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| Jul 05, 2009 - Is having a songwriter better than having the singer write their own songs? |
Response - Doesn't that depend on whether the singer is a good writer or not? Sure you have a more authentic voice when the songs are written by the performer him/herself, and that's better in principle. But, in the context of music or any other purely creative activity, not all personalities deserve that kind of expression. |
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| Jun 20, 2009 - Is sheet music an outdated model for music? |
Response - as long as there is music to be performed by musicians, it will be written down somehow. The musical staff system in its modern form does have some limitations with regard to modern instruments and performance practices, but the system is itself an outgrowth of previous systems that had the same problems, though they were created in response to the previous system having similar problems, etc. etc. etc. So the whole concept is in more or less constant evolution with a few slow periods here and there :) |
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| Jun 11, 2009 - Should children allowed to have music careers? |
Response - only if they're talented. |
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| Jun 06, 2009 - Who's your favorite one-hit wonder? |
Response - myself |
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| May 28, 2009 - What do you think of the swine flu as portrayed by the media? Is the threat legit or is it overhyped? |
Response - I got SOME kind of flu a few days after swine flu appeared in my state. I spent two days in bed and woke up healthy. But I only mention this because when I told my doctor, he freaked out and gave me a ton of drugs. I still have them. :) --- but anyway, it's complete BS. Some people will die, which is tragic, but not exactly newsworthy either. :P It's fun to think that every time "the media" overstates a threat, we inch a little closer to the day that a *real* threat appears and then all the newspapers will have to carry headlines like "F*CK! RUN!!!" just to get the point across. |
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| May 21, 2009 - What do you think about using VitaminD to allow an artist to request a public review of a song of theirs? There would still only be one topic a day. |
Response - I like the idea of having such a daily spotlight, but I think it should be an additional feature and not an option for vitamin d topics. |
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| May 20, 2009 - What are some music related vitamind topics you'd like to see? |
Response - Did we do the one about whether you've unconsciously ripped off another artist? |
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| May 19, 2009 - Should artists give their music away for free and only make money from concerts and merchandise? |
Response - I'm really starting to wonder about the directions these questions are taking. The artist "should" do whatever the hell he wants with his music, merch, and concerts. Personally, I've always given my music away for free and it's been something like 9 years since I was paid for a performance. But for me to even imply that this is how it should be done by everyone else in all cases is beyond ridiculous. I want to pass judgment on other musician's publication practices as little as I want theirs passed on my own. |
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| May 18, 2009 - What's the right price point for a single song to purchase? |
Response - Whatever the market will bear, obviously. |
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| May 17, 2009 - What's the best sports song to hear at a game? |
Response - Three Blind Mice :D Though it's banned in some places. |
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| May 15, 2009 - Do you prefer to buy music in a store or online? Why? |
Response - generally online. the only time I go to music stores is to buy things I can't get online (though don't get me wrong, music stores aren't dead because there IS a significant market for that). |
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| May 11, 2009 - Is radio dead? Why/why not? |
Response - no, because I still listen to it. :) |
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| May 10, 2009 - Name a song you discovered because it was the music to a TV commercial? |
Response - None, although there are products I've stopped using just because they used a particular song in their commercials :P |
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| May 08, 2009 - When is the right time to teach kids about music? What is the best way to teach them? |
Response - The right time is ALL the time. The "best" probably involves focusing on rhythmic patterns and developing voice control. And improvising on anhematonic scales. :) |
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| May 03, 2009 - Should artists still make albums or only focus on singles? |
Response - There's a market for both, because there are large numbers of people who would prefer to listen to either a single or an album, so it largely depends on who the artist is targeting.
