Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread
Print Thread
Go To
Page 1 of 2 1 2
Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
I'm hoping to get some feedback from those of you who listen to modern country music.
Those of you who know me, are aware of my dreadful hearing loss. Even with Hearing Aids it often makes listening to radio music difficult when it comes to picking out the instruments used in the productions.

So I need to ask all you "good ears" out there - Does Piano have any relevance these days in modern, and I stress "Modern", country music productions.

Appreciate your being my ears on this - thanks - Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,987
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,987
ian, i listen to "modern country" all day every day on pandora and, quite frankly, i seldom hear piano in it. garth brooks uses it sparingly (long outro on "the dance" etc.) but, in thinking about it, i don't recall hearing a lot of piano in today's country music. i will pay special attention throughout today and post back if i hear anything to the contrary. then again, we may have different ideas as to the term "modern country" so will you name a specific artist or group and i'll listen to them for you today.

Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Hello Don

Guess by modern country I'm thinking about their top 20 whatever.
Classic/Traditional country has a place for the piano still, but the Alan Jackson's,
Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Jason Aldean, Randy Travis, George Strait - those are what I
mean by modern country.

Back when I started to use BIAB many of their country styles had piano as a main rhythm instrument.
Now that RTs are here, I'm thinking that maybe some of my older BIAB productions should be
"modernized" by reducing the piano role.

Whatever info you can provide based on your impression, would be gratefully received.

Thanks for answering the call. Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,987
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,987
ian, those are the artists/groups i listen to, plus zac brown;lady antebellum;kasey chambers; and dixie chicks...a good representative sampling. as an experiment, i previewed roughly 40 songs while listening specifically for piano. i heard only one, an intro to a lady antebellum song (forgot title), if that gives you any idea. i don't think pandora is available in canada or i would email the "station" to you.

such things as sans piano seem to be cyclical and very temporary phenomena. it will probably come back with a vengeance in whatever incarnation of country music comes next.

Last edited by Don Gaynor; 09/03/11 02:47 PM.
Off-Topic
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 8,333
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 8,333
Ian I'm still wondering about the hearing aids thing.
I feel better without them, and in many settings they are not really a feasible option for me.

In the spectrum of over 2000hz exists every turning tire, fan, beeping deep fryers, the fan for the a/c in the car, it just amplifies those things to the point of pain. Even then it's pitch shifting and messing with the actual sound.

However I just put on a pair of Bose noise cancelling headphones at Best Buy.

They tell me I have recruitment, and that causes a lot of sounds to be too loud despite the fact I only hear vowels from women and get the rest by guess and lip reading.

But those headphones left me with almost zero background noise and it was like I went into a soundless tomb. It was damn eerie to say the least.

I'm gonna start a new thread on somewhat the same thing, different day.


John Conley
Musica est vita
Off-Topic
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,987
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,987
ian and john, after 6 solid hours of listening, i heard a grand total of 4 songs with piano (in the specified genre) and 2 of those were actually electric organ. my conclusion is: piano (keyboard instruments) is/are not being used in "modern country." i'm sure someone will point out exceptions but that is my opinion.

Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Bless your good heart Don!
Probably uptempo tunes I'm guessing; but still that's quite a detail you've uncovered for country music.

Maybe piano's for the Adult Alternative or Adult Contemporary market.

I guess in my song demos I should be leaning toward guitar backing tracks and pedal steel.
Mind you, I understand synths are making their presence known in country.

Thanks for undertaking this Don.
Stay well - Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Quote:

I'm gonna start a new thread on somewhat the same thing, different day.




I'll be watching for it John. Have you contacted Marshall Chasin in Toronto, yet?
web page

Cheers - Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 7,687
Quote:

Maybe piano's for the Adult Alternative or Adult Contemporary market.




It looks like this is where all the country keyboard players went. Those styles have plenty of piano.

Interesting question, I don't follow modern country but I used to be in a country band in a previous life and played lots of piano then.

Bob


Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
Off-Topic
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,293
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,293
Speaking of styles, Bob, I am going through EVERY piano on this thing and can't find a suitable piano for the old country standards I Fall To Pieces and I Cant't Help It If I'm Still In Love With You. I have run into this several times where RB is lacking "rhythm" piano. Any particular Real Tracks you recommend for such a background?


