More stuff from Mon Jan 30

Remember to keep an eye on the blog - I'll post schedule updates as soon as I know what's happening with the funeral. on Wednesday DO NOT depend on an email update - it sometimes takes several hours for the update to flow into your mailbox after I post it here.

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Another madrigal:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYbN_2hqFoI

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An instrumental ensemble playing a renaissance dance piece: 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2DejJyPeKk

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JUST FOR FUN: PDQ Bach
If you don't see what's funny here you aren't paying attention!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6YgWcqAm5E

When you go to a concert......

....especially a "classical" one, please remember to turn your cell phone OFF. Classical requires an incredible amount of concentration to get things EXACTLY right. This is one of those times when getting 90% correct is NOT an A - it would be an "epic fail".

Why do I bring this up?

This video came across my inbox today. I love the soloist's response!

Music Technology Videos

Remember that these really are low-budget, but hopefully will get the point across.

These are demonstrating a variety of basic technologies used in music, including:

1. Analog synthesis
2. Sample-playback
3. MIDI
4. Soft-synths

Synthesis = creating sounds from scratch [Analog = messing with the electricity coming from the wall. Digital = calculating what the sound is using math equations]

Sampling = recording audio and converting the audio into numbers. CD quality = 44100 measurements per SECOND, using 16 "digits" per measurement. Recording studio quality = some 96000 measurements per second using 32 "digits" per measurement.

MIDI = a computer language that allows multiple keyboards to be controlled from a  single keyboard.....and since it's a digital language, computers can "memorize" what was played, and then send those same commands back out to the keyboard and duplicate the performance.

Soft-synth = "software synthesizer". The vids use "hardware synths" - i.e. separate "boxes" to create the sound. A soft-synth is purely software where the computer calculates what the sound will be on the fly.

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Demo a Synthesizer (Analog)

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Demo a Sample Playback keyboard

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MIDI The computer memorizes what notes were played when

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Wouldn't it be great to record your music, and then go back and make changes to it like we can with words? You can!

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Soft-Synths No hardware needed (other than the computer)

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The entire 9 minute Music Technology Demo

Concert Reports

A couple of quick reminders about the concert reports:

1. TWO of them
2. They count 15% of your final average - that's a letter and a half!
3. Classical or Jazz ONLY - only other option would be Middle School / High School PERFORMING groups [i.e. NOT a "musical" - theatrical production]. ASK if any question
4. Reports are due NO LATER THAN THE SECOND CLASS after the event. So if the concert was on Friday, you need to turn the thing in to me No Later Than Class on the following Wednesday.
5. I will NOT accept them late.
6. LAST DAY TO TURN THEM IN: THE LAST REGULAR CLASS MEETING.
7. I will NOT grade them if turned in later than that.
8. Only POSSIBLE exception - and this would be announced here on the blog AND in class - is if there is an awesome concert that would count between the last class day and the final exam. Those cases are RARE, however.

http://maconstate.blogspot.com/2006/08/sample-listening-chart.html has some ideas for how to write one of these. 2-3 pages long. WRITE WELL. I mean that!

[DON'T PLAY THE FONT SIZE GAME - I used to work in a print shop as well as a newspaper and know more than you about fonts, leading, and typographical trickery]

BEGIN SPRING 2012

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