Wed, 23 Jan 2008
A Strange Beast: The 18th Century Baryton
Quick, what instrument did Franz Joseph Haydn write over 100
compositions for which is no longer played (or at least, rarely
played)? Answer: A strange hybrid instrument called a Baryton. So
why did he write for it? His boss, Prince Esterhazy happened
to have one and seems to have really enjoyed it. Here
is a fascinating video of a guy who has taken the time
to learn how to play one.
Wed, 02 Jan 2008
Chanting the Psalms
We just finished a quarter in the adult Sunday School class at church which was
about the use of the Psalms in worship. A couple of points made in class were
that the Psalms were for singing. They are the inspired hymnal of the church.
There are actually musical indications which are part of the inspired text.
But of course, we have no idea of what this music sounded like or how the text of the Psalms was set to music. The obvious conclusion from this is that God simply did not regard the form or style of music as important. But that they are meant for music is perhaps much more important than most churches think today. So the next question is how do we go about setting the text of the Psalm to music today?
Part of this question involves the importance of being faithful to the text. Because when you try to put the Psalms to a metered style of music (with a strict time signature), you immediately have trouble. So many composers alter the text and paraphrase it. Or just use fragments of a Psalm. Now this can be good and useful but there is still the need to set complete Psalms in exact wording to music.
One way to do this is to use chant. This may not sound very appealing to many of my church going friends but don't dismiss it without good consideration.
One of the resources in our class was a book published by Concordia Publishing here in St. Louis, Reading the Psalms with Luther. This book primarily provides some good insights into the meaning and purpose of each Psalm. But it also has these 8 chant (listed below) tones and each Psalm is pointed in a manner that allows you to chant each Psalm using one of the tones. These tones are fairly simple. And since there are no suggestions as to which tone will go with any particular Psalm, I decided to try and help with selecting a tone by giving a brief analysis. Thanks also to my interest in the Lilypond music typesetting program, I am able to share my thoughts and the tones with everyone. I have highlighted words and phrases so you can quickly determine the character of each tone. So by printing this out and going through the Luther's book, you can hopefully more easily determine which tone might work for a particular Psalm. Without the book it's a little more tricky as it adds the points where you change from the sustained tones. I suppose you could try to do this yourself but for the novice, this might be difficult.
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Converting Old LPs to Digital Form
What a great gift this was. The Numark TTUSB is not just a turntable. It actually
includes a USB connection which will output the audio signal from the
stylus to a computer. The included software, Audacity, is actually available freely at
the project web site. It is Free Software licensed under the GPL.
This software is most excellent and actually includes a pop and click filter
(as well as many other sound modifying things) so you can reduce some
of the inherent noise of those old LPs after you record them. Once
recorded, you can then convert them to MP3, Ogg, or the lossless formats
like WMA. I have already digitized a couple of my old records but I have
many more that I would like to convert. Most of these records I have not
listened to for years and it is really refreshing to hear them once again.
Update
Here's a few more detailed notes on how TTUSB works with the Audacity software. I have digitized a couple of records now and it has been an easy process. As far as getting a good level, this was not a factor as Audacity seems to get a decent recording level automatically. The sample is initially stored in Audacity's native format. From here you can now begin touching up the audio sample. Audacity will display the whole sample in a graphic format that you can visually inspect. Almost all pop's and scratches are visible and look obviously different from the audio of the actual performance. You can use the selection and zoom tools to inspect these. There are two plugins that I have been using so far to touch up the recordings. The pop filter has threshold and width settings and fiddling with these has given some good results.Sometimes, there are other types of vinyl artifacts that the pop filter will not get. There is a repair plugin that works quite well on these. You have to use the zoom tool and isolate the artifact very precisely. The repair plugin seems to use some kind of interpolation to smooth out the wave form in between the end points. So far, this tool works excellently and I have been able to eliminate some hiss and scratch type things from the recordings.
As far as selecting tracks, I am doing this visually. I check the time of a track and scroll through the display to find it. Then select the whole track. I don't see any kind of automated way to do this but I actually haven't looked very closely to see if there is. Perhaps because I am picky enough that I want to do it all precisely with my own eyes and ears. There is an export selection item on the file menu that allows you to save to whatever format you desire. I have been saving to WMA which I can then convert to Ogg or MP3 at a later time.
Many of the recordings I have are not re-released on CD so I don't think there is any information available from CDDB. But I haven't really looked into this. I don't see anything within Audacity in this regard.
As you can imagine, there can be a significant amount of time involved with selecting and refining all the tracks from an LP. This can depend on several factors. How picky you want to be with eliminating noise, pops, and hiss as well as what kind of shape the recordings are on are the most obvious factors.
Mon, 24 Dec 2007
Baroque Trio
And here's a little more. These guys go the whole nine yards and get into
period costumes and setting. Notice all the instruments appear to be period
style and played authentically. A lute plays the continuo part.
Alto recorders sound so beautiful don't they?
