Have you ever heard of the armonica? Also known as the glass harmonica? An instrument invented by The Benjamin Franklin? Which was incredibly popular before 1820, and was said to produce the most angelic sounds known to man?
....most likely not, because it was a blacklisted instrument in the 19th century...and it never quite gained enough public support since then to warrant mass production. Heck, my firefox spell checker thinks it's misspelled!
The basic idea of an armonica is simple, and we've all experienced it. As a child (okay, fine, I do it every time I do dishes) I traced the edge of a wet wineglass to produce a sound that's really clean and resonant...and I'm sure you did too. The armonica consists of the same phenomenon by laying several glass bowls side by side and rotating it on a stick. You then press the edge of the bowls as it rotates, which produces the sound!
...so why was it blacklisted? Several reasons. It was thought to cause depression, anxiety, insomnia..and general bad health. It was also thought to be an instrument of the devil, BECAUSE it was so beautiful that it made people lose their minds, day dream, get lost in their thoughts...etc. Yes, that's right. It produced such an incredible, peaceful, beautiful sound, the only logical conclusion they could come up with was that it was from the devil (at least it didn't give you hairy palms). Too bad for that idiotic reasoning, because it truly is a great instrument.
What does it sound like? Here... play it yourself! Just click the different bowls below. Like a real armonica, the sounds resonate even when you're not touching it.
*courtesy of The Franklin Institute*
Neat ain't it?
Also, check out this Youtube video of a professional armonica player:
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Musical Vocal Surprise.
Quick note: I apologize that many of the songs so far have been a little dated, especially by internet standards. That being said, these things are generally timeless, so I want to get through these first.
Moving along!
Check this one out. As usual...juuuust listen to the end. The vocal ability is pretty impressive, although admittedly the quality of the voice is slightly nasal in some parts (but really, that's an unfair criticism I think, given what happens..). Truly surprising.
Moving along!
Check this one out. As usual...juuuust listen to the end. The vocal ability is pretty impressive, although admittedly the quality of the voice is slightly nasal in some parts (but really, that's an unfair criticism I think, given what happens..). Truly surprising.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Bitchslap that Jazz, Funk, Metal and Electronica!
GRWAAAAAAAARAEAEADAFDadaaaaa!
RERRRRRRRRRIYWEIIEAAA!!
GRRRRRRRRRRr!
...and a whole bunch of feedback, with a double bass pedal constantly being pounded. Heavy guitars and long hair, and you've got yourself death metal, screamo... whatever you want to call it. Stuff in that direction *insert eye roll*.
...Or so I hear it being described by people all the time. I'm not surprised to be honest. I totally understand why it doesn't appeal to most people. After all, it's pretty damn intense, to the point where if you're not used to it... it can be overwhelming at best, comical at worst. I mean "death death deaaaath!!"???
Fine. But just suspend your distrust of heavy screamo music for one second.. and try this on for size. Trust me. You'll be pleasantly surprised (Or at least surprised).
Today's piece is from Slipknot (heavy metal/death metal purists will probably object, and that's fine. They should listen to this too.) Yes. Those dudes who dress in jumpsuits and masks. Let your ears do the judging .. because this piece exemplifies the technical knowledge and abilities that are inherent in bands of this genre. There are several styles covered in the song, seemingly unrelated to each section, but THAT is what makes it so interesting. Why? Pay attention to the bassline between the different styles: it's basically the same theme, with different embellishments..but you can't tell that very easily, because they play the variations within each style SO well. Heavy metal? Check. Jazz? Check. Funk? Check. Electronica? Check. To pull this off is one heck of an amazing feat... and a highly interesting musical oddity. It may not move you emotionally, but it's one piece that definitely needs to be heard at least once (the whole thing!). ...and during the journey you might just catch a glimpse of why screamo can work...
Slipknot - Do Nothing/Bitchslap
RERRRRRRRRRIYWEIIEAAA!!
GRRRRRRRRRRr!
...and a whole bunch of feedback, with a double bass pedal constantly being pounded. Heavy guitars and long hair, and you've got yourself death metal, screamo... whatever you want to call it. Stuff in that direction *insert eye roll*.
...Or so I hear it being described by people all the time. I'm not surprised to be honest. I totally understand why it doesn't appeal to most people. After all, it's pretty damn intense, to the point where if you're not used to it... it can be overwhelming at best, comical at worst. I mean "death death deaaaath!!"???