I smashed the hell out of my car today. When the cops came I told him "Officer, that guy was BOTH texting and drinking a beer." The cop said "Sir, he has every right to do that. I mean, it's HIS living room..."
Off-Topic
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 7,258
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 7,258
Might as well get my oar in here seeing as I play a lot of country music. Modern bands seldom use piano, and tend to stick with rhythm guitars. Not like the old days where a good pianist could give some rare licks to a good tune, whether it be a waltz or an up tempo honkytonk toe tapper. I honestly feel musicians of the ' golden' age took more pride in their music. They relied more upon ability rather than software. The twin fiddles of a Bob Wills track were sumptious. I'm not implying that modern musicians aren't good, far from it, it's just that far too much of tadays country is aimed at the teenie boppers. Call me an old Fa fa fa but there's definately something missing from todays modern country music. Loads of great tradtional country STILL being produced of course but you need to know where to listen as it's mostly the smaller indie artists who won't bow to the pressure of the major companies. I'm hoping music's like fashion and the pure country music will make a comeback ?

Off-Topic
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
M
Mac Offline
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
M
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
I hear lots of Hammond organ use in modern country, also the Wurlitzer electric piano has made something of a comeback there. Not in every song, mind you, but there are enough.

The modern country coming out of Nashville is sounding more and more like the older Rock and R & B stuff, which is fine with me.


--Mac

Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Hey Eddie - are you talking about the RT Styles? The midi styles seem to have plenty of piano.
On the other hand the RT Piano has not reached that level yet.

If you're looking for piano soloists go look at BIAB's midi style melodists and soloists.

Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Furry - there seemed to be some pianists in the Urban Cowboy years - Rich, Gilley
As a matter of fact I turned to country music of the 80s after the 70s country/folk
bands disappeared from Pop music. The 80s movement in country offered a ton of good country stuff/styles - not only new country. It was a great decade which carried over into the 90s. Loved the Outlaw movement.

Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,293
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,293
Quote:

Hey Eddie - are you talking about the RT Styles? The midi styles seem to have plenty of piano.
On the other hand the RT Piano has not reached that level yet.

If you're looking for piano soloists go look at BIAB's midi style melodists and soloists.




I am looking more for background piano than soloists Ian. I must have tried 2 dozen piano Real Tracks and none of them were what the song needed. Too jazzy, too ethereal, too wide, too narrow..... I just need rhythm piano and have not had much luck yet. Sunday is a new day though and I will keep peeking.


I smashed the hell out of my car today. When the cops came I told him "Officer, that guy was BOTH texting and drinking a beer." The cop said "Sir, he has every right to do that. I mean, it's HIS living room..."
Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Mac - from what I read, the main demographic targeted by Nashville is the ladies - and we know they love to dance! Hence Rock and R & B leanings.

Or if you want to be cynical, what ever style keeps the "drive time crowd" awake between the Coke and the McDonald's commercials.

Guess maybe the piano doesn't have the edge for today's country rock. Whereas I can hear where the Hammond might - edginess, power.

Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 7,258
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 7,258
I think some of us would dearly love to have some real old time honkytonkin piano backing with a good variety of fill ins, intros & endings. Not too much to ask for.

Off-Topic
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,293
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 7,293
Back when Hank Sr and Patsy Cline and George Jones and Ray Price and Kitty Wells and..... the REAL classic country artists played.... lots of the ol' piani then!!


I smashed the hell out of my car today. When the cops came I told him "Officer, that guy was BOTH texting and drinking a beer." The cop said "Sir, he has every right to do that. I mean, it's HIS living room..."
Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Eddie - I wasn't talking just about soloists.

I was talking about looking through the NON-RT styles - the styles that use only MIDI - there's lots of rhythm piano in there.

Might be easier to do your searching in BIAB if you're not.

Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Off-Topic
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
Expert
OP Offline
Expert
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,696
I'm agreeing with you, Graham.

Off to the wishlist with you, mate.

Ian


Ian
My "Original Tunes" Site
My gene pool needs more chlorine.
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Go To
Page 1 of 2 1 2

Link Copied to Clipboard
ChatPG

Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.

ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.

PG Music News
Convenient Ways to Listen to Band-in-a-Box® Songs Created by Program Users!

The User Showcase Forum is an excellent place to share your Band-in-a-Box® songs and listen to songs other program users are creating!

There are other places you can listen to these songs too! Visit our User Showcase page to sort by genre, artist (forum name), song title, and date - each listing will direct you to the forum post for that song.

