Is this guy a genius?

[oddbirdman2008]

I am not a genius in any way, shape, or form. im freakishly talented on the guitar and bad at everything else in life. this guy comes along, he's 20, and tells me he is a musical genius. he claims to be a composer. however, he has not posted or allowed anyone to hear any of his music for fear that i will be stolen. i met him after he sent me a response to a musician seeking musician ad. we started to converse. i told him that i went to berklee and that i also study 'tone set' music. while we were messaging each other he was forwarding my e-mails to other musicians to show them that he knew even more than this guy who went to college. i know talent doesnt equal genius but he doesnt, i guess.

unfortunantly for him he forwarded my e-mails to a bunch of my friends. they contacted me and told me what was happening so i told him i was going to choke him to death with his own intestines if he ever forwarded another one of my e-mails to anyone. i thought it was funny. i also explained to him that it takes years of schooling to become an actual composer. i alos told him that based on my age, 32, that i had probably forgotten more than he ever learned.

oh, and all chords are based on triads, by the way, if you are wondering what the heck he is talking about.

my question is: is this guy really a genius? can genius claim itself to be genius? does it work that way?

(oh and by the way, i have pretty crippling dyslexia so my grammar and spelling are horendous... sorry)

here is his message to me:

it truly must be infuriating meeting someone better than you.. and after putting in all those years of work!
its a shame all those years of yours are wasted, and your still playing lead guitar like a hack!
I bet you listen to guys like "slash" don't you! hahah!!
Its also quite prejudiced to assume you've got that much knowledge over me, i mean....you don't know me guy. And i have heard your songs, and they are weak....really weak.. but who knows...maybe I'm not hearing it right, lol.

and this whole death threat thing...
that makes me want to send this message to some people i know... just to boost my ego!
The fact that someone who doesn't even know me, playing guitar as shitty as you, thinks they have something valuable musically to offer anyone....
it sounds like this anger stems from an insecurity, that i really am better than you.
and i dint have to try as hard.

i can just throw off the top of my head a chord progression more stimulating than that garbage you call music on your page...only using triads!

To be a composer, a REAL composer, you have to compose. Thats it.... and to be a respected composer, the music has to not suck as bad as yours.
To be a genius at something, you don't need an apprenticeship, you need genius.
Trust me guy, you didn't bust my bubble.
I don't fuck ugly girls like you, and don't write music as shitty as that garbage on your page.
Id sooner hang myself, before i Lowered myself to that level you call a "real" player.
as i said my bubble is intact,
but from the way you messaged me..sounds like i busted yours!

Who cares if you've forgotten more then I've ever learned? forgetting shit isn't something to brag about...
Bottom line, I know more about music than you.
And at this rate, guy, you might as well forget the rest of that garbage you claim to know, cuz it isnt helping your case.
Id tell you to go take some lessons or somthing, but if you put in all this work, and you still suck this bad, you might as well choke yourself with your own intestines.

[Trevor Salyzyn]

He's an insecure 20 year old trying to invent an identity in a petulent way, and if I'm reading this correctly, he just lost a future character reference. Come to think of it, he reminds me somewhat of mikiel, an elderly gentleman was constantly bragging about his IQ until he got banned for being a disrespectful asshole. Even on those rare occasions people wanted him to prove that he had an IQ of 170 -- most people wisely didn't care either way -- he always muttered some excuse about the Pentagon and classified government files. I think most sane people would agree that geniuses have better things to do with their time than be assholes.

[Dan Rowden]

Matthew,

Did you read the introduction messages for this forum before you posted? Please do.

[Animus]

Knowledge doesn't depend on "Genius" or "Talent". Talent and Genius depend on knowledge.

It relates to the way the human brain learns. It learns through repitition primarily. Hebb's Law, Pavlov's Dog, Long-Term Potentiation.

It will be easier for some to pick up on concepts because of their past exposure to various other concepts. Or to that concept itself. As a light, it came to me one day that "free-will" must be false. This was my first real realization of causality. Ironically, when I went back and looked at the material I had read over the last 6 months, the fact was there the entire time. Infact, many of the lecturers explicitly stated as such, but my mind wasn't prepared to hear it and so I didn't.

The brain has to "grow" its connections to consolidate its knowledge into a "realization". That is why formal training is held in such high regard. But there is a downside, it is possible to "cram" and subsequently forget everything. That constitutes Short-Term Potentiation or Short-Term Memory and it has no lasting quality. So it is possible for one to have a degree but know nothing. It is also possible for one to be a highschool drop-out (in grade 9) and still acheive a solid understanding of the way the human visual system represents the world, from photons to photoreceptive chemicals like Opsin to the Visual Striate and so on. But such an individual has to want to understand and not just temporarily know.

[Animus]

He's an insecure 20 year old trying to invent an identity in a petulent way, and if I'm reading this correctly, he just lost a future character reference. Come to think of it, he reminds me somewhat of mikiel, an elderly gentleman was constantly bragging about his IQ until he got banned for being a disrespectful asshole. Even on those rare occasions people wanted him to prove that he had an IQ of 170 -- most people wisely didn't care either way -- he always muttered some excuse about the Pentagon and classified government files. I think most sane people would agree that geniuses have better things to do with their time than be assholes.

