Originally posted by Diki:
For me,. music has always been a conversation. You talk to the guitarist, he talks back. The sax player picks up on the conversation, adds something new, all of a sudden the conversation goes somewhere you didn't expect, and your ears and attention pricks up.
You don't get that with an arranger...
Don't get me wrong, it is an amazing tool to make music with, you all know how much I love mine! 
But I don't look to it for inspiration, or to give me musical purpose. It looks to ME to make the inspiration, to work it so that it doesn't do the same damn thing every time you call up the same damn style...
Many of us here are retired from playing fulltime, or amateurs. But are still playing with a tool designed to assist you make something that SOUNDS like real music... but it isn't. There's no conversation. Just a monologue.
If your arranger is starting to pale a bit, don't spend $5000 trying to simply get a more elaborate arranger. It won't solve the problem other than temporarily (you can get used to anything!) because it STILL, despite sounding better, is still NOT a conversation. It's a one way street, musically. You do all the talking, it just listens.
Find some musicians to play with that have something to say to YOU... Bet you you'll come up with something new to say back. 
You always bring something decent to the party, Diki...
I tend to disagree in that I think you can have a conversation as a Solo.
My first thought is that I converse with the audience. I see first hand the effect of my interacting with them musically. I intentionally have no set lists to work from because I think that's a bit limiting. How do I know what to play? Its a feel. I'll read the room and get a sense what's going to work well on a given day and go that direction.
I also feel like I have a conversation directly with my KB. Different styles, instruments, tempos, etc. are also done a lot on the fly depending on what mood they're/I'm in that day.
Where I think we're on common ground is that there's a lot of arranger players who don't sound very inspired. That may be due to several factors. Talent, attitude, work ethic, personality, etc.
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Bill in Dayton
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