My short demo of PSR-S950

Nice keyboard and outstanding playing. Thanks for sharing!

Nice Demo, well played on a super Arranger!

Nice demo and very good playing by you Sergey.

More please! BG

russia rules!

Outstanding!

Gary

Great! Thanks for sharing!
DonM

Thank you a lot for watching and kind words. Having PSR-S950 at home I realized that time has changed since PSR-3000. Not drastically, but quite noticeably.

I couldn't open the video, but I have become a convert and picked up a psr950 last weekend while in Delaware- no sales tax there!

Hello, folks!

Here're some tunes I've played on my new PSR-S950:

WOW! Great renditions, superb playing, and that S950 really sounds fantastic.

Thanks for allowing us to listen and comment,

Gary

Bravo! Outstanding music! Thanks for sharing.

Excellent! Thanks for sharing your work.
DonM

Nice demo Thanx for sharing,....BUT SMILE A LITTLE
you look so angry?..

Well, I'm not an actor )

Maybe you should be. Seriously, you're a handsome, young man, you obviously have lots of wonderful talents, so acting might be a fantastic career to pursue. I can see you doing a James Bond type of movie sometime in the near future and traveling worldwide to film festivals.

Great performances with the S-950, by the way,

Gary

SMILE! The audience wants to see that you are happy to be on the stage performing for them! If you are sad, or nervous,, don’t show it on the outside! Plus, smiling releases endorphins, which reduces stress, so it’s a no brainer. Remember that the audience wants to work out how we think we performed. Even if we aren’t happy with our performance (let’s face it, there are those performances), it’s highly likely that the audience still thought it was great! So let them think it was great by smiling and looking happy with how you performed. No matter how well you think you performed, the audience has taken the time come to your concert and this is your way of thanking them.

Haunting chords and melody. Nice. What song this last one?

I have trouble smiling when I make home demos. Too busy worrying about not messing up. But the suggestion is appropriate, and I agree that you are photogenic and should take advantage of this.

Maybe he's not playing these for an audience, but for himself and to share with this group?

Liberace smiled all the time. Van Cliburn didn't. Guess who was the better musician?

He's my newest addition to my RCL Certified Music Associate list, along with Miden (Dennis).

They bring an international flavor and superb musicianship to the bandstand.

Now, if we could only think about solving the rehearsal problem!


Russ

You could use NINJAM:
NINJAM is open source (GPL) software to allow people to make real music together via the Internet. Every participant can hear every other participant. Each user can also tweak their personal mix to his or her liking. NINJAM is cross-platform, with clients available for Mac OS X, Linux, and Windows. REAPER (our digital audio workstation software for Windows and OS X) also includes NINJAM support (ReaNINJAM plug-in).

NINJAM

The rehearsal thing was a Joke, but, you're right!

Russ

Wow Sergey, I could sit and listen to you all day. Great playing on a great keyboard. That's what it's all about.

Joe

Thank you everyone for your support. As for PSR-S950, I’m still very excited about this keyboard, I didn’t expect to get it but some nice people helped me and now after playing PSR-3000 for about 5 years it feels like traveling trough time (not extremely far, though).

Incredible playing skills - another great performance.

Thanks,

Gary

Great performance. What's the name of the song?

Thank you everybody.

montunoman, it's my improvisation. I've called it "test record" )

IMO, still drowning out the backing with the keyboard sound, Kab.

The idea is to sound like you are playing IN a band, not ON a band!

...

I have to agree with Diki....you have to "SIT" within the mix always with music c or vocals..!

Kabinopus,

Using a volume pedal assigned to RH only, really adds to lead-line expressiveness, especially with sounds that increase in volume after the initial attack, such as Sax, Strings, Horns, and, most importantly, Organ. Pretty much a necessity, in my opinion, especially for instrumental music, but also vital when singing, as it lets you change RH volume without affecting the steady level of the accompaniment. Really handy when doing solos and/or playing licks behind the vocal.

I use a Yamaha FC-7 Expression Pedal...well made, smooth, and adjustable for standing or sitting, and very easy to set up.

Definitely a good investment as it can be used with a newer instrument, should you ever upgrade.

