Random Thoughts

[remember_Cedric]

Sorry to disappoint?

I've heard mix reviews on the hair product and wanted to hear what Spcnet'ers thoughts/experience on it.

If a spambot actually manages to hack into my account or any moderator's acct, expect an Spcnet spam apocolypse. I doubt it would happen though.

No spambot can survive our PM (Psycho Moderator) - Ken! As long as KC is around, we're quite safe. The bots would have been brutally murdered while making an attempt to hack his account.

[Lucre]

Flute, like any woodwind family instrument, requires alot of lung capacity which I do not have enough. Do you, SS? And, there are limited range of notes you can play with.

If you have a passion for it, you can try too! Oh, and Violin has gotta be a fun instrument to fiddle with!

actually i personally find 'flutes' relatively easier to play. not really great lung capacity, but the way one tighten the lips; lipping technique, although i played the chinese flute, so im not sure if the western counterpart is harder or not.

when i first started i had a tendency to blow harder cos i dont hear any sound coming out, and get supremely tired. then i realised one has to blow it without force on the lungs, but the pressure comes from asserting the pressure over the lips.

then again i played the trumpet, which, in my opinion needed larger lungs. LOL.

and i said that in comparison to other instruments. at least for a beginner, the keyboard instrument (or those that work on similar basis, guzheng, harp etc.) tend to be more encouraging because you still get 'decent sounds' coming off the instrument.

bowed instruments (ie. violins or erhu) give disgusting noises for beginners. (i'd been playing violin for more than 20 years & dabbled with the erhu before =p)

wind instruments, if you havent' figured the technique, then i guess theres just absolutely no sound. though it might not give much incentive to try harder, at least it doesnt disturb the peace of people around you.

comparison chart:
flutes take about a few minutes to make some almost inaudible sounds, few more days to play stuff but probably months before one can play decent quality music.

brass instruments: in general, train the lips for a month, then the lungs for another, and you're probably good to go in the third. (in terms of quality of tone, it is relatively easier to achieve compared to flutes)

violins: you need weeks to figure how to hold the instrument without injuring yourself (the posture of holding is actually a lot more awkward than it seemed), and endure 1-2 years of very bad playing, bodyaches, and muscle cramps. =p

[Ian Liew]

actually i personally find 'flutes' relatively easier to play. not really great lung capacity, but the way one tighten the lips; lipping technique, although i played the chinese flute, so im not sure if the western counterpart is harder or not.

I've never played the Chinese flute, but a few friends of mine who have played both all agree that the Western flute is easier to play, both in terms of fingering and in getting a good sound coming out. The Western flute already gives me lip cramp and headaches, I can't imagine the Huang Yaoshi type...

[Lucre]

I've never played the Chinese flute, but a few friends of mine who have played both all agree that the Western flute is easier to play, both in terms of fingering and in getting a good sound coming out. The Western flute already gives me lip cramp and headaches, I can't imagine the Huang Yaoshi type...

i thought he played on jade? mine was bamboo....its not that tough.

most people seemed to think the challenge in violins was the fingering due to lack of frets, but it wasnt really the case =p the main challenge is to keep the violin from falling off your shoulders. and it has to be so firm that your violin wouldnt even shake even if you 'attack' it. (=p contrary to popular misconception, you do not support the violin with your palms, but entirely between ur shoulder and chin.

try imagining grabbing something by your neck for long hours...and see if you're get a cramp =p compared to most instruments, the violin has gotta be one instrument that needed proper instruction just to even 'hold' it, or risk possible injury. usually if you dont have a problem having ur violin slipping off (thats why violinists uses 'shoulder-rests'), the rest are not as hard. lol. at least fingerings and bowing stuff had some common grounds with other bowed instruments.

the holding of the erhu bow is quite different though erhu should have been easier because it has less problems with the holding part (unless ur standing and playing) but im way too used to the violin to do erhu justice.

[Ian Liew]

the holding of the erhu bow is quite different though erhu should have been easier because it has less problems with the holding part (unless ur standing and playing) but im way too used to the violin to do erhu justice.

How do you support an Erhu while standing? On the hipbone? That sounds even worse than a violin - I used to feel uncomfortable when my friends used both hands for something else and left the violin wedged in their necks - due to the angle the head is at it looks like they've been impaled through the neck with a big piece of wood. =)

[kidd]

I always wonder. Would violin players get neck pain/cramp bending their head like this for such a long time. But, it does look elegant some how.

