NationStates Jolt Archive

This is actually a clever way to solve an argument, but with a chance for NSG to be NSG without any boring details about how wrong she is...


So, take the poll, make suggestions of your own, but take the poll mostly. Because she's totally wrong and needs to know it.

Harpsichord.

Ok, I'm lying. It's actually the organ. But only the big huge ones that have like 30 foot pipes.

Dammit dammit dammit...I forgot to make it multiple choice...curses, now she might be able to get off the hook!!!

She's still totally wrong, but now she might remain unaware...

The cello. And the upright bass.

Harmonica.
If just because it fits in my pocket and I can feel cool carrying around an instrument without anyone ever noticing and asking me to play it.

A five gallon bucket (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAEd6GW_fXA)

:)

More (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dVnrP73NQA)

Harmonica.
If just because it fits in my pocket and I can feel cool carrying around an instrument without anyone ever noticing and asking me to play it.

I have a harmonica. It's a sweet little instrument, such fun to play. I voted for the violin in the poll, though.

A five gallon bucket (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAEd6GW_fXA)

:)

More (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dVnrP73NQA)
Check out this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePvvpioD_bI :eek:

The 2B Silversonic Trombone circa 1960.

Sweet.

From a musician's standpoint, I would have to say that comparing different instruments, especially legendary models, is comparing apples to oranges.

Stradavarius of course, a legendary violin maker, isnt quite the same as Fender guitars.
Steinway, for instance,makes several different models of grand pianos.


You can compare guitars. But it comes down ro preference.
I myself play a Gibson SG. This has been the "axe of choice" for many, many famous guitarists. Other folks may prefer a Fender Stratocaster. It too, has been used by just about everyone.

Both extremely good guitars.

Comparing a fine example of a guitar, isnt the same as comparing a fine piano.

From a musician's standpoint, I would have to say that comparing different instruments, especially legendary models, is comparing apples to oranges.

Stradavarius of course, a legendary violin maker, isnt quite the same as Fender guitars.
Steinway, for instance,makes several different models of grand pianos.


You can compare guitars. But it comes down ro preference.
I myself play a Gibson SG. This has been the "axe of choice" for many, many famous guitarists. Other folks may prefer a Fender Stratocaster. It too, has been used by just about everyone.

Both extremely good guitars.

Comparing a fine example of a guitar, isnt the same as comparing a fine piano.

I happen to be a Stratocaster personally. But I have tried the Gibson a couple times and I gotta say that it's a pretty good guitar.

'Course I voted for the Steinway, 'cuz at my core I'm really a piano man.

A Fender Rhodes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fender_rhodes) is an electric piano, not a guitar.

From a musician's standpoint, I would have to say that comparing different instruments, especially legendary models, is comparing apples to oranges.

Stradavarius of course, a legendary violin maker, isnt quite the same as Fender guitars.
Steinway, for instance,makes several different models of grand pianos.


You can compare guitars. But it comes down ro preference.
I myself play a Gibson SG. This has been the "axe of choice" for many, many famous guitarists. Other folks may prefer a Fender Stratocaster. It too, has been used by just about everyone.

Both extremely good guitars.

Comparing a fine example of a guitar, isnt the same as comparing a fine piano.
I'd come up with a flighty defense of what I was going for, but really it's just an angle to prove something to someone that really has nothing to do with the question, which would mean that the poll would have to be multiple choice. Only one of those has a sound that is uniquely its own, so you could say that there is only one instrument up there and therefore only one real answer, but that'd be leading...

Glass Armonica, an insturment that was Ben Franklins favorite invention.

Electric Guitar. [no further argument--its awesome]

Cowbell.