But when I speak of an "album," I'm really referring to - if not a "concept" album - at least a coherent effort that has some sort of unity and quality unto itself. What we DON'T need more of are "albums" that are really just three or four decent songs surrounded by 50-60 minutes of worthless crap. No one really WANTS to listen to that.
http://www.cracked.com/article_17075_every-album-ever.html |
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| May 02, 2009 - What is your favorite type of music to listen to while working? |
Response - classical |
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| Apr 30, 2009 - Do you listen to classical music, and if yes, which period/composers? |
Response - Depending on your definition of "classical" (noticing that question about period)
Bach - B-Minor Mass, Brand. Concertos
Tchaikovsky - almost anything
Mozart - final symphonies
Rimsky-Korsakov - anything except his operas
Shostakovich - all the less-weird stuff
...and I'm partial to any orchestral recording led by Fritz Reiner, regardless of composer. |
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| Mar 23, 2009 - What melody would a modern day pied piper play to get rats to follow him? |
Response - Syd Barrett - "Rats" |
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| Mar 20, 2009 - If you could pick one album that would define hell (to listen to over and over again), which would it be and why? |
Response - Zao - The Funeral of God |
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| Mar 19, 2009 - If you could pick one album to listen to buried with, which would it be and why? tomorrow's question will be about hell, so keep this one about heavenly music! |
Response - I don't really understand the question, but I think I'd prefer to be "buried with" Bach's mass in B minor.
And I want Saturn from Holst's "The Planets" played at my funeral, but that's mostly for the sake of those attending. It won't make much difference to me because I'll be DEAD. |
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| Mar 07, 2009 - Discuss a song you made or listened to recently? title/author/link - what made you listen/compose it. Any inspiration/ideas from it? |
Response - Arvo Part - Spiegel im Spiegel
It made me cry and start praying. |
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| Mar 06, 2009 - Have you ever dreamt a piece of music and tried to produce it after waking - is it uploaded for us to hear? |
Response - Vitamin D used to be the only reason for returning to this site... |
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| Mar 03, 2009 - What music related app would you like to see in the iPhone App Store? |
Response - something that turns a $50 samsung into an iPhone. that would rock. |
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| Feb 28, 2009 - What is the best Beatles song, like 'em or not? |
Response - "Sanded Faceless" |
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| Feb 27, 2009 - What is the best synth for home production on a budget? |
Response - raw steak |
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| Feb 25, 2009 - Have you ever dreamt a piece of music and tried to produce it after waking - is it uploaded for us to hear? |
Response - Same answer as last time |
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| Feb 24, 2009 - What is the best musical you have seen recently? (title, when, where) (can be a movie or live) |
Response - The Backyardigans - Ranch Hands from Outer Space |
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| Feb 23, 2009 - How much of a movie is defined by music? |
Response - Generally speaking, it isn't. Actually, given the nature of our experience of movies, I think there's an influence in the other direction. Either that or I'm the only person out there who can't hear "Little Green Bag," "Stuck In The Middle With You," "Let's Stay Together," "Strawberry Letter 23," etc. without thinking of a Quentin Tarantino movie.
To be more specific, most of the way a movie is "defined" by music is really just the way that the soundtrack conforms to the vision that is already in place, so in that sense the music defines nothing. |
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| Feb 22, 2009 - What makes good game music? |
Response - whatever I said the last time this question was posted. |
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| Feb 20, 2009 - What's the best music to soothe a crying baby? (mysterium needs the advice!) |
Response - I used to sing old English hymns to my kid. It kept him asleep until I stopped. |
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| Feb 19, 2009 - Is opera a dead art form? |
Response - Absolutely not. If you look closely enough, you'll see that it's merely evolved to something almost completely different from what it used to be, which isn't quite the same as dying. The only problem is that we don't call it "opera" anymore, so anyone who hears that word will think of something vaguely situated between Mozart and Wagner and not the more modern kind. |
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| Feb 18, 2009 - What's the best music for pregnant women to listen to? |
Response - Anything baroque. :) |
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| Feb 17, 2009 - What is the ideal rating system for music? (From a listener's point of view, yesterday was musician's) |
Response - What I neglected to mention in my last answer was that all rating systems are retarded. |
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| Feb 16, 2009 - What is the ideal rating system for music? (From a musician's point of view, tomorrow is from a listener's) |
Response - I find it impossible to answer those questions one at a time, sorry. ;) Musicians and listeners have very different duties when evaluating a piece of music. The listener decides WHETHER a piece of music is effective, and then it falls to the musician to more clearly determine WHY it is (or isn't) effective.
