the Pre-thesis in Music--tROCKS24 -- Tempe

The Pre-thesis in Music Tempe Edwards 3/11/2011

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I call this writing piece a Pre-thesis only because music has always been my forte'. It's the only subject that I know so much about. Ever since the first day I saw the piano, it has always excited me and I have always been intrigued by it. It inspired me to continue playing after playing my older brother's keyboard, that was when I knew I wanted to be a famous keyboardist. Being on youtube and a member of LPA (a fansite) gave me a great head start towards my goal for occupations and a "non-await" achieving my dreams.

In my todler years, about at age four, we were at a restaurant. Once we got waited on and seated, behind me was a band that only had a singer, a piano player, and maybe some other instrument players and a drummer. I was young so I had to sit in the high chair. As soon as the band started playing, i turned my head around to keep my eyes on the piano player. Once our dinner came, still my mind was focused on the band playing-I kept my head turned around. As soon as they stopped playing, that was when I turned my head back around to eat. I did that many times. Unfortunately, I do not know the name of this particular restaurant and its location.

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I have an older half brother named Nyron. He plays music or used to rather. About 11 years ago, he was babysitting my other brother and I. We spent a couple of nights at Nyron's house. My parents left on business trips since they are tax accountants. While we were at Nyron's house, I was so bored, I went "snoozing around"-searching what to do. I made my way in the basement and found a keyboard sitting on top of my brother's desk. I went upstairs to ask him if I could play it and got permission. So, I played around with it and such, made a few songs right off the top of my head until it was time for me to stop. When it was stop time, I played Nyron's keyboard so much, it got on his nervs and he yelled my name for me to stop playing it. That keyboard was a Yahamah 495 and from that day on, that was when I knew I wanted to continue playing the keyboard/piano.



Near the end of a year later, on Christmas morning- 12/25/2000, around 8:00am, I ran downstairs to open presents. Standing right by the fireplace was a Casio 495 keyboard. I wasso happy and excited, I could not wait to start playing it. I wanted to keep my keyboard in my room rather than the basement only because of three words: spiders, spider-webbs, and cobb-webbs. I hate those the most. I did not want my keyboard to get affected by that at all.



One day, I played my keyboard all evening to night, in a "teaching myself how to play on my own" type of mode. Later on, within the next few days, I went song searching from the song bank. There, I found my top four favorite songs. My top four favorite songs out of 100 was: La Cucaracha, the Hungarian Dances N.05, Toy Symphony, and Kang Ding Qing Ge. Out of four of those songs, I learned quickly how to play La Cucaracha and Kang Ding Qing Ge. Later on, I found the alternative rock genre.



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In that same year, I discovered alternative rock. On one Saturday morning, I turned on the television in my room. This was the year, in 2000, that Mtv was streaming new and Mtv2 was not out yet. So, at that time was a music video channel called "The Box". It was a music video station. I remember waking up around 9:00A.M. and started watching these rock music videos. Some people say that again at that particular time was the new generation of the rock millennium broke out. I got so much into watching those rock music videos, I must of had been watching them for about four hours to where I was definitely noticing those music videos being repeated about for the third time. They must of had grouped them and then it repeats by that way. That was also when I first "met" Linkin Park for the first time, watching their hit single: "In the End." Also, because of that, that was when I became a fan of Linkin Park. This video stood out and that I really liked and enjoyed.



A few years later, I was playing local songs (singles that you hear on the radio) on the keyboard along with some albums. I had Hybrid Theory that have In the End as part of Linkin Park's song list. My very first song that I learned and taught myself how to play on that same cd was called Runaway. Back then, I used my portable tape recorder/player and an old laptop that was close to broking down. I wrote "Runaway" about twice for keyboard notes. Then I used my recorder to record the song piece while I play my keyboard. I wanted to save this because it sounded so good. I decided to put the recording on to my old laptop. Sadly, days later it finally broke down because of its old age. I did not have a copy of both of the recordings.



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I am always the type who records and write things down to save it in file later, musically and for other things. As a true example, I write down each note to save and for rememberance. I figured out just by me writing notes down, for keyboard, that's how I learn the song pieces by memory and that is how I've became so good at playing music. I also learn by repetition as well. I am those two types of learners. Seeing and hearing are okay, its just not that exciting as hands-on and repetition; from dealing with the five senses. This is one way of organization. Organization is really a good thing to have, especially with leading to my profession.



When I am learning (teaching myself how to play) new songs, I found an easier key and it works every time especially in this genre, the alternative rock genre: the first step is to find the key signature. The key signature is the same thing as a music scale, such as D minor and Db Major scales. The notes of the scale from the song should not be hard to find because all you have to do is to listen for the 'matching note.' If the note sounds like it matches and sounds all nice and pretty, then its a winner-its part of that scale. If that note does not sound nice and pretty, such as sounding ugly and wierd, then that is not part of the scale and song. The term of this definition prior to the two previous statements are called chords. Chords are supposed to sound nice and pretty and they are supposed to flow like in a stream or in a river flow.



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The second step is to write that scale (the notes, normally between 7 and 9 notes) down. As an optional thing, you can write the order of the song. For instance, the refraine comes first then verse 1-introduction, refraine, verse 2 including the middle of the song, refraine and then end of the song. That order is the normal order. Third, write out each note that is neeed to fulfill each part such as the refraine and verse. Finally, its the repetition and playing time. Afterwards comes the editing that includes the change of the note order. This way, you could figure out your flow and note choice. For every note, there are about two choices in terms of chords. Normally, there are three to a chord, but it would be either too low, medium or too high. So it is better to choose a happy medium. As long as these four steps are followed, then you are off to a great successful start of a good cover and great covers. This is good to know because while you are writing these notes down, you can always refer back to them later. You can even look back at it years down the road.