I'd like to know how such an individual resolves the controversy of Spearman's "G" (General Intelligence) in order to validate their IQ score. So far as I know, there is no observed physical correlate with "G" and there is plenty of reason to doubt it. I don't have an opinion one way or the other, but consider most things to be knowledge learned through exposure.

[Unidian]

No, the guy is not a genius, unless you define "genius" as "egomaniac."

And that's pretty much the precise opposite of how it is defined here, at least in principle.

However, the bad news is that you are apparently also an egomaniac.

Don't worry, though. Most people are.

[oddbirdman2008]

umm, how many times do i have to win 'best guitarist in...(name a catagory)' before im allowed to brag about the one positive skill that i have without being called an egomaniac. but.... since i was expecting a smartass comment from some self inflated pompous windbag i guess you arent much of a genius either. or is that what geniuses do all day? sit around as 'pots' and call 'kettles' black... it definitely doesnt take genius to insult someone...

[Ataraxia]

If you can get through the entire Guitar Hero World tour on the playstation 3 I'm willing to cede your are indeed a genius.

[Unidian]

umm, how many times do i have to win 'best guitarist in...(name a catagory)' before im allowed to brag about the one positive skill that i have without being called an egomaniac. but.... since i was expecting a smartass comment from some self inflated pompous windbag i guess you arent much of a genius either. or is that what geniuses do all day? sit around as 'pots' and call 'kettles' black... it definitely doesnt take genius to insult someone...

Yep, that pretty well confirms it. A reaction like this only occurs when an ego is hard at work.

For the record, I'm sure your guitar playing is brilliant. My brother plays guitar very well, also. It's a gift. You might do well to stop identifying yourself with your guitar playing, though. You obviously have a very poor self-image if you feel that is all you have to offer in life. If you're going to have an ego, at least make it a healthy one. Don't tie it exclusively to one particular thing, because it will cause you to become hyper-competitive in that particular area, which is a recipe for the sort of headache you are having with the guy who e-mailed you.

Congratulations on your skill and best to you. :)

[oddbirdman2008]

ok, thanks for the psycho analysis but you made me feel even worse. in reality i can't play guitar at all anymore because i severed my spine in a drunk driving accident which has left me with neuropathy in my hands and feet. so, on top of losing my award winning pastel skills and every other artistic outlet other than cooking, which does not require manual dexterity i'm in an immense amount of pain which coexists with a level of psychological issues that come along with dying emotionally before one dies physically... I'M SORRY THAT I 'OBVIOSLY HAVE A POOR SELF IMAGE.' it definitely takes a presumptuous overinflated sense of self superiority to use i priori knowledge set on on everyone you run into...

that was pretty hurtful... apparently your insights into the human condition arent so honed that you that you didn't detect that i was being 'egomaniacal' as a defense mechanism because in truth, my past accomplishments are all i have left, save becoming the next 'enlightened mind of greatness' that people who possess only a brain can achieve. but, that, does not put food in the table...

i really appreciate your assessment. i'm going to tell my therapist, on monday, that i'm cured. by the way, the guy who was claiming to be better than me...know's i cant play anymore. so, yes, he is an egomaniac. i am just a ghost.

[Unidian]

Sorry to hear of your problems. That's a very difficult situation.

I don't mind being the focus of your negative feelings if it helps you work them out. Being "egomaniacal" is definitely an effective defense mechanism, but what is being defended? Isn't it the ego itself?

I'm not a shrink, nor do I play one on TV. I'm just trying to help. The guy who was claiming to be better than you is beyond help. He is just a jerk. I don't think you are a jerk.

You're right, being "the next enlightened mind of greatness" (whatever that is) does not put food on the table. As far as I'm aware, nobody here makes a living from saying this kind of stuff, and if they do, I want to know their secret.

It would help if you would stop projecting this "enlightened mind of greatness" image onto me. I don't want it. I'm just one human being talking to another, pointing out the way the ego operates. Only the ego could have a problem with that.

As you undoubtedly know, world-class guitarist Jason Becker has ALS and is completely paralyzed. He still composes music using a computer that detects tiny facial movements. If you have any money, you might want to look into ways to continue making music. If you don't have any money, you should sue the drunk-driving bastard who hit you and get some.

Unless you were the drunk driver yourself, of course. In that case, shit happens.

[oddbirdman2008]

i did this to myself. i never asked for an opnion of myself but rest assured that im duely criticized and will avoid posting any longer due to 'internet drive-by's.' im all for conversation but i really have enough going on in my life to end up being up all night feeling hurt and worthless because somebody took the time to add to my list of faults

[Shahrazad]

Oddbirdman, you seem to be taking things too seriously right now. Cool down. Self pity trips can be a lot of fun, but there's a point when you need to cut it out and move on with your life.

[oddbirdman2008]

fun? it's people like you who don't have the remotest idea of the meaning of true pain and suffering that could come along and suggest that im enjoying this conversation. i keep coming back to it because i have notifications turned on. thats now fixed and in the spirit of metaphysics you now no longer exist. poof.