Gotta go with the Hammond. As an organist stuck with an old Lowrey with a clicky leslie, I can appreciate the difference. :D

I'm guessing the Stradivarius will take the poll, but given that none of us will ever get to play one, it's kinda hard to judge, isn't it? Anyway: I'm still going with the Hammond. I've never even heard of a Selmer Mark IV, which I guess makes me a bad saxophonist, although I still have my Selmer C* from high school. :)

I changed my mind a Theremin is by far the coolest instrument. You dont even touch it to play it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theremin

Gotta go with the Hammond. As an organist stuck with an old Lowrey with a clicky leslie, I can appreciate the difference. :D

I'm guessing the Stradivarius will take the poll, but given that none of us will ever get to play one, it's kinda hard to judge, isn't it? Anyway: I'm still going with the Hammond. I've never even heard of a Selmer Mark IV, which I guess makes me a bad saxophonist, although I still have my Selmer C* from high school. :)
The Mark VI is the Caddy...it just sounds better than anything out there. It's Selmer's horn in the 60s and Coltrane played one, along with everyone else. Back in college I got to play one and it ruined me for other horns.

Except on the alto, where I love my Yanagasawa.

Check out this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePvvpioD_bI :eek:

His very existence makes me feel less cool. :(

The Steinway grand piano line has beautiful touch and tone. It doesn't require much pressure to make them sing, which is nice because I have tendonitis. Now if only I could afford one ...

http://www.retroguitar.com/guitars/SG06std2F.JPG

Spoons

Theremin: Greatest Thing Ever!!

zither.......it's the instrument any idiot can play!

also, Mark VI FTW!

http://www.thomann.de/prodbilder/197548.jpg
The Buzzard. Warwick or Status, it doesn't matter.

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/3826/guitarheroii51xt8.jpg

zither.......it's the instrument any idiot can play!

also, Mark VI FTW!

I see your zither, and raise you THIS:

Its all in the same key...you cant play a bad note!
http://jmceld.home.mindspring.com/mdulcimr.jpg

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/3826/guitarheroii51xt8.jpg

Hahaha, oh wow. The ultimate Explorer.

I see your zither, and raise you THIS:

Its all in the same key...you cant play a bad note!
http://jmceld.home.mindspring.com/mdulcimr.jpg

http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/6/6b/Autoharp.jpg

while you do have to tune an autoharp (similar to tuning a piano or a guitar or various other stringed instruments) a chorded zither makes it nearly impossible to screw up, want to play a G chord? press that button that says "G"

the sound of a guitar easy enough for an idiot to play!

I'm partial to the Flying V, at least for playing while I'm standing. No other guitar is as balanced and easy to play in that sense.

As for sitting, I like the Stratocaster... With P-90 pickups. They pack all of the treble response of regular single coils, but add a fat midrange and deeper bass response. EMG Active pickups try to simulate what P-90s do naturally. Oh, and I also love a genuine Les Paul... The playability is tops, though it's not quite the most *comfortable* instrument to use.

The Keytar.

Without a doubt.

A Fender Rhodes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fender_rhodes) is an electric piano, not a guitar.

Yes, yes it is.

That's just embarrassing...can't change it either...


Well then...

Kazoo.

For my sister's shipboard wedding, we had a 37 piece kazoo band playing "Here Comes The Bride" as she came down the aisle. It was glorious!

Yes, yes it is.

That's just embarrassing...can't change it either...


Well then...

What the hell. I may not be able to make it multi-choice, but editing options is within my power.

It was pretty funny though, that option being a self-proving statement.

Best instrument ever made?

Didgeridoo

The human voice.

Of course, if that doesn't exactly count as "made," then I'd go with the Bosendorfer Imperial concert grand piano. I have had the privilege of playing one, and it's quite amazing. (I would have enjoyed said experience even more than I did if not for the looming thought that the instrument in question was worth about ten times more than everything I have ever owned, so I couldn't help but be terrified that I would somehow damage it.)

Tenor Sexiphone.


'Nuff said.

What the hell. I may not be able to make it multi-choice, but editing options is within my power.

It was pretty funny though, that option being a self-proving statement.

Yay! (apparently I don't know shit about electric pianos, either...)

The one commonly played on NSG. :p

http://moblog.co.uk/blogs/2541/moblog_bfb2fc0fd2f37.jpg

Besson Soverign BBb Bass.

Pleased to see nobody has suggested the accordion or Satan's whoopee cushion as it should be called.