Fine. But just suspend your distrust of heavy screamo music for one second.. and try this on for size. Trust me. You'll be pleasantly surprised (Or at least surprised).
Today's piece is from Slipknot (heavy metal/death metal purists will probably object, and that's fine. They should listen to this too.) Yes. Those dudes who dress in jumpsuits and masks. Let your ears do the judging .. because this piece exemplifies the technical knowledge and abilities that are inherent in bands of this genre. There are several styles covered in the song, seemingly unrelated to each section, but THAT is what makes it so interesting. Why? Pay attention to the bassline between the different styles: it's basically the same theme, with different embellishments..but you can't tell that very easily, because they play the variations within each style SO well. Heavy metal? Check. Jazz? Check. Funk? Check. Electronica? Check. To pull this off is one heck of an amazing feat... and a highly interesting musical oddity. It may not move you emotionally, but it's one piece that definitely needs to be heard at least once (the whole thing!). ...and during the journey you might just catch a glimpse of why screamo can work...
Slipknot - Do Nothing/Bitchslap
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Postal Workers Canceling Stamps
I think (er... hope?) that the recurring theme in this blog will be the question, "what is music?" It's amazing how varied the answers can be, depending on cultures, customs, and even physical attributes (We'll get to that last one in another post. If you're deaf, what IS music? Can you listen to music without your ears?).
While we've become accustomed to sitting down and listening to music "as is", a lot of what we consider music isn't seen that way by the people who produced them... such as this work song from Ghana.
A field recording by James Koetting in 1975, this piece was created by postal workers canceling stamps at the University of Ghana post office (In Accra!). That's right! It's just 4 dudes with scissors, stamps, and a table.... making music as they work, completely improvised. I think it's utterly mesmerizing to listen to, as the polyrhythms overlap and the whistled harmonies come in. Not to mention how cool it is that all these office supplies become instruments.
If you want to know more about this piece, go here.
While we've become accustomed to sitting down and listening to music "as is", a lot of what we consider music isn't seen that way by the people who produced them... such as this work song from Ghana.
A field recording by James Koetting in 1975, this piece was created by postal workers canceling stamps at the University of Ghana post office (In Accra!). That's right! It's just 4 dudes with scissors, stamps, and a table.... making music as they work, completely improvised. I think it's utterly mesmerizing to listen to, as the polyrhythms overlap and the whistled harmonies come in. Not to mention how cool it is that all these office supplies become instruments.
If you want to know more about this piece, go here.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Classical Music as Explained by Benjamin Zander
Classical music... that wonderful stuff that lets you fall asleep and/or helps you study, and/or the stuff you hear on elevators. Or, as Benjamin Zander says, "you experience it like second hand smoke" while doing other things.
Or should it be?
I took a course in undergrad once, on arts management (I have no idea why). I don't remember much about it, except one thing: that in order to gain an audience for an art form, you need to educate the public about how to appreciate it. That seems obvious, but in reality it's usually not the route taken by artists. bah! I will do what I want, when I want, and if the people don't understand it, then too bad! Well...Noooo, you see, appreciating an art is like any other medium and appreciation: At some point you have to learn what to appreciate, how to appreciate it, and with out that knowledge it is lost by the beholder. It's like a language, and you have to show people where to look, and why. To snub away from doing so is doing your own art a disfavour, and also severely limits the expansion of the arts itself.
Benjamin Zander understands this. This little video I'm embedding here is a lecture from TED.com. It's an awesome website with wonderful lectures by all sorts of people on all sorts of subjects, but this one is about classical music... and more specifically about how to listen to it... and why the art form is moving, and the potentials it has in expressing and realizing the most amazing parts of humanity.
Or should it be?
I took a course in undergrad once, on arts management (I have no idea why). I don't remember much about it, except one thing: that in order to gain an audience for an art form, you need to educate the public about how to appreciate it. That seems obvious, but in reality it's usually not the route taken by artists. bah! I will do what I want, when I want, and if the people don't understand it, then too bad! Well...Noooo, you see, appreciating an art is like any other medium and appreciation: At some point you have to learn what to appreciate, how to appreciate it, and with out that knowledge it is lost by the beholder. It's like a language, and you have to show people where to look, and why. To snub away from doing so is doing your own art a disfavour, and also severely limits the expansion of the arts itself.
