Why Don’t You Play a Real Instrument?
Last week, I posted a story featuring a rumor about Dhani Harrison and Rock Band 3, talking about how the next iteration of the franchise may feature new peripherals and the ability to learn how to play real instruments. Pretty cool stuff, if true, and a great way to bridge the gap between playing a video game, and playing a real instrument. Someone submitted the story to Fark.com (thank you, whoever you are), and it was able to make it on to the Fark.com/Geek page, which was the first time any of my stories was featured there. I felt a sense of accomplishment for getting a story of mine listed on a major site! I read through the comments on Fark for the story (you can see them all here), and based on the content of the story about realistic peripherals, the trolls came out of the woodwork and with them the argument: “Why don’t you play a real instrument?”
If you’re reading this blog, you obviously like Rock Band. And chances are good that you’ve been playing for a long time, and are pretty good at the game. And chances are even greater that you’ve head someone, at some point, say to you “Why don’t you play a real instrument?” I will address that, as well how to respond to that, but let me digress for a minute…
So Modern Warfare 2 comes out today. I like the first person shooter games (hell, I’ve been playing them since Wolfenstein on my Apple IIGS), and I’m pretty good. I’m more of a Half-Life/Counterstrike/Day of Defeat fan myself, but the Call of Duty franchise is very good as well, and I do at some point plan on picking up the game. SPOILER ALERT And many of you may have heard about the scene in the game where you play an undercover CIA agent in a terrorist cell that participates in the slaughtering of civilians at an airport. SPOILER OVER I’m in no ways a prude, and actually against censorship in just about every form, but one can understand how this may, and will, unnerve some people. Consumer media advocates will take to the airwaves on all the “news” channels talking about how this game is nothing but a “murder simulator,” and that any child who plays this game will automatically pick up a gun and shoot someone. It’s even been used as the primary defense in murder trials. So for the sake of this discussion, let’s assume this to be true.
If you apply this same logic to the Rock Band and rhythm gaming in general, every person that plays the game will go out, pick up a guitar or drums, and teach themselves how to play an instrument. But the issue is that this doesn’t happen; at least not in every instance. Sure, there are people that have started playing an instrument because of Rock Band. I myself have started playing an acoustic guitar. Yet the detractors of the rhythm games such as Rock Band and Guitar Hero will lead you to believe that children who play this game will be DISCOURAGED from wanting to play a musical instrument.
Bill Wyman of the Rolling Stones (featured in both Rock Band and Guitar Hero) said:
“It makes less and less people dedicated to really get down and learn an instrument. I think is a pity so I’m not really keen on that kind of stuff.”
John Mayer commented that:
“‘Guitar Hero’ was devised to bring the guitar-playing experience to the masses without them having to put anything into it.”
Even fan favorite Chad Kroeger of Nickelback said:
“Start rock bands. Set down the ‘Guitar Hero,’ learn how to play an actual guitar and start a band, because it’s hard to find more bands to put a solid rock-and-roll package together, to get out there.”
Well… I partly agree with Chad. I mean, he’s right in that it is hard to find… ahem… solid rock-and-roll acts. And it’s not just musicians, either. This story at PsychologyToday.com argues that the game Monopoly has more redeeming qualities than Rock Band, as it teaches you about real estate. If that’s the case, than apparently no one in the banking industry has ever played it.
Call me crazy, but isn’t this the exact OPPOSITE logic of the Modern Warfare 2 analogy above!? OK media, which one is it? You can’t have the contradicting logic work for you both ways. What I really see as unfair is that very rarely do you ever hear someone comment “What, you think you can play in the NFL because you’re good at Madden?”
Everyone has their reasons for playing Rock Band. Mine is that I love the feeling of PRETENDING to be a rock star, without sacrificing the limited time I have at my age to learn to master a real instrument, start a band, write songs, gain fans, release albums, and play live gigs. If I invested the same time I’ve spent with Rock Band into playing a real instrument, I still probably wouldn’t be able to play a C Major chord!
So what’s the appropriate response to the “play a real instrument” question? Well, for the sake of this, let’s assume you’re talking to a rational, well-adjusted person… a stretch, I know.
- Explain that anyone greater than an IQ of a carrot is aware that what you are holding is NOT a real instrument.
- Tell that that Rock Band helps to bridge the gap between passively listening to music and actively making real music.
- Finish up with the fact that in a study conducted by the Youth Music foundation in the UK, out of 12 million 3-18 year olds playing ‘Guitar Hero,’ 2.5 million started playing a REAL instrument because of the experience they had with the game.
If there’s still any doubts, just point them to this article. What is it, you ask? It’s an article from Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People featuring Alex Rigopulos & Eran Egozy, the founder of Harmonix and creators of both Guitar Hero and Rock Band. The article mentions that “Rock Band is one of the ways kids will find music in the future, and the future is now… In the history of rock ‘n’ roll, Rock Band may just turn out to be up there with the rise of FM radio, CDs or MTV. Taking a break from the wall-to-wall violence of most video games can’t hurt either.”