Real Vivaldi
Now here's some real Baroque music. This is a well known Lute concerto which is
frequently played on guitar. But this is really an alive style of playing
and the soloist adds some really tasteful stuff.
Hope everyone has a great Christmas!
Wed, 19 Dec 2007
Grisha Goryachev, Flamenco Guitarist
Holy $%!+, this kid just blows. Another New Englander, check out
his web
site for more background. Just notice the precision and velocity he
is getting on the picato scales. Amazing to say the least. He's playing
a Connor guitar.
You can see the sound port on the top. This is a concept that a lot of
guitar makers are utilizing these days. This recording seems to have a
loud but nice sound to it so perhaps it works.
Tue, 11 Dec 2007
Bach and Calvinists, Pietists
I am getting more interested in Baroque music these days and Bach of
course being the most prominent of this period. When I was in music school
I took a couple of music history courses but these are more like brief
overviews of periods, even ones focused on the Baroque, and you will
not get into that great of detail on the specifics of any of these composers.
And it's been many years since I studied this stuff anyway so I am kind
of experiencing a revival of interest. And my church's interest in Liturgy
and a high view of music as a result is also a stimulus.
This nice bio has some interesting references to Bach's encounters with Calvinists and Pietists in Germany. It mentions how both were disinterested in liturgy and the Lutheran approach to music. It is interesting how social (and other forces) come together at just the right time and place to help produce the musical geniuses of particular times. Just think if Bach were not born a Lutheran, what would his music be like (if he even became a musician)?
Fri, 30 Nov 2007
'Twas a Month Before Christmas and...
Peter Mayer came to town for the Stars and Promises 2007 concert
at St. Joseph's Church in Manchester. A great show as usual and I
got to touch base with Peter right afterwords and we had just a small
conversation which was nice. He told me he had seen my Youtube video
but hadn't had any time to respond to my email which was good to hear.
The concert of course was excellent despite a slightly less than optimum
sound mix. These guys are pros and they can deal with
any situation and still make the most of it. They played
a couple of long sets and two encores to boot.
A couple of new songs were added which, I think, are from the new Christmas CD which was released this year. All tunes are stretched, extended, jazzed up, and jammed out, compared to the recordings. In short, these guys just let loose and kick out the music when they play live and you just will not get a flavor of it from the recordings (although the Stars and Promises Alive recording does get you in the ball park). I think my favorite song of the night was the last one before the encores. It is a delta blues version of Go Tell it on the Mountain and each year I think they extend it and slow down the tempo more than the past. Peter's slide guitar soloing on this is just something that is hard to put into words. Maybe other worldly might do. It's just wild and this tune in itself is worth the price of admission.
He also seems to add something new to the slew of guitars that he uses every year. This time it was a single pickup, hollow body, f hole style jazz guitar which was used for the solo on one of the tunes. It worked well although the sound of this guitar through the system could have been dialed in a bit better I think. And speaking of the sound, the main issue was that Maggie Estes violin was just too soft and I could barely hear her playing on the first couple of songs. But it did improve as the sound engineer worked on it. Maggie is the 17 year old violin (and occasional mandolin) player who joined the group last year. She has a very smooth and sweet, understated style of soloing which is enjoyable to hear and mixes will with the songs. In short, she shows maturity in her musicianship which is well beyond her years.
Chris Walters on keyboard is a most excellent addition to the group this year. At times I had to look twice to make sure it wasn't Bruce Hornsby playing on some of the tunes. His soloing is just awesome and he adds quite a bit to every single song that he plays on. Chris was a guest to the St. Louis concert two years ago. This year he is in for the full tour. You guys are in for a treat in other cities if you go to see the show.
The sound of the night that I liked the most and which sounded the least electronic to me was the flute work of Mark Holland. Check out Mark's group web site, www.Autumnschild.com and listen to some of the videos. They also have a Christmas CD out that sounds most excellent. Mark comes with about a dozen different Native American flutes. He gets a phenomenal range of sounds out of these. Everything from a kind of Japanese Shakuhachi sound to interesting bird like imitations as well as just beautiful melodies played in a variety of ranges.
All the others in the group deserve mention of course. Mark Torlina's base work and Scott Bryan's percussion provides a solid and soulful foundation to the music. So next year, some of you guys who visit this blog need to plan on coming with us. I hope I have whetted your appetite!
Tue, 20 Nov 2007
Learning about Cowboys
We are enjoying a vacation in Branson this week. Last night we
saw John
Fullerton. An incredible guy who became fascinated with
the great cowboy singers of the mid 20th century. Roy Rogers
and Gene Autry of course are the most famous of these that perhaps
some of you have heard of. Fullerton devoted himself as a teenager to learning
and performing this music. He has documented and learned the harmony's
and singing style of these performers. Last night he started out
his presentation with a Roy Rogers movie from the 30's. He also had
lots of memorabilia that he has collected over the years.
