Wikiloopsmas reflections (and a rant)

(Some uncharacteristically serious thoughts, before I get to a small rant at the end)

As the festive season approaches and I have laid out my Wikiloopsmas stockings in the hope they will be filled with if not hope and joy then at least a set of air guitar strings and some interesting templates I can deface with weird keyboard sounds, some moody reflections on what was and might be.

I have three ways by which I measure the success of Wikiloops and its impact on me:

One is the amount of satisfaction and pure joy I get from both just listening to great musical ideas and/or adding my 2 cents worth of stuff ….. well, sometimes adding, more often subtracting, but hey, if that inspires people to come up with something better, or better executed, it all evens out in the end.

The second measure is the level and tone of interaction, be it on the shoutbox, in the comments or the mail exchanges. This makes the whole process of listening and creating more personal and leads me to not only think about the music but also the people behind it.

The third measure is a sombre one. As the past 18 months have not exactly been a fountain of joy and happiness, I have gravitated more towards Wikiloops as a place of refuge, a space where – even if only for an hour – I can just forget the world around me and preserve the final remnants of my sanity. The fact that I`m still here just tells me that my need still exists and that Wikiloops addresses that need.

But Wikiloops this year has not only worked as a counterweight but in addition provided some real highlights.

The Barnadise meeting must rank top of the list, not only because of the vibes and the joy of putting people and faces to music but also because the sheer effort Dick and his family put into making it work (before, during and after the event) showing that dedication to an idea is everything.

Another highlight was working on some tracks in the hospital (as a visitor, not a patient). Some of the piano adds from the last 6 months were created on the lovely sounding Kawai piano on the 5th floor of our local hospital. Anyone in need of an audience should consider playing in hospitals, as the audience cannot run away. (Though do be careful of low-flying bedpans and being hit by a crutch does hurt!)

Nicks Cosmic Spore project on youtube was another ray of sunshine for me. It is apparently possible to make my adds sound good and polished, even if it must have taken Nick weeks to work on my small contribution. But it has offered some hope for my musical future, something to hold on to. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHH8wPg0Akk

And even though it landed me in hot water (a tub full of molten lava would seem a more adequate description) I still consider my (failed!) marriage proposal to Shi a thing to remember 2024 by. That the trolley service has since shifted from Shi`s cookies to TeeGee`s espresso is an entirely separate issue and has nothing to do with me.

So, maybe I should change my wishes for filling the Wikiloopsmas stockings and hope that they will reveal some interesting musical projects, closer and deeper collaboration on tracks, a great Barnadise 2025 meeting (no pressure, Dick) and that while I`m in a “my world is what others make it” situation, Wikiloops will continue to show that others can do good.

Can I do my rant now?

Over the past two years I have come to simply accept that I am too stupid to get my keys to sound on Wikiloops as intended. It was only last month that I discovered the reason for this and it’s the [insert your preferred swearword here] panning slider in my DAW.

When I started out on the loops it was playing bass only. Bass, as we all know is recorded in mono. So, when you try to put it in the mix, the panning slider will put the signal wherever you want it, without any loss. Keyboards, well, there`s a stereo signal and when you pan it….I probably don`t need to tell YOU what happens, but I wish someone had told me.

It was only recently that I learned that I should have used the Dual Panning plug-in, as that moves the complete stereo signal. Why the heck didn`t I notice this earlier? Mind playing tricks on me, making me think I heard the left channel simply because I knew it was there.

Confirmation bias at its best. Guilty as charged.

Folks, that is what the comment section is for. If anyone had pointed that out to me 12 months ago, you could have enjoyed some real masterpieces from me. Instead, you only got a limp left hand version of adds that would otherwise have shamed Beethoven. No wonder I get a straight 10 on my personal cringe scale when I listen to my past adds.

Add to the Wikiloopsmas stockings: Time to read the printed helpfile of my DAW.

Thank you for your attention. Regular programming will now resume.

Merry Wikiloopsmas everyone

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Any 2025 musical goals Thomas? Always a pleasure to read your thoughts (and rants :) ).

I'm not sure I understand the dual-panning issue you brought up. I'm pretty sure I've heard your adds through both sides and not a single side...but what do I know :)

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Lol life is a learning curve :) Keep at it, and remember to always have fun with your music ;)

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I have enjoyed your adds the way they were B) But they are gonna get better now. Hell yeah :W

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Musical goals? Good god no! I wouldn't want anyone to gain the impression that I harbour any ambitions. But if I let my thoughts run free for a moment...

It would be nice to deepdive into song creation on occasion, really work on song structures and arrangements 'en groupe';

Doing that in a live, on-site setting would be even better. Think 'Barnadise for a band', everyone coming in prepared and then spending a couple of days on finetuning and recording.

Who knows, some of this might actually come true, somewhere, somehow...

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sounds really cool! :W

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