https://app.box.com/s/3mv1kaghmtzue8fs83em4oqlu1pvfedd

Found a style called "Steamtrain Country"on the E80 so I
thought I`d try these two oldies for a bit of fun.

Great style! Thanks for sharing your "fun" with the rest of the world. We all need some. It also shows that these older arrangers are nothing to sneeze at. I still regret selling my E25.

Gerry

Thanks Gerry,yes we do need to try and get a bit of normality
back again.I`m looking at quite a few "unusual"styles so that
I can try some songs that don`t usually fit the style.

I had the same idea, using a different style with a well known song. Here is Angel Eyes with a modern analog beat:

https://app.box.com/s/jhncauzu6jx7tcl46gnu3to117bmsoox

As you said, it is kind of fun to explore. Not being able to perform in this Covid period one can experiment with different sounds and rhythms with only yourself as a critic.

Terry, Gerry, I do not want to say great, you did well, that will never help you play better. I want to give you constructive criticism based on my experience. I hope that it is received as a gesture of friendly help.

Alabhama Jubilee: I picture the song with a very exciting background.
People dancing in the street -- because the music is so exciting. Happy drums. Exciting trumpets. All out front just below the melody.

Angel Eyes: This one of my jazz favorites. This is the kind of music, as my friend would say, “Music to jump off the roof by”. Some songs sound good in the type of beat you used, not this one.

Terry, Gerry, this is my attempt to help. Keep in mind it is only my opinion. If it troubles in any way, I will delete the post. I could say fantastic, but how would that help you.
John C.

Hey, no problem Bruno. I welcome criticism. There is always something to learn. I'm old and should be set in my ways. So, the music of my era should be played as it was intended. However,I have always tried to do things differently,sometimes with success and sometimes with disaster, but I'll keep on trying. Change is hope and hope means an expanded horizon, for me at least. I must say that my Generation X son loves it and has played along with his bass and trombone. So, here you go!

Regards, Gerry

Gerry, keep going, I bet I have a few years on you. Learning and enjoying, nice way to live.
Gerry when I get enough energy to get going, I’ll post some songs, and I look forward to your thoughts.

Take care, John C.

Thanks John: Looking forward to your songs.

Gerry

Thanks for your reply John,which I`ve no problem with,I just like to experiment with different styles and songs.A few years ago a
local vicar asked if I would play some hymns at a rock festival
being held at a farm in his parish.He thought he`d like to try a Sunday morning open air service for the overnight campers,he gave me a list of the hymns and to our surprise a large number of campers turned up.I played the hymns using a heavy rock style and they loved it,so it shows anything goes.

Terry, Gerry, you both make me glad that I posted my thoughts , John C

Love that Steamtrain beat!

You said you encourage criticism, perhaps I can suggest something positive?

Both songs have you playing quite a bit ahead of the groove from time to time, and I think the culprit isn’t you, it’s just having the solo sound too loud... If you can overpower the backing, it’s easy to lose track of the beat. Perhaps try turning the Balance knob towards the side of the backing, to the point that you have to listen well just to hear yourself!

Anyone that has played with a band knows that it’s almost impossible to drown out the drummer! But they DO help keep the groove solid. Keep recording yourself as you gradually lower the solo sounds, you’d be amazed at how much you can back them off but they sound clear as a bell on the recording! And I guarantee, as you lower yourself ‘into’ the mix rather than ‘on top’ of the mix, you’ll start really locking into the drummer’s groove! 😎

BTW, Terry, have you tried the Dynamic Arranger feature on the E80?

This is amazing for setting up the dynamics of the style to go up and down as you play harder and softer. The best thing is, it isn’t the volume of the style that adjusts, it’s the velocity that goes up and down, so drum kits with harder and softer samples per drum, and guitar sounds that strum harder at higher velocities sound like the player is actually playing harder!

It’s a great way of setting up the style so if you get a bit frisky one time, the backing will get frisky too, or if you play a bit softer than usual, the band will back off a bit! Set it up right, and it’s utterly amazing how you can get the feeling that, for ONCE(!), the darn backing band is actually LISTENING to you!

