Hacker News Reader

Comment by crikli | Hacker News Reader

I can play a few Megadeth riffs and I've written two very shitty songs. This does not make me a musician or a songwriter. It makes me a dude who can create noises that resemble music.

The OP groks the basics and has learned how to use Django. This does not make him a programmer. It makes him a dude who can create code that resembles a program.

View on HN

Sure, but if you were currently paid to make music then I think people would consider you a musician. You might be a shitty musician, an inexperienced musician, or whatever, but if you actually made your living doing it then I don't think that people would begrudge you the title.

People would say that he's more of an entertainer than a musician. This sort of debate also occurs in musician circles.

A musician is someone who can communicate to other people via musical instruments. You are a musician, you just might not be a very good one.

Similarly a songwriter is someone who creates songs, so you are a songwriter, you just might not be a good one.

The only thing that I can really communicate via a musical instrument is that it's a good thing I'm a programmer.

Hahaha, yeah that's why you aren't a very good musician yet. I think it's important to make a distinction though because it removes forms of elitism and encourages a friendly environment. People don't learn from "You can't play Flight of the Bumblebee on guitar therefore you aren't a real musician.", rather they learn from observing and participating.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com