Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange
Musical Practice and Performance Stack Exchange

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1500 questions
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10 answers

Finger Picking vs. using a Pick on Bass Guitar

Before I played bass I played guitar, so when I started to play bass I naturally used a pick. Eventually I learned how to finger pick and now typically use both picking techniques interchangeably as a bassist. I would like to know though what are…
Dom
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Techniques for "Dynamics" with Distortion on Electric Guitar

Recently I went to a workshop on electric guitar. Between several subjects, the presenter talked about dynamics with distortion. He said that you can use palm mute to create the effect of a "growing melody". For example, you start your song with a…
Gustavo Meira
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What chords are used often in "Funk" - Why?

"Pass The Peas";"Le Freak"; "Get up and Jump";"Shake your Pants""The Crunge"....They all use very similar chords in a Funk setting - what are some Standard Funk Chords and why (from a Music Theory Perspective) have these chords evolved into being…
JustnBeaver
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2 answers

What is the difference between a musical and a rock opera?

I've seen multiple works from Andrew Lloyd Webber referred to as "musicals" in some sources, and "rock operas" in others. For most people it seems the two terms are completely interchangeable. Is there a clean definition and distinction between the…
vsz
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Song Structure: What's up with Verse/Chorus/Verse 2/Chorus/Verse 3/Bridge/Chorus?

Doesn't matter if it's Rage Against The Machine or Britney Spears song structures are always the same. It always goes something like: Verse/Chorus/Verse 2/Chorus/Verse 3/Bridge/Chorus. Why? Why is this such an accepted structure? What's the draw…
Mou某
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What is a ghost note ?

What is a ghost note and how is it different than holding the previous note ?
bleakcabal
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H-S-H vs H-H what can do one and can't another?

I'm seeking a guitar to elicit the rich fat heavy sound. So as I understand a guitar with the H humbucker (double coil) pickup is what I need for that. But there is a wide range of layouts for the guitars. Some of them have S single (single coil)…
rook
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How can I avoid getting loud picking sounds on a distorted electric guitar?

Whenever I hear solos from professional guitar players, in songs, for example, I never hear a loud noise of pick hitting the strings, even when the guitar is heavily distorted. I just learned a solo on my electric (with a tube amp), which requires…
user96872
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Why is the bass clef indicated twice on the same line in this Bartok piece?

Here's an excerpt from the piece Chromatic Invention from Bartok's Mikrokosmos, volume 3, page 39. I don't get why at the end of the lower line the bass clef indication is repeated. Is this "for security" like it's sometimes done with accidentals?…
user10960
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11 answers

How can I stop my electric guitar strings from rusting so quickly?

I suffer from hyperhyrdosis which means my hands sweat quite a lot. The problem is that because of this my electric guitar strings seem to rust quite quickly because of this. Is there anything I can do to stop my strings from rusting so easily?…
Dwayne Charrington
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Is there a highest note representable on sheet music without using an octave higher notation?

Is there a highest and lowest note that can be written on sheet music without using the one or more octave higher/lower notation? In my case for the piano specifically. I want to learn to sight read and my first goal is to be able to name any note…
user1594138
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What are the true frequencies of the piano keys?

In theory it is easy, to get the frequency of the note other than A4=440Hz you just multiply/divide 440Hz by the proper number. For example, to get A2, you divide by 4 and get A2=110Hz. I read for example…
nuoritoveri
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Is it possible to differentiate Major scale and Minor scale by ear?

A beginner's questions - regarding the major and minor scales. Consider the C major and C minor scales for example. What's the significance of major and minor scales, when both sounds almost same? Is it possible to differentiate major and minor…
Vishnu Haridas
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What is the best way to learn scales in order to improve improvisation/writing of lead guitar parts?

Where I'm at skill-wise Played guitar on-and-off for about 5 years Up until a year ago had only really learned by playing from tabs Have been undertaking bi-weekly guitar lessons for just over a year I don't know which notes are which on the…
Rich
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Are there any enharmonic chords?

Will I even encounter any enharmonic chords? For example, would an inverted variation of one chord be equivalent to the root variation of another chord?
RyanScottLewis
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