Listener: This song is too loud and boring.
Musician: The entire waveform is clipped because all the faders are turned all the way up, and also you're an idiot. |
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| Feb 15, 2009 - What's the best valentine gift you gave or received? (keep it clean!) |
Response - I gave pajamas and got... pajamas.
Marriage is fun. |
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| Feb 14, 2009 - What's the most romantic music you will play tonight? |
Response - If I keep listening to Wagner at the rate I started last night, then I'll reach the twincest scene in Die Walküre. Is that romantic?
Braut und Schwester
bist du dem Bruder –
so blühe denn Wälsungen-Blut! |
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| Feb 13, 2009 - What song is "your" song with your significant other? And what's the story behind it? |
Response - "Any Dream Will Do" from Joseph and the Amazing etc. etc. We went to see the show for our first date, couldn't stop humming it together as we drove home, and then I sang it for her a few weeks later at an open mic (and half of the place joined in for the harmony, which was pretty awesome). |
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| Feb 12, 2009 - What is your favorite food recipe to prepare? |
Response - Real answer: Ramen noodles because they take no effort.
Intended answer: Peanut-Butter Chicken, although merely preparing it is so stressful that it takes an hour off my life. |
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| Feb 11, 2009 - Is music merely mathematics? |
Response - No, it's more like architecture ("music is melted buildings") in which mathematical calculations and personal expression combine to form something tangible.
I swear I said that a few days ago... |
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| Feb 10, 2009 - You are a judge and you may condemn somebody to jail for one year. Who would it be and why? |
Response - A criminal.
For committing a crime.
That's what judges are supposed to do, isn't it? |
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| Feb 09, 2009 - As President of the US, what would be the first thing you do? |
Response - A few seconds after being inaugurated, the "first" thing I'd do is give Obama the finger. |
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| Feb 08, 2009 - How good would a movie be without music? |
Response - I can think of a few movies with awful music that would be significantly better without it... |
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| Feb 06, 2009 - How do you feel about the "Loudness War"?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war |
Response - It all depends on the listener. It used to be that making all songs maximally loud was an ideal technique for all applications. The only changes are 1) Listeners have become a *little* more discriminating in how this affects the quality of the song, 2) There are a *few* situations in which loudness is not as important an objective. The war isn't over but it's definitely being fought on a more interesting and realistic field than 15 years ago. |
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| Feb 04, 2009 - What would be (or was) your first dance song at your wedding? |
Response - "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman" by Bryan Adams. Not my idea. |
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| Feb 03, 2009 - Who is the most talented diva alive today? Why? |
Response - What the heck is a "diva" nowadays? Either way I'm going to go out on a limb and say it will always be Björk. Until she dies. |
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| Feb 02, 2009 - Portable music players: good or bad? What about the iPod/iTunes effect on music? Explain. |
Response - I use one almost constantly so I would say "good." :) The most noticeable effect of music moving to a purely digital medium is less emphasis on fancy overpriced packaging and reliance on the album format to attach lots of worthless filler to a handful of successful songs. All of this is a good thing, maybe not for the recording industry but certainly for talented musicians and discriminating listeners. :) |
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| Feb 01, 2009 - It has been said that to be a great musician, you have to have had your heart broken at least once. Do you agree? What's your story? |
Response - I disagree. There's been plenty of great music made by people without a care in the world. (And plenty of truly awful music made by people with broken hearts). |
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| Jan 31, 2009 - Does your mood influence what you compose? |
Response - No, but it does influence *whether* I compose. |
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| Jan 30, 2009 - Is music inherently human, or are animals capable of music as well? Do we anthropomorphise animals in terms of 'music'? |
Response - Animals are capable of "music" in terms of creating an ordered series of sounds, but their music doesn't convey much more (if it conveys more at all) than the "purely mathematical" music that some speculated about yesterday. |
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| Jan 29, 2009 - Is music merely mathematics? |
Response - No, it's more like architecture ("music is melted buildings") in which mathematical calculations and personal expression combine to form something tangible. |
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| Jan 28, 2009 - Is there such a thing as bad music? Explain. |
Response - There are two aspects of music: A) what the musician intends to convey and B) what the listener intends to hear.