Oh, and I forgot to mention that it was written by Steven Van Zandt.
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Very nice!
I think most people with the “play a real instrument” mindset are hung up on the fact that Rock Band and such games use controllers that resemble real instruments. If RB was played with a regular xbox or playstation controller, I don’t think there would be this sort of issue with people. But the instruments are exactly what give rhythm games their sense of immersion, and people need to realize that they are GAME CONTROLLERS and NOT real instruments.
I agree that there is much misconception with the controllers resembling real instruments. Rock Band is a new way of LISTENING and EXPERIENCING music, and while it can (and does!) lead to people at least trying real instruments, the experience of playing RB has more in common with listening to the iPod than with making music.
Also, I’d love to hear all those whiny and/or old musicians actually saying, with a straight face, that the world really needs more bands. A lot of people should just quit playing and go with Rock Band.
Great writeup dude. I can’t agree more, and am really getting tired of the media hatred of all things related to video games. It’s not that they feel a particular game serves no purpose, it’s that all the older people who didn’t grow up on video games now have a platform to spew their crap to millions of equally stupid parents. There is almost no statistical data that supports video game violence turning into real life violence. What little data IS out there is contradicted by other studies that show violent kids will be violent, whether they play video games or not.
This world is full of unfortunate events, and it seems like the media just has to have a scapegoat for every bad thing that happens in the world. Kid goes crazy and shoots up his school? Blame GTA. No, don’t blame GTA. Blame his irresponsible and disconnected parents who never showed him love growing up. Music industry is failing and no “good” bands are coming out? Blame Rock Band. No, don’t blame Rock Band. Blame the music industry fat cats who would rather manufacture crap music that the idiotic public will buy up by the millions rather than attempting to find actual talent (I’m looking at you American Idol).
The fact of the matter is that there are an extremely small number of cases in which a violent video game will trigger a psychotic break in a kid. However, it’s no different than watching a violent movie. I don’t see these media types going after movies like they do video games. The ESRB ratings are there for the same reason as the RIAA ratings: to keep kids underage from experiencing the adult themes until they’re either of legal age, or their parents feel they are ready for it. The problem is that parents are either too stupid, or just don’t care enough to use these rating systems to protect their kids. My parents sure did, and I don’t think I played my first M-rated game until Perfect Dark came out (I was 14). I’ll be doing the same thing with my children as they grow up.
However, the inverse is true for Rock Band. While it’s safe to say that nowhere near an overwhelming majority of Rock Band players go out and buy real instruments to play them, you can certainly see a growth in the music industry as a whole since 2006. The musical snobs may not like WHY these kids want to learn to play, but I think it’s a good thing that the games are pushing kids to get real instruments. After all, the music of tomorrow starts with the musical lessons (or practice) of today. I’ve spent over $2k on my e-drum kit purely because of Rock Band. I have had a passing interest in drumming since 7th grade, but was never good enough (nor had the space) to purchase a real kit. After a year and a half of Expert drumming on Rock Band though, I was able to keep a beat and play a fill or two. That was the point that I realized I could buy a real drum kit and learn how to play outside of Rock Band. I’m no Neil Peart, but I owe what skill I do have to Rock Band. I just don’t see how the media sees this as a bad thing. It’s truly sad that the media as a whole fears the entire video game industry and is attempting to destroy it through FUD.
Holy crap, this was a long comment. I hope it actually gets posted…
RockBandAide Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
Bravo, sir!
moose39 Reply:
November 12th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
I agree with pretty much everything you said. It’s horrible that middle aged news reporters do nothing but bash video games. The only AAA-title video game that’s gotten any positive media attention from recent memory would be The Beatles: Rock Band. All the other games that get any praise are the Brain Age games and how they’re helping kids and stuff. I have yet to see Fox News or CNN say anything positive about the 360 or PS3, just the Wii. I say screw ‘em.
Isn’t playing Rock Band is better than just passively listening to music? Why aren’t these musicians saying “Stop just sitting there listening to the radio. Learn an instrument and make your own?” or “Stop wasting time dancing and come up with your own beats?”
If anything, Rock Band makes you focus on the music MORE.
Great post. +1
Anyone who has ever spent an afternoon passively watching pro baseball, football, basketball, hockey, tennis, golf or volleyball on TV, rather than going outside and playing those same games themselves has absolutely no leg to stand on in criticizing someone for playing Rock Band rather than picking up an instrument.