Benjamin Zander understands this. This little video I'm embedding here is a lecture from TED.com. It's an awesome website with wonderful lectures by all sorts of people on all sorts of subjects, but this one is about classical music... and more specifically about how to listen to it... and why the art form is moving, and the potentials it has in expressing and realizing the most amazing parts of humanity.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Open mindedness in music: Cuz you're too cool to listen to this stuff.
Quick:
What question do you ask the most when you meet someone new? Their name, what they do, where they live... perhaps? Yes yes, all interesting questions, but such chit-chat are mere polite pleasantries, of which content I am most likely going to forget in 5 min. Because frankly whether or not I am interested in even knowing the answer is.. oddly... solely determined by the content of the answer itself. What do I mean? I mean that if your answer isn't totally cool, I won't care to remember it, and I really didn't care to ask it to begin with either.
....However.
There's one question in which I am interested in the answer, no matter what the content of the answer is. "What kind of music do you listen to?"
Why? Because I find it absolutely fascinating to find out what people say.. what pieces of music makes them tick, and why. Like an ongoing survey, I find the answers give me a greater insight into why music works... and it's a mystery that I've even written about professionally and academically because it is a pervasive, yet poorly understood phenomena.
The most common answer I get however, is striking...because not only is it vague, it is incorrect. ( waaaait...How can you possibly be incorrect about your own preferences? ... Well, if Monty Python has taught us anything, it's that your favourite colour is...)
No, in all seriousness, I find that many people say what they really don't mean. By that, I mean these 2 answers:
"I like everything."
"I like **** and ****, and whatever else. I just like good music, I'm really open minded."
Oh, open minded are we? I highly doubt it. You're into indie rock and think you're cutting edge? Do you ever give Justin Timberlake a chance? Or if you listen to everything, does that include rap and country? noise music?
...The claim that people have open minds when it comes to music is highly overused, and rarely achieved. And really, it's a shame, because what is "good" is often lost by the filter of what is preemptively decided upon by whatever sociological forces shaped your preferences.
So.
I've made a habit to collect songs that push the envelope. Pieces of music that show what neat things music can do. Songs in all genres that have points of extreme interest that I believe everyone can respect. Songs that make you say "wtf... wow, that's pretty cool".
That's where this blog comes in. I plan to share them here, mostly because I'm losing track of the long list of bits and pieces that have really shaped my conceptions of music and what it can do. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did when I came across them!
What question do you ask the most when you meet someone new? Their name, what they do, where they live... perhaps? Yes yes, all interesting questions, but such chit-chat are mere polite pleasantries, of which content I am most likely going to forget in 5 min. Because frankly whether or not I am interested in even knowing the answer is.. oddly... solely determined by the content of the answer itself. What do I mean? I mean that if your answer isn't totally cool, I won't care to remember it, and I really didn't care to ask it to begin with either.
....However.
There's one question in which I am interested in the answer, no matter what the content of the answer is. "What kind of music do you listen to?"
Why? Because I find it absolutely fascinating to find out what people say.. what pieces of music makes them tick, and why. Like an ongoing survey, I find the answers give me a greater insight into why music works... and it's a mystery that I've even written about professionally and academically because it is a pervasive, yet poorly understood phenomena.
The most common answer I get however, is striking...because not only is it vague, it is incorrect. ( waaaait...How can you possibly be incorrect about your own preferences? ... Well, if Monty Python has taught us anything, it's that your favourite colour is...)
No, in all seriousness, I find that many people say what they really don't mean. By that, I mean these 2 answers:
"I like everything."
"I like **** and ****, and whatever else. I just like good music, I'm really open minded."
Oh, open minded are we? I highly doubt it. You're into indie rock and think you're cutting edge? Do you ever give Justin Timberlake a chance? Or if you listen to everything, does that include rap and country? noise music?
...The claim that people have open minds when it comes to music is highly overused, and rarely achieved. And really, it's a shame, because what is "good" is often lost by the filter of what is preemptively decided upon by whatever sociological forces shaped your preferences.
So.
I've made a habit to collect songs that push the envelope. Pieces of music that show what neat things music can do. Songs in all genres that have points of extreme interest that I believe everyone can respect. Songs that make you say "wtf... wow, that's pretty cool".
That's where this blog comes in. I plan to share them here, mostly because I'm losing track of the long list of bits and pieces that have really shaped my conceptions of music and what it can do. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did when I came across them!
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