For me, by me following these steps, it made me have some successfully video keyboard playing covers. For instance, that very first Linkin Park song that I taught myself how to play and then, I recorded it on my older laptop, well, just a few days ago, I had to play by my barrings even though, I wrote the song about five times and still have those written pieces. I played this song- Runaway by Linkin Park [Hybrid Theory] so much that I pretty much know it by heart. I've been playing that song for about 10 years in and out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcgGxAmxikY



My very first popular video cover was a song called "Blackout" by Linkin Park. I originally thought that the first part of this song was by Keaton Hashimoto and that the second part-the rest of the song was by Linkin Park, Mike Shinoda's part, but it turned out that it was all Linkin Park-later I found out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiqYnpyjwJQ I was so happy once I found out that Linkin Park saw this cover video. They were tying to figure out if I knew that Keaton Hashimoto was not the one who wrote Blackout. In my video tage, it does say Linkin Park. They talked about that at this website link:

http://www.lpassociation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=33118&page=2

this link should bring you there. My Blackout cover video is actually posted on that first page instead of page 2.

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That previous given website is one of Linkin Park's website's for their fans. The name of this website is actually http://www.lpassociation.com For LPA, it launched in April 2001, but the splash page was made in December 2001. This website is 10 years old now. Derek the Infamous and Omar was the one who created LPAAlso, because I am a very huge fan of Linkin Park, I have the opportunity to chat with Linkin Park's fans. That is a good thing because we have so much in common towards Linkin Park and their music. As great thanks to Ree, I am now a member on their website. She wanted me to join. I interviewed Ree first because she invited me to join. I was so happy about that too. Ree is from the UK and I asked her three questions. The first question is: How did you first found out about LPA [Linkin Park Association]?



Ree replied: "I found out about LPA through another fansite." Question two was: What made you join LPA?



Her reply was: "LPA are great at updating news and the members are awesome here. Finally, I asked Ree: How long have you been a member on LPA?



Ree replied that she been on there since July 2010.



I did a second interview, another big fan of Linkin Park. He enjoys playing piano and really enjoys the guitar. He enjoy's playing music as much as I do and the type of genre. Again, I asked him three groups of questions: the frist question is How long have you been playing piano?



He answered "I've been playing piano since the fourth grade or also since I was ten years old. It was before I picked up a guitar and I always loved listening to stuff from Mozart and Beethoven, the classical stuff." Then, I asked him: who first taught you?



He replied "I guess it was introduced to me in my music class in elementary school, but no one really taught me in terms of actually sitting me down and telling me what key was what note, chords, sustain pedals, or any of that. The same happened with guitar-I taught myself." Finally, I asked him "Why as a group, did you choose to be in alternative rock genre verses all of the different types of rock genres-hard rock and soft rock...and other genre's -jazz, blues, Jpop?"



Finally, he replied "I thinkI got into rock due to its ability to include any instrument really and still have that heavy, head bopping feeling, particularly with guitars. I love playing guitar, so I think almost naturally, rock became my favorite genre and so bands like Linkin Park definitely became idols."

The original website for Linkin Park is www.linkinpark.com.


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I totally agree with MKH's answers. Also, when I started college in 2006, as a freshman, I went to Meramec Community College, that was the absolute first time that someone has taught me and the rest of the class members. Mrs. Susan Smitt first taught me and others in a classroom setting how to play the piano, correctly and in the proper way. I was totally lost. I did not understand the number fingering chart placement thing at all. It was all brand new to me and I am slow at learning things. Luckly, I passed with a B% in that class. By the time I reached my second year at college, at Florissant Valley Community College-Dr. Paul Higdon was my professor there- we did reviews on the number fingering chart then we did a lot of song playing. In my Junior year of college at the same school, That was when we had to memorize scales, at least two or three or even five of our choice and we also did some more song playing. We'd have our own class room recital to where we would play for our classmates, kind of like a presentation. I did well in all of my piano classes I-IV. My grades were A's and B's. After that, I graduated from Community College in 2009.



Also, because of my progress at keyboard/piano playing, the reasons why I joined youtube in April 2010 was that my ultimate goal is to really become an internationally youtube known star. That'll be only just the beginning. The rest would come later, such as, being a professionally well-knowned keyboard player. I added internationally only because I enjoyistening to world music like Korean-pop, Japanese-rock, Arabic music, in the Middle East... Ever since when I went to UMKC, that was when I first discovered Arabic Music and Korean-Pop. I had always loved Linkin Park's music. Plus, some of the members are half Japanese. That list is all of what I listen to for around the world. A second reason is that because I was normally shy, I want to break out of the shyness. Sometimes, I get locked back into the shyness mode (as you might of had noticed in class.). I guess its one of those hard habits to break. That has always been my difficulty. I am a whole lot better at me not being shy. I am glad of that too.



Finally, I enjoy being a keyboardist. I am glad that I discovered it. Still, this is the beginning of me being a keyboardist even though I have many years of training for piano and more years with experience. I can not wait to see what this opportunity of me being a keyboards brings to me. Its like being a mystery. I can not wait for the doors of opportunity of me being a well-knowned keyboardist to open.

 

This is fiction, right?

 

yes, this whole essay is true--esp. the small stories** there are some mistakes in it that Ree mentioned; ill be sure to fix them.

 

i forgot i can go ahead and make corrections and then copy and paste to school's website thingy for class.