Music is multi-faceted. Two people who love music may still be very different in their taste and expression of music. Here’s some types of musicians I have observed – they are probably related to personality types!
1) The Music Appreciator – These people just love music. They love to listen to people play instruments, they love concerts, they have huge music collections. Every Brazilian I’ve met falls into this category. My brother-in-law Ed ranks very high in this area. I rank very low.
2) The Instrumentalist – These people have a natural talent for playing music and devote tons of time to improving their skill. Even if no one hears them play, they still perfect their craft for the love of skillful musical execution. Session and orchestra players usually fit in here.
3) The Entertainer – To the Entertainer, music is a means to an end – making people happy! These people love to perform, smile while they do it, and really just have a great time when people hear them play. They engage the audience naturally. They love playing music, sure, but it’s more about that connection between performer and listener. They are driven to perform a lot even if they aren’t particularly skilled. These people are truly modern-day minstrels.
4) The Sound Guy – You will find these people in supporting roles. They are fine not being the center of attention (and may not even play an instrument). They love tweaking mixers, listening critically, and supporting musical production – all while being as geeky and smart about it as possible. They know all about dBs, PA’s, acoustics, gain, snakes, mics, faders, DAWs, and EQ. They will talk your ears off about any one of those things if given half a chance.
5) The Gearhead – A strange breed of musician, the Gearhead is more of an anti-social musician who loves researching, buying, selling, trading, and studying musical instruments or electronics. They may even branch out into building their own gear. You will find them reading specs, reviews, and manuals for hours at a time. The quality of their equipment may far outpace their playing ability, but that doesn’t bother the Gearhead. They love to talk about their equipment and what it can do. To make a Gearhead’s day tell him, “Your tone is just amazing!”
6) The Theorist – More of a right-brained approach to music. The Theorist likes music but approaches it from a scientific perspective. He may be interested in music theory, history, physics, or composition. He may like to categorize music or enjoy analyzing chord progressions. He takes pride in hearing things no one else can.
7) The Teacher – These folks also use music as a means to an end. They love to teach and try to communicate their understanding and love of music to others. They want others to develop their own musical personality and find enjoyment through music.
8 ) The Poet – The Poet wants to tell a story to the world, and has found that people listen best when their stories are communicated through a musical medium. These folks love to write songs/lyrics and convey strong emotions. They may even be relatively unmusical. People like Bob Dylan may fit here.
Obviously there’s a lot of overlap here, and I might have to narrow down some of these categories, but that’s a good starting point.
If you like music in any way, where do you fit in?
Personally, I’m a Teacher, Gearhead, and Theorist!
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