Hi!
 
How many of you guys play a musical instrument, or make your own music? Just wondering. Any other non-Japanese related passions?
 
I play flutes. I have three. They're all different, for all occasions. Going on fourth year now, I can reproduce most songs that I hear (=get stuck in my mind). For example, I use Within Temptation's "Memories" to warm up. It's just perfect for the flute I use most.
I can't read western notations but it doesn't matter much. I can't name any of them but I hear the differences between notes pretty accurately, so all I have to do is find the beginning tune, and the rest will follow (same theory as with ten finger typing, the fingers know what comes next, even if you don't). One special artist whose song gives me headache is Nordman. It begins simply enough, but is very treacherous to play.  
Medieval-like and Irish tunes (such as Enya) are cool and easy too!
 
I usually practice inside my apartment (although it is not allowed), but I asked around, and surprisingly many have nothing against hearing it from behind the wall (as long as it happens during the daytime, of course). In Finland practicing outside is way too embarrassing (and cold). Except one very foggy night when I went to the old Viking burial ground close to my apartment and played a Viking tune everytime I could hear somebody walking on the nearby path. Bad, bad boy!!  

I use to play some kantele when I was younger but not anymore, now I'd like to learn to play guitar.
But I've always sung  in choirs or small groups even took some singing lessons. nowadays I mostly sing along to what I listen to on the cd player

Keyboards, practice piano when I get the opportunity. Fooling around with software synthesizers, but would like to have a hardware some day. The Roland Juno-D, Korg X50 and the new Yamaha MM6 are the ones I've been looking at; all in the lower price-range (~500€) since that's all I dare to think about, if even that since funds seem to be perpetually low and I'd also like a new computer and a trip to Japan.
 
I also make, or rather try to make, some tunes that I link to from my blog (my WWW-link).

Quote from Pooh Admin on Mar 21^st, 2007, 9:15pm:

I've heard some really good stuff about the JP-8000, but I think it would be a bit too much for me; being relatively new to programming synthesizers, I think it would be best to have a board with good built-in sounds right from the start, but that I can also tweak around with later. (I'd also like 61 or more keys... The M-Audio Keystation 49 MIDI controller I use feels really cramped.)
Quote:

Good job on getting your music sold! That's the dream I have, that people would be willing to pay for my music... I listened to some of the samples on ITMS (had to update my iTunes first since I was using an ancient version), they sound really nice and calm from what I could gather from the short samples, even though I prefer more melodic music with harmonies myself (my main Japanese influences being the styles of Komuro or Sakamoto...). It reminded me a bit of the soundtrack to the Lonely Planet-travelling programme.
 
What equipment (speakers etc.) do you use for mixing? I'm only using Garageband so far, and the speakers are the ESI nEar 05.

Man, I'd like to get my hands on a pair of Genelecs! I don't even know how they sound, never having listened to a pair (I did have the opportunity once, but that was before my interest in making music), but if they're even a fraction of what they're rumored to be, they'd be a big step up... But I should probably be looking into acoustic treatment first, before I even start to consider new speakers. The only problem there being still living at home, so someone might object to big slabs of mineral wool in the corners  

Now they get along so well  

Me too. He can really concentrate.

Strange, the "Football War" between El Salvador and Honduras in 1969 suddenly popped into my mind. Weird, huh?  
 
Glad it didn't stick between you guys!