Btw, TVB got it all wrong. Their character always hold their xiao side way when it should be straight. Dizi is the Chinese flute that you hold side way not xiao.

[Ian Liew]

I always wonder. Would violin players get neck pain/cramp bending their head like this for such a long time. But, it does look elegant some how.

Btw, TVB got it all wrong. Their character always hold their xiao side way when it should be straight. Dizi is the Chinese flute that you hold side way not xiao.

I thought the xiao was horizontal while the dizi was straight? In Magic Crane the Jade Flute Goddess held her flute horizontal while the Silver Recorder chap held his dizi straight - although ATV might have got it wrong too. That's the only time I've seen a xiao and dizi both on screen at the same time.

LOCH 82's Huang Yaoshi detaching half his xiao and converting it to a dizi was rather far-fetched, though.

[kidd]

I thought the xiao was horizontal while the dizi was straight? In Magic Crane the Jade Flute Goddess held her flute horizontal while the Silver Recorder chap held his dizi straight - although ATV might have got it wrong too. That's the only time I've seen a xiao and dizi both on screen at the same time.

LOCH 82's Huang Yaoshi detaching half his xiao and converting it to a dizi was rather far-fetched, though.

Yeah, both TVB and ATV got it wrong. And because of TVB and ATV, I've gotten it for wrong all the while until I actually learn the dizi myself.

http://www.oldflutes.com/world/chinese.htm

[Ken Cheng]

Yo' momma don't dance and yo' daddy don't rock 'n roll.

[Lucre]

How do you support an Erhu while standing? On the hipbone? That sounds even worse than a violin - I used to feel uncomfortable when my friends used both hands for something else and left the violin wedged in their necks - due to the angle the head is at it looks like they've been impaled through the neck with a big piece of wood. =)

rest it on the lap; thats what i meant by its harder if ur standing. =p

I always wonder. Would violin players get neck pain/cramp bending their head like this for such a long time. But, it does look elegant some how.

Btw, TVB got it all wrong. Their character always hold their xiao side way when it should be straight. Dizi is the Chinese flute that you hold side way not xiao.

if you're just starting out, you might get muscle cramps all over the body, not particularly the neck area.

however if you'd been playing for ages, it shouldnt hurt at all, cos your muscles are seasoned to that kind of posture.

and yea, the di is the one that you hold sidewards, and the xiao is the one that is held straight. =) (i'd never tried playing the 'xiao' though i heard its harder than di)

when i was younger my mom watched those shows and go: these people, how could they got the two mixed up!!

[Ian Liew]

Yeah, both TVB and ATV got it wrong. And because of TVB and ATV, I've gotten it for wrong all the while until I actually learn the dizi myself.

http://www.oldflutes.com/world/chinese.htm

No wonder Zhang Jizhong and Li Guoli made their Huang Yaoshis play the vertical flute - they got it right after all, even if it didn't look as cool.

[ByTmE]

I had a nightmare that a girl I hated was laughing at me... OK, it's time to pull myself back together now.

Though I must admit, sometimes I get a very satisfying pleasure out of moping and sulking.

[Suet Seung]

Today, I got Glass Mask (anime season 1) on DVD for 30% off the retail price. Sweet deal.

[PJ]

I had a nightmare that a girl I hated was laughing at me... OK, it's time to pull myself back together now.

You have many nightmares. I'm glad I wasn't in it this time!

[xJadedx]

Two more weeks.

[ByTmE]

You have many nightmares. I'm glad I wasn't in it this time!

LoL! It's because I'm usually asleep. --> Preferred Default Setting.

[PJ]

LoL! It's because I'm usually asleep. --> Preferred Default Setting.

I have been sleep deprived recently. But tonight, I plan to get a lot of sleep. *yawn*

[Guo Xiang]

Watching an old HK film wherein the outrage of female modesty was considered funny.

[skylee]

Craving for a raspberry white-chocolate mousse...

[HuangYushi]

Why are some people so dim (to put it mildly) that they can continuously create problems out of thin air, annoy customers needlessly (and endlessly) and add tonnes to the workload of their seniors/supervisors?

Yes, I am pissed ... mighty pissed today....