The piano gets my vote. It's quite amazing what a range of music can be played on it and what a range of moods and emotions can be expressed with it. Just compare "Girl Anachronism (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Zm1EZ2D2Pw)" with "Für Elise".

The violin would come second.

Human vocal chords. So versatile...

If that's not an option: The Bagpipe! :D

The piano gets my vote. It's quite amazing what a range of music can be played on it and what a range of moods and emotions can be expressed with it. Just compare "Girl Anachronism (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Zm1EZ2D2Pw)" with "Für Elise".

The violin would come second.

Kudos for a mention of "Girl Anachronism". :)

I'm going to have to join the Theremin crowd though.

(Although, Jarre's laserharp (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIbD7VRWx8Q) gets a nod as a close contender).

Check this out for the human voice (http://www.slide.com/r/FuRnB8-E5j_WHV_7692Iqsb3IiHa-o2D) vote

1968 Rickenbacker 4001 or a 2007 Rickenbacker 4003.

Both, naturally electric basses.


Oh, and I find the mere mention of the fender strat on such a thread to be insulting to all fretted string instruments.

Kazoo.

For my sister's shipboard wedding, we had a 37 piece kazoo band playing "Here Comes The Bride" as she came down the aisle. It was glorious!

I second this.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=yhlm232KRlQ

once upon a time i played a french horn and really loved the sound of it.

i'm rather fond of therimin and sakahachi's too.

then there's the knobs of analog voltage controlled sythisis

and software simulations thereof.

all of these i prefer to most of what is more commonly popular.

or a seven stringed lute, tuned f to f mixolydian (GREEK mixolydian, not 'catholic', whatever the hell THAT is)

"tabla's and sitars and recorders, oh my"!

and how about indiginous instruments from all over the world, made from natural and found objects.

the digeriedoo!

yah, so many choices. native american five hole flutes and deer hoof rattles.
and the kick drum that makes the whole kuum the 'drum'

and don't forget the plain poor old stella harmony.

no, i'm not a string person myself. reeds and whistles and electrons (without strings)

there's no "best ever" without a catigorical qualifiction.

i think its a toss up between the therimin and the didge, each in their own so completely different from each other way.

i did vote for the hammond b3 though. of the mentions in the poll on the basis of what i've heard done with it.

never had one though. did have a vox jag once, and some paia 2600 modules to modify its output with, back in the pre-digital anything mid 70s day.

=^^=
.../\...

I would say the piano in general, not specifying the Steinway as there are many great makes, because of its construction, acoustics, range of pitch, texture, timbres and emotional quality.

The violin is essentially much simpler, so still giving Strad. his due, the construction of it does not require the complexity and fine-tuning in terms of materials and weight adjustments the piano does.

Also, the violin has not undergone many changes in the last 300 years other than improvements in the strings, bows and other construction methods; unlike the piano which has had many changes from the original by Cristofori (range, pedals, hammer mechanism) as well as the other improvements like the violin. The violins are a lot more durable though, the great thing about the Stradivaris is that they can be repaired quite easily without too much damage, whereas pianos get steadily worse over time as the soundboard flattens under pressure from the strings and loses its good resonances; the soundboard is unlikely to ever get repaired (unless its just cracked) or replaced.

Electronically, certainly the Theremin is a cool instrument, as is the Ondes Martenot, though the synthesiser in general takes the cake as the best electronic instrument.

I changed my mind a Theremin is by far the coolest instrument. You dont even touch it to play it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theremin

Well, it has a certain something. I'm also partial to the pyrophone, and the glass armonica.

An impossible choice tbh.

The organ, especially one of the huge ones you see in churches.

Theremins. Made of win.

1968 Rickenbacker 4001 or a 2007 Rickenbacker 4003.

Both, naturally electric basses.


Oh, and I find the mere mention of the fender strat on such a thread to be insulting to all fretted string instruments.

Why's that? They're very well-built, they last, they sound good, they're versatile, they play smoothly, and they're easily moddable. I used to think they looked "generic", but then I began to realise what's so alluring about their visual style.