Give it a try... 🎹😎

I love the way this thread is going; people trying to help.
And all views appreciated. NICE!
John C.

Thanks for your input Diki,I`ve taken onboard what you`re saying
and will give your suggestions a try.I agree with John,these positive posts can only be a good thing.

Thanks Diki for the comments. I sure wish my Yamaha PSR-S975 has a dynamic arranger function. It all comes down to make the registrations as functional as possible to get the same effect. To be honest: I don't like registrations, I very much like the dynamics of playing live, pushing buttons where appropriate. I guess it is the piano player in me used to make changes on the fly with some solid side musicians helping out. Miss those days!

Well, everybody stole Roland’s Chord Sequencer (eventually!), maybe there’s hope that sooner or later they will copy the Dynamic Arranger..!

It’s best when left pretty subtle, because you have to be VERY careful with your own dynamics if it’s set to extremes, but there are a few cases where it can be useful as a sort of ‘dynamic mute’ so that playing softly turns a certain Part or group of Parts completely off and they don’t come back in until you start playing harder. There’s also no control about the ‘window’ of how many strong notes before it picks up on your dynamics, so there’s one area that someone could improve on it....

I generally find it most convincing when I’m playing full piano and I can control the dynamics with my overall playing strength. It’s a little harder to control if you are just doing a one finger type solo. But if you DO have decent dynamics, it can make all the difference, especially on styles with dynamic kits and sounds.

One of my favorite Roland features is how seamlessly it can change Performances without the slightest glitch if set up right, so it’s often a good idea to have an identical Performance adjacent to the main one for the song with the Dynamic Arranger switched on, and that way you can choose on the fly whether you want the band holding steady, or following your dynamics.

I’m not sure what it was that got Korg and Yamaha to eventually add the Chord Sequencer, but perhaps if the Dynamic Arranger is talked about enough, they might get around to exploring it. It is every decent musician’s dream to have a band listen to THEM! This is one of the best ways of making that dream come true... 😎🎹

The S975 does have a setting for Style Touch. But I presume it affects all style channels the same way.

I play Rolands and I've messed around with the Dynamic Arranger. I originally taught myself on organs and have plenty of bad habits! So I probably just press the keys in a lazy way, instead of "striking" them wrists-up the way you would have to on a piano. Bottom line, I don't have the kind of velocity control one needs to make Dynamic Arranger work effectively.

On the BK9 I sometimes use sliders to control Bass, Pad, etc., as the song builds. I've even messed with doubling the bass to a different octave on another style track. I believe this technique could be executed successfully "hands free" with a custom 3-part expression pedal. If you really want or need this functionality, that's the workaround I suggest you pursue.

Both recordings sounded good. It's funny how we all seem to use a different style for specific songs. I like those who try to be different. Thanks for sharing, enjoyed them both.

Please keep in mind that all is meant to add to the other from what we know. It is meant only to help. Not to judge.

John C.

Unfortunately the style touch on the Yamaha 975 is actually a Style One Touch Setting, giving you 4 different preset voices for each style. You can get some dynamics on the right hand voices with different pressure on the keys. Can't do that when chording with the left below the split point. Tried to do that with a full keyboard setting,but no success. However, you can get some dynamics by playing just the piano voice on a full keyboard setting.

Yeah, as you can customize the expression pedal's depth for each style Part individually per Performance, if you don't have the control to do dynamics following with your playing touch, you can always do it with your feet!

Plus you can have the pedal affect the ACC Parts much more than the rhythm section, so in effect backing off on the pedal can bring down the extra Parts almost completely, but just shave a hair off the rhythm section.

The only main difference is that you are bringing down the volume of the Part, but you aren't changing its dynamics (velocity), so there's no timbral difference. For me, it's this that makes the feature worthwhile. Real players change the sound as they play harder and softer, not just get louder or quieter.

Bad habits can change! In these times more than most, we have the time to work on things long shoved to the back-burner. A few weeks disciplined practice can do wonders if you focus on a specific skill and concentrate your effort towards it. Practicing the same lines played quietly, then played hard, rinse and repeat, soon enough you have sufficient touch to control the DA...