Nothing wrong with being a virtuoso. It just means you're a very skilled player & you don't make a lot of mistakes, and you can make a lot of people happy just by listening to you. I've met some very nice people who fit that description.

Then there's the type of musician who plays as fast as he can. Or he's a show off. (I think you've seen the type.) This player is a virtuoso in his own mind (but nobody else's).

I once played with a pickup group of musicians for some sort of benefit. I think a lot of the details have been blotted from my memory because of the bad experience. I only knew one guy in our group pretty well (so we obviously hadn't put in a lot of practice time. Well, there was this one 'hack' who was playing guitar, and as we came to the end of a tune, I remember this guy JUMPING up on top of a table to try to execute the solo rock guitar lick to end all solo rock guitar licks. I wished fervently for three things to happen:

1. a rock for me to crawl under in embarassment

2. the table to break under his weight

3. a bolt of lightening to strike him from a passing thunderstorm.

The punch line is that he was a  lousy guitar player. But...

obviously, it was all about HIM!

Edited by - bsed on 04/30/2012 19:32:17

back to the basics:

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

virtuoso [ˌvɜːtjʊˈəʊzəʊ -səʊ]

n pl -sos, -si [-siː]

1. (Music, other) a consummate master of musical technique and artistry

2. a person who has a masterly or dazzling skill or technique in any field of activity

3. (Fine Arts & Visual Arts / Art Terms) a connoisseur, dilettante, or collector of art objects

4. Obsolete a scholar or savant

5. (modifier) showing masterly skill or brilliance a virtuoso performance

[from Italian: skilled, from Late Latin virtuōsus good, virtuous; see virtue]

virtuosic  [ˌvɜːtjʊˈɒsɪk] adj

virtuosity  n

Critizising a Virtuoso merely means that we are expressing our discrepancy in taste, that we don't like what he does.

Under the bottom line virtuous playing is skilled playing, disregarding his intention or purpose. If what a musician does is not based on skills he acts like the monkey on the typewriter and per definition it is not virtuous at all. Calling a (true) virtuoso a typewriting monkey would be a contradiction by itself and would reflect our lack of knowledge of the true meaning of the word.

Virtuosity vs expression - the age old argument. I maintain that a musician can exhibit both at the same time. One of the best examples I can think of that combined all of the best qualities in a musician is BB King. There are a some fiddle players that fall into that category as well in my opinion; Kenny Baker, Johnny Gimble, Bobby Hicks, Chubby Wise, Natalie McMasters, Bonnie Rideout, Hyram Posey and Junior Daugherty. I'm sure there are a lot more. Alan Munde and Eddie Adcock are great banjo players that can be flashy when needed but can also bring out the best in a tune.

I feel that too many bluegrass players think that running speedy flashy scales and fancy bow work constitute a tune. The same affliction affects too many rock musicians as well.

My 2 cents anyway.

We are all in a movie,,,,, and this one is brought to you by ME! LOL,,,,,,,

I am not anti-virtuoso. But I have almost none on my I pod. None on my short play list.
I should say, none that are known for being virtuoso. Many of my favorites are closet virtuosi. They can play it, but don't let it get in the way of great music.

One problem not yet discussed. People who have the ability to play technically great, often choose tunes that display their virtuosity, rather than tunes that the audience would like to hear. And at times will 'ruin' a tune by trying to do too much on it. Part of the problem is that the accomplished musician can get easily bored and seeks the challenge of the more challenging tunes. Again leaving the audience cold. It seems like the audience can sense where the higher priority lie, with them or the musicians themselves.
I have witnessed many a show be stolen by a mediocre player who connects really well with the audience.
My goal is to be able to play great, but not forget that the audience is first priority. Being willing to play what the audience wants, they way they want it. Anything else is just masterbation.

Those definitions - with masterly ability, technique, or personal style; -  masterly or dazzling skill or technique 

For the most part, folks apply the term only focused on the technique, the dazzling skill, technical virtuosity; not really applied to just artistry, or personal style; and sometimes folks are deemed to play with dazzling technical virtuosity even though artistry is somewhat lacking. As well, some folks display great mastery and artistry, yet due to the lack of technical dazzle, not deemed to exhibiting virtuosity. No doubt the ones who get labeled virtuoso, it's not "or" (from the first definition) but "and" - all of the elements.

I agree that some players can get easily bored with lack of notes to play, and no doubt their playing of those tunes is quite boring. I disagree that they are not concerned with audience. Part of the using technical virtuosity is in what player "thinks" the audience wants to hear, and more often what they will be impressed by. They perhaps realize their playing of that simple tune is boring. 

Some of the most difficult things to play well are slow simple "airs" - for some folks the true mark of an "accomplished" player, and take great mastery, artistry and personal style. On their surface (notational) they are quite simple and not seem challenging. Generally it does not take much of what most folks would view as high technical skill (though it does take very good bow control). When done right (as I've witnessed) can bring a whole noisy pub to hushed silence. Not by adding more notes, jumping up in range, or any dazzle, but by giving deep meaning to the notes. Hardly boring, and challenging in a whole other way. So some Irish masters advocate if you want to get good at playing jigs and reels so they are not just a bunch of notes, learn to play airs.

"monkeys with typewriters"

Since Mr. McGann can no longer be consulted to clarify his intent, I'm making an educated guess that his use of this phrase is simply a reference to the old Behavioral Psychology experiments to teach a repetitive action to a mammal of some variety, most often lab rats or lab monkeys. With enough practice and specific reinforcement, you can train the mammal to make all kinds of specific, repetitive, consistent movements.

Mr. McGann was a very bright guy, I'm sure it was just a metaphor to get his point across to his students.

Mr. McGann seemed very focused on the big picture of creating music, not just the ability to move one's fingers quickly or accurately.

That being said, I'd really like to be able to move my fingers faster and more accurately as a means to play more expressive music for myself. (-:

Virtuosity is a means to an end, a way of getting to a goal, which is making music. Like with so many things in life, we can get so involved in the journey that we forget where we intended to go in the first place.

Everybody who plays OBS decent is a virtuouso

quote:

---

Originally posted by ucalldatmusic?

I have witnessed many a show be stolen by a mediocre player who connects really well with the audience.
 

---

A player who is connecting really well with the audience is usually also connected with a higher purpose or higher power or something else greater than his or her technical ability. I would never consider calling that player "mediocre" in any way, shape or form.

A player who can't connect with the audience except by means of technical ability will always be mediocre.

Of course, we should all aspire to both connection and technical excellence, but if I could only have one I'd choose the ability to connect (in both directions, up and out!) every time!

talking about virtuosity:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6YOTljWPV0

just brilliant!! and people love it if the Pro's show off (If they can)

As some wag once said. "Yes, you can teach horses to dance. The question is why you would want to." "A" for virtuosity. "F" for taste.

Not to get  pedantic, but virtuosity does not mean 'without heart' or 'without soul' or 'without x'.  It simply means technically brilliant, and can also impart the feeling of artistry, taste, and culture. 

As for the statement, there are 3 or 4 points that have nothing really to do with each other.  Looks to me like Mr. McGann had a specific person or two in mind when he made that statement.  There are plenty of musicians who have  technical skill but don't have 'big heads'.  And there are plenty who do.

And sorry to say, it is NOT all about the music.  Half the fun is finding people you like to be around and enjoying the music, as well as the company.  OK, maybe not half.  But this is a social pastime/profession after all.

Edit:  Just saw Hardy's post.  he put it much better than I could :)

Edited by - amwildman on 05/10/2012 00:15:32