Oh, and they're also quite comfortable to play while sitting, due to the contoured body. Quite a nice instrument, and it's a shame that they get a bad rap from some people just because a lot of shitty bands and "artists" use them.

Check out this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePvvpioD_bI :eek:

*sighs* I miss the city.

Oh, and I find the mere mention of the fender strat on such a thread to be insulting to all fretted string instruments.

Yeah, well, you should have been around when I called it a Fender Rhodes and still thought it was a guitar...take what ya got...

Has anyone said their ass yet? Im pretty sure i can squeeze a few octaves out of it.

Why's that? They're very well-built, they last, they sound good, they're versatile, they play smoothly, and they're easily moddable. I used to think they looked "generic", but then I began to realise what's so alluring about their visual style.

Oh, and they're also quite comfortable to play while sitting, due to the contoured body. Quite a nice instrument, and it's a shame that they get a bad rap from some people just because a lot of shitty bands and "artists" use them.

They're usually cheap crap, and break quite easily.

They sound like crap.

They suck for pretty much anything I want to play on them.

I guess them being easy to mod is important, as they're no good until you do.

Their necks are extremely uncomfortable to play. Like, physically painful.

Yeah, well, you should have been around when I called it a Fender Rhodes and still thought it was a guitar...take what ya got...

I'd rather not have any guitar than that one, actually. It is to guitars what Budweiser is to beer.

They're usually cheap crap, and break quite easily.

They sound like crap.

They suck for pretty much anything I want to play on them.

I guess them being easy to mod is important, as they're no good until you do.

Their necks are extremely uncomfortable to play. Like, physically painful.

Well, I myself stay away from the Fender Strats and go for ones made by other companies (usually referred to as clones or copies). But yeah, that's pretty much spot-on for the Fender models. I find that the Fender models are far too expensive (even the Mexican Strats, being around $300), as the construction quality and quality of parts are relatively low, especially for such a respected company. If I wanted a good Fender Strat, I'd have to go looking for one made before 1996, and believe you me, those are expensive.

I'm not quite sure about the whole neck thing, though. I played a '62 Strat Guitar Center a few months back, and the neck was very comfortable. Maybe you're talking about the '57 neck profile, which is about as fat as a '58 Les Paul's. Though I wouldn't call a fat neck painful, as my fingers are long enough to deal with it... Though the period of stretching to get used to the neck isn't too comfortable, I can assure you. Uncomfortable, not painful.

http://www.ibzp.net/files/page0_blog_entry149_2.jpg

'Nuff said.

The Buffet clarinet.

http://www.buffet-crampon.com/en/index.php

The Buffet clarinet.

http://www.buffet-crampon.com/en/index.php

If I hear Pachelbel one more time...

If I hear Pachelbel one more time...

That's not Pachelbel, you philistine. It's Aaron Copland. Clarinet Concerto. :rolleyes:

(Normally I don't get snarky over someone not knowing something in my field, but when someone starts the snark without knowing what they're talking about, all bets are off.)

Well, I myself stay away from the Fender Strats and go for ones made by other companies (usually referred to as clones or copies). But yeah, that's pretty much spot-on for the Fender models. I find that the Fender models are far too expensive (even the Mexican Strats, being around $300), as the construction quality and quality of parts are relatively low, especially for such a respected company. If I wanted a good Fender Strat, I'd have to go looking for one made before 1996, and believe you me, those are expensive.

I'm not quite sure about the whole neck thing, though. I played a '62 Strat Guitar Center a few months back, and the neck was very comfortable. Maybe you're talking about the '57 neck profile, which is about as fat as a '58 Les Paul's. Though I wouldn't call a fat neck painful, as my fingers are long enough to deal with it... Though the period of stretching to get used to the neck isn't too comfortable, I can assure you. Uncomfortable, not painful.

60's strats aren't too bad.

I find that for some reason, I don't like bare wood necks. Strats really make my hand hurt though. It's not that my fingers aren't long enough (though the 25.5" scale is annoying), cause I'm a bassist mainly, but something about their necks hurts my hand.