Gonna do you one better and say that Guitar Hero changed my life. Yeah, yeah, it’s lame to say something like that, but it’s actually true. If it weren’t for Guitar Hero and GH2, I wouldn’t have had the motivation to delve into back catalogs of artist after artist. I wouldn’t have found out how much amazing music there was out there. And I wouldn’t have ever been motivated to write some of my own.
And I will do myself one better and say that if I hadn’t been motivated to write my own music, right now I would be wasting my life away in a major I neither liked nor understood instead of studying something that I love more than I thought possible. I’m graduating with a B.S. in Music Industry in the spring and I’ve never been happier with my decision. So I say thank you, Harmonix, for creating this new way to experience music. I may have given myself carpal tunnel trying to pass “Free Bird”, but it’s all been worth it.
And yes. I do play a real instrument.
The last thing I want to see is more people throwing together bands that sounds anything like Nickleback, Chad. I went out and picked up a used bass guitar about a month after the first Guitar Hero came out, and I’m still pretty poor at it. I play it because it’s fun, just like Rock Band. If it wasn’t fun, I wouldn’t spend my valuable leisure time doing it. Putting together a half-assed band with friends who would be just as bad at playing instruments as myself doesn’t sound like a great use of my time. Playing Rock Band with them for a bit before the pizza arrives does sound like fun. Connecting with friends halfway across the country and chatting on our mics in between playing songs is also a joyful experience.
So far the few people I’ve heard say things like “why not play a real instrument” in real life (because internet comments don’t count for much,) have been the kind of people who generally spend their leisure time watching reality tv.
For years, I’ve wanted to work with music in some capacity. My interest has always been in back-catalog stuff (I guess I’m an old person in a twentysomething’s body), but even a back-catalog enthusiast like myself knows that it’s tough as nails for many people – younger folks in particular, but even some people a decade or two older than myself – to go out and buy a full album or compilation of great vintage songs.
To me, though, that’s where Rock Band comes in. I’ve seen a lot of classic cuts queue up between the games themselves and all the DLC, and I love what I see. The sad truth is this: kids might not discover Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Cars, Queen, Pearl Jam, James Brown or The Jackson 5 on their own musical merits. But all of them have some sort of presence in the Rock Band games, and if that’s the way to get people to realize the importance of such acts – maybe even get ‘em to kick a few bucks over to Amazon or wherever to buy some of their records – then Rock Band has done a great job at spreading the love of music.
That’s why it saddens me to see artists grouse about how RB is sapping future generations of the opportunity to play a real instrument. Holding a plastic instrument may not give you the wisdom that comes from playing a real guitar, but it does offer a chance to delve deeper into popular music history. And that’s a large part of music fandom that we have to keep alive. Kudos to you for reminding us all that even a so-called “silly game” like Rock Band can give us that power.
Coming from someone who was motivated to play a real instrument because of Rock Band (I never would have even THOUGHT about playing bass before I started playing bass on Rock Band), I think all these people who say “GO LEARN A REAL INSTRUMENT” are just stupid. I know of a ton of people who started playing instruments because of what they experianced playing Rock Band, and they wanted to learn the real thing. I also know a ton of people who didn’t. And that’s fine too, I mean not everyone wants to learn a real musical instrument. Take my mum for an example: She’d never want to play ACTUAL electric guitar, but she loves playing guitar on Rock Band because it lets her experience some of her favourite songs in a whole new way.
And Rock Band’s also great because it introduces younger kids (like myself) to the awesome music their parents listened to when they were young. I would have never gotten into grunge music if Harmonix hadn’t released Pearl Jam’s Ten album on Rock Band and my dad told me to buy a few songs and play them. And I wouldn’t have discovered Styx if I hadn’t downloaded Renegade.
And Rock Band’s also great for those kids who can’t afford/don’t have room for/can’t have the noise level of real instruments. I mean, take bass for example, the cheapest new bass I’ve seen anywhere around here was $250, and that’s not even including amp or anything. And I know drum sets especially are pretty big. So not everyone CAN play a real instrument, and Rock Band is the closest thing they’ll get.
Not to mention it can be a lot more rewarding to play on a fake instrument and hear a bunch of (virtual) cheering and screaming than it is to play your real instrument and then have your parents yell to turn it down.
Very nice! I think it’s a bit of a stretch to assume that the “media detractors” of video games are using anything even approaching logic. Unfortunately, logic tends not to sway crowds and grab ratings — emotion does. So we see these folks rather ham-fistedly applying double standards to the various games out there because it’s in their own self-interest. Same thing, unfortunately, with the musicians who put Rock Band and Guitar Hero down and talk about picking up a real instrument. Sure, maybe some of them are just joking, but I suppose the idea that anyone off the street can develop an interest in playing music might be a bit threatening to them. For others, maybe they’re just scoffing at these games because they had to do it “the hard way” and didn’t have things like this to inspire them. A pity, really, as it would be far more advantageous for them to be accepting than to be bitter.