Guitar Hero and guitarists

[Acaroid]

I played GH so I could learn to use my violin.........

B4 you ask WTF

I am a natural left handed instument holder (im nromally a right hander but guitars, violins etc I cant help but use them left handed)

and trying to find/buy a left handed violin was a PAIN... so I bought my violin (years ago) but struggled so badly, because of the awkward handedness... So i gave up a little...

sooooooo

I played GH on right handed so I could get that mentality to be able to....
and it worked XD well sort of... im a bit busy atm for alot of violin practice...but anyway...

Oh and im the only person I know that can beat the game on hard lefty flip and normal... (I can crack expert on normal... only because that is what i practiced more at...I could probably do it on lefty but havent really tried)


But on another note, I think the drum set makes me want to play the drums more than the guitarH made me want to play that!!! i so want to play drums now!

 

[BonsaiK]

"As for the people that say "Why not learn the actual instrument?": keep your egos in check and think for a moment. One thing requires dedication to practice, a somewhat expensive instrument (and lessons), and is a solo endeavor. You either perform for a person/people, or play by yourself. The other is somewhat easy to pick up, relatively cheap, and can be play both socially and competitively."

I absolutely see your point, but I DID keep my ego in check and think about this, and came up with different conclusions.

A cheap guitar = $AUS100
Cost of lessons = none (I was self-taught, and also got friends to teach me)
Dedication to practice = depends on how good you want to get
A solo endeavour? Not if you start or join a band. And contrary to popular belief you definitely do not need to be a good player to be in a band. I know cos I'm in one hahaha...

Cost of Guitar Hero game + perhipherals = $AUS100 (maybe more, not sure)
Cost of lessons = none
Dedication to practice = depends on how good you want to get
Also not a solo endeavour if you bring friends around.

It's true that the musician who starts off with a $100 guitar will possibly eventually buy a $400 guitar, and amplifiers etc. if they stick with it. It's also true that by then, the Guitar Hero fan has probably bought the next gen of console, or at the very least a couple of GH sequels.

Anyway it's all just stuff to think about. I'm not saying I'm right because I'm probably not, I'm just putting this stuff out here to see what people think about the issue. It's your opinions that I'm really interested in.

 

[BonsaiK]

I played GH so I could learn to use my violin.........

B4 you ask WTF

I am a natural left handed instument holder (im nromally a right hander but guitars, violins etc I cant help but use them left handed)

and trying to find/buy a left handed violin was a PAIN... so I bought my violin (years ago) but struggled so badly, because of the awkward handedness... So i gave up a little...

sooooooo

I played GH on right handed so I could get that mentality to be able to....
and it worked XD well sort of... im a bit busy atm for alot of violin practice...but anyway...

Oh and im the only person I know that can beat the game on hard lefty flip and normal... (I can crack expert on normal... only because that is what i practiced more at...I could probably do it on lefty but havent really tried)


But on another note, I think the drum set makes me want to play the drums more than the guitarH made me want to play that!!! i so want to play drums now!

This is the most awesome GH-related story I've ever heard.

 

[j.c.]

1. Can you play guitar in real life? If so, does Guitar Hero appeal to you and if so, why?
2. For those who don't play actual guitar, does playing Guitar Hero make you want to learn the real thing, or not? And why/why not?
3. How many people here took up the real instrument after Guitar Hero (or a similar "hold a plastic guitar in front of a computer" type game) caught their interest?

1) yes and Ive worked on and off in live music my whole life. It appeals to me because all my friends are nonmusicians and they feel like they belong now. They have fun with it,and so do I. And I could NEVER play drums in real life but I can on Rock Band on expert. Also, any band i've ever worked in will NEVER play a setlist as badass as my warmup list on Rock Band2. The studio I work in uses Rock Band 2 as a tool to get bands to help their communication in studio as well.

2) n/a but oddly enough Sunday night I was working for a band who's drummer had her drum kit (very very VERY tiny kit) reshaped to be more like her Rock Band drums and she tore it up. So I asked her why. She said she was a shitty shitty drummer until spending 2 weeks with Rock Band and it saved her from getting kicked outta the band. So she wasn't a real drummer until Rock Band

3) I bought a digital drum kit for my personal studio to try to actually learn drums.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

I play guitar, bass, and the upright bass. guitar hero also didn't appeal to me in the slightest. I played stage with all three instruments, so why would I want a video game where I was basically doing the same thing?

I figure, why fake the feeling? I picked up a mandolin, a 12 string acoustic, and a few other oddities when I felt like learning a new skill. Oh yeah, I'm not rich, I just have a job and it pays enough for me to put a little cash back for instruments every so often.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

1) I can play guitar in real life, and by that I mean I possess the necessary technical skill to play. I'm under the impression at this point that I clearly do not possess an innate understading of music as all I can do is read sheet music and play what is given and am unable to compose a tune without ripping off something I already know.

2) I dabbled with the guitar before GH came out. GH convinced me it really WAS as easy as it looked. From a purely technical standpoint, playing the guitar is nothing but muscle memory and is therefore easily learned, however; as I alluded to earlier I do not appear to have any innate musical talent because all I can do is play what's written.

3) I don't fall into this category, but to be honest I'd have to say that GH is a notable game for one simple reason. For the briefest of moments when playing GH I actually believed at some deep seated level that I was, in fact, some sort of rock god. Once I realized I believed that, the sense of immersion was lost and I have never regained it. Since I don't expect to be standing in front of several thousand screaming fans any time soon for any of my talents, I suppose those 5 seconds during Holiday in Cambodia will have to do.

 

[Acaroid]

I played GH so I could learn to use my violin.........

B4 you ask WTF

I am a natural left handed instument holder (im nromally a right hander but guitars, violins etc I cant help but use them left handed)

and trying to find/buy a left handed violin was a PAIN... so I bought my violin (years ago) but struggled so badly, because of the awkward handedness... So i gave up a little...

sooooooo

I played GH on right handed so I could get that mentality to be able to....
and it worked XD well sort of... im a bit busy atm for alot of violin practice...but anyway...

Oh and im the only person I know that can beat the game on hard lefty flip and normal... (I can crack expert on normal... only because that is what i practiced more at...I could probably do it on lefty but havent really tried)


But on another note, I think the drum set makes me want to play the drums more than the guitarH made me want to play that!!! i so want to play drums now!

This is the most awesome GH-related story I've ever heard.

LoL thanks Im glad to please

 

[ADDLibrarian]

Do flight simulators make you want to run out and pilot planes? Do dating sims make you more confident to talk to actual human beings? Does a cooking sim like cooking mama make you hungry? Ok, so that last one is actually true for me, but my point is that Guitar Hero is a sim, meant to be enjoyed for its own sake. I try to improve on Guitar Hero...well, to be perfectly girly and honest, I try to improve GH to make more money to buy my characters outfits and guitars. If I didn't have that reason, I would practice GH just for the challenge of the game, like not wanting to burn a dish in cooking mama or getting the "bad ending" of a dating sim.
I play violin and have been since before GH, so I've actually worked at the skills needed to learn an instrument. Being a musician, I'm glad that GH has inspired people to try an instrument for themselves, it's just not the case for me.

Edit: to answer your questions in the three pronged punchy format:

1.Nope, don't play guitar. Don't have the desire/money/time to do so.
2. Nope, see question 1
3. Nope, but glad if it did.