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Melodies are fundamentally very rapid percussion beats
 

offline w M w from London (United Kingdom) on 2002-07-31 05:22 [#00331451]
Points: 21427 Status: Regular



The only difference between, say, note A and note D is the
number of wavs that pass in a constant unit of time. So when
you hear a melody, the mental illusion you percieve as a
"melody" is the organized waves units passing at speeds
guided by rules of measurement. The waves in a note A are
the exact same waves used in note C, merely the speed
creates the appearance of a specific note.

Anyway, I was thinking how this is similar to how, say,
squarepusher creates intricate beats with percussion
units... only on a time scale much more macroscopic.
Everything is the same "pitch" maybe if you think about it,
or better said pitch is an illusion of the speed of waves.
I'm not positive about my facts or anything.


 

offline w M w from London (United Kingdom) on 2002-07-31 05:34 [#00331455]
Points: 21427 Status: Regular



Society could massively benefit from a group of
scholars/intellectuals that are given complete power to take
action based on their knowledge over the corrupt political
system.



 

offline Quoth from Sweden on 2002-07-31 05:35 [#00331456]
Points: 3840 Status: Lurker



so...

drums can be tuned... WAVE ie sound length can be
tuned/de-tuned... ie PITCH is RELATIVE...

way the fuck back when Mozart & the gang were making music
for symphonies & pianos & all that shit... the RELATIVE
PITCH FOR ANYTHING was the A note... today it is the C
note...

weird, huh?


 

offline wayout from the street of crocodiles on 2002-07-31 05:38 [#00331458]
Points: 2849 Status: Lurker



yeah...i've thought of that too... squarepusher has said
that hes trying to
switch around rhythm and melody...by making melodies with
percussion and what not..he's been known to use drum
machines as granular synthesizers..

actually...granular synthesis is based off of this concept
your talking about.. rather than creating sound waves...it
makes little pulses...which in rapid succession can create
tones
at least i think thats how it works...im not an expert on
this...im sure there are more informed people on here


 

offline AMinal from Toronto (Canada) on 2002-07-31 06:39 [#00331495]
Points: 3476 Status: Regular



YES!!!!
i too have thought of that..

and a huge YES goes out to that second post too!


 

offline jand from Braintree (United Kingdom) on 2002-07-31 08:54 [#00331561]
Points: 5975 Status: Moderator | Show recordbag



Pitch = Frequency
as is Rhythm...

So 120BPM = 2 Hz....ponder on that one...:)..

Basically Pitch isn't "an illusion based on speed of the
wave" ... Pitch IS the speed of the waves...


 

offline Meho Krljic from Beograd (Yugoslavia) on 2002-07-31 08:57 [#00331565]
Points: 6617 Status: Addict



Stockhausen's composition "Gruppen" was made using this kind
of thinking. 50 years ago.


 

offline Meho Krljic from Beograd (Yugoslavia) on 2002-07-31 09:01 [#00331568]
Points: 6617 Status: Addict



Here's some words on it:
"In the summer of 1955 Stockhausen temporarily left his
family for a period of seclusion in the Alps of Switzerland,
staying in an attic of a house in the little village of
Paspels. While working on the piece for the commission,
which was to be a large scale orchestral work, Stockhausen
discovered – or invented – a new way of structuring
temporal events in music. In his earlier work in the
electronic studio he had noticed certain aspects of tempi
and pitch, which in themselves were great discoveries, and
it was not by chance that it was Stockhausen who made the
discoveries, since he always works in a combination of
technical awareness and edge, methodically and stubbornly
– and a flawless artistic intuition. The level to which
these combinatory creative processes have risen to in
Stockhausen is unique to him.
Stockhausen noticed that a rhythmic pulse that is repeated
in a sped up fashion eventually, at about 30 pulses per
second, transforms into pure pitch. This made Stockhausen,
by virtue of his extended musical thinking, turn the thought
around, and think about pitch as a temporal process in a
circumstance where it is not heard as such by our
perception. He then went about constructing a 12-tone scale
of durations. Now he could shape pitch and duration from one
single principle! He composed a time spectrum with
sub-divisions of temporal layers.

