# What is Aquascaping anyway?



## BruceF (26 Mar 2016)

I wanted to see If I could start a discussion about where we might be headed. The Nature Aquarium has been dominate for quite some time now.  I am a big fan of that so I don’t mean this to be a criticism.  It represents a very Japanese way of seeing or understanding nature.  In contrast we have the Dutch aesthetic  which to me at least is more a still life or perhaps a perennial border display.  Again I don’t mean that to be a criticism. I keep perennial borders in my own garden.  I am simply trying to find some definition.


Neither of these is terribly natural in the sense of what we might call a biotope.  Each is an attempt at a representation of nature in what we might refer to as an idealized way.  It isn’t infrequent to see the Nature Aquarium representing landscapes where fish seem to fly in the air for example.  I have no real objection to that I simply suggest that it is not ‘natural’ in any sense of the word.  It actually seems odd to object to the introduction manmade objects into this landscape though I can understand why many people would object.  I remember many years ago an aquarium that used trash in a very effective way. Oliver Knott seems to like to introduce things.



So part of what I am asking is there something I am missing here?  What is next?  I see more people using mixed plantings in what might be called in some circles at least the Wabi Kusa method.  How is that different from what is commonly disparaged as the ‘jungle look’? Are we moving toward a more open style in contrast to say the Dutch rules?  Are twigs and moss enough?

I won’t pretend to know these answers.  I am not even sure if I have right questions at this point. I am just curious what people think these days.


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## Julian (26 Mar 2016)

I think that this hobby will only evolve once hard scape materials become more widely available. People, including my self, are limited to the type of scape they can create because of what they have access to.

You'll never get away from the 'nature aquarium' though, the whole reason people are in this hobby is because they want a piece of nature in their living room.

People will copy ideas and try to scape something that they are amazed by, which is absolutely fine, and it will be a long time before people are bored of Amano's tanks.

I think the next step will include lots of new technology. There's tanks now that come connected to a smart phone app, and it's as easy as opening the app on your phone, selecting the animal you want to look after, and the tank will adjust the climate accordingly. These tanks can support not only fish, but lizards/frogs etc as well. Won't be long before it's more mainstream.


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## zozo (26 Mar 2016)

Well you could see those diorama scapes from a flooded landscape perspective, then it would be just as natural as any other scape. It's just representing a froozen moment in time. It's what also happens in nature, in dry season a landscape realy doesn't resamble anything aquatic, the moment it floods in the rainy season it is suddenly submersed but still looking somewhat the same as it did when it was not flooded. And where ever the water goes the fish follow. 

Tho to a certain extend i agree with the fact that a diorama from a mountain meadow with a sandy path up hill not realy is a long term suitable environment for a school of cardinal tetras flying around as little birds. But if the tank is placed in a relative quite corner of the room where nothing much happens in front of the tank, i guess they don't realy mind it.

It's a matter of taste a matter of trend and a matter of artistic expression..

What is next?? Surrealism..  Salvador Dali scape..


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## Greenfinger2 (26 Mar 2016)

Hi All,  Aquascaping and Wabi-Kusa Too me Is just bringing a little piece of nature into your home  

As to Hardscape materials becoming more widely available. Take a look around the forest and local streams there's plenty there and its free another plus is you also get 
inspirational ideas at the same time as hunting bits and bobs 

When we go on walks the Grandson will look and see beauty in a stone or a piece of old wood Its fantastic to see someone so young enjoy such simple things in life. My Dad showed me the wonders of nature. Now I am proud to pass that knowledge on


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## BruceF (26 Mar 2016)

Julian said:


> the next step will include lots of new technology.


Hopefully we will be able to afford it!



zozo said:


> Surrealism


That would be interesting. 



Greenfinger2 said:


> look and see beauty in a stone or a piece of old wood


I am all for the local.


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## zozo (26 Mar 2016)

BruceF said:


> That would be interesting.



