Posts by Adam Ross4

@Lisa Rodriguez84: what's your primary instrument... 😁

Lisa Rodriguez84 said:Believe me, it’s not something we’re all born with...

I’ve read some theories suggesting we actually *are* born with it, but then external factors kick in and strip that ability away from about 99% of us... not entirely sure which specific influences, though. I'll have to dig through some books and see what I can find. 🤔

You're in the music industry... how many people do you run into who actually have an ear like that?

The general consensus is that it’s only about 1% of the population.😁

Lisa Rodriguez84 said:It’s innate. Doesn't take much practice to get there.

Heh... depends on who you ask... 😁
Some swear we're all born with perfect pitch. Others think it's strictly genetic. Then there's the crowd that believes it's just about being blasted with music as a kid...

I'd put my money on the last one... 😎

Lisa Rodriguez84 said:That’s called perfect pitch. It's innate—you don't really need much practice for it. People with that gift can play anything by ear and transcribe everything just by listening. For them, music is practically second nature. I know someone like that.

Perfect pitch means identifying notes without any reference tone...
transcribing a song or playing by ear isn't the same thing... people without perfect pitch can still reproduce melodies "from their heads" just fine...

Calling talent and practice "bad" words when you're talking about art is... 😁 👍

Gulpa said:I don't know... that's honestly how it went down for him. 🙂

I doubt it. 😉
Just go have a quick chat with him about it... 👍

Gulpa said:I disagree. 😁
For instance, I listen to music constantly and pick up an instrument every now and then... but if you killed me, I’d tell you I have zero musical ear. 😉

Then get used to it... 👍
You think you lack an ear just because you believe you do. 😁
I've watched my own ability develop over years of playing... it's a bit hazy, but I remember when I started, I couldn't distinguish intervals or grasp complex rhythms... now? It's effortless. 😁 It feels like it was always there. 😁

Gulpa said:I can read sheet music and memorize a melody, but without natural pitch, I'm limited to whatever I can drill through practice... whereas my old neighbor, who barely finished elementary school... man, he was born with it. 👍 He hears a song once and plays it back perfectly. 👍

That ability to play back a song after hearing it comes with time. It isn't some magic trick that happens overnight. 😬

Great topic! 👍

I dabble in at least three things most people would label as "talent"—some even claim it’s all in the DNA 🤔. A few acquaintances call me talented, but I always set them straight: I don't have any special gift. When people ask how much they need to practice daily to master something like music, I tell them it isn't about talent or even sheer practice hours. It’s about habit.

Of course, I'm excluding outliers here. A man without legs can't exactly habituate himself to sprinting.

In my experience, it's the habit. Take musicians, for instance. Over the years, they simply train their bodies to recognize specific tones and scales—to think and react in a certain way. Software engineers get used to the logic of how machines operate, and so on...

Take vocalists. Whether a voice is considered "good" or "bad" is purely subjective taste. Once they train their voices to hit certain notes, they develop a unique style. You can't really say one is less talented than another. No one is born with the innate ability to sing or paint; everyone has to train their physical self to perform those tasks.

Habit comes from repetitive engagement with an activity. Naturally, that implies a certain inclination toward it. Nobody spends their time doing something they actually hate.

So, it isn't talent or practice. It's habit and inclination. 👍

I haven't exactly reinvented the wheel 🤔 ... just a slight rephrasing ... 👍