Ear players vs. Readers....

I agree that both/either make beautiful music!

Like many of you, I also came from a long line of very musical people...My eldest daughter is what I call the "consumate musician"....She plays any instrument, either by ear or reads....She sings gloriously, & is gifted with exact pitch...Two of her 3 children are musically talented as well...one sings & the other is a carbon copy of his Mom talent wise....

Probably the most interesting musician in the family was an Aunt...a couple of greats back, was a famous Vaudville Whistler....Off hand I don't recall her name. My Dad had his own high school band..."The Kansas City Footstompers" (or footwarmers)... He was the drummer/leader...My only sibling my bro, plays bagpipes & guitar now that he is a "seasoned citizen"....(He is older than me)!

My first KB was purchased only 12 years ago...a Yamaha toy...A new friend played a KN1000...the sound differences were very very noticable....I found a KN1000 soon thereafter in a pawn shop....Wow! Did I fall in love or what! My new friend was so helpful to my learning process....AND let me copy as much of her music as I wanted!

As a 10 year old I had taught myself to read the treble clef on a church piano with some John Thompson's beginners books...I had no interest in learning the bass clef as all I wanted to do was have the melody to sing to!

Performing in School & church singing groups as well as acting groups very... enjoyable too! I had tap/acrobat lessons, ballroom dancing as a young teen with my bro...Went to Hollywood to radio shows that big bands/singers did way back in the big band era...learned lots of music just listening to them...Memorised more than I realized until I started playing!...I have all the wonderful rhythms & words in my head!

During these 12 years of music in my life...I have owned one more sophisticated Yamaha (A psr640 I think) & the KN3K, the 5K, the 6K, & the AWESOME 7K...My talented daughter has the 5K....I still have the 6K & the 7K...

My daughter & I want her to have a 7K...I will help her make the purchase...She desearves to have one! But I won't give her mine!

While I am totally self-taught & not a seasoned or very talented player, I do enjoy playing for myself, with others, & for others...Every Sat I play at a local Nursing Home for 2.5 hours....All of us enjoy the music....It fills my soul to see these elders get up & dance as best they can, sing along with me, make requests, recognise the tunes....They tell me they have never heard my make a mistake even though several of them were successful professional musicians! I know I make mistakes frequently.....I also know they are lying!

To conclude this rather lengthly post....For me the most important part of playing music...being involved in music at any level....is that we each enjoy our own participation.

I know I do....Hope you all do too!

ELIZABETH...