I feel like I need to address a very common musical subject, and myth. And that subject/myth is:
A musician can get better by buying more expensive gear.
This has always been a point of contention with me. I am a sax player, and I could play a gig on any sax that seals properly, and has remotely good intonation. I have spent years training my ear and my mouth to be able to manipulate a saxophone in any way I please. And I still am not as good as I'd like to be. The one thing that remains constant is that I am confident to play with any saxophone that meets a certain level of mechanical functionality. The end.
Yes, I, like any musician, find certain instruments desirable, because when you get really good on a pro level instrument, certain elite instruments allow you to get that last little bit of nuance out of your playing. Or at least you think they do. Really, you probably sound exactly the same, and in fact, you do sound exactly the same. Trust me.
The instrument myth is merely an illusion to people who would rather throw money at their problems then practice and honing their skill. And that is harsh yes, but it's true. I had to learn this lesson the hard way during college. My teacher at the time heard me complaining that I just couldn't get jazz to happen on my current setup. He listened, picked up my horn and sounded like he did on his horn, and made it effortless. He then said, "I don't see any problem." I saw the problem. I was relying on hardware to provide a performance, rather than training myself to give the performance.
And performance in the end has very little to do with the instrument. It has nearly everything to do with the person playing it.
The greatest example of this is the Piano.
Many or all of the greatest pianists in the world play on a different instrument at every gig they hit. Only a select few, and in very specific cases, travel with their own piano. The only thing required to make a piano "gig ready" is that it be in tune. And that is a mechanical service that can be done by a qualified mechanic in a matter of minutes. The end game here is that you could hear Herbie Hancock on any piano, and he would kill every time. Because he is Herbie Hancock, and he has spent a long time training, practicing, and being Herbie Hancock. His sound does not result from any one piano. It comes from himself.
The moral of all this is. If you want to be a great musician. It doesn't matter if you spent a dollar, or a billion dollars on your rig. If you can't play it, it doesn't matter.
Rant over.
]]>