REALLY good music actually changes B in the process of expressing A (this is rare, but possible).
Moderately good music fulfills A and B equally (mixing artist intent with listener expectations).
Average music fails noticeably at either A or B but still fulfills the other (a popular song without any "heart" or an artistic song that is not good listening).
Bad music fails both. |
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| Jan 27, 2009 - Name a song that at the right moment has given you chills or goosebumps, what were the circumstances? |
Response - The only song that has ever profoundly affected me due to *specific circumstances* has been Depeche Mode's "Halo," which I heard for the first time while going through an episode of major depression. I didn't have any faith or knowledge of God at that point or even any friends on earth worth trusting, but the line "IT WILL BE WORTH IT" repeated over and over again was what I desperately needed to hear at that point. One of these days I want to do a straightforward cover of it just to pay tribute to how much that song (and its author) have influenced my life.
Otherwise, most songs that elicit a physical reaction only do so because they're just plain awesome songs.
Leonard Cohen - Famous Blue Raincoat, "Well I see Jane's awake." No you don't, you cold bastard, it's four in the morning. This has to be one of the most chillingly vindictive lyrics ever written.
Falconer - Hear Me Pray, two disgraced and imprisoned princes realized they've been left for dead. And it's a true story. Very simple music and lyrics but incredible execution.
Buckethead - Whitewash, If the loud section in this doesn't wake you out of a coma, you must be dead!
Johnny Cash - Run On, okay so maybe this did relate to a circumstance in my life because I'd just found out about something really awful that someone I'd known had done, and Johnny Cash singing about how the truth will catch up to everyone lent it a great deal of profundity.
Mat Kearney - Bullet, What's A Boy to Do, Undeniable, Nothing Left to Lose, All I Need... actually almost everything by Mat Kearney makes me shiver involuntarily. And it's not even the kind of music I prefer to listen to. It's a lot like love. |
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| Jan 26, 2009 - Have you ever dreamt a piece of music and tried to produce it after waking - is it uploaded for us to hear? |
Response - Surprisingly often in fact...
http://www.ctgmusic.com/song.php?id=13637
http://www.ctgmusic.com/song.php?id=9720
http://www.ctgmusic.com/song.php?id=4858
http://www.ctgmusic.com/song.php?id=7197
...those were just the ones I could remember off the top of my head. Many more have been lost and some I abandoned because I felt that the dream was influenced by spiritual elements that were best kept silent. |
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| Jan 25, 2009 - Alone on a deserted tropical island, what instruments could you create and what would you name them? |
Response - Well...
On a desert island, I'd presumably have lots of time, so first I'd practice singing, clapping, foot-stomping and farting at the same time, thereby becoming accomplished in four-voice polyphony.
When that got boring, I'd find a few palm trees and hollow out a few percussive coconuts. A few fallen palm leaves could also be used for double-reeds.
I'd also hunt down a few seagulls and use their ribcages for various guiro- and washboard-like instruments, also stretching sinews across a modified pine-bark board for a viol with a bow made from human hair.
I'd spend a week rolling a very heavy rock to the highest cliff formation and wait another week for a walrus to walk under it so I could push the rock over and squash the creature, subsequently using its tusks for two large mallets and its belly as a muffled bass-drum.
