This vid has been making the rounds for a couple of months now, but I feel compelled to share it here anyways. Hip-hop is a genre that's built upon sampling, and while I could go into the issues surrounding the use of samples, this video is about comparing the original to the sampled product. It shows the original sound-bits that Kanye West used in his songs, followed by his own rendition/usage of the sounds. It's really neat to see how these songs emerged. I also find it's really eye-opening, in terms of the work/thought/talent it takes to do this sort of thing. I know Kanye has an annoying ego, but it's still undeniable that he does neat things.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
Pi as Music
A couple days ago was Pi day (03-14)! I recently found something that sounded a lot better than I would have anticipated... so I'm posting it here. It's a composition based on the number Pi.
The idea is simple: transpose each digit into a corresponding note. The problem is that our number system is base 10, but Western music has 12 notes. So what this person did was use the C major scale (the white keys on a piano) as a basis. So 1234567890 became CDEFGABCDE. So 3.14... became ECF... and so on.
This is the result, kinda fun and technically never ending:
The idea is simple: transpose each digit into a corresponding note. The problem is that our number system is base 10, but Western music has 12 notes. So what this person did was use the C major scale (the white keys on a piano) as a basis. So 1234567890 became CDEFGABCDE. So 3.14... became ECF... and so on.
This is the result, kinda fun and technically never ending:
Monday, March 9, 2009
"Speakers" for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
A few days ago in Toronto, there was a concert held for the deaf and hard of hearing. No, not a benefit concert: This was a concert held specifically tailored to the deaf and hard of hearing, for THEIR enjoyment.
It was a concert which utilized the Emoti-Chair, a chair developed by researchers at Ryerson University. I've talked about the concept of deaf people "hearing" and enjoying music before, and this is essentially taking that and making it accessible.
If you recall, the difficulty with detecting sound by touch is that the lower frequencies are much more prevalent. The higher frequencies require training, and even then, the lower frequencies tends to drown out the other vibrations.
What this chair does is give each frequency prominence. By taking a piece of music and dividing the frequencies apart, the chair mimics the workings of the human cochlea (the inner ear that picks up sound waves). Each frequency is then given a separate rumbling motor in different sections on the back, thus using your whole back as a substitute for the inner ear membrane.
In fact, after repeated usage, people have claimed to recognize different genres, instruments, and whether or not there are vocals! Fascinating stuff.
To learn more about this, start here. To see this chair, watch the video below. I highly suggest hearing the testimonials that starts a couple minutes in:
It was a concert which utilized the Emoti-Chair, a chair developed by researchers at Ryerson University. I've talked about the concept of deaf people "hearing" and enjoying music before, and this is essentially taking that and making it accessible.
If you recall, the difficulty with detecting sound by touch is that the lower frequencies are much more prevalent. The higher frequencies require training, and even then, the lower frequencies tends to drown out the other vibrations.
What this chair does is give each frequency prominence. By taking a piece of music and dividing the frequencies apart, the chair mimics the workings of the human cochlea (the inner ear that picks up sound waves). Each frequency is then given a separate rumbling motor in different sections on the back, thus using your whole back as a substitute for the inner ear membrane.
In fact, after repeated usage, people have claimed to recognize different genres, instruments, and whether or not there are vocals! Fascinating stuff.
To learn more about this, start here. To see this chair, watch the video below. I highly suggest hearing the testimonials that starts a couple minutes in:
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Bluegrass Music Played with Chinese Instruments
The title says it all.
What makes this particularly interesting is that it works. Notice how the Chinese instruments generally stick to an Asian scale, and that the Western instruments play a very bluegrass scale. Yet it still sounds natural. Who would of thought that Chinese instruments had the bluegrass twang in them!
What makes this particularly interesting is that it works. Notice how the Chinese instruments generally stick to an Asian scale, and that the Western instruments play a very bluegrass scale. Yet it still sounds natural. Who would of thought that Chinese instruments had the bluegrass twang in them!
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