However, he understood that it would be difficult –
impossible! – for one conductor and one orchestra to
realize his multi-temporal, multi-layered music, so
Stockhausen bluntly came to the conclusion that he would use
several different orchestral groups, each with their own
conductor! Placed in different parts of the concert space he
could then let the sound move back and forth between groups
in different ways, merge and diverge – yes, even rotate!
This was completely new!
When he laid down the first structure of the piece he
actually used the pattern of the mountains that he saw
outside his attic window in the Swiss village.

“Gruppen


 

offline Meho Krljic from Beograd (Yugoslavia) on 2002-07-31 09:01 [#00331569]
Points: 6617 Status: Addict



“Gruppen” should be heard in a big auditorium to be
experienced the way Stockhausen intended it. On a CD,
however well recorded, you cannot get the spatial feeling
that you get sitting in an auditorium with the three
orchestral groups in a semi-circle around you. It is
possible, if you have a surround-system at home, to
experience some of the effect of this magnificent music, but
the ultimate listening situation is an auditorium.

Stockhausen says that “Gruppen” is a synthesis of
orchestral, chamber and solo music. The musical impression
that you get from hearing “Gruppen” at home is of great
diversity, sudden events occurring from, or disappearing
into, other events, in a bewildering, mind-expanding tour de
force through a hall of mirrors, moving your mind along with
great beauty and brilliant intellect in a tonal labyrinth,
at times lifting you high above the complications, with a
sudden free view to the horizon, until you shoot down like a
meteorite into the multi-layered events that so well
demonstrate the many levels on which we live,
simultaneously. This is great art!"


 

offline Meho Krljic from Beograd (Yugoslavia) on 2002-07-31 09:01 [#00331570]
Points: 6617 Status: Addict



What a spammer I am.


 

offline jand from Braintree (United Kingdom) on 2002-07-31 09:27 [#00331581]
Points: 5975 Status: Moderator | Show recordbag



Thanks for that, Meho....v. interesting reading....


 

offline Ceri JC from Jefferson City (United States) on 2002-07-31 09:43 [#00331586]
Points: 23533 Status: Moderator | Followup to w M w: #00331451 | Show recordbag



Yep, that's why speeding stuff up makes it high pitched. The
"Acid" algorithm that allows speed altering w/o pitch change
"stretches" the wave to compensate for the pitch change
created by the change in speed.


 

offline Meho Krljic from Beograd (Yugoslavia) on 2002-07-31 09:50 [#00331595]
Points: 6617 Status: Addict | Followup to jand: #00331581



Always here for your convenience


 

offline Zephyr Twin from ΔΔΔ on 2002-07-31 13:39 [#00331769]
Points: 16982 Status: Regular | Show recordbag



you guys are fuckin smart at this music theory stuff, im so
impressed! :)


 

offline Meho Krljic from Beograd (Yugoslavia) on 2002-07-31 13:42 [#00331776]
Points: 6617 Status: Addict | Followup to Zephyr Twin: #00331769



No, it's just having the right URL's memorised in your
"favourites" folder.


 

offline outside_ninja from ninjaland (I touch no-one and on 2002-07-31 17:17 [#00332064]
Points: 462 Status: Addict | Followup to Quoth: #00331456



it still is the A note - orchestras are tuned from the lead
violin playing the A above middle C


 

offline sacharin from New York City, Boston, the Hag (Netherlands, The) on 2002-07-31 17:31 [#00332101]
Points: 113 Status: Lurker



Hmmm... I think the first post is funny. Quote:

"The only difference between, say, note A and note D is the
number of wavs that pass in a constant unit of time. So when
you hear a melody, the mental illusion you percieve as a
"melody" is the organized waves units passing at speeds
guided by rules of measurement. The waves in a note A are
the exact same waves used in note C, merely the speed
creates the appearance of a specific note. "

See, none of that made sense. You have no fucking clue what
you're talking about.
Organized waves units passing at speeds guided by rules of
measurement? What the fuck are "rules of measurement", and
how do they "guide" these "organized" waves? Dude, pick up a
book and read about this stuff. Don't make idiotic
observations and post them to confuse others. You are not
smart.