Using leftover walrus-meat, I would go fishing. Leaping into the water as the first shark came to feed on the floating carrion, I would beat it to death with my walrus-tusks and harvest several hundred of its teeth to rattle in a hollow gourd.
Then I would painstakingly track down and capture two-dozen monkeys and teach them to play in my orchestra.
They would kill me as soon as I turned my back.
They would all be named Din. |
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| Jan 24, 2009 - Play by ear vs classic theory training, which are you? Your thoughts on both sides. |
Response - Anyone who has discussed music with me for more than five minutes already knows my answer. ;) Just pick one or the other:
1) No musical training at all
2) 4+ YEARS of intensive professional training
You can make good music with either of those (although "2" appears to be somewhat easier). What you should NOT do under any circumstances is what I did - make an abortive attempt at training, give up after two years, and then belatedly become interested in music again when it's too late to actually learn anything. It's the worst possible way to go about being a musician. you might as well make yourself deaf. |
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| Jan 23, 2009 - Define a perfect sample bank for inspiring you to write a new song? |
Response - There is none. All the songs I've written when inspired by mere SOUND have been terrible. I'm always much better off waiting for the sound to arise in my head and then trying to replicate it with whatever tools I have available. |
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| Jan 22, 2009 - What 2 genres would make an interesting hybrid? |
Response - trance and free jazz. |
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| Jan 21, 2009 - What artist(s) do you like but are ashamed to admit it? |
Response - Christina Aguilera. :P Actually she annoys me to no end but her early albums had fantastic production and I think I picked up a few tips here and there. |
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| Jan 20, 2009 - What makes good game music / What game has the best music? |
Response - Good game music is music that doesn't suck when you turn the game off. There are MANY more soundtracks like the above than you think. Answering the next one is highly subjective but my gut reaction is...
Gameboy:
Final Fantasy Legend 1 & 2
Batman
SNES:
Chrono Trigger
F-Zero
PS/PS2:
Final Fantasy Tactics
Chrono Cross
All Spyro Games for PS1
Gallop Racer 2006
I seem to recall Sonic the Hedgehog for Game Gear having some pretty awesome tunes as well. :) |
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| Jan 19, 2009 - What is the best synth for home production on a budget? |
Response - On a budget? What budget? Most musicians on the internet will just steal anything they can get their hands on and then bitch about high prices anyway.
But really the best route to make music that is both cheap and legal (if you want to go that route) is to download lots of freeware VST's and then invest $100-$300 in a good host (I prefer FL Studio but everyone's different). Most sequencers are versatile and come with enough onboard effects and processing to give practically anything a credible sound if you're patient enough to use it right. |
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| Jan 18, 2009 - What is the best Beatles song, like 'em or not? |
Response - Beatallica - Everybody's Got A Ticket To Ride Except For Me And My Lightning |
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| Jan 17, 2009 - Is music better today than in the past? If not, when in the past do you think was the golden age of music? |
Response - The majority of music has always been BAD music, still is, always will be. It's just the way things are. The ratio of good music to bad music, at least in western music (I doubt it's different elsewhere but wouldn't make any claims) has been pretty much constant throughout time since the ancient Greeks.
I've heard some people argue that this is a bad era for music because so much of the "bad" stuff is getting more attention than it deserves, but that kind of thinking is only due to a lack of perspective. We look at still-celebrated artists of bygone eras like (depending on your persuasion) Mozart or Gershwin or even the Beatles, and sometimes think that their talent and contributions arose in an atmosphere favorable to the quality of their music. But it didn't. The only reason we remember those artists years later is that they suck less than the 5,000 contemporaries with whom they were competing at the time. They were in the exact same situation as any talented musician today.
Personally I think that the potential for creating more "good" music increases along with advances in communication between human beings, which would theoretically make our present "information age" the best foundation for musical goodness achieved thus far. |
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| Jan 16, 2009 - What is the definition of music to you? |
Response - 1) Noise people make when it gets too quiet.
2) A way people express things when words and visuals fail.
