.

Ended up in television instead, but always kept a hand in music recording. In 1980 I bought a Portastudio and found a passion. Recorded a lot of friends along with a few of my own songs, did a few jingles, made some backing tapes for theatre, but never found the opportunity to make it a career.

Now, rapidly approaching 50, the passion still burns, but with the urgency of middle-aged realizations that time is running out. I'll probably never go pro, too hard to start over (unless I win a lottery) so I'll stick with my computer-based recording rig, buy a few cool toys as the budget (and wife) allows, and make CDs for my friends and family.

My gift in life seems to be the ability to get "pretty good" at anything I take up. So I've tinkered in music, electronics, computers, home repair, stained glass, concrete sculpture, graphic design, beermaking, drawing comics, making funny T-shirts, etc. I'm designing and building a house right now.

I gave up the rock star dream many moons ago, but I still have some musical ambitions I need to satisfy before I end up in a rocking chair, diapered and drooling. Fortunately, it's a hobby I think I can enjoy for decades to come.

Logged
"World Boogie is coming." James Luther Dickinson

Consul

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 226
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #26 on: February 15, 2006, 03:32:04 PM »

It seems we are each a tried and true jack of all trades.  Smile

Sometimes, I feel that even at 29 I've completely missed the boat, and that my only option now is to build my home studio and do it myself. I have no money to pay for real studio sessions, and no studio worth their reputation would have me anyway.

"Do what you can, where you are, with what you have."
Logged
Darren Landrum

"Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic." - Dave Barry

doc willie

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 130
Re: Is this music/recording thing just a hobby?
« Reply #27 on: March 02, 2006, 02:51:35 PM »

Roadster wrote on Mon, 06 February 2006 18:04

You know what? I have asked myself these same questions for several years now. And although I might be inclined to do a dissertation on the subject


It may have already been written. Wayne Booth, a professor of English, wrote a book called "For the Love of It" that may be of interest to those in this discussion. He took up cello in his 30's, and writes about why someone would do this even though he know he will never be as good as any second year conservatory student. He meditates on all these issues, and it strikes a chord with those of us who persist inspite of serious LOFT syndrome.
Logged

midnightsun

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 39
The meaning of Music/The meaning of Life
« Reply #28 on: March 04, 2006, 06:32:49 PM »

This is a great thread.... I've enjoyed Dave's, Mark's, and Trumpetman2's comments and all others.  

Music consumes my life and I have no desire to make a living participating in it.    In fact over the years when I have played in bands where money and profit became important, it seemed that the magic and creativity was lost and music became more like a chore.     Now I find the same to be true with my recording studio.

I am a surgeon and this gives me the necessary cash infusion to support my music/audio habit.    Part of the reason why I became a surgeon is that it was a job where I could listen to music most of the time.   Of course, sometimes in the operating room it is necessary to shut off the music.   90% of the time music helps the operating move along.   It keeps  people calm and relaxed and the beat keeps things moving along.   The iPod has been great.   I have various play lists for various operations.  

Music is one of the activities in my life that is not a chore.   I don't like the term "hobby."    I also consider it to be more off an obsession or necessity.   Any give day I might tell two or three people they have a bad cancer, then take a child to the operating room who was hit by a car, and then pronounce someone else dead.    It is not that I feel inspired musically when I come home.   I just need music to put my soul at ease.    

I have a nice recording studio and hand pick talent that I am interested in recording.   I continue to struggle with the need to find logic to what I am doing.    There is no utility is what I am doing in music, it is simply a passion.    I have fantasized becoming a music producer/engineer as I wind my way out of medicine/surgery.   In fact, I am at the point where I want to start backing off.    
Logged

compasspnt

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 16266
Re: The meaning of Music/The meaning of Life
« Reply #29 on: March 04, 2006, 11:28:12 PM »

midnightsun wrote on Sat, 04 March 2006 18:32



Music is one of the activities in my life that is not a chore.   I don't like the term "hobby."    I also consider it to be more of an obsession or necessity.   Any given day I might tell two or three people they have a bad cancer, then take a child to the operating room who was hit by a car, and then pronounce someone else dead.    It is not that I feel inspired musically when I come home.   I just need music to put my soul at ease.  





Jon,  this is an amazing post.

Sometimes those of us who do music for a living forget that people out there are hearing what we do, and taking emotional refuge in it.

Much respect to you for what you do.


Logged
Pages: 1 [2] 3 4 5   Go Up
 

Site Hosted By Ashdown Technologies, Inc.

Page created in 0.058 seconds with 20 queries.