I find myself often referring to this song, because it really does something quite unique. The song is by Kelly Clarkson, called "Breakaway", and it's written by Avril Lavigne. Yes, the song structure is typical, the melody is pop, and the lyrics aren't exactly Dylan. So what am I talking about?
The harmony line.
Now at first glance, it may not seem much. But there's something quite interesting going on in this piece of music. I won't go into the details of how harmony works, because it's not about the type or style of harmonization that is going on that floors me - it's the timing.
Usually, harmonies are sung right on top of each other. That's what harmonized melody is supposed to be (as opposed to counterpoint, which I talk about in this blog post.
Yet in this song, the harmony precedes the main melody line. In other words, it's not sung together, but before the main melody line. It's just a strange thing to do, but it works. And that's what amazes me about this song. It happens during the chorus, right here around 1:09 when she sings "Make a wish, Take a chance, Make a change." Right before Kelly Clarkson sings that line - you'll hear a faint vocal line that is actually the harmony to what Kelly Clarkson is singing...but it comes before. Wow. Whoever thought of this is really creative.
Some of you might say that this is basically a "call and response" (A call and response is typically utilized in African music, where a "leader" sings a short stanza and the rest of the choir repeats it right after). But I would argue that it's a little different, for three reasons. First, it's not timed right - if the harmony is the call, and the response is Kelly Clarkson, then Kelly Clarkson is coming in too early. Kelly Clarkson doesn't actually let the harmony finish before she starts singing. Second, the fact that the harmony is leading is very strange. Third, it makes no sense to de-emphasize the leader (in this case the harmony). In short, I think this is quite a unique way of organizing vocal harmonies.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
Loop Around The House - An Adventure in Delay
This is really fun, although by the end it sounds completely crazy. But in order to really appreciate what's going on here, you have to understand the difference between looping and delaying an audio track.
Looping is where you record a sample, and then repeat it for as long as you want. It's the backbone of most hip hop and electronic music. In most cases, the sample is pre-recorded, even when it's played live. Some artists - most often beat boxers - record the sample live though, and then control the loop with a foot pedal. Other artists in different genres have also done this too, like KT Tunstall. In all of these cases, the loop is used as a backing track - so you're playing the whole thing yourself! Totally fun.
The difference between those tracks and the video I want to talk about today... is that this one is not using a foot pedal, or loops. It's using a long delay. A delay is more like an echo: have you ever been on top of a mountain, and yelled something really loud towards another mountain? When that happens, it echos everything back at you, with the delay time defined by the distance it takes the sound to travel. It it was sufficiently loud enough, the sound that echoes back will bounce back from the mountain you stand on, and repeat again and again...until it fades out. A delay effect is essentially doing the same thing: repeats the sound, but each time it repeats, it fades away a little bit. In short, there are two settings to a delay effect - the time it takes for the delay to repeat the signal (the distance between the mountains), and the number of times it repeats it until it completely fades away (how "loud" you're screaming at the mountains).
So when is the delay effect used? It's most often used on vocals and guitars, but with much, MUCH shorter delay times. The most famous examples would probably be earlier U2 songs like this one. In this song, the guitar is delayed the whole entire time. The Edge is actually playing about half of the notes you are hearing: the rest is the delayed notes. Notice that it sounds almost machine gun like, and it plays over itself while it chugs along at a really controlled pace. This is more or less the "typical" way of using the delay effect (back then this was really cutting edge though). The time it takes to return the signal is so short, that the return signal starts even before you've finished playing the original note.
Getting back to the actual video I want to show - this video uses a delay effect instead of a looping effect. It has the delay time set EXTREMELY long, with the time it takes to fade away at a maximum range. In other words, if you screw up, you can't just re-do it... you have to start over, because it will keep returning that signal back at you until you turn everything off, or until it fades away on it's own. But then again, if it was any other way this video wouldn't really work - you have to have the older sounds fade away at some point, unless you just want completely un-listenable cacophony.
Looping is where you record a sample, and then repeat it for as long as you want. It's the backbone of most hip hop and electronic music. In most cases, the sample is pre-recorded, even when it's played live. Some artists - most often beat boxers - record the sample live though, and then control the loop with a foot pedal. Other artists in different genres have also done this too, like KT Tunstall. In all of these cases, the loop is used as a backing track - so you're playing the whole thing yourself! Totally fun.