Can't leave this one out either:
"Architecture is frozen music." - Nietzche
"Music is melted buildings." - nepsus |
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| Jan 15, 2009 - Which is more important: love or logic? |
Response - Sometimes logic dictates that you do something illogical. Like when your woman/wife asks you to do something that DOESN'T EVEN REMOTELY MAKE ANY KIND OF SENSE just to make her happy. |
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| Jan 14, 2009 - What do you think President Obama's theme song should be? |
Response - Actually I've changed my mind:
F-MINUS - WE'RE ALL DEAD MEN |
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| Jan 13, 2009 - Is our perception of reality real? |
Response - Depends on what you mean by real. A workably accurate reflection of ultimate reality? Yes. A definitive understanding of things as they really are? No. |
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| Jan 12, 2009 - How can it be determined that my experience of consciousness is the same as anyone else's experience of consciousness? |
Response - It can't. In fact, with exceptions made for obvious commonalities, the rest of your experience is probably completely unique and therefore totally different from that of everyone else. |
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| Jan 11, 2009 - If you could live forever, would you? What would you do with your time? |
Response - Someone once said there are only six things that are worth doing forever.
Know God
Love God
Know Others
Love Others
Know Yourself
Love Yourself
So if all goes well it would probably be some combination of those. Beyond that, there's nothing inherent about this life we live that's worth prolonging forever. Nothing. |
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| Jan 10, 2009 - Name a movie title that represents your life so far. |
Response - Child's Play. |
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| Jan 09, 2009 - What's the best city in the world to live in and why? What's the worst one, and why? |
Response - Best city: An underground fortress in the northern USA with a population in the hundreds, five years or so worth of food and water, and significantly more guns than people.
Worst city: The global village. |
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| Jan 07, 2009 - If hating music were a crime, how should it be punished? |
Response - Doesn't that depend on the music? I think the average kid raised on nothing but emo and MTV should get a medal for "hating" music, not a punishment.
But really if someone has no appreciation for music, then maybe the best thing would be for them to have a real experience of works that are known to "create their own context." Mozart's 40th symphony comes to mind.
Theme and variations are also a good way to stimulate someone's interest (although my favorite set of variations is still Mazedude's, go figure)
http://artscene.textfiles.com/music/mods/IT/MODLAND/Mazedude/prey%20and%20variations.it |
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| Jan 06, 2009 - What kind of material is best to make a stick to beat a dead horse? |
Response - Who thinks of these questions? |
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| Jan 05, 2009 - If, as of today, the world would be one big republic, who's best suited to be the first president? |
Response - Nobody. |
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| Jan 04, 2009 - Which music instrument is usable as a tool to fix something in your house and why? |
Response - A tambourine to scare the dogs away when I'm working. :P |
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| Jan 03, 2009 - What do you hope will happen in 2009? |
Response - I hope more Democrat legislators lose their seats due to blatant acts of corruption. |
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| Jan 02, 2009 - If you could bury one album in a time capsule for 50 years from now, what would it be? |
Response - Mozart's Requiem, just in case it's illegal in 50 years. |
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| Jan 01, 2009 - Where's the best place to have a New Year's party? |
Response - At home so you don't have to drive anywhere. |
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| Dec 31, 2008 - What's the a) best and b) worst thing about 2008? |
Response - a) The planet didn't explode.