 

offline jand from Braintree (United Kingdom) on 2002-07-31 18:12 [#00332149]
Points: 5975 Status: Moderator | Followup to sacharin: #00332101 | Show recordbag



I think you are being a little harsh there, mate...

Sure, the terms used aren't exactly obvious but it's fairly
easy to work out what he means....and it's an interesting
concept....

And he's started off a very interesting thread...

so I don't wanna be mean but please chill, my friend...:)...


 

offline sacharin from New York City, Boston, the Hag (Netherlands, The) on 2002-07-31 18:14 [#00332151]
Points: 113 Status: Lurker



That's true. I was a little bit harsh. It's just that I
detected this incredibly arrogant, know-it-all tone in his
writing. If you're going to state something with that sort
of confidence, you better be able to "back it up, ho"!


 

offline Laserbeak from Netherlands, The on 2002-07-31 18:31 [#00332177]
Points: 2670 Status: Lurker | Followup to sacharin: #00332151



I think you missed his last sentence:
"I'm not positive about my facts or anything"


 

offline sacharin from New York City, Boston, the Hag (Netherlands, The) on 2002-07-31 18:35 [#00332182]
Points: 113 Status: Lurker



He ain't positive about his momma either. Hmnmm... that
didn't work.



 

offline deadwhitespoon from Vancouver (Canada) on 2002-07-31 18:41 [#00332194]
Points: 271 Status: Lurker



Anyone hear or read that tale with that tribe in Australia
(or was it Africa?) where once every ten years the strongest
warrior would heft this massive hammer and pound one
resounding note off of this ancient hollow tree?
The"tradition" was thousands of years old and basicly they
were creating this steady tone at the frequency of one
thump/decade. Cool, eh?
I don't remember if it was this analogy in some article or
an element of some other story I read or heard. In fact I've
probably embelished and distorded the specifics so much that
if you did hear or read the same thing, you wouldn't
recognize it...but you get the point.

Cool, eh?


 

offline Zeus from San Francisco (United States) on 2002-07-31 18:43 [#00332196]
Points: 14042 Status: Lurker



Now THAT'S analogue...


 

offline outside_ninja from ninjaland (I touch no-one and on 2002-07-31 18:44 [#00332198]
Points: 462 Status: Addict | Followup to deadwhitespoon: #00332194



Have they been using Accurist or Rolex?


 

offline deadwhitespoon from Vancouver (Canada) on 2002-07-31 18:56 [#00332206]
Points: 271 Status: Lurker



I recon they were using that hi-tech moon thingy...

and my analogy/true-story/fable brings up another point:

How can sound frequencies and extended tones be created by
pulses or bursts of other different frequencies?

Would a "tone" of rapid repeated "digital" notes be just
that: a rapid stream of tones of a higher frequency? Or are
we approaching the subject of over-tones? You can't create a
true frequency of sound with pulses, as the pulses
themselves are wave frequencies. The ear may accept the
information as a tone, but the fact remains that we're too
limited in our physical ability to perceive the true nature
of the sound.

This unfortunate nature (and our tendancy to believe what we
see/hear/are-told) is probably the source of countless of
the world's problems.

...yeah, they must've use that moon thingy. It's pretty
regular in it's orbit thing.


 

offline outside_ninja from ninjaland (I touch no-one and on 2002-07-31 19:14 [#00332235]
Points: 462 Status: Addict | Followup to deadwhitespoon: #00332206



yeah I know - i was just joking :)


 

offline deadwhitespoon from Vancouver (Canada) on 2002-07-31 19:32 [#00332267]
Points: 271 Status: Lurker



Actually, they didn't use anything...it was just a story...I
don't think a beat upon tree would stand for a thousand
years and still give out a consistant tone. The whole world
is flawed!!!


 

offline w M w from London (United Kingdom) on 2002-07-31 22:34 [#00332575]
Points: 21427 Status: Regular



I'm always appreciative of logotherapy and I will admit the
very big possibility that I am retarded and don't know what
I'm talking about if you admit the very small possibility
that you're retarded and don't know what the hell I'm
talking about. "organized waves units passing at speeds
guided by rules of measurement" was my organization of word
units you attacked most. The only real flaw I see (still
accepting the possibility that I'm retarded) is the
incorrect pluralization of the word "waves", naturally a
flaw you failed to recognize as important given the very
small possibility that you are retarded.