It certainly would, those dragon stone scapes sometimes already come realy close. 
Evelyn makes some scapes which inmho always have that near surrealistic feel. Like it's a scenery from a 1960 Start Trek Episode.



I called this one the Flash Gordon scape.. Love it.. 

http://moss-maniac.blogspot.nl/search/label/Aquaristik


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## Berlioz (27 Mar 2016)

I'm inclined to think like Roy nowadays, although it took some prodding. 

When I was younger, even though I loved nature aquariums, I always felt they were too utopian. As I developed interests in trail running and hiking, I began to see nature aquariums in a different way. I appreciated them as simply bringing a part of the landscape indoors and combining them with fish or shrimp or snails. I might see a mossy rock or tree stump covered in 10-15 different mosses and lichens and think, you know what, you could do that with a bit of fissidens, pelia, and so on. 

Since I was first exposed to his work, I've loved Jean-Jacques Rousseau. There is something nice about clinging to a little piece of nature (aquarium, wabi, house plant, etc) and having it easily accessible in our homes. We don't all have the chance to get back into nature on a daily basis.


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## Mick.Dk (27 Mar 2016)

As is well known, I think, I've been doing "nature"-scaping in a zoo for many years. This tougt me to NOT do true, realistic sceneries of nature biotope (which, for the record, I can replicate perfectly), since audience would complain that it looked messy, unappealing and "not natural"............
What I DID learn to create, was simply a way of gardening, trying to compress the prettiest, most idyllic, ever-so-rare, sceneries that are shown in most movies (be it "science" or "edu-tainment") that people watch on television. This does not at all represent typical biotope - but it satisfies the wast majority in what they THINK is natural. Most cultures have had this desire, to compose pleasant "nature"scapes of some sort, and the fashion in this have been changing now and again (yep; I've been stydying a bit of gardening history, too ).
- I really see no difference in aqua-scaping.............
That said; there IS some indications, that more realistic bio-tope aquaria are in progress !!


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## zozo (27 Mar 2016)

Mick.Dk said:


> As is well known, I think, I've been doing "nature"-scaping in a zoo for many years.


I didn't know..  i thought you where a Tropica employee..  But that's a awsome cool job Mick, i would love to take a tour and see it all... I can imagine what you say about audience in th elarge picture and it works a bit the same way as playing music in a shopping mal.. Never thought of it before but what you do is a kind of Muzak Scaping.



Mick.Dk said:


> trying to compress the prettiest, most idyllic, ever-so-rare, sceneries


I can get the point that this get's out of hand in realy big scapes and that's indeed not how mother nature does her job.. But in a way little scapes still can be very real biotopic and natural in nano style wich resambles, lets say 40 x 40 x40 cm patch of nature.. And that's the little intrecate detail we all can see in nature on an everyday basis. At least i do every time when i take a walk.. And when i was a kid i very often went to the near by perfectly clear pools with my floating matras and scubadiving mask and peddle around looking under water. Did this where ever i saw the chance of doing it, from small clear pools to big lakes when on vacation. I realy have seen little patches of natural biotop  which looked like a scenery of a fairytale i just wanted to pic up take home and put in a tank.


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## BruceF (27 Mar 2016)

Berlioz said:


> I might see a mossy rock or tree stump covered in 10-15 different mosses


Where I live I almost never see things like this.  We just don't usually get enough rain for that. 



Mick.Dk said:


> since audience would complain that it looked messy, unappealing and "not natural"............



Definitely one of the challenges.  I often think that a single species of plant might represent a biotope better and still be more 'natural'. I suppose the problem is that it becomes hard to find the animals especially in a zoological setting.



zozo said:


> that's indeed not how mother nature does her job.


As a friend of mine likes to say:  If nature is so great why exactly are we gardening?


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## zozo (27 Mar 2016)

BruceF said:


> As a friend of mine likes to say:  If nature is so great why exactly are we gardening?



