playing Guitar Hero or Rock Band verses the real thing

As I've noted in my previous post, I have a PS2 now and with it the games Guitar Hero III and Rock Band. I've been reading a lot of different thoughts about these games in comparison with playing the real instruments. I myself have played the drums as well as various brass instruments, the baritone mostly, and the saxophones (bari and tenor I own) for years with various groups (concert band, jazz band, drum corps). I'd like to offer my perspective after playing GH and Rock Band myself.

As a drummer, GH/Rock Band on guitar or bass comes naturally. For me it's all about the rhythm. Once I know the rhythm, I can soar! I can even get to where I don't even need to look at the scrolling "notes" coming at me. I can simply listen to the music and know what is coming next. Pressing the fret buttons on the controller is, for me, not any different than pressing the keys on my bari sax. Again, it's all about the rhythm. Operating the strum bar (which is nothing more than a rocker switch) is, for me again, not any different that tapping out rhythms with my hands on either any surface or an actual drum, i.e. conga, bongo, djimbe. Again, it's all about the rhythm.

Now, for the drum pads of Rock Band. They are not any different than any digital drums on the market today. The kick drum pedal is the only thing that could be made a bit more sturdy. Otherwise, the drumming experience is no different than the real thing. The only thing I can say about the drum pads is the static configuration, meaning you can't reposition any of them. I'd like to be able to move each pad independently of each other configuring them to a more real feel of a drum set. Other than this, the drumming experience is fairly accurate. Playing a song for the first time is a challenge because the player is in fact sight-reading. I'm thankful for the practice mode. This allows me to learn and practice the part so when I actually perform it I know what I'm doing. Some fills are tricky and the practice does well.

Singing the vocals of Rock Band isn't any different than karaoke. My wife has done pretty well with this. She has always enjoyed karaoke anyway. Now she can do it with me playing along on either guitar or drums.

The scrolling meter bar is a plus for me as a drummer. The thick lines are the down beats with the thin lines in between representing the up beats. The tricky part is if you have a syncopated rhythm. It's challenging to determine just what the rhythm is by not having actually music notes in front of me. Fortunately for me I can listen to it to learn what it is. Thank God for practice modes.

So from a percussionist/wind instrument players' perspective, Guitar Hero and Rock Band is an enjoyable experience and quite accurate with regard to vocal and drums. I can agree with the real guitar players' perspective in that the guitar controller is nothing like the real thing, but it's still fun for those who don't play real guitar. I can say that I am inspired and may one day have the $$$ to buy a real guitar and learn to play it...God only knows.

So there's my 2 cents worth. I hope this helps.

Peace.