Instruments & music theory: the music genre still open after singing

Why it is still open

Music has a lot of listeners and a lot of players. According to Japan’s national time-use survey, 10.2% of people aged 10 and over played an instrument during 2021, and 53.5% listened to music on a phone or similar device.

VTuber music streams are mostly singing. There are countless singing streams and covers, but streams of someone playing guitar or piano, or explaining chord progressions and songwriting, are still rare. There are three main reasons:

• People think they have to show their hands, and worry that an avatar cannot show finger movement.
• People think they have to be good. Videos by skilled players stand out.
• The rights are confusing. Many people mix up the rights to a song and the rights to a recording (sorted out in the last section).

One hand camera and the basic rights rules are enough to start. There are fewer people to compete with than in singing, so it is easier to stand out.

Who is watching

• People who play too. Anyone practicing the same song wants to see fingering and practice methods.
• People who used to play. They are looking for a reason to start again.
• People who want background music for work. Instruments get in the way less than vocals.
• People curious about how music works. They want to hear, in theory terms, why a favorite song feels so good.

A VTuber’s strength is showing the practice process together with a character. There are plenty of polished performances, but watching someone slowly get a song right is easy to cheer for, because viewers see their own practice in it.

When people watch

Evening work hours suit it best. Streams of quiet pieces also get played before bed.

Stream ideas for VTubers

1. Show your practice from the start. Stream a series from “can’t play it” to “can play it”.
2. Play game and anime music. Songs from well-loved titles also get found through search.
3. Play requests from chat. Working out a song by ear on the spot is part of the show.
4. Explain chord progressions. Use a well-known song to show why it sounds the way it does.
5. Write a song in 30 minutes. Show the process up to settling the melody and chords.
6. Practice tips for beginners. Finger warm-ups and a five-minute daily routine.
7. Compare and introduce instruments. Let people hear the difference between cheap and expensive ones.
8. Background playing streams. Play for an hour without talking.
9. Practice alongside viewers. A “practice together” stream where everyone works on the same song at the same time.
10. Explain Japanese songs in English, for anime and game fans abroad.

How to start, and what you need

• Add one camera for your hands. Fix it on the keyboard or the guitar neck, angled so your face and room stay out of frame.
• Put the avatar in a corner. Make the hand shot big; the avatar only needs to react to the playing.
• Plug the instrument in. For electronic instruments and electric guitars, an audio interface into your streaming software makes the sound clear. For acoustic instruments, put the mic close.
• Check the balance between voice and instrument. Your voice gets buried when you talk while playing, so record a test before going live.

Your first four weeks

• Week 1: Play one song you already know and introduce yourself and your instrument.
• Week 2: Pick a song you cannot play yet and start practicing it on stream.
• Week 3: Add one segment on chord progressions.
• Week 4: Play the week 2 song all the way through. When people see progress, they come back for the next song.

Once it takes off

Short performance videos with the song title in the title get found by people looking for that song. If you make and share your own sheet music, check the song rights first.

What to watch out for

• Treat song rights and recording rights separately. When you perform a song yourself, the song rights are often covered by the platform’s license with collecting societies. But playing a CD or streaming-service recording as is needs separate permission from the record label or other rights holder. If you use commercial karaoke tracks as backing, check whether the same applies.
• Do not show sheet music as is. Keeping commercial sheet music on screen for long is a copyright problem.
• Check each platform’s rules. A song allowed on one service may not be allowed on another.
• Protect your hearing. Set rules such as not turning headphones up too loud and taking breaks during long practice.
• Mark sponsored content clearly. If you receive an instrument or gear, say “PR” or “sponsored” at the start. Since October 2023, hidden advertising is regulated under Japan’s misleading-representations law.

Instruments and theory are a genre where getting better is the stream itself. If you can play one song, you can start today.