That's a good question  Why exactly are we gardening?

Long time ago i spend many days at some man made pools in my neighbourhood that became very natural self sustaining biotoops over time.. One was a ditch around an old castle ruine with a rather large swamp land behind it and the other was a clay pit from an old brickwork factory.. They both where crystal clear with loads of plantmass, schools of minows, carps and meter long pikes, name it it was there to be found.. For me that was a fairytale, all kids were playing socker and i was there, usualy alone, sucking up nature, searching salamders, beatles, waterspiders, catching sticklebacks with my net. Taking it home to my steel rim garden tank. And take it back to the pool in the fall.
There was nothing more beautifull i came home 4 times a week soaked in mud like a swamp monster.

And all of a sudden the town authorities found it unappealing and got the greatest idea and diceded that it should be a park.. They pumped it empty dug it out, distroyed everything, shiped the fish off in containers to other waters.. Made paved sidewalks and nice tidy straight wooden border along the waterline and put an anglers association on the terrain deciding which fish should be in there. Anglers hate waterplants.. And now everybody is proud, happy and enjoying the park, feeding the ducks with their dogs and prams. Water is muddy brown and 80% of the original wildlife is gone.

All this is 30 years ago and i still feel kinda sad when i think about it.. I do not know why..Nobody does for real i guess.. People like to distroy and feel proud about it.


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## Berlioz (27 Mar 2016)

BruceF said:


> Where I live I almost never see things like this.  We just don't usually get enough rain for that.



I guess I'm a bit fortunate, I live a short walk (5 minutes) from a rainforest.


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## Greenfinger2 (27 Mar 2016)

Berlioz said:


> I guess I'm a bit fortunate, I live a short walk (5 minutes) from a rainforest.



Wow lucky you  Any photos


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## Greenfinger2 (27 Mar 2016)

Hi A couple of photos of things that have inspire me when looking for Wabi-Kusa ideas   Some grass on an old tree stump by a stream and a plant growing in an old apple tree.


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## parotet (27 Mar 2016)

Mick.Dk said:


> As is well known, I think, I've been doing "nature"-scaping in a zoo for many years. This tougt me to NOT do true, realistic sceneries of nature biotope (which, for the record, I can replicate perfectly), since audience would complain that it looked messy, unappealing and "not natural"............
> What I DID learn to create, was simply a way of gardening, trying to compress the prettiest, most idyllic, ever-so-rare, sceneries that are shown in most movies (be it "science" or "edu-tainment") that people watch on television. This does not at all represent typical biotope - but it satisfies the wast majority in what they THINK is natural. Most cultures have had this desire, to compose pleasant "nature"scapes of some sort, and the fashion in this have been changing now and again (yep; I've been stydying a bit of gardening history, too ).
> - I really see no difference in aqua-scaping.............
> That said; there IS some indications, that more realistic bio-tope aquaria are in progress !!


Completely agree, especially what is mentioned regarding "the nature" people want to see in a glass cube. The manicured compositions we create in our tanks (golden rule, combination of colors, focal points, etc.) are very far from what can be seen in nature. Have you ever dived in a river? Low number of species, not in its best shape, not arranged to be beautiful... This is why I personally don't like the name of Nature/Natural Aquarium, as it brings to confusion. There's nothing bad, but let's recognize it. It's a canvas in which we try to paint a beautiful -but unreal- piece of nature. Nature Aquarium is a brand IMO highly influenced by Amano in its most modern sense. It brings to your mind, not only a nice composition of plants, but also a whole aquarium new look: rimless tanks, glassware, etc

Jordi


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## BruceF (27 Mar 2016)

parotet said:


> nfluenced by Amano in its most modern sense


I don't think anyone can deny the influence of Amano. He's given us a great gift.