Ian

What you are talking about is called "mix-down". It’s indeed an issue here. But I don’t believe that reducing volume of my part during playing is solution here. You know that if a singer doesn’t hear his voice in monitors loud enough his singing will seem like struggle. PSR keyboards aren’t able to route parts to different outputs, that’s why we can’t do everything right during life performance. Well, I’m just trying to let it go for now.

As for the expression pedal, I have such thing from M-Audio and it works well. I tried FC-7 and it didn’t seem to me to be much better. Actually, the one from M-Audio let’s you to change its straight by turning a small wheel on it. You can make it to change the volume only slightly, not the whole way.

Hey, whatever works for you is best...I just happen to like the FC-7 and I'm used to it's response....M-Audio make some great stuff.

I find the volume pedal essential for my playing style, which is primarily instrumental music...perfect for swells on strings and organ, and also a nice way to add extra expressiveness to reed and brass instruments...nice on Distortion type guitars as well as Pedal Steel.

Getting the proper RH/Accompaniment balance comes with a lot of practice and getting used to the lead sound buried further in the mix when playing "live'. It took me awhile to get used to it, but my one take recordings were much the better for it, as well as the "live" results to the audience.

For recording, the fix is much easier, for, as you say, it can be fixed in the mix-down process. Of course, then you don't have as much control, unless the lead tracks were recorded separately.

Still, I must say your playing is very good, with lots of expression...I worked as a Yamaha demonstrator/clinician for well over 20 years, and it was a very rewarding and interesting job. I just retired a few months ago.

Good luck with your endeavors.

Ian

The thing about audio-styles: you can't record your performance with them on USB-drive. And another thing: "fill-ins" don't work if you call them too late.

Love the left hand bass great acoustic sound...the S950 guitars surly sounds terrific.....haunting melody well done!

Dnj, well, I guess you noticed that it's the same voice I play both hands ) As for guitars, we have them since PSR-S900 (or Tyros 2).

Was that a small smile when you were playing?

Dnj, I'd smile all the time but when I'm playing it's easy to spoil the whole record with a minor distraction... ) which happens a lot...

Kabinopus....Smiling is part of the performance that feeds the battery between the artist & audience. If they see your joy it will infuse the same feelings to whoever is watching you perfom.
The Playing should be secondary, not a distraction, just let your fingers & your soul take the wheel!...

I agree with Donny on this aspect. Keep in mind, however, that Kabinopus is playing for an audience of one - the video camera. BTW: I really enjoyed the song. It sounds a bit Ukrainian to me, it has that kind of swing to it. Either way, I really loved the way you played it - Outstanding!

Gary

Great performance! Sometimes it's hard to smile when you're concentrating. I'd rather see the enjoyment you are obviously getting than a fake-looking smile for sure. I'm sure I'm guilty of not smiling enough when I'm playing. It was pretty obvious in the videos I posted recently.
DonM

Audience of one x thousands of viewers all the more reason to smile..

Guys, to tell the truth I don't know why it's okay not to smile for musicians who play in an orchestra some tunes by Tchaikovsky, but when it comes to an arranger keyboard and contemporary music it must be fun-fun-fun. I've never treated keyboards like toys and playing like a game. Maybe I'd better dedicate my efforts to make people take arranger keyboards seriously then to maintain its status as an entertainment unit.

I agree with this! Keep on recording stuff for us!
DonM

Here are two Russian popular songs and one improvisation.

LOVE that bass line ... nice work.

Great work ... thank you ...

WOW! Absolutely incredible performances- loved every one of them.

Thanks for posting these wonderful songs,

Gary

A tune of my own. Felt like make it this way:

That haunting melody is just SCREAMING for a lyrical interpretation! Write some words to it!!!!! It's beautiful.

Yes, that's a very catchy melody that may be stuck in my head all day. Thanks for sharing!

Nice. It has the sound and feel of an older movie theme. BTW, my daughter has that picture at 1:50 on her living room wall. Can't remember the artist's name, though.

I agree with Dave. I would love to hear a soft, beautiful female vocalist singing this beautiful, haunting melody. WOW!

Gary

Leonid Afremov
http://afremov.com/index.php?

