Are you happy?

[duderino84]

Sorry, wrong use of the word 'humanized'. I add my actual guitar playing (analog playing) to the track. I can't 'humanize' a guitar track that is already played by me. What I meant is, when you combine MIDI with actual analog playing, the output is tamed a bit. Fine now? To each his/her own. I don't mind how good or bad the other composers are and I won't even compare myself. This post is simply about sharing a thing or two with you, musicians of the forum.

I hear you, the way things are put together can cause some of the "taming". It's definitely a topic that can go either way, with a lot of tutorials lately on youtube seem to be leaning to the direction of "how do I MAXIMIZE my mix!?" and having to figure out what order to process tracks in. As far as other musicians, I mean I can appreciate that people play, but at the same time I think the whole "history repeats itself" trend keeps going and going.

And thank you and everyone else for doing so. But personally, I was always best at just sticking to the music, and just letting an engineer and producer handle all the technical stuff, even though I never did get as far as recording in an actual studio.

It's a good thing to get to at least see, but as it's something I've been reading up on/researching/looking for technique I can generally tell what software the engineer (at least at my local studio) will be using (usually pro tools, since that's the "live setting" DAW) and be thinking in my head "why do I need a guy to do this" when I have an interface offering me a slightly lesser version of the same software complimentary. There are the perks of "less troubleshooting" and "less outtakes because you're not the guy hitting play" but at the same time, those are the training wheels. Depends on how often you want to put out material.

 

[duderino84]

Also, Mario? If you've been unhappy for 12+ years you might want to consider seeing a psychiatrist (who can possibly prescribe anti-anxiety/depressants if your not already on them) or a psychologist who can help you work through your unhappiness. Being unhappy for that long can cause health issues and at the very least I think you'll find that medication can at least make things a little more bearable in your life.

Good point. At the very least "12+" sounds like it has baggage attached at the least. Never was fanatic about the concept of "stabilizers". Honestly, I used to be one of those guys that would "account" for the years....It's less stress inducing to think about what my goals are and what substantiates as happiness, and find a way to accomplish that so I can at least say "I wasted some time thinking about what wasn't going right before, but I'm resolving these problems now and there won't be a mental record to be maintained when I complete them".

 

[mariowuitomari]

Wow, what an interesting question. For the most part, yes, I'm happy. Me and my GF have our own home finally, ours jobs are going relatively well, both our cars still run (despite my car needing $500.00+ worth of maintenance this month), my sis is blissful in her marriage to her wife, my parents are doing okay health wise, and right now things are looking somewhat stable. I'm not very happy with the rise of the white supremacy, the religious right, and over all conservatism in the world but I consider it something that will backfire on itself.

Also, Mario? If you've been unhappy for 12+ years you might want to consider seeing a psychiatrist (who can possibly prescribe anti-anxiety/depressants if your not already on them) or a psychologist who can help you work through your unhappiness. Being unhappy for that long can cause health issues and at the very least I think you'll find that medication can at least make things a little more bearable in your life.

Yes I have been thinking about going to a psychiatrist/psychologist for a long time but I don't take the plunge. I have had very unhappy peroids in my life in which I had had absolutely crazy thoughts about me and my permanence in this world. Now I suffer a stable sadness. Two or three year ago I was manic depressive. Now I am just depressive.

 

[Rickytickly]

I hear you, the way things are put together can cause some of the "taming". It's definitely a topic that can go either way, with a lot of tutorials lately on youtube seem to be leaning to the direction of "how do I MAXIMIZE my mix!?" and having to figure out what order to process tracks in. As far as other musicians, I mean I can appreciate that people play, but at the same time I think the whole "history repeats itself" trend keeps going and going.


It's a good thing to get to at least see, but as it's something I've been reading up on/researching/looking for technique I can generally tell what software the engineer (at least at my local studio) will be using (usually pro tools, since that's the "live setting" DAW) and be thinking in my head "why do I need a guy to do this" when I have an interface offering me a slightly lesser version of the same software complimentary. There are the perks of "less troubleshooting" and "less outtakes because you're not the guy hitting play" but at the same time, those are the training wheels. Depends on how often you want to put out material.