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## Mick.Dk (27 Mar 2016)

Sorry, Marcel - I expressed myself a bit unclear...........I USED to do "habitats"  and surroundings in 3 huge domes (Asia, Southamerica and Africa) for  a zoo, for many years. 
You are right about my current position   .


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## zozo (27 Mar 2016)

Ok Mick, no problem, could be you had 2 jobs, many do.. I bet you learned a lot about creating natural sceneries 



parotet said:


> (golden rule, combination of colors, focal points, etc.)


I guess this is more a technique all about working in a frame in nature it is just a point in space and time, it could be anywhere but if you want to frame that into a picture, photo or canvas then you choose positions or sceneries which comply to these rules to make it look appealing to the eye. Our tanks are also just a frame around a picture capturing a little piece of nature. 

But at one thing you are right, most of us and i do to, it is rather a rarety to find 8 different plant species and 3 or more different kind of fish at the same time at the same place on 2 square feet in perfect order in nature. The ones who do it with just 2 plant spieces and maybe 2 fish spieces are closest to the real thing.


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## Berlioz (28 Mar 2016)

Greenfinger2 said:


> Wow lucky you  Any photos



Of course! Technically I don't think it should be classified as a rainforest (it's a mixture of rainforest like elements and typical Australian eucalyptus and sandstone forests), but the state government has it listed as one. Fortunately this land will never be developed on due to its significant Aboriginal history. There are lots of small schooling fish, although not really too sure what they are without catching them. I've seen some bullrout (freshwater stone fish) too. There's plenty of lizards, snakes, echidnas, birds, brush turkeys and the occasional platypus and swamp wallaby. Supposedly there are koalas too, but I've never seen any.


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## BruceF (28 Mar 2016)

Berlioz said:


> Of course!


Nice photos. I am jealous.


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## BruceF (28 Mar 2016)

So what about color?  I read once that Amano really preferred the greens.  (Or I made that up!) How does one blend color into this Nature aquarium and/or isn't this a real strength of the Dutch style? All that rotala that people use to sweep across the background seems to be on the wain these days. Red which has such a large following seems so harsh at times,rigid.  While the yellows never really seem to get enough attention or use as the great contrasts they can be. One of my own objections to the Dutch style is the way colors are isolated though I can understand the difficulties involved in blending color. 

Just trying to stimulate a discussion here!


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## Berlioz (28 Mar 2016)

I suppose there are a couple of ways to interpret coloured plants. Some people might use them like a painter uses reds and oranges (probably the most artistic in the abstract sense), others to represent elements of the landscape or perhaps a sunrise/sunset, some might use them to represent fields of wild flowers and others again simply to represent the coloured bushes of stems you see in videos of natural bodies of water like those produced by Ivan Mikolji.

I do think there's a limit to the use of colour though. Too much colour and things look gaudy or extraterrestrial to me. Then again, I've always preferred shades of green. 

I suppose it really all comes down to how you interpret what a nature aquarium is. For some it might be a strict interpretation of aquatic environments and biotopes, but for others it might be any natural landscape (terrestrial or submerged).


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## PARAGUAY (28 Mar 2016)

Some looking at nature in Amano 


 

 

 

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## Mick.Dk (28 Mar 2016)

Colours can (read; should) be used to enhance and/or compliment neighbouring plants - in the same way leafshape and -size should. An often neglected enhancer/complimenter is the texture or surface structure of leaves.
This does not mean you need to work in "separated gruops" of plants. You can achieve fantastic appearance, by doing "mixed groups" - ex. doing a group of Myriophyllum mattogrosense with a few Proserpinaca palustris mixed in, since the bigger leaves and more colourfull leavs of Pros. pal. is enhanced by the more calm group of Myr. matt.
Another classic, is to enhance red/purple colours by placing a very bright green colour right next to it - ex. Rotala macrandra and Nymphoides hydrophylla 'Taiwan'. It is a trick, cheating the eye......but it works !!
- and then ofcourse, many plants compliment themselves - orange tips of Potamogeton gayi or Rotala indica 'bonzai' are nice examples of this........