Beautiful tune, expertly played.

Nice work.

Ian

Thanks, Tony.

Young man, at the very least that was one of the most incredible demonstrations I've seen to date.

Thank you so much for posting this,

Gary

Got to agree with you Gary, this chap is brilliant, makes that Yamaha talk. Am I right in thinking when this young man first came on SZ he didn't get much press, he had a couple of KBs one with a broken key, this is 12 months back. I could dig post back up but I post replies to his work back then saying he was good, but he is as good as we have ever seen and as versatile
as hell too. I too hope he keeps posting I might stay around a bit now just for him

Donny,

Smile my arse, have you ever been to Russia, nobody smiles in Russia, there's nothing to smile about, you don't know how luck you are "God Bless America" , I would suggest you all go the Russia before you die, you are in for a shock and note no funnies on the end of this post, God Bless Russia just doesn't sound right does it.

Windmills ... beautiful!

Nice Job such a beautiful haunting melody ...Loved it!!
thanx for sharing your work.

A popular contemporary Russian song

WOW! Another incredible demonstration of your skills with an arranger keyboard.

Thanks for submitting this beautiful music,

Gary

pretty song.

Not just another pretty song, but also a nice showcase for your excellent playing skills.

Nice work,

Ian

nice job......great piano ,very eerie guitar sound.....

Beautiful ... but "dubstep??" The dubstep that my kids listen to in the States is very different from your posted offering. Curious if it's a continental thing?

Uncle Dave, you're right, but the drum tracks in this record are of the style called "Dubstep" from the Eurodance expansion pack.

Gotcha!

Still think you are sitting on TOP of those drums a bit, Kabinopus.

Have you tried my suggestion of recording your stuff to the sequencer FIRST, then mixing it later, while you aren't playing? Try it once or twice... See how far down you can then turn the lead track without losing it behind the drums.

You'd be amazed how far!

Kabinopus,

Very beautiful tune...we already had our first bit of snow here on Cape Breton Island two days ago.

Your playing reminds me of the French-Canadian composer/piano player Andre Gagnon...and you are in good company.

Thanks for keeping this place alive with your music; you play very well, indeed.

Ian

I have listened to all these recordings and they are just great. Great arrangements, sounds and technique. Thanks for sharing your work!

I agree with DonM. Your recordings are superb, your technical expertise and playing ability are top notch - don't change a thing.

Gary

Kabinopus ... obviously you are a very talented young man, and smile or no smile, you are very into your music ... thank you for sharing ...

and looking up 'dubstep' on google, the music is definitely different ...

Nice job, such a beautiful eerie groove in a good way, ....
great for a movie background track..!!

Very nice!
Mark

It is a known fact that when playing a part ( you are also monitoring ) you will always mix it higher in the mix than you would if you weren't playing at the time you make decisions about the volume levels. We all do that without realizing it.

When he first posted his stuff on SZ I knew he was rather special, how right can I be, he is de man.

Diki, when are you going to post your stuff on SZ, man you are never happy, hell I have a mirror on the bathroom floor, I see my ass in every morning, knowing my luck if I send you one, it will break in the post.

Now... this is a visual I really didn't need...

We have to listen to it, why shouldn't he have to look at it? LOL

I've put up a few things from time to time (most are collected on the Roland-arranger.com 'Renditions' forum), Tony. Enjoy.

I wish you a happy new year, my dear friends!

Wonderful playing my friend!
Happy New Year to you!

Lovely music and very well played.

Happy New Year to you as well, Kabinopus, and keep up the fine work.

Ian

Outstanding my friend.

Gary

Super performance, great playing, keep up your great work. Thanks for posting

Another wonderful rendition ... thank you ...

I used an 'audio-style' with this one. It's inconvenient because you can't record a song on a flash drive if such style is used.

Great job .....I see you love the light keybed action also Kabinopus keep the songs coming Love It!!

I never understood why you cannot record from an audio style using the onboard recording system. I had to use the Zoom H2 to record Bring Me Sunshine for that same reason.

Great job on the song, BTW, as usual.