The difference between those tracks and the video I want to talk about today... is that this one is not using a foot pedal, or loops. It's using a long delay. A delay is more like an echo: have you ever been on top of a mountain, and yelled something really loud towards another mountain? When that happens, it echos everything back at you, with the delay time defined by the distance it takes the sound to travel. It it was sufficiently loud enough, the sound that echoes back will bounce back from the mountain you stand on, and repeat again and again...until it fades out. A delay effect is essentially doing the same thing: repeats the sound, but each time it repeats, it fades away a little bit. In short, there are two settings to a delay effect - the time it takes for the delay to repeat the signal (the distance between the mountains), and the number of times it repeats it until it completely fades away (how "loud" you're screaming at the mountains).
So when is the delay effect used? It's most often used on vocals and guitars, but with much, MUCH shorter delay times. The most famous examples would probably be earlier U2 songs like this one. In this song, the guitar is delayed the whole entire time. The Edge is actually playing about half of the notes you are hearing: the rest is the delayed notes. Notice that it sounds almost machine gun like, and it plays over itself while it chugs along at a really controlled pace. This is more or less the "typical" way of using the delay effect (back then this was really cutting edge though). The time it takes to return the signal is so short, that the return signal starts even before you've finished playing the original note.
Getting back to the actual video I want to show - this video uses a delay effect instead of a looping effect. It has the delay time set EXTREMELY long, with the time it takes to fade away at a maximum range. In other words, if you screw up, you can't just re-do it... you have to start over, because it will keep returning that signal back at you until you turn everything off, or until it fades away on it's own. But then again, if it was any other way this video wouldn't really work - you have to have the older sounds fade away at some point, unless you just want completely un-listenable cacophony.
Looping Around The House from Si on Vimeo.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Music from fabric: fabricmachine
This is an art installation that is also a musical creation. From the artists website:
Installation and performative Instrument: Two fabric loops, driven by a motor, create a division in space. Light sensors measure the opacity of the textile;
The way all pieces are sewed together for a fabric sound track is responsible for beats, breaks and rhythms. It makes your individual clothing hearable. without any special effects
So in other words, this installation/instrument converts the information on a piece of fabric into digitized instructions for sounds. I've certainly never heard of fabric being used as a basis for music, so this is really fantastic.
That being said, I wonder if there's more that you could do with this. If it truly is the case that opacity is the only thing being measured, then there seems to be lots of information in a piece of fabric that is lost. Colour for example, will only matter in terms of its capacity to let light through - much in the same way that colour reacts to a black & white photocopier: it get's mostly lost, although the shades are still there.
Other aspects of a piece of fabric, such as shape, weave, and even smell are lost in this current installation. I wonder how these things could be incorporated? You would need a different way of scanning the fabric obviously... hmmm!
Don't get me wrong, these aren't criticisms. I would never have thought of fabric in this way, and I think it's really cool that the fabricmachine is doing something new. Instead, these "criticisms" are the possibilities that this installation has opened my eyes to, and I think it's absolutely great!
fabricmachine, by Kathrin Stumreich
Installation and performative Instrument: Two fabric loops, driven by a motor, create a division in space. Light sensors measure the opacity of the textile;
The way all pieces are sewed together for a fabric sound track is responsible for beats, breaks and rhythms. It makes your individual clothing hearable. without any special effects
So in other words, this installation/instrument converts the information on a piece of fabric into digitized instructions for sounds. I've certainly never heard of fabric being used as a basis for music, so this is really fantastic.
That being said, I wonder if there's more that you could do with this. If it truly is the case that opacity is the only thing being measured, then there seems to be lots of information in a piece of fabric that is lost. Colour for example, will only matter in terms of its capacity to let light through - much in the same way that colour reacts to a black & white photocopier: it get's mostly lost, although the shades are still there.
Other aspects of a piece of fabric, such as shape, weave, and even smell are lost in this current installation. I wonder how these things could be incorporated? You would need a different way of scanning the fabric obviously... hmmm!
