For today, check out this video of Beethoven's 5th (first movement -- condensed) with sledding line-drawing hilarity. That's right, you can watch sleds and bodies flail all over the place to the music of Beethoven.
This animation uses an app called Line Rider -- a sandbox where you can set up lines for these sleds to ride on. If I had time, I'd probably try to do something like this -- but we'll see. So many other "good and fun" things to do.
Or I can just enjoy what others have already put together. On YouTube, you can check out DoodleChaos' channel and see several of these animations set to different types of music. Fun!
Have you ever wondered where the beginning/ending theme of Mr. Bean comes from? Well, wonder no more.
It turns out that the music, named Ecce Homo was composed specifically for the show by award-winning English composer, Howard Goodall.
The words in Latin turn out to be utter nonsense. This video reveals the translation:
Howard Goodall is also responsible for the main themes in other popular British shows such as Red Dwarf and Blackadder. And turns out he has an impressive repertoire as well.
Here is one of his classical offerings -- the first movement from his Eternal Light: A Requiem.
With the passing of Vangelis, I thought I'd share my two biggest exposures to his music.
I have a vague memory of attending a concert in the late 70s or 80s where this guy played in some kind of pyramid-shaped synthesizer ... probably Vangelis? At the Fox in Georgia? I can't remember any of the music, but I do remember thinking: I'd love to do something like that one day.
But I definitely remember the music that played through all thirteen episodes of Carl Sagan's COSMOS. You can enjoy this theme now ...
I also enjoyed the mood the music of Vangelis sets in the movie Blade Runner. It fits the noir atmosphere perfectly. First off, here is the opening sequence ...
And here is the "love" theme from that same movie (with random city pics) ...
Vangelis may be gone, but his music will last forever.
Earlier this year, I shared one of my newer favorite pieces, Pat Metheny Group's Last Train Home.
Then I came across a nice cover of this piece -- a guitar solo. Though he doesn't nail the chords and the time perfectly, it's still a really nice and relaxing rendition. It even comes with nice imagery during parts of the song.
This past year, I've been learning how to more effectively use Logic Pro, including how to master the music toward the end of the process.
What this means is after the music is recorded and prepared, you can set an overall level, add effects for richer sound, apply compressors to soften loud consonants, and so on. This is something I'm going to try with my voice in the very next video I record in a couple of weeks -- and also with a theme song I'm putting together for my "Always Be Better" series.
So, while being educated, I've started picking up some of these mastering techniques in the music we hear around us each day. It's kind of cool -- kind of like eyes being opened.
Anyways -- this strange experience happened. It starts with this sound clip from Close Encounter of the Third Kind ...
Because I've seen this movie so many times, that one song playing in the background -- "The Square Song" has stuck with me for years. And if one were to ask me, I would have said it was from Sesame Street, though I wasn't exactly sure. It could have been Electric Company for all I knew. So, I thought I would research.
I first found this ...
So yes -- definitely the same song, but something just wasn't right. The cover of the record lists some Sesame Street songs -- so I thought perhaps it was proof ... but then I also saw other non-Sesame Street songs, such as "Archie's Theme." So -- nope -- I wasn't convinced, yet.
And then I found another one ...
And immediately -- just from the sound alone -- my memory kicked in. Yes, it was definitely Sesame Street. If you listen carefully, each of the three clips above have different sound quality. The songs, themselves (the original sound file) is exactly the same, but in each case, that sound file has been mastered differently.
The top one sounds kind of tinny. As -- well -- it was a record being played while the aliens were messing with the electronics.
The middle one is probably the clearest recording, also on the bright side. It's probably the mastering done on the album itself.
And the last one sounds a little muffled -- exactly what I remember from "Sesame Street." I'm not sure -- but maybe applying a muffled mastering helps it to sound better on TV back in the 70's?
So -- give it a try. Listen to each of the three examples, and see if you can hear the difference. Do any of the recordings sound more "Sesame Street"-ish than the others to you?
This week, I bring a guilty pleasure. This is a classic piece that I had somehow gone decades without hearing until I finally heard it at the end of a Jo Jo episode. It immediately caught my attention -- some kind of slow train song. At first it sounds simple -- some kind of gospel chord progression. But then it became interesting. And then I was hit by a strange sense of sadness ... I think because it seemed to be foreshadowing the death of at least one of the main characters.
And then a sense of wanting to return home.
Anyway ... if you've heard it before, you probably already know what I'm talking about. And if you've never heard it before ... enjoy!