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## Chris Jackson (28 Mar 2016)

Amano, brought a zen aethestic and a standard of aquarium photography never seen before from the previous leaders in planted aquaria, Dennerle and Dupla. Even now browsing the Nature Aquarium World books still inspires and humbles me... 

But what next? I think that is very much a personal thing. Do we each have a bucket list of scape styles to tick off? High light, low light, crypt, carpet, iwagumi, moss, HC, roots, white sand valleys etc. etc. and with everyone one of those there are a zillion subtle variations. We wont run out of ideas anytime soon and even if it may look a bit samey to the casual observer the nuances are many and varied for the creators.

Personally I'm increasingly interested in biotope type styles and also exploring the discipline of using fewer plants species together. The idea of a minimalist scape using just plants and no rock or wood but that is also a joy to behold is diverting me just now as well.


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## BruceF (28 Mar 2016)

Mick.Dk said:


> by doing "mixed groups"




This is kind of what I meant by the Wabi Kusa influence.  I think the question I have is about why we are dismissing the so called "jungle" aesthetic  and or how exactly does one deal with that?


Chris Jackson said:


> minimalist scape


I tend to think there is a lot of this and perhaps too much but that doesn't mean I wouldn't like it in the living room.( or what ever you call that room!)


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## zozo (28 Mar 2016)

For the question "What is Aquascaping anyway?" Which is like asking "What is Painting anyway?" Or any other art form.. Well so, it's just an art form performed by a certain artists in a certain scene in a certain time spirit who managed to make it kinda popular in a croud And with this gaine some admirers and followers who are trying to achieve simular results. 

It's maybe kinda boring to constantly come up with the same name, but imho this fellow is kind of the (self proclaimed) international ambassador of aquascaping and this scape in particular represents imho all what aquascaping is about.



If you listen and look closely to this video, you hear and see all essential key points in the art and what the designer took as inspiration. It actualy needs no further explaination, if you still do not get it after watching and listening what this artist created, then you probably missed some keypoints and rather watch it again and again.


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## BruceF (28 Mar 2016)

I like a lot of what Findley does but I don't really think that aquascape is one of his better ones.


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## zozo (28 Mar 2016)

BruceF said:


> I like a lot of what Findley does but I don't really think that aquascape is one of his better ones.



Agree..  But not my point.. It's the island with a fire spitting vulcano and put that under water like this..


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## Bacms (29 Mar 2016)

Berlioz said:


> I suppose there are a couple of ways to interpret coloured plants. Some people might use them like a painter uses reds and oranges (probably the most artistic in the abstract sense), others to represent elements of the landscape or perhaps a sunrise/sunset, some might use them to represent fields of wild flowers and others again simply to represent the coloured bushes of stems you see in videos of natural bodies of water like those produced by Ivan Mikolji.
> 
> I do think there's a limit to the use of colour though. Too much colour and things look gaudy or extraterrestrial to me. Then again, I've always preferred shades of green.
> 
> I suppose it really all comes down to how you interpret what a nature aquarium is. For some it might be a strict interpretation of aquatic environments and biotopes, but for others it might be any natural landscape (terrestrial or submerged).


The use of reds plants it is basically the simplest way of creating contrast. If you ever studied color theory you will now this is the easiest way to focus attention on a spot. The problem is that complementary colour contrast can be quite harsh and look unnatural. 

As mentioned already color contrast is just one of the techniques and contrast can also be achieved by light/shadow; textures; size and so on. If you compare amanos works over time you do see quite a variation from simple panted scapes to the heavier use of rocks and wood on the scape. Looking at the current trends it also seems that more and more simple similar plants are being used just feeling the spaces between the hardscape

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk


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## BruceF (30 Mar 2016)

Bacms said:


> contrast





Bacms said:


> just feeling the spaces between the hardscape


 Hardscape really has taken its place and it isn't all that easy.  When I first started it seemed like I always used rocks that disappeared behind the plants doom n enough.


