Mar 15th, 2010
by admin.
773 views
David Cope is an “…American author, composer, scientist, and professor emeritus of music at the University of California, Santa Cruz. His primary area of research involves artificial intelligence and music”.2 I recently stumbled across an interesting article about the computer generated music by Cope which includes some interesting quotes by Douglas Hofstadter,3 a very well known cognitive scientist at Indiana University (who won the a Pulitzer prize for his remarkable book Gödel, Esher, Bach).1
That Cope has been able to create very moving music via his program Emily Howell does not surprise me one bit. I don’t want to write a whole essay on the subject here, but I think for younger people who have been engaged with computer technology for most of their lives, computers aren’t that surprising — many, myself included, view them simply as tools – that is, single use extensions of human creativity, ingenuity, and spirit. That a program can capture & then create music that is emotionally stirring is really just an expression of the fact that Cope’s program Emily Howell is an extension of his own creativity.
Anyway, a lot to think about. YouTube user macropon has been kind enough to produce a YouTube video of one of the pieces of music created by Cope via his Emily Howell program — give it a listen and you may understand what all the fuss is about. Enjoy!
You can find out more by visiting David Cope’s website, the article that appeared in the Miller-McCune magazine by Ryan Blitstein on David Cope’s work, or the Wikipedia page on David Cope.
QUESTION: Are you surprised by the beauty (or not) of the musical piece shared above that Cope created using his program Emily Howell, why or why not? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.
References & Notes
- Triumph of the Cyborg Composer: David Cope’s software creates beautiful, original music. Why are people so angry about that? by Ryan Blitstein http://www.miller-mccune.com/culture-society/triumph-of-the-cyborg-composer-8507/ Accessed March 15, 2010.
- David Cope http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cope Accessed March 15, 2010.
- Douglas Hofstadter’s writings are fascinating, whether you agree with all his ideas or not. You can purchase some of his books on Amazon.com
. Here is a link to the faculty page for Douglas Hofstadter on the Cognitive Science Program website at Indiana University.
Possibly Related Posts:
Posted in: Uncategorized, composer, computer generated, electronic, synthesis, video.
Tagged: artificial intelligence · composer · computer · computer generated · David Cope · Douglas Hofstadter · music · YouTube
Mar 12th, 2010
by admin.
277 views
Bop is a “… green tea-drinking, banana-eating vegan with a dog named Booyaka….” Hailing from “Saint-Petersburg in Russia, Bop is a new breed of producer intent on re-writing the rulebook with an intoxicating ice-cold sound; embracing influences from deep techno and minimalist dubstep through to IDM and ambient drum & bass.”1
I recently purchased Bop’s album Clear Your Mind [Med School Music (MEDIC15 / MEDIC15CD)]. It’s brilliant and worth every penny I paid. How can one not like an album with track titles like “Tears Of A Lonely Metaphysician” and “Song About My Dog”?
I hosted a raw vegan dinner party the other night and and I played Clear Your Mind as the background music. It went over well. Below is a YouTube video of the track ” Song About My Dog”. Enjoy!
To find out more about Bop and his musical works, please visit the official Bop website. Here’s the link to the page about the now famous Booyaka.
QUESTION: What’s your favorite track from the albumClear Your Mind by Bop and why? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.
References and Notes
- About Bop http://www.iambop.com/about/ Accessed March 12, 2010.
Possibly Related Posts:
Posted in: Drum&Bass, artist, electronic, favorites, minimal, video.
Tagged: ambient · Bop · drum and bass · IDM · Med School · minimal · music · producer · Russian · techno · YouTube
Mar 7th, 2010
by admin.
283 views
This past Friday I was in “a mood”. Tim Schuldt’s hard guitar psytrance fitted my mood. I first heard Schuldt’s music on a mix tape many years ago. I recently discovered on YouTube that the track was Absurd from his Single-Collection (2000). YouTube user DennisRoshal says it well — the track is “epic”. I’ve created a YouTube playlist featuring some of Tim Schuldt’s psytrance work for you to enjoy, starting with Absurd:
You can find out more by visiting Tim Schuldt’s website (which currently points to his MySpace page). To find out more about the other tracks found on the YouTube playlist above, check out Tim Schultd’s discography at Discogs.
Possibly Related Posts:
Posted in: artist, guitar, psytrance, video.
Tagged: electronic · guitar trance · industrial · music · playlist · psytrance · Tim Schuldt · YouTube
Feb 22nd, 2010
by admin.
282 views
While on YouTube last week, I came across a really cool music listening emoticon that was so good, I felt obligated to share. Here it is:
d(-_-)b
The emoticon was used by Razielts1 as a comment to the Astrix – Kali Gms Rmx Revolution Reloaded upload (psytrance):
Of course, I think you can understand why I like it so much — just look a the Knobb Music blog logo. (This logo is also my personal logo, custom designed for me by Steven J. Barnes, founding partner of Two Brained.
QUESTION: What is your favorite music listening emoticon? Please share your emoticon creations in the comments section of this post.
Notes
- “An emoticon is a textual expression representing the face of a writer’s mood or facial expression.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emoticon Accessed Feb 22, 2010.
Possibly Related Posts:
Posted in: Uncategorized, favorites, psytrance, video.
Tagged: Astrix · emoticon · Knobb · logo · music · psytrance · Steven J. Barnes · YouTube
Feb 11th, 2010
by admin.
421 views
If you are someone who can appreciate finely crafted acoustic guitars and you find yourself in Vancouver, BC, Canada this February (2010), you may want to consider checking out The Canadian Guitar Showcase at Tom Lee Music (929 Grandville Street):
“The Canadian Acoustic Guitar Showcase includes a historical display highlighting the beginnings of Larrivee, Morgan and Seagull, including many old photos, written histories and early Canadian-made guitars. Also included are interesting artifacts such as inlay examples, guitar parts and woods.”1
To find out more about the event, please visit the Canadian Acoustic Guitar Showcase page on the Tom Lee Music website.
Here are links to sites of the guitar manufactures highlighted in the showcase:
It’s worth noting that there are many other fine Canadian acoustic guitar manufacturers. For example, my steel-string acoustic guitar I call Blue was built by Simon & Patrick Luthier. Blue was a fine guitar in it’s time.
References
- Canadian Acoustic Guitar Showcase http://www.tomleemusic.ca/main/events.cfm?eid=692# Accessed February 11, 2010.
Possibly Related Posts:
Posted in: Uncategorized, event, guitar.
Tagged: acoustic · BC · Canada · event · guitar · history · Larrivee Guitars · Morgan Guitars · music · Seagall Guitars · showcase · Simon and Patrick Guitars · Tom Lee Music · Vancouver
