Looking back I should have used examples of visionaries as musicians like Dr. Dre or Quincy Jones or Kanye West.

They knew how to get others to create the real versions of the amazing concepts they had in their mind. But they lacked the virtuosity to do it themselves.

And in the case of Dilla, he was a virtuoso using his technology. But I never felt his reinvention of music was as amazing as what Kanye or other producers who had grand visions of music did.

His genius, from what I can tell, was a recontextualization of the process of making hip-hop music on a technical, musical theoretical level. But not a creation of a new sub-genre of music.

Like Donuts is a great concept. (a collection of loops within loops done at a masterful level) But when I listen to it and experience it, I'm always left feeling like there should be more to the music. Even if I can understand that on an intellectual level that the end result brilliantly applies theory.

Granted, I'm basing this off of my own tastes, and so, Dilla may have actually created a new take on hip hop. But to me, his work never was as wonderous as what Q-Tip and Tribe did. Even though Tip obviously thought the world of Dilla.

So, as I type this out, maybe I'm describing a virtuoso as someone who has a genius type understanding of the technical aspects of music. Whereas a visionary has a genius understanding of what music could be, even if they can't do it themselves.

Does this make more sense?

<--- Me when my head hits the pillow