((What the fuck are "rules of measurement", and how do they
"guide" these "organized" waves?))

organize: to arrange or place according to a system
(system: a group of things working together or connected to
form a whole)
wave: to move up and down or back and forth
unit: a single part of a whole
rule: a usual way of behaving
measurement: size, amount or extent
guide: to manage or control

What do you think is incorrect about the term "rule of
measurement"?

waves are certainly organized according to that dictionary
definition, but your quotation marks imply a differing
opinion about them.

Actually, now that I'm thinking of the sound waves as actual
molecular vibrations, my (pseudo) theory makes more
sense.... What CAN molecules waving up and down DO, other
than increase in the number of times per duration that they
wiggle? Maybe the brain evolved to interpret differing
speeds of moleule wiggles as the phenomenon of pitch- sort
of a massive data calculation the brain is able to interpret
as something more colorful and imaginative for convenience.


 

offline spoonz from Edmonton, AB (Canada) on 2002-07-31 22:38 [#00332581]
Points: 3219 Status: Regular



this is a mad long post I don't think I'll ever read.

sorry


 

offline w M w from London (United Kingdom) on 2002-07-31 22:47 [#00332591]
Points: 21427 Status: Regular



That's ok, it was just a flatulous defence of my undefeated
status as king of arrogance and superior intellect. Not to
mention sexiness.


 

offline Ophecks from Nova Scotia (Canada) on 2002-07-31 23:07 [#00332608]
Points: 19190 Status: Moderator | Followup to w M w: #00332591 | Show recordbag



Bah, I don't have time to think of these things in terms of
science, I just group them in GOOD and CRAP categories, with
no questions asked about why one is good and one is crap. My
mind has more interesting things to attend to, such as how
I'm going to dupe my cat into attacking my foot, which is
lying beneath a blanket. When she strikes... WHAKCO, I'll
grab her, the cute little thing.


 

offline flea from depths of your mind (New Zealand) on 2002-07-31 23:12 [#00332612]
Points: 9083 Status: Regular



does anybody know if the pinch harmonics and feedback
whistles etc that were being used by some of the
experimental guitarists a lot have actually been scaled? as
if have they ever managed to determine what notes if any
those could be?


 

offline flea from depths of your mind (New Zealand) on 2002-07-31 23:15 [#00332615]
Points: 9083 Status: Regular | Followup to w M w: #00332575



it's an excellent topic wMw..and very insightful
we just have a few newbies talking out of incompatible
orifices...bear with em..


 

offline sacharin from New York City, Boston, the Hag (Netherlands, The) on 2002-07-31 23:35 [#00332637]
Points: 113 Status: Lurker



Harmonics are octaves. Atleast the ones you refer to.

Well, wMw, you've done gone done it again. I don't feel like
going into this anymore... you've got your opinion, I've got
mine. Too bad mine happens to coincide with the scientific
facts, and yours is way out there. Nevertheless (hehehe),
I'm out... peace!


 

offline wayout from the street of crocodiles on 2002-08-01 01:19 [#00332677]
Points: 2849 Status: Lurker | Followup to w M w: #00332575



the pulses of vibrating molecules make your eardrums
vibrate...which then move a series of tiny bones connected
to nerves which are connected to the part of your brain
which measures the frequency of the pulses...this is
translated to what we call sound..

so when you think of it... the whole concept of sound is
based on our senses... without our brains...'sound' is just
vibrating air molecules...

so.. if a tree falls in the forest, and theres no one there
to hear it...it doesnt make a sound...it creates waves of
vibrating air molecules ..it only becomes a sound if an
animal with the 'equipment' needed to interpret these
vibrations is within range to pick them up...


 

offline outside_ninja from ninjaland (I touch no-one and on 2002-08-01 01:37 [#00332680]
Points: 462 Status: Addict | Followup to sacharin: #00332637



There's no such thing as Scientific Fact


 


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