Guitar Snobbery

[tubetone74]

Perception vs. reality. Great point. Unfortunately for many people their perception is always going to be their "reality".

[Nymuso]

I have seen it here and on other guitar forums. Do you coil your string ends? Use a capo? Play covers? Put stickers on your guitar case? Anchor your picking hand? Think Dylan has a good voice? I've seen these and other subjects ignite range wars on guitar forums. What causes these disagreements if not disdain for the other guy's opinion? Is that disdain not snobbery?

[Long Jon]

I have attended jams where they expected me to stay in the same key and time as everybody else !

Who needs ‘em anyway,,,, bunch of bloody snobs

[s2y]

Originally Posted by Toby Walker

What I loved about the video were his remedies. He basically said to look into yourself, to see if you may be misinterpreting the signs. That to me speaks volumes of one's maturity.

I'm mixed on this part. If you met my last drummer or the person I share my office with, it's not misinterpretation that they're snobs. They are and they want to knock you down a peg.

A lot of local musicians in my area have a bit of a clique mentality. Again, not a misinterpretation. A band is often one of the only areas where they can control things and fire people.

[HFox]

Originally Posted by Long Jon

I have attended jams where they expected me to stay in the same key and time as everybody else !

Who needs ‘em anyway,,,, bunch of bloody snobs

Long Jon...We should get together and play.......

[Goodallboy]

Originally Posted by s2y

I'm mixed on this part. If you met my last drummer or the person I share my office with, it's not misinterpretation that they're snobs. They are and they want to knock you down a peg.

A lot of local musicians in my area have a bit of a clique mentality. Again, not a misinterpretation. A band is often one of the only areas where they can control things and fire people.

This is the essence of the video.

I’m not the snob, everyone else is.

[KevWind]

Humm interesting. Of course snobbery can be present in the world of Acoustic guitar playing just as in any and all other human endeavors.

And the point the gent in the video makes at the end, also can certainly be the case. Sometimes we misinterpret the the body language or quips and musings of others .

Then also our own insecurities can make any misperceived or real snobbery all the more impactful on us, as opposed to being simply, water off a duck's back.

And I would agree that most of time jams and open mic's etc. are over all pretty supportive situations .

And certainly more often than not, the really good players tend to offer encouragement

That said snobbery is indeed part of the human condition and is usually a manifestation of either insecurity and or control issues surfacing .

Then lastly that kind of snobbery can also be a great source of amusement for those of who are natural born "trouble makers" . For example I have several times enjoyed the palpable "snoberistic" tension among the self anointed, when showing up at a Bluegrass Jamb with a Taylor dread with a cutaway and electronics .

[Brent Hahn]

I mix a small-format semi-unplugged internet radio show. I see lots of guitar players and their guitars. Whenever someone goes out of their way to point out how fancy and expensive their guitar is, well, it's a very good indicator of the music that's to come.

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Brent Hahn

I mix a small-format semi-unplugged internet radio show. I see lots of guitar players and their guitars. Whenever someone goes out of their way to point out how fancy and expensive their guitar is, well, it's a very good indicator of the music that's to come.

So can we assume you are not hearing them state something like " I will be playing my "hideous orange indonesian classical"

[Big Band Guitar]

Originally Posted by Seagull S6

Those are called "guitar operators," not musicians and 10 guitars all playing the same chord inversions sounds more like a banana band rather than an actual exchange of musical ideas. That is just amazing.

I'm what you might call a hack player but I'm trying to learn the fret board and finding alternate voicing for chords is helping me understand note/chord relationships and note intervals on a scale.

Last summer, about 40 years later, I went back to the same town for a outdoor jam / song circle. This time it was a good one.

I told my story and one of the locals remembered that guy. He was a well known local.

What I have done to improve my knowledge of the fretboard is to not play any open strings unless I need an low E.

[Todd Tipton]

I didn't read the article, but one comes to my mind: One of the many popular guitar pages will post something on Facebook. It could be anything: how to get strings to stay in tune, how to learn a new scale, any tip or technique, etc.

Too often there are the posters who give some variation of, "what a lame article. Everybody knows that! Only a moron doesn't know that!"

I've almost always ignored such posts, but one time I couldn't resist and I replied with something like, "With the attitude of too many guitar players sometimes, it truly is amazing I still have any students and people still want to learn the guitar."

As an educator, the only prerequisite needed is a desire to learn to play guitar. That's it. Nothing else. Everything else is my job and responsibility. There was a time before every single guitar player learned the first thing. "Everyone should know _________" is a statement that really gets to me. There was a time when the person making the statement didn't know ________, but that never seems to be a factor. It is a true snobbery to take the knowledge one has as some sort of measuring stick as to what everyone should know.

Thanks for letting me vent...lol

[Brent Hahn]

Originally Posted by KevWind

So can we assume you are not hearing them state something like " I will be playing my "hideous orange indonesian classical"

With that guitar, everything but the "Indonesian" is self-evident. No statement required. :-)

Later edit -- it's radio, so I guess I would have to say it. And I also forgot to mention that these fancy-guitar folks always say "So do you play guitar?" And my answer is always, "I have a couple."

[s2y]

Originally Posted by Goodallboy

This is the essence of the video.

I’m not the snob, everyone else is.

As others have noted, being a snob is part of the human condition.

That being said, my last office mates weren't snobs and I haven't seen any snobs or stink eye at the acoustic jam session I occasionally attend.

I'm not a snob, although I don't tolerate people berating musicians for having different gear. I have somewhat expensive tastes and oddball interests, which is in no way or shape intended to impress people. I truly don't care if the guys next to me has a pawnshop guitar that's falling apart or an Olson. None of my business.

[Brent Hahn]

Originally Posted by Nymuso

Do you coil your string ends?
Use a capo?
Play covers?
Put stickers on your guitar case?
Anchor your picking hand?
Think Dylan has a good voice?
What causes these disagreements if not disdain for the other guy's opinion?
Is that disdain not snobbery?

Never - you could put an eye out.
Sometimes.
With enthusiasm. And sometimes with a capo.
No.
Sometimes.
He made the most of it.
Nobody could possibly disagree with me, except maybe about the stickers. :-)

[erhino41]

I learned a long time ago that music is not about competition it is about creation and collaboration. As others have stated "snobbery" is a normal part of the human condition. It is directly connected to the normal competitive nature of humans. The problem is that the superficial distractions of competition tend to stifle creativity and also the necessary cooperative spirit that is needed to make truly pure musical connections with others.

It does not help that TV has everyone thinking they need to compete with each other in order to prove they are "musicians", american idol, the voice etc... The nature of capitalism does not help either. We have been conditioned to believe from birth that cost and value are tied together and we should always be striving to achieve the next best thing.

This competitive nature also leads to insecurities. What may be well intended advice maybe be perceived as snobbery. You may feel others are judging you even though they are not. I find, however, a lot of what is perceived as snobbery is actually what it appears to be. If what you are saying is not completely constructive, then it is in some way destructive. On some occasions the "harsh" truth may be useful, but it is usually only a detriment to actual progress. These insecurities may also be the source of the snobbery. Hiding some perceived lack of ability with gear or knowledge. Time learning superficial knowledge would be better spent on actual tangible improvement.

What I love about music is the chance to buck all trends that you know and connect to something truly unique an transcendent. It is a chance to be yourself, freely and absolutely. It is always a challenge and a reward at the same time, and you can always learn something new.

I have no problem with snobbery. I realized a long time ago that this type of behavior leaves you closed to a lot of possibilities. In the long run the only person truly affected by this type of behavior is the snob themselves.