...as many playing bad jrpgs for the sake of listening to their soundtracks
Haha, same here. Sometimes I wonder if I ever really liked RPGs or if I just was drawn to them by the music. I don't play many video games these days, but the soundtracks of some of my past favorites will always be etched in my mind...
Anyways, I started playing classical percussion under some very good band directors from age 9 up until high school. I've dabbled on keyboards for about that long, been playing piano for about 5 years or so mainly for composing purposes, though I can do some decent accompaniment performance as well. I also focused my undergraduate studies on ethnomusicology and have studied a fair amount of theory and music history.
Ironically, though I have a strong love for chip, I own next to no electronic instruments other than my DAW and MIDI keyboard. I have also been playing ukulele and guitar (classical, flamenco, and samba/bossa/mpb) for several years, and have in the past year or so begun studying tabla and Hindustani classical music under the tutelage of a well-accomplished ethnomusicologist.
I think the diversity of musical backgrounds is what makes chip such a strong medium--it's a vast blend of influences all under the blanket of chip instruments. Look at Sugiyama's battle theme for Mara and Nara in Dragon Quest 4--it's a straight flamenco cadence. And Uematsu took up music so he could be like Elton John.
