What do you use your Nord for?

[Quai34]

This is the synth part I was thinking about when I said Clavinet, my bad, thanks again for the precision, Analogika.

[analogika]

There's another ARP line here:

[ericL]

I use a collection of NS2 for two main gigs.

1) A weekend '80s cover band called Flat Elvis playing clubs and parties. I use all aspects of the NS2 very deeply - tons of organ, piano, synths, custom and stock samples. Our playlist is here and there is another link there with some videos of the band playing live.
http://www.flatelvisband.com/songs

2) An original band called Fighting Gravity I toured with for a decade back in the '80s and '90s. Genre is ska, reggae, rock. In this band I play mostly organ, CP-70, and piano with a few synth sounds. We have been doing some reunion shows in medium venues over the past few years (the band folded over a decade ago). Good compilation video from a recent show here.

[fieldflower]

Strictly home use.
Hoping/trying to talk my way into a 70's rock band to see if my organ chops are (or can become) up to the challenge. We'll see...

Dreams are good. Tomorrow I'm going to sit in with the 70's rock band with my 5D.

[Rusty Mike]

OK, I'll bite.

I currently own a Stage 2EX HP76 and an Electro 4D. In the past I've owned an Electro 3HP, Electro 3-73SW and Electro 2-61.

I participate in several groups, but it all mostly centers a set of core people. I play piano in two traditional jazz big bands. One is a community band whose membership is of rather mixed talent. We rehearse nearly weekly, and play out about 5-6 times per year. The MD is a trumpet player friend of mine.

The other big band is managed by a sax player friend. This band meets about once a month, and gigs only a couple of times per year. It's a killer lineup of many pros, session players and music educators. The players change based on availability, but everyone is super talented. I almost don't deserve to be part of that band.

I'm also part of a jazz fusion band run by the same sax player. Other members are a guitarist, bassist and drummer who all sit in or regularly play with one of the above bands. We play stuff from Mike Stern, Weather Report, Paquito de Rivera and Robben Ford. It's a really different experience for me, and a lot of fun. We do about 4-5 gigs each year.

I just started a cocktail duo with the trumpet player from the first band. It's a simple little thing, but it actually pays a little money.

Finally, we do small gigs as a jazz combo. We can interchange among people, but it includes the sax player, guitarist and me. We use the same pool of people for drums, bass, additional horns (including the trumpet player), etc. Most of us are in the same age range and do this for fun more than anything.

For all of this stuff, the Stage is my main axe. I use it by itself 99% of the time. A lot of it has to do with practicality. Most of my rehearsals and gigs are two hours or less, so it's not worth the effort to haul out a second keyboard, mixer, cables, etc. I play piano for almost all of the songs, so it's not worth the time and trouble to bring out the Electro just to play once or twice. I get by just fine on the Stage.

I will sometimes bring out the Electro by itself for the small pickup gigs. I like the light weight, and it gives me an excuse to play more organ. But I prefer the weighted action and more keys on the Stage for bigger gigs. In either case, I tend to not use a mixer when playing a single keyboard. I usually plug the two stereo outputs into the A and B inputs on the QSC.

I will occasionally haul out both instruments. If we're doing longer sessions or jams, when it's worth the effort to set up. And it sounds killer!

I own a pair of QSC K8.2's and an older K10. In most of the big band situations, I bring only a single 8.2. It provides plenty of sound and is easy to carry - I can carry my whole rig in a single trip! If we're playing outside, I'll add one of the other speakers. For the fusion band, I use both 8's for myself and add the K10 to the one the sax player owns to make a complete band PA or for monitors. I mix my stuff with a Mackie ProDX 8, which is a great little digital mixer. A few months ago, I added a Minifooger MF Drive pedal to my fusion rig. I send the lead synth sounds out of the Stage's Output 3 and into the Drive. The pedal has a creamy Moog filter in it, and adding just a touch of drive gives the Stage lead patches a nice rich presence.