[Shahrazad]

I have no idea of true pain and suffering? You are a complete liar.

[imd12c4funn]

I admit, I thought the question was moot.

But I see this thread was posted as a serious question now.

Honestly, I respect the fact that you were schooled at Berklee, but I find it utterly facinating that you would post such an obviously child-like exchange in this forum.

If you would have taken even a moment to analize the email(s) from this purported "genius", you could easily have concluded that which many replies have chaffed regarding this rediculous question.

Moreover, I too have musical training, privately with a Cornish Professor, as well as being a self-taught Engineer, with many CD's and Post-Audio/Sound tracking and effects for full length motion pictures produced to my credit, as well as my own high end recording studio.

I am fluent with accordian, guitar, bass guitar, mandolin, piano/key boards and have just recently added the recorder to my instuments, learning "Jingle Bells" for my first recorder performance.

This however, does not give me "Genius" status.

I cannot shred a guitar neck as some do and I would not be suprised that a CD of shredding contains more notes than I would play in 10 CD's, but my abilities, as many others before me, have strength in my abilities of arrangment, melody and insight as a producer/engineer, songwriter, poet, and over-all musician.

Reality is, I would gamble you and I are both Genius in our ways.

Some suggest too much formal training creates a sight reading robotic and less creative improv, and admittedly many famous acts are as musically inept as are those mastering their craft. The fact is, musical genius and success are as different as Connie Rice and a mint leaf.

As luck would have it, your new BFF email buddy is as modest as they come.
I can but roll my eyes at the senseless utterings of such an unwell genius.

IMHO, I wasted time on this reply as did many other replies, but now stop short and would hesitate to judge genius status should the impression given prove suspect of diverted truism.

In closing, I would be willing to exchange works with anyone. Even your genius. In fact, I did awhile back with an Italian group.

Lastly, your friend needs to submit a copyright app. PA, SR, or other, (depending on need), if he is worried about his music. I have done this countless times over years and it doen't take a genius to accomplish this ritual.

Then, he could allow you to critique his amazing ability without fear of theft.
A genius would most likely do this as part of the process by default, unless the filing fee is unaffordable. In that case, he might as well shelf his extraordinary works indefinitely, otherwise.
ASCAP, BMI, is another suggestion since he will be fought over by the top major labels, thus be published ASAP.
Our loss should he not. Visualize his psyche as his mind contemplates, the smile and face contorting while his bladder fails.

[HUNTEDvsINVIS]

Don't pay any attention to him.

PS: Smartest guy I ever knew, whose I.Q. is still 160 despite drugs and lack of studying, does actually sleep with ugly girls and write bad music. Cheers : )

[dysfunctionalgenius]

Part of me wants to assert how silly this young guy is but because im a little older it would me more honest to assert that his attitude is sad!

and that is coming from someone who feels the need to always have an oppinion. I am learning to learn.

[daveyboyz]

Musicians tend to be over sensative and generally a bit wierd, and guitarists are famed for ego issues. Let me tell you no matter how much training you do there will always be someone more talented than you and that "studying" music is kind of bollocks. You say no musician can truel be a composer without studying music, you don't need to go to college for that. I am a guitarist and bassist and I can emulate most guitarists and work most things out by ear. I have practised most guitar techniques and can sweep pick and copy intricate stuff played by Marty Friedman etc etc but my shortcoming is actually composition. You see I can learn arpeggio's and scales and musical theory till the cows come home but I simly dont have enough original idea's to be a good composer. Yet I have taught other people rudimentory knowledge and they have written good things with far less theory than I know.

I came to a conclusion here, Jimi Hendrix = Natural, Kurt Cobain = bad guitarist but great song writer, David Bowie = naturally gifted etc etc, I think great composers tend to be born not bred. The technicalities of music can be learned but somehow I think that although u can nurture ability in songwriting it has to be there in the first place.

Ok well I did digress, musicians are slightly unstable in my opinion, genius's even more so. Unless you hear the guy play you dont know what he is capable of but whatever it is you could do without the hassle of mixing yourself up with some guy if you think he has issues. (kinda vague response but I got bored after reading the first few paragraphs. Still I am sure that someone will have comment on what I just wrote....

[Animus]

If you can get through the entire Guitar Hero World tour on the playstation 3 I'm willing to cede your are indeed a genius.

Hmmm. I'm not sure if I've finished that one or not...

This guy surely is the best: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UX4jTZhwOBs

FYI he plays piano and drums as well.

[Ataraxia]

That's extraordinary, isn't it.

if nothing else it proves categorically that it is possible to have too much time on your hands.

[Animus]

That's extraordinary, isn't it.

if nothing else it proves categorically that it is possible to have too much time on your hands.

What I find interesting about the phenomena of play GH is the way in which time seemingly slows down. You watch someone like GHP (above) play and you are probably not able to compute what the patterns are, but for him it all seems to be slow enough to understand it. I've been a gamer since I was a small child and I've experienced this time-relativity with numerous games. But, I think GH brings it out even more.