Well, I have read quite a lot of books about it at least, so I do know how it's all done, I just never actually been in the studio and did it. And like I just told Bohemianne, I did do the analog stuff years ago on my 4-track Tascam, and if I ever want to learn how to do it myself digitally, I'm sure I can research it and figure it out, would be much cheaper than going into a studio, like Bohemianne said! 🙂

 

[Rickytickly]

Sorry, dude, I hope that made SOME sense, I apologize If I didn't address what you just said correctly; but there's a lot going on here now so I'm getting a bit confused, lol, but yeah, I get the gist of it, lol! 😉

 

[duderino84]

Definitely a lot here in this thread honestly it's too easy to get wrapped up in looking at the most recent posts and forgetting about the whole picture. There's all kinds of ways with the Tascam I think but I saw the guys who seemingly got the best use out of it were keyboard players. Everything else you do need a way to tame analog signals like guitars or mics because they're always "on." I think it might be easier to just go digital tho compared to attaching hardware to it.

Plenty of sense here, trying to help people convert to real profit lol.

 

[Rickytickly]

Definitely a lot here in this thread honestly it's too easy to get wrapped up in looking at the most recent posts and forgetting about the whole picture. There's all kinds of ways with the Tascam I think but I saw the guys who seemingly got the best use out of it were keyboard players. Everything else you do need a way to tame analog signals like guitars or mics because they're always "on." I think it might be easier to just go digital tho compared to attaching hardware to it.

Plenty of sense here, trying to help people convert to real profit lol.

I'm sure digital is the best way, yeah. The only reason I was using the Tascam Porta 05, if that's even the correct name, was because that's all they had back then, well that was the one I could afford, for home recording, meaning that's the last time I recorded or was actively playing guitar or in bands, so we're talking early 90's here, a long time before PC's even existed. So yeah, if I was to start all this again, because since then all I've done is mess around on my acoustic by myself, no recording or anything, of course I'd do it digitally. But the books I mentioned I read, were about the old consoles and stuff, like the early ones at Abbey Road, etc., and how analog recording was originally done, so I have no idea how it's done now, but I'd have no problem finding out.

 

[Rickytickly]

See, this post is about "Are we happy?", remember, and I forget how we got on this subject of music, but the reason I gave it up, and I don't remember if I mentioned it here, was because it WASN'T making me happy. I know what I need, and that is companionship. I still haven't found it, but at least I deal better with my loneliness than I once did. I just know getting into music again won't solve it, but getting out there and socializing more might. I know I can do both, but for me, doing it without the music is easier. Like right now I started a volunteer job that will help me meet people, and music would just take time away from that.

 

[Bohemianne]

I hear you, the way things are put together can cause some of the "taming". It's definitely a topic that can go either way, with a lot of tutorials lately on youtube seem to be leaning to the direction of "how do I MAXIMIZE my mix!?" and having to figure out what order to process tracks in. As far as other musicians, I mean I can appreciate that people play, but at the same time I think the whole "history repeats itself" trend keeps going and going.


It's a good thing to get to at least see, but as it's something I've been reading up on/researching/looking for technique I can generally tell what software the engineer (at least at my local studio) will be using (usually pro tools, since that's the "live setting" DAW) and be thinking in my head "why do I need a guy to do this" when I have an interface offering me a slightly lesser version of the same software complimentary. There are the perks of "less troubleshooting" and "less outtakes because you're not the guy hitting play" but at the same time, those are the training wheels. Depends on how often you want to put out material.

Hmmm... would you mind explaining a bit about what you mean when you say "history repeats itself" trend?
Anyway, as far as the DIY music methods, IMO, we do it on our own for a reason, and in my case, the huge thing is: convenience, privacy and control of what you do.

See, this post is about "Are we happy?", remember, and I forget how we got on this subject of music, but the reason I gave it up, and I don't remember if I mentioned it here, was because it WASN'T making me happy. I know what I need, and that is companionship. I still haven't found it, but at least I deal better with my loneliness than I once did. I just know getting into music again won't solve it, but getting out there and socializing more might. I know I can do both, but for me, doing it without the music is easier. Like right now I started a volunteer job that will help me meet people, and music would just take time away from that.