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## richard powell (6 Apr 2016)

I personally am not a fan of red plants at all just don't like the look of them don't no why.

I prefer different shades of greens in plants in high light, co2 setups like some could be dalr or light green, some a slight hint of red (which I like just not the whole plant)

To the aquascape game side I've always kept heavily planted tanks BUT I have seen some very, very nice hard scape only tanks they are beautiful I think would be hard to keep clean tho  I would love to do something like this tank below one day


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## zozo (7 Apr 2016)

BruceF said:


> Hardscape really has taken its place and it isn't all that easy.  When I first started it seemed like I always used rocks that disappeared behind the plants doom n enough.


That's not the rocks fault..  That's years of experience and knowing which plants to use, how they mature and knowing how to trim (bonzai) them into shape. This we indeed often see a lot, the most beuatiful hardscape layout beeing totaly covered with plantmass after a few months. That's why i kicked out the rule Less is More out of the door with my first aquascape attempt. I realized my knowledge in plant choices fell much to short to realisticly invision the end goal.  

I want to know plants first before i even think of scaping hardware like an Iwagumi, so i dumped over 20 different plant spieces into a 45 liter wood scape. Just to get to know them all and see what their possibilities are for future projects. I made some wrong choises and it could have well been if i kept with the rule Less is More of which i do not know enough about and planted the tank with only  4 or 5 species of the wrong choise. Then you shoot yourself in your own foot when it comes to the learning curve, looking a year or 2 at the wrong choises or prematurely strip the tank and start over again and only learned from 2 or 3 wrong  choises.

In my second attempt i still did put a little to much plantspieces into a wood scape for the same reason i just want to learn and know as much plant options as possible before i think to much about applying scaping rules. That's for me the way i want to learn aquascaping, get to know the most important part first, the plants, which IMHO is the frst rule in aquascaping..


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## BruceF (7 Apr 2016)

Yeah Discus and woodscapes are one of the best tanks.  
I haven't gotten much further than the growing out the plants myself.


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## Chris Jackson (8 Apr 2016)

I think that the fact that none of this is easy is the enduring attraction of planted tanks. Establishing a stable balance tank where everything truly thrives can be quite hard enough in itself but then add in the aesthetic of "aquascaping" and you enter a whole other level of challenge. 
Amano's tanks, for the most part, evoke in me a tremendous feeling of balance and harmony. In our frenetic daily human lives balance and harmony can seem a world away as we struggle with the many challenges and demands of our working and personal lives. Achieving a cuboid or more of balanced, beautiful, harmonious perfection within my home could be a reference point to how I desire the rest of my life to play out in a balanced harmonious manner. It may seem esoteric but for me I think my aquaspaping habit reflects my own personal journey towards lasting inner harmony and peace. For me I think that is probably what aquascaping is all about. It reflects my personal search for inner peace and harmony!


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## Tim Harrison (8 Apr 2016)

Nice philosophy Chris...and well put, I think it reflects my personal aquascaping journey too.


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## zozo (8 Apr 2016)

So it's a bit like Jazz!? 

The only concerts where the musicians have more fun than the audience..


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## Tim Harrison (8 Apr 2016)

zozo said:


> So it's a bit like Jazz!?
> 
> The only concerts where the musicians have more fun than the audience..


Haha Marcel...that's so funny but very very true...


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## Chris Jackson (8 Apr 2016)

Love that Zozo! One of my best friends is rock saxophone player of some renown but what he really loves is playing "free jazz" that few people understand but for him is truly liberating..


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## zozo (8 Apr 2016)

I know the feeling from an audience side.. Worked as bartender for (to) many years.. So many Revel pop was pushed down my throath, nowadays i can only enjoy silence and the sounds of nature and children playing or jazz.  Or a nice aquascape ofcourse..


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