Don't get me wrong, these aren't criticisms. I would never have thought of fabric in this way, and I think it's really cool that the fabricmachine is doing something new. Instead, these "criticisms" are the possibilities that this installation has opened my eyes to, and I think it's absolutely great!
fabricmachine, by Kathrin Stumreich
fabricmachine from Kathrin Stumreich on Vimeo.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Sony PS-F9 Specs and Info
Since there seems to be confusion in the English speaking community about the specs and info on the Sony PS-F9 (and since my blog post on it is one of the more popular ones), I decided to find as much as I can from the Japanese speaking community and translate it here. Hope this helps! (If you're looking for more info on the PS-F5 than I provide in my other post, go to this website. It's a great website dedicated to the PS-F5.)
I'm not going to bother repeating info I mentioned in my older blog post, in order to keep things as short as possible.
*Everything I say here is from other websites, forums, auction sites etc. I don't take any responsibility for any of the info here.*
1 - In Japan, the F9 completely outsold the F5. It's rare to see an F5 up for auction in Japan, where as the F9 comes up once in awhile. It's interesting to think that the exact opposite is true elsewhere in the world... I don't know why. So if you're looking to buy an F9, go to a Japanese auction site. Some F9/F5's are sold with the Flamingo logo on it. These one's were sold with an extended warranty of up to a year....but this makes little difference now.
2 - There's some confusion in the English community as to whether the F9 has an FM transmitter. Well according to all the auction sites I visited, and all the old brochures I saw, this seems to be a definite yes. There wasn't one single PS-F9 being sold in auctions in Japan that lacked that feature. In all the old brochures I read, they also proudly proclaimed the FM transmitting capabilities of the F9. In all the websites reviewing the product, everyone mentions the FM transmitter as well - like here, and here.
Speaking of brochures, here's a great collection of brochures that doesn't show up on English Google searches as easily - although that might change now that I linked it. Again, FM transmitter is mentioned several times as a standard feature of the F9.
However, there are some noted instances when the FM transmitter doesn't seem to work. There are a number of possibilities for this:
4 - If you don't own the instructions manual, this might not be obvious: Sometimes, the needle starts to rise during use. This is actually noted in the manual as something that happens when the batteries are dying, and not a defect in the product. Just change the batteries.
That being said, if you need to change the needle, detailed instructions are as follows, translated from here.:
That's about it!
Hope this is helpful.
I'm not going to bother repeating info I mentioned in my older blog post, in order to keep things as short as possible.
*Everything I say here is from other websites, forums, auction sites etc. I don't take any responsibility for any of the info here.*
1 - In Japan, the F9 completely outsold the F5. It's rare to see an F5 up for auction in Japan, where as the F9 comes up once in awhile. It's interesting to think that the exact opposite is true elsewhere in the world... I don't know why. So if you're looking to buy an F9, go to a Japanese auction site. Some F9/F5's are sold with the Flamingo logo on it. These one's were sold with an extended warranty of up to a year....but this makes little difference now.
2 - There's some confusion in the English community as to whether the F9 has an FM transmitter. Well according to all the auction sites I visited, and all the old brochures I saw, this seems to be a definite yes. There wasn't one single PS-F9 being sold in auctions in Japan that lacked that feature. In all the old brochures I read, they also proudly proclaimed the FM transmitting capabilities of the F9. In all the websites reviewing the product, everyone mentions the FM transmitter as well - like here, and here.
Speaking of brochures, here's a great collection of brochures that doesn't show up on English Google searches as easily - although that might change now that I linked it. Again, FM transmitter is mentioned several times as a standard feature of the F9.
However, there are some noted instances when the FM transmitter doesn't seem to work. There are a number of possibilities for this:
- A conflict with commercial radio stations. If a commercial radio station is broadcasting in the same frequency in your region, it obviously won't work very well. Some have indicated that if you set your radio to Mono (instead of Stereo), it can alleviate this problem.
- If you happen to have a Japanese version of the F9, it might not work as easily if you reside outside of Japan. Why? Because FM radio operates in different frequencies in Japan compared to some parts of the world, such as North America. Test on a radio made for Japan.
- The transmitter itself is broken? But this seems to be a rare problem...
- A lot of them no longer come with the AC adapter
- Taking off the cover is actually quite finicky. As such, some of them have a broken tongue/lip/plastic hook, making it look imbalanced. Not a deal breaker (since it doesn't affect the sound or operation), but something that is often broken. Here's a visualization of what to look for. In the big left picture, the line between the cover and base is straight and balanced between left and right sides. This isn't the case in the other smaller pictures to the right.