Oh, ok. I see where you're coming from in terms of needing a companion. But going back a bit to what we started here in this thread about music and being happy... was it not about the "moment"? I go back to music everyday, not for anything (not to be anyone) but for that special moment of silence between you and your medium. You are playing in solitude, maybe with some dexterity, complete silence with nothing except what you do... and the whole spirit creeps inside you for some second or minutes -- that very moment constitutes one "true happiness" you can create. And for some reason, you do it alone, no one can feel but only you. You can go back to the same ritual again and again, not the whole day. If it's all about executing your thing, a few seconds is sort of one lifetime. You remember it daily. It may sound an exaggeration...but that's it.

 

[ManInDistress]

No I'm not happy, I've suffered sever depression for several years so my biochemistry doesn't do happy. Happiness however is not required and you can learn to adapted as well as possible despite your depression, someone may not be wealthy but they can still pay the bills even if they struggle to do so, and thus not everyone is happy yet can make the best of the life they have even if it isn't often pleasant. You don't have to be happy, just do put in the best effort you can muster and enjoy the moments of contentment your fortunate enough to have.

 

[MrPeanut]

No, but my medication takes the edge off it

 

[luvgirlsfeet]

not at the moment

 

[matt62]

I would like to know if you are happy or not and in both cases why. For example I am not happy and I don't know why. I have been unhappy for 12 years. Since I was a teenager I haven't been happy. Well I have had more or less good period or days but if I look back I can't consider that my live has been happy.

I am not happy, and I know why - long-term illness and the limitations that that brings, plus the problem of being a sensitive soul in a dysfunctional society that I have always felt at odds with and unable to make much progress in.

Nevertheless I had a good start in life, thanks to loving parents, and relative material security, and I am very grateful for that. It has given me some resilience to cope with life's difficulties.

Also I seem to be blessed with endless natural curiosity about life and the world that I live in - I find that even though I am not really happy, I am INTERESTED. I am sort of enjoying the show. I just wish I was able to join in more often.

I find the thoughts of Eckhart Tolle ("The Power of Now", etc) very true. He says that happiness may not be the best thing for us to aim for anyway, but we can find peace even without happiness. Happiness is fleeting and hard to pin down, and it comes and goes, and has different meanings for us at different times. But peace, of a certain deep transcendent kind that is not dependent on outward circumstances, is something that we do need. And to find it is both incredibly simple, and powerfully transformative and therefore something that we tend subconsciously to avoid - you don't have to DO anything to reach it, you just have to stop resisting each moment.

That should be so easy, yet for most of us it seems to take a lifetime.

I'm working on it. I think it requires us to get to the point where we can take a certain leap of faith about life, stopping seeing the world as an external threat, and seeing it instead as essentially friendly and indivisible from ourselves. Our whole culture screams the opposite at us every day, and encourages us to escape from reality rather than to embrace it. Maybe we should tell it where to go, and find our peace.

Oh, and art, music and nature do help. So does comedy.

 

[Sandisk444]

I think I am unhappy but I don't think it's weighing on me that much. I have the best friend I could possibly ask for picking me up when I'm at my lowest and I'm also taking the steps towards fixing the things in my life that would make me unhappy. All in all I'm unhappy but optimistic about the future.

 

[Rectangle]

Yeah, more or less.

Combination of mental training and medication xD

This.
Mostly medication.

Then again, what is "happy"?
Satisfaction? Contentment?
Constant jubilant excitement?
An absence of excessive suffering?

I guess my answer would change depending on the definition.

 

[Wolf]

I am, for the most part, since I've realized that most of the things I was unhappy about didn't actually have any effect on my life.

 

[Alliekat]

I am a fairly happy person. I have a lot to be thankful for and have a lot going for me in both my professional and personal life.

 

[moose]

i have no reason to be sad so i'm pretty happy

 

[porcelaindoll2]

For the most part yes. I really have no reason to be super unhappy.

 

[EmbraceSerenity]

More or less I am. Some things I'd change but I can't get upset over things I cannot change. Most days I really can't complain.

 

[monto]

I didn't used to be, but I am now

 

[BlasterMaster]

Got a minor promotion and a small raise in my paycheck recently so, yeah, I'm happy. ^_^

 

[Secretlee]

I used to not be happy at all. Now I'm happy sometimes, actually probably more often than not I'd say I'm happy. Don't have any external reasons to be unhappy, they're all just in my head. But I'm working through them.

 

[jj9999]

I am happy because Virginia Tech beat West Virginia in the college football season opener. GO HOKIES!!!

 

[paracarl44]

I am happy because today is my birthday.