[BATTLE OF THE EXQUISITE CORPSE] Team Verses! (Stage 1) - Start the sample search!

Yeah I’m essentially just scared, with a touch of imposter syndrome ha, so I appreciate the message! I’m tagging along with @Ryan’s practice collab so hopefully that will ease me into it :slight_smile:

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I imagine many of us are just self taught with zero music theory skills.
I basically got into music in the late 80s doing my best to make my own feedback guitar madness with tons of pedals.
Not much has changed except I swapped out guitars for synths.

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I. AM. SOOO F#ckin

HERE FOR THIS!!!

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@Ryan started a “pregame” chat where I posted a link to some noodling I did on the RYTM>OT>AH+FX
Since some people are posting samples and such, I figured I’d drop this here as well to show one example of what I could possibly throw down in the challenge.
Someone could take something like this and chop it up however they like into a song structure with other instruments etc.
Looking forward to teaming up :wink:

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Yep, I imagine many musicians are self taught with little or no grasp of (academic) music theory. Of course the benefit of this is that you’re not limited by said musical theory and you may be more likely to take risks.
I’ve just been enjoying Tim Shoebridge’s latest video that touches on this very subject:

I think if you can knock two things together to make a sound you like you shouldn’t ever worry about justifying yourself as a ‘musician’. Certainly, I hope no one is sitting on the sidelines of this challenge thinking, I’d like to have a go but I don’t think I’m good enough.
Come and join in and benefit from the learning you’ll get from working with others…no one is judging you…well, not until the end when we’ll all judge each other but, you know what I mean.

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I used to kind of think of music theory as a limitation on exploration.
After animating for 15 years, I’ve changed my opinion and see a lack of it more to do with my lack of discipline to learn.

In animation you learn the 12 principles of animation set in stone by old school Disney animators. Without that knowledge your animations will suck no doubt.

I’m not saying that completely apples to music and having a lack of music theory. Many of my favorite music artists have no theory.

Nevertheless I see it as something that would dramatically enhance the ability to write completed material.

I think I just talked myself into bucking down and learning music theory.

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I’m literally just sat here learning the roots of chords and their accompanying scales.
I’ve got a long way without much theory but I think a good balance of academic and empiric knowledge/skills is good.
Just nobody ask me what key I’m playing in until I’ve learned some of this stuff :grinning:

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I’ve always been in a similar boat. Know very little about the music I’m playing.
Another thing I’ve noticed that makes knowing theory a good thing is that you can discuss music throughly with other musicians who know.
You both share a language making it easier to understand one another.

When I was a teen I took jazz band in high school. Heavy emphasis on improve and just going for it.
I’ve never had much problems going for it.
But I do wish I had more knowledge to become more rounded out.

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Imma stop you two right there.

Have you heard your own music?

You know music theory. It’s just not conscious.

Especially if you use a keyboard in any way, because its structure is a physical representation of musical theory.

There are people who never make or listen to music that cannot hum.

Those people don’t know any theory.

You guys are way farther along than you realize.

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And if you use the circle of fifths, you can just figure out the scale and the flats.

If you just run through them as a warm up, you’ll know scale and key signature in a week.

Start a C. Go up 5 (include counting C) to G. Raise the 7th key (F sharp)

G has one flat. (F sharp)

Count up 5 including G. That’s D. Raise the 7th. (C sharp)

D has two flats. (F sharp and C sharp)

You can do that all the way to B and then it inverts and you add flats. Or something.

That part doesn’t matter because you will probably be using minor scales before that.

YES!

SO MUCH THIS.

If you can apply some element of music theory then you “know it” even if you don’t know what the technique is called, whereas if you know it from a book, but can’t use it then you don’t.

It’s like when people say the Beatles didn’t know any music theory. The complex structures of their songs says otherwise even if they couldn’t tell you what page of a theory manual you would find it on.

Also learning music theory never makes you less creative that’s just a total myth.

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I actually had this tested when I started my piano lessons… I came up with something on the Matriarch that sounds like what i usually make… and i asked him why it sounds like something and what exactly I was doing…

I forget exactly, but he explained something about how I was playing fourths. And then I blew him away with my variation… and he said I was just playing the fifth now, and its actually very common chord progression I thought I masterfully designed.

Turns out… Im not a genius… just basic.

@BLKrbbt something came up and I’m, sadly, not going to be able to partake in this challenge.

Have fun everybody!

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  1. @aarb420 (teamed with Nate Horn)

  2. @thermionic

  3. @jdaddyaz

  4. @monquixote

  5. @malus_mons

  6. @Maisin

  7. @OrangeDrink

  8. @KingDuppy

Updated list

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I’d like to join if registration is still open!

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Added!

Welcome. Ask if you have questions, and I will explain everything as we go, so you will be up to speed.

Alright, I’m in!

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I’m going to break up this challenge into different threads, and I’ll make sure to keep all the peeps invited.

I think it’s a good way to keep things organized. Especially with so many samples flying around.

Plus, most of the battles are for the listener, but this one will just be for us kinda.

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Just to let everyone know the plan, I am going to migrate this to a Production Thread.

I will quote everyone on the list individually, and if you can respond with your element, when I announce the teams, I will make each team with all the participants and their sample in one post, so its easy reference.

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Hear is the next stage thread for building the teams.

Please visit the next thread and post your element you are bringing to the battle!

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