This music has a much different sound than we are used to these days. It is gentle and the way the men sang in harmony is quite nice. Fullerton also had lots of stories to tell as well as his performances. Some of the songs he sang by playing a recording with himself singing the harmonies in the background. This worked fairly well. One song that I know I have heard before (and probably many people have) was Ghost Riders in the Sky. Fullerton told the story of how this song came to be written. It was inspired by the guy being out in a thunderstorm and being scared by an old Indian who told him to watch out for the ghost riders.
I remember watching Roy Rogers episodes on TV when I was very young. I suppose these were re-runs as I don't remember when they were made. But for a while as I grew I up, I went through a very dedicated cowboy phase (which was followed by a much longer army phase). I know I had some cap guns but I don't remember if they were specifically Roy Rogers branded. Fullerton mentioned that these are worth quite a bit of money these days.
Fri, 16 Nov 2007
Peter Gabriel era Genesis
The first incarnation of the group Genesis was one of my favorite groups back
in the mid 70's. I was fortunate to see this group at least 2 times that I
can remember (might have been 3). The last time was the monumental, "Lamb
Lies Down on Broadway" tour at the American Theater.
This particular piece is off of the, "Selling England by the Pound" LP. I always enjoyed the way these guys play. Not a lot of flashy display but taken together they are a tour de force of progressive rock. Steve Hackett, the guitarist, plays so nice. In the middle of this video the camera focuses on him and you can see some of the techniques that he pioneered. A form of two handed tapping which he uses here became a mainstay of metal guitarists in the 80s. The smooth and sweet approach of Hackett almost makes me want to play electric guitar again.
There are so many changes in this piece. Tempo, rhythm, pace, modulations, it's really very musical. As to the lyrics, I never really understood much of what Gabriel was trying to say. But that is par for the course during this time of progressive rock. For me it just added to the mystery. This song seems to be kind of satirical. Wikipedia has a brief entry on the song and a little googling revealed this more detailed analysis.
Hackett and Gabriel were invited to tour with the group this past year but apparently their schedules wouldn't allow it. I hope they will consider it again in the near future. Seeing this original form of the group would be a real treat.
Mon, 10 Sep 2007
Sky FM Internet Radio
I discovered this last week.
There are several channels you can listen to. The nice thing is that the web
site keeps a running list
of the artists so if you hear something you really like, you can
check who it is almost immediately. A great way to expose yourself
to new music. I've specifically been listening to the
Classical
Guitar station. But this is a slight misnomer. I think it would
be more aptly titled, "Nylon String Guitar Styles". They
do play mainstream classical guitar stuff such as Julian Bream
and Eliot Fisk but they also play a fair amount of nuevo flamenco
or more new age sounding stuff (a fair amount of
Ottmar Liebert).
I linked Armik last week who
is an Iranian guitarist who came to the US and took up jazz and
then got into the nuevo flamenco kind of thing. I like some
of his stuff that I have heard so far (although he plays with
a pick on a lot of his music and I don't think that sounds
quite as good).
Thu, 06 Sep 2007
Heavy Metal
How's this for a guitar? More info...
Tue, 04 Sep 2007
Wedding Music
My youngest niece got married this weekend and she had asked me
to play guitar for it. I just played while people were
coming into the place and getting seated. It was out doors
at a house with a fairly large back yard. We thought I would only
play for about 15 or 20 minutes which was fine with me as I
didn't really have a lot of music to play. I used the event as
a motive to brush up some old pieces and try to re-commit them to
memory. Well, I ended up playing a little more than 30 minutes
I think. I did take some music along and I played a few things that
I hadn't looked at for years. These were a little rough but I
also just repeated the songs I did know several times.
There must have been about 120 people there. I was surprised that people were quiet and seemed to be listening. Well this was encouraging and I really feel that the music fit pretty well. I played mostly Baroque music with a few Renaissance tunes thrown it. These were mostly in the major keys. All in all it was a fun event. I think I will try to work up more wedding music and try to make myself available to do this more if I can.
Thu, 16 Aug 2007
Pachelbel's Loose Cannon by LAGQ
It's been a while since I heard something and had to keep going back to it
several times because I liked it so much. Just take a listen and see how many
different styles of music is contained in this 5 plus minutes of romping
on the classic Pachelbel Cannon. I hear rock, jazz, heavy metal, and check
out Scott Tennant's bluegrass banjo imitation right near the middle, it's wild.
Oh, and it ends with a beautiful flamenco variation.
I am really amazed at how many resources the Internet (and Youtube) gives to guitarists today. You can expose yourself to so much more variety than when I was a student back in the mid 70's. Even if we just limit the discussion to classical guitar. If I want to hear how a particular piece is played, I just search Youtube and I can pull up several recordings of the piece by both amateurs and pros. It's very helpful to see and hear how people are doing things. Will this translate into better performing guitarists in the future? Maybe so. There is certainly more opportunity to improve and understand the techniques involved but will it produce more heart and soul? This might be hard to say for sure.
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