[Quai34]

There's another ARP line here:

Yes, that's right, I will ask my guitarist to do it. Thanks for the info.
Sincerely

[Tracii]

Right now I'm about to record organ parts for some songs to show the others.

Done. And it sounds amazing (my Electro, not my playing )!

I know there's a bit of a continuing discussion around here about the quality of Nord's leslie simulation. As I have never heard a B3 + Leslie combo in real life, I don't mean to talk about how it compares in a rehearsal/gig situation. All I'm saying is that I'm not hearing any difference on record.

[Quai34]

@Rusty MIKE:
funny how things could gravitate around the same players, Imwas in the same position when IQ was taking course at the Berkley Music Sahool of Patis 24 years ago, 12 players big band, plus trio and jazz quintet etc....but now, I'm just doing jazz for myself and so on...Too tough to find people who are into jazz here....well easy if you are a brass player because we have a specific jazz department at the university of Manitoba but there is also some much pro piano jazz player that I would have never any chance to play with them...
So, it's pro jazz player or "Classic Rock, man !!!"

[Rusty Mike]

@Rusty MIKE:
funny how things could gravitate around the same players, Imwas in the same position when IQ was taking course at the Berkley Music Sahool of Patis 24 years ago, 12 players big band, plus trio and jazz quintet etc....but now, I'm just doing jazz for myself and so on...Too tough to find people who are into jazz here....well easy if you are a brass player because we have a specific jazz department at the university of Manitoba but there is also some much pro piano jazz player that I would have never any chance to play with them...
So, it's pro jazz player or "Classic Rock, man !!!"

Funny thing indeed.

I picked up playing about 10 years ago after being away from it for almost 20 years. I knew that the father of one of my son's friends played guitar, and I asked him if he wanted to get together an play a bit. We started by just jamming to standards in my basement. At the same time, my wife found out that a local adult school had a traditional big band group that was organized through a local community organization, and he encouraged me to get involved.

So, a lot of this is her fault.

After getting comfortable with the band, I asked the bass player and drummer if they would be interested in joining the guitar player and me for occasional Friday night jazz jams in my basement. We did that for quite a while until the drummer moved away. The original guitar player from the big band moved on, and I asked my friend to join. It was really great; we had a nice rhythm section that played well together, and it showed.

During that time, the lead trumpet player took a liking to me and asked if I would be interested in sitting in with another big band run by a long time sax player friend of his. I agreed, and the sax guy started calling me on a regular basis to play with that band. I got to develop a pretty good relationship with the sax guy, and was introduced to another bass player and two more drummers.

Up to this point, I considered myself a decent, but not great, jazz pianist. I could read and could improvise enough to get away with it. But, I'm a pretty low maintenance guy and I do my homework. I borrowed the piano charts to copy/scan and practice. I always came prepared. Sax Man is big on loyalty, as in he is very loyal to others, so I tend to be his first call.

Now there are other available pianists in the area, many of them more talented than me. Not all of them read, though, some are undependable and many are working people who want money for rehearsals. I play to have fun and get better. The money is secondary. I think they keep calling me because they know I'll show up (be careful what you ask for)!

So, at this point, we're kind of a core crowd of 1 keyboard player, 1 guitarist, 2 basses, 3 drummers, a sax and a trumpet. There are a few other horn players that we call on occasion. We do gigs in various sizes - duos, trios, quartets, etc. The fusion band is formed out of this group, but we don't interchange members.

We are all pretty much in the same age range and have the same mindset about playing. Some are better players than others, but none of us are world class by any stretch. We get together to have fun, learn a bit and put some collective energy into this passion of ours.

I'll end with a joke:

A Jazz Musician wins a million dollars in the lottery. He's being interviewed by the local TV station, and he's asked by the reporter "What will you do now that you've won the lottery?"

His response: "I don't know. I guess I'll just keep playing until the money runs out."

I'm here all week. Try the veal.

[solmaster]

Great story! Terrible Joke! HaHa! Enjoyed your post mate!