First let me say that I post this in BAIC because I know we have some VERY talented people of all skills which makes the results more accurate.


If you had to define a musical genius in one sentence, how would you define him or her?


1. Someone who is original and basically creates a new genre of music, much like Jimmy Hendrix, Nirvana, etc

2. Someone who can release a song and it be a top hit every time they make a new song... So basically popularity.

3. Intricate/complex music that takes a VERY high level of skill to produce, even though the music may not be a top hit every time, but their music is so difficult to reproduce and so complex to create that it takes them to an all new level, one fine example is Johan Sebastian Bach, particularly the song "Toccata and fugue in d minor". In case you haven't heard this song before, PLEASE take a min and listen to AT LEAST half of it. This song in my honest opinion is the most brilliant piece of music that I've ever heard.

Here's the song: (Damn, I can't find the original version, these are all live reproductions so they don't sound nearly as good as the real studio version.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipzR9bhei_o
(you probably know the very beginning which is in fact the weakest part of the song, the rest of it is so intricate and complex that it boggles my mind as to how someone created that!


My choice is obviously the latter.



The reason I post this is because I got into a friendly debate with a good friend of mine... He's one of those music snobs who thinks he knows everything about music, yet he's so close minded that he wont explore the realm of other genres of music. His choice is number 2, whereas mine is number 3.

You have to pick JUST one, no multiple choice options, sorry.


Thanks for voting guys.

 

This is rap to me. Rap is like Howard Stern...and NASCAR...if a country is full of 25% retards...thats like 75 million people who will pay for the CD's, buy SIRIUS radio, and pay for NASCAR events...it has nothing to do with QUALITY!

Dont get me wrong, there is great rap out there. 1 in 10 though.

so its between #1 and #3 for me...hard decision.

 

I agree, and #2 also has to do with musical fads out there, without the fad the song wouldn't even be on the charts... To me that does not make a musical genius in any way, shape, or form. Some chart toppers are songs like "Mmm-bop" from Hanson, and well, you get my picture.

There are not many bands/composers that can create very intricate and complex songs that still sound great.

When something is so complex and good, I almost always get the goose bumps... Chart toppers, not so much.

 

This S is B-A-N-A-N-A-S

 

#1 for me

Les Claypool.

 

haah yeah and #3 for Primus

 

I agree. I mostly listen to hip hop but the rap they play on the radio is CRAP! The crazy thing is that the crap they play on the radio are #1 hits!!?! What ever happened to REAL hip hop? Mos Def? Common? De La? Tribe called Quest?

but yea, im torn between 1 and 3 as well

 

leonard berstine (sp?)

 

I'm torn between #1 and #3 as well. Although to release a song and have it be a top hit every time is pretty impressive given that people are so fickle.

With #3 though I think sometimes musical genius might not be fully defined by making something intricate and complex. Sometimes the true genius may be the ability to make something very simple sound great.

 

Dunno, but this guy is amazing! Playing Aphex Twin's Come to Daddy on drums...WOW:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pxhz3YU0s6I

 

Musical genius IMO:
Someone who has perfect pitch, and can pick up just about any instrument and play it well.

 

yeah...Jurassic 5 is as far underground i go lol...since i dont have an ipod.

Then stuff on the radio, is what my friends and i dance to...stuntin like mah daddy...50cent and Justin.... stuff like that is fun to laugh at, but thats about it ***** F'a im ill.

 

Take heed, 'cause I'm a lyrical poet.

 

#1 and #3

Though, the people that create new genres are rarely the ones that perfect them. That usually comes later with someone from the #3 category.

 

That's pretty awesome...

For me, music runs through my being though I cannot play much more than a CD player. Cannot go a day w/out listening to something and my tastes are all over the place. To me, musical genius is shown on varying levels so it's hard to issue forth a blanket statement on it. For example, I see Les Claypool and Mark Knopfler as my stringed-instrument musical genius heroes, but there are sooo many other great artists! I saw David Gilmour in concert a while back and was seriously sitting there nearly paralyzed for most of the show (and man did it smell nice in there *puff*puff*pass out*). Les can make it sound like he is playing three basses and His Thumb (tm) is playing 4 others simultaneously. I find that musical genius is directly related to chickenskin generated by the music. I am also heavily biased in favour of things that are meaningful to me such as stuff that I remember from my childhood (Pink Floyd, Fleetwood Mac, Jethro Tull, etc etc etc) rate pretty high because they bring back all kinds of memories of people gone by...

There are people/bands who can sound good doing anything. Then there are the people that have nearly or totally defined their genre but probably do not have much of a range. There bands like The Beatles which I know go down in the history books and while I have tons of respect for them and what they did, I seriously cannot stand even one of their songs. That is musical genius that I am not a fan of I guess haha... So, for me, musical genius is defined by all kinds of things that cannot be represented in a poll. At the same time as I have near deity-like reverence for certain artists and groups there are many others I wouldn't use the cd jacket noted to clean up a doggie loaf. Mostly those have been popularity-seeking marketing enterprises versus actual art.

BTW - Right now I am listening to... "Röyksopp - Follow My Ruin" but a few minutes ago I was listening to the Deftones and HIM. I dunno. All over. I think "Obfusc" is next on the player. Arbitrary!