4 - If you don't own the instructions manual, this might not be obvious: Sometimes, the needle starts to rise during use. This is actually noted in the manual as something that happens when the batteries are dying, and not a defect in the product. Just change the batteries.
That being said, if you need to change the needle, detailed instructions are as follows, translated from here.:
- First, turn it off and take off the front cover carefully, by pushing in the sides. Slowly slide off the cover.
- Turn it back on, and change the settings to EP. Hold the "DISC HOLD" button and press start. A cartridge should come up. Turn off the power.
- There's a hole/groove in the frame that is meant to hold the arm. Place the arm in the hole/groove to make it easier to pull off the cartridge (and to prevent damage to the arm). Pull out the cartridge.
That's about it!
Hope this is helpful.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Write Songs on the Fly! LaDiDa Iphone App
This is a neat little app, much in the same vein as the microsoft songsmith which I talked about in a past blog post. To quickly explain: this app lets you sing any melody you think of, and figures out the best chord progressions and arrangements that suit the melody. You don't have to have a clue about music theory or composition, but you can create a song.
Ofcourse, not everything is the same as microsoft songsmith. This app seems to use pitch correction more liberally, but more importantly, it's completely portable.
As the microsoft songsmith showed however, this type of musical creation software is probably still too early to be taken seriously as a musical creation tool for "serious" artists. If youtube is of any indication, songsmith was used as a novelty application, rather than a musical application. Indeed, it's used more as a way to insight laughs, rather than as a way to create music you want to listen to (although it was really fun to listen to "real" songs being put through songsmith, to see if songsmith would come up with the same chord progression as the original songs. It pretty much failed 99% of the time.).
Now that it has become portable, I wonder when this type of app will be good enough to break that "novelty" barrier?
Ofcourse, not everything is the same as microsoft songsmith. This app seems to use pitch correction more liberally, but more importantly, it's completely portable.
As the microsoft songsmith showed however, this type of musical creation software is probably still too early to be taken seriously as a musical creation tool for "serious" artists. If youtube is of any indication, songsmith was used as a novelty application, rather than a musical application. Indeed, it's used more as a way to insight laughs, rather than as a way to create music you want to listen to (although it was really fun to listen to "real" songs being put through songsmith, to see if songsmith would come up with the same chord progression as the original songs. It pretty much failed 99% of the time.).
Now that it has become portable, I wonder when this type of app will be good enough to break that "novelty" barrier?
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Lego Sequencer
This is an instrument that blows my mind. I have no idea how this works!
It's a sequencer based on lego blocks. A sequencer is a software or hardware that triggers sounds in a controlled way, such that you can create beats and sounds. It's a vital part of electronic music. (for more on sequencers, go to the wikipedia page here.
What makes this one special is the way that the lego's ability to build on top of each other is utilized. To make this clearer, watch the video below of a more standard sequencer first:
As you can see, the balls are used to indicate when and what sounds are triggered. It's quite straight forward.
Now imagine balancing other balls on top of those balls... or balancing bigger balls that cross over different slots all at once.
The lego sequencer lets you do that... and is programmed to change sounds accordingly. I have NO clue what changes it makes when you build on top of other blocks, but it does something. Furthermore, the colours also make a difference in the sound as well.
It's like sequencing with another dimension! Blows my mind.
For more information on the artist/designer of this sequencer, check out Yoshi Akai's website here.
It's a sequencer based on lego blocks. A sequencer is a software or hardware that triggers sounds in a controlled way, such that you can create beats and sounds. It's a vital part of electronic music. (for more on sequencers, go to the wikipedia page here.
What makes this one special is the way that the lego's ability to build on top of each other is utilized. To make this clearer, watch the video below of a more standard sequencer first:
As you can see, the balls are used to indicate when and what sounds are triggered. It's quite straight forward.
Now imagine balancing other balls on top of those balls... or balancing bigger balls that cross over different slots all at once.
The lego sequencer lets you do that... and is programmed to change sounds accordingly. I have NO clue what changes it makes when you build on top of other blocks, but it does something. Furthermore, the colours also make a difference in the sound as well.
It's like sequencing with another dimension! Blows my mind.
For more information on the artist/designer of this sequencer, check out Yoshi Akai's website here.
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