@eesn, It’s both good and bad, but I am far less likely to just noodle on the piano. Which has its pluses and minuses. There’s music I can play now, recognizable music that makes my wife make appreciative noises. The drill has been really good. I haven’t gotten as much theory as I’d like, which is partially my fault (I’m not pushing for it), but I’m getting some, and that rubs off on to the noodling I do on the OP-1 (which typically prompts questions like, “Doesn’t that thing let you use headphones?” ).
Interestingly, practicing assigned music on the OP-1 does seem to have some benefits when I get back to the piano, although because the key spacing is so different, it’s more a cognitive exercise, I think, an learning the music, rather than muscle memory.
The same listening I started with the OP-1 has rubbed off on the piano, and vice versa. I’ve gotten far better (although I still suck at it) at self-critique than I was before I started with the lessons. Having my instructor sitting next to me once a week and catching the smallest bobble in my assigned work makes me more self-critical in generally a good way.
@eesn, The drill has been really good. I haven't gotten as much theory as I'd like, which is partially my fault (I'm not pushing for it), [...] Having my instructor sitting next to me once a week and catching the smallest bobble in my assigned work makes me more self-critical in generally a good way.
The primary thing that pushes me away from the idea of just taking lessons now is that i’d like a focus on theory and composition rather than playing technique and performance - a technique for loose improvisation if you like, rather than someone policing my fingers and tempo and stresses. Which is why I asked about your experience. I know this technical stuff can be tweaked later in a DAW, but finding the sweet tones to follow and complement each other is to me a different thing - unlocked much more easily by knowing your way around the instrument. I can’t sight-read music either, but from what I’ve tried, seems to me that staff notation “records” very little and leaves a huge amount to interpret.
Does anyone else here use Synthesia? I bought a full 88 key midi controller (hammer 88) and used Synthesia to learn a few pretty complicated songs. One of the best programs for learning songs… doesnt do anything for technique or theory, but its a great way to get the feel of using both hands.
@eesn — My instructor’s pretty good about talking about interpretation, even now, which is good. But yeah, I’m not convinced I’m really getting my way around an instrument — especially a synth as opposed to the piano — as much as I thought. I don’t regret the time invested, but it’s paying different dividends than I expected when I signed the contract and made the initial payment.
I’m probably not the guy who should be answering this question because I took piano lessons when I was a child. One thing I love about the OP-1 is that I can play it with headphones at night in the dark while I’m lying on my back. This has forced me into a “touch typing” approach to playing music just as @seanfear says! I come up with different interesting stuff when I do that, and it feels like I have some new neural connections between what I imagine, what I hear, and the way my fingers move. There’s no other synth I know of where I can do this.
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