Gary

Being somewhat insane, I decided to find a work around for this aspect of recording using an audio style. Merely record the song using the midi recorder, which will record an audio style. Then, you can merely record the midi file you created using the audio recorder. As far as the onboard USB audio recorder knows, it's just another midi file. The recordings come out exactly the same. Oh, almost forgot, in doing it this way you can also either record your vocals, or some additional right hand voices, similar to multi-track recording techniques. Neat!

Cheers,

Gary

Another beautiful arrangement ... thank you ...

Personally the audio styles on the S950 leave ALOT to be Desired sonically I never use them at all....

I don't agree with you on this one, Donny. Like all style files, much will depend upon the style itself and how it was compiled. I love the sound of the Cool Swing Style, especially for doing the song Bring Me Sunshine, especially when you get into the third variation. It's crisp, clean and not at all busy - perfect for a huge number of great songs along the same line.

Gary

They all sound like your in a tunnel...very bad EQ on all audio styles and you cant do nothing about the way it was recorded...not up to MY standards at all... I wish I could delete them all like on my KORGS..but Yamaha wont let you delete factory styles of anykind..I better stop before I sell everything and buy a PA900 or trade Uncle Dave !!!!

I got a Pa600 if you are interested ...

again I slapped myself in the face......not that I need it but I thought that pa600 was gone on ebay by now???

... I posted it on S-Z Buy/Sell, but waiting to get the Pa900 before going all out to sell it ...

And stop slapping yourself in the face ... I'm sure if you asked Nancy politely she would be happy to ...

... and you KNOW you want it (the 600, that is) ...

PS the Pa900 should be here Tues or Wed, I hope ...

Good luck selling but honestly it would have been gone on
Ebay by now, ........seriously I am not in the market for another arranger at this time...the S-950 is one AWESOME KB!
next month is my 1 year anniversary for me and my S-950 baby.......BUT, .....I will be interested to see what the new S-960 brings to the table soon ......but, I WON'T fall into the T4/T4 upgrade trap UNLESS there are MAJOR Changes in the features I am concerned with like the VH2, MFD, OTS button locations, Hand grips on sides, revised audio styles,
Tilt display, front USB port....

Keep an eye on ToysRus ads...after Xmas sales...

Audio style and audio linked multi pads

Neat, clean arrangement - love the way you assembled this one. Not something I would use, but I love it all the same.

Gary

Nice as always, I liked the groove, .....
do you ever play other sounds besides Piano on some of your songs also on the S950.?

It almost has a Richard Clayderman feel...

interesting choice of backing style but it sounds good.. and dramatic. *Like*

Nick

Sergey, beautiful music and photography. Thanks for sharing.

Sergey, nice job as always very enjoyable composition well done, good to hear more instruments besides piano on this song. Did you record into the S-950 or an outboard source?



Side note: I see you sit very high in the seat?.....
I am the total opposite and sit VERY low so that my elbows & keyboard are at the same height..

Dnj, thank you. I used an external sequencer with this one, Magix Samplitude, to be specific.

You're right that I sit very high, some people say that it's too high, but for me the higher - the better. When I played the piano in a pub I felt it quite clearly.

Sergey:

Nice recording and performances. You did an excellent job in mixing and recording. the balances were right on. The 950 sounds really good especially the background strings and pads.

Joe

Nice piano improvisations along with the dance rhythm. The bright Yamaha piano sounds very good for such pop sounds.
Are the human voices that say "Are you ready to dance" part of the factory rhythm/style? The speaker sounds very British :-)
The rhythm/style of the second piece 'Emotion' reminds me very much of Phil Collins.

rosetree, yes, this is an example of an audio-style at work )

Very nice presentations ... you show a lot of emotion in these videos - no pun intended - ...


... or perhaps Phil Collins meets Santana ...

Where did you get the video of my wife driving?
Great work!

Wow! You continue to amaze me with your magical talents. These are incredible.

Thanks,

Gary

"Possible" is my favorite of the bunch.

Nice!

Probably, my favorite also, and, I love the video images of places far far away and long long ago.

Ditto!! ......"Possible" was my favorite also, beautiful melody......would love to hear a version with a female Vocal on that track also. Great innovations and creativity using the S-950 also on all. keep them coming!