If you'd rather listen to these songs in one place, head to our Band-in-a-Box® Radio, where you'll have the option to select the genre playlist for your listening pleasure. This page has SoundCloud built in, so it won't redirect you. We've also added the link to the Artists SoundCloud page here, and a link to their forum post.

We hope you find some inspiration from this amazing collection of User Showcase Songs!

Congratulations to the 2023 User Showcase Award Winners!

We've just announced the 2023 User Showcase Award Winners!

There are 45 winners, each receiving a Band-in-a-Box 2024 UltraPAK! Read the official announcement to see if you've won.

Our User Showcase Forum receives more than 50 posts per day, with people sharing their Band-in-a-Box songs and providing feedback for other songs posted.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed!

Video: Volume Automation in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows®

We've created a video to help you learn more about the Volume Automation options in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows.

Band-in-a-Box® 2024: Volume Automation

www.pgmusic.com/manuals/bbw2024full/chapter11.htm#volume-automation

Video: Audio Input Monitoring with Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows®

We've created this short video to explain Audio Input Monitoring within Band-in-a-Box® 2024, and included some tips & troubleshooting details too!

Band-in-a-Box® 2024: Audio Input Monitoring

3:17: Tips
5:10: Troubleshooting

www.pgmusic.com/manuals/bbw2024full/chapter11.htm#audio-input-monitoring

Video: Enhanced Melodists in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows®!

We've enhanced the Melodists feature included in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows!

Access the Melodist feature by pressing F7 in the program to open the new MultiPicker Library and locate the [Melodist] tab.

You can now generate a melody on any track in the program - very handy! Plus, you select how much of the melody you want generated - specify a range, or apply it to the whole track.

See the Melodist in action with our video, Band-in-a-Box® 2024: The Melodist Window.

Learn even more about the enhancements to the Melodist feature in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows at www.pgmusic.com/manuals/bbw2024upgrade/chapter3.htm#enhanced-melodist

Band-in-a-Box® 2024 DAW Plugin Version 6: New Features Specifically for Reaper®

New with the DAW Plugin Version 6.0, released with Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows: the Reaper® Panel!

This new panel offers built-in specific support for the Reaper® DAW API allowing direct transfer of Band-in-a-Box® files to/from Reaper® tracks!

When you run the Plugin from Reaper®, there is a panel to set the following options:
-BB Track(s) to send: This allows you to select the Plugin tracks that will be sent Reaper.
-Destination Reaper Track: This lets you select the destination Reaper track to receive media content from the Plugin.
-At Bar: You can select a bar in Reaper where the Plugin tracks should be placed.
-Start Below Selected Track: This allows you to place the Plugin tracks below the destination Reaper track.
-Overwrite Reaper Track: You can overwrite previous content on the destination Reaper track.
-Move to Project Folder: With this option, you can move the Plugin tracks to the Reaper project folder.
-Send Reaper Instructions Enable this option to send the Reaper Instructions instead of rendering audio tracks, which is faster.
-Render Audio & Instructions: Enable this option to generate audio files and the Reaper instructions.
-Send Tracks After Generating: This allows the Plugin to automatically send tracks to Reaper after generating.
-Send Audio for MIDI Track: Enable this option to send rendered audio for MIDI tracks.
-Send RealCharts with Audio: If this option is enabled, Enable this option to send RealCharts with audio.

Check out this video highlighting the new Reaper®-specific features: Band-in-a-Box® DAW Plugin Version 6: New Features Specifically for Reaper®

Band-in-a-Box® 2024 DAW Plugin Version 6: New Features Video

The new Band-in-a-Box VST DAW Plugin Verion 6 adds over 20 new features!

Watch the new features video to learn more: Video: Band-in-a-Box® 2024 - DAW Plugin Version 6 New Features

We also list these new features at www.pgmusic.com/bbwin.plugin.htm.

Forum Statistics
Forums66
Topics81,390
Posts732,459
Members38,441
Most Online2,537
Jan 19th, 2020
Newest Members
Ernest J, ingridguerci94, Izzy, BenChaz, Csofi
38,440 Registered Users
Top Posters(30 Days)
MarioD 195
Al-David 124
DC Ron 113
dcuny 87
rsdean 83
Today's Birthdays
CeeDee, SethMould
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5