b) Barack Obama. |
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| Dec 30, 2008 - Who's your favorite musician or artist who has 'made it' from your home city/state/country? Tell us a little about them, if you can. |
Response - Staind. Just because I can't think of any other musicians from my "home" city. |
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| Dec 29, 2008 - List the first word that comes to mind based on the LAST posted word. To get this started, the word is... "harmony". Try to keep the words music related. |
Response - Amelodic ;D |
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| Dec 28, 2008 - Which song best represents 2008? |
Response - "SEVENTH SIGN"
The earth is crumbling, the end is near
no one's listening, I'm filled with fear
hear the warning, in the prophet's word
day by day, we're destroying this world
no more water
no more blue skies
no one cares, no one tries
to save what we once had
world at war (a world at war)
rich and poor (rich and poor)
burn in hell (burn in hell)
hear dooms days bells (dooms days bells)
ringing loud (ringing loud)
I see black clouds
we are making lucifer so proud
world at war (a world at war)
rich and poor (rich and poor)
burn in hell (burn in hell)
hear dooms days bells (dooms days bells)
ringing loud (ringing loud)
I see black clouds
we are making lucifer so proud
blind leading the blind
no one sees the seventh sign
we're left behind
there's no more hope, the day has come
what we have done, can't be undone
too many years, we've lived in sin
we know for sure, the beast will win
fight fire with fire, to start to run
don't trust a liar, like we have done
we've lost the battle to the evil one
blind leading the blind
no one sees the seventh sign
we're left behind.
YNGWIE MALMSTEEN |
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| Dec 27, 2008 - Who is your favorite mythological character and why? |
Response - C.S. Lewis makes aspects of Norse mythology sound very intriguing but I haven't studied it much yet. So I'd have to go with the Greek/Roman Apollo because in addition to being a "mythological character" he's also the badass villain in Final Fantasy Legend 2. And a spacecraft. |
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| Dec 26, 2008 - If you were stuck in prison, which singer or musician would you want to be your cellmate? Why? |
Response - Jonathan Coulton because we'd write 48 songs a year. |
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| Dec 25, 2008 - What song defines your Christmas today? |
Response - The Animals - "We Gotta Get Out Of This Place" :P |
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| Dec 24, 2008 - Which Christmas character would you want to be in a band with? |
Response - Steven Tyler from The Polar Express |
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| Dec 23, 2008 - What is or who sang the best holiday or Christmas song? |
Response - Song: Let all mortal flesh keep silence
Artist: Me with a rock band last Christmas :P |
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| Dec 22, 2008 - If you were a smurf, which one would you be and why? |
Response - The weightlifting guy |
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| Dec 21, 2008 - What is the most memorable event (music related) in your life? |
Response - When I was 5 years old, I had a red toy keyboard. It had only one sound and no polyphony, but it did have several preset songs. You could initiate playback with a row of buttons across the top of the instrument. What I *didn't* know was that you could also activate playback by playing the first few notes of a song on the keyboard. So there I am pounding away notes at random and all of a sudden the thing starts playing "Little Rose of Texas."
That was the point in my life where I started understanding things like melody, rhythm, tonality, etc. (Not that I've learned much since then, but I'm glad the chain of events got started so early). |
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| Dec 20, 2008 - What's the best concert/performance you've ever been to? Why? |
Response - Blues Traveler. Not because I enjoy their music all that much, but it was the only concert I've been to where everyone on stage REALLY seemed to be "into" what they were doing (as opposed to being totally bored with playing the same songs over and over again *cough*MASTODON*cough*.) |
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| Dec 19, 2008 - What are the best excuses why not to give someone a Christmas gift? |
Response - Because I hate Christmas. :P But since no one will take that for an answer, crippling poverty will usually do. (Although that doesn't really count as an "excuse" if it happens to be true, crap.) |
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| Dec 18, 2008 - What cartoon has the best theme music? |
Response - I've gotta go oldschool here and say anything from Looney Tunes. Carl Stalling was a genius who did things with arrangement and orchestration that few of us can even imagine these days. |
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| Dec 17, 2008 - Why is the world the way it is? |
Response - Genesis 1-3 |
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| Dec 16, 2008 - Is copying/pirating music okay? |
Response - No. |
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| Dec 15, 2008 - have you ever experienced sound → color synesthesia? (experiencing colors in response to tones or other aspects of sounds) |
Response - Nope. Not sure I'd want to. The evidence suggests it's a highly subjective and not very practical experience (though also, from what I hear, very fun). |
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| Dec 14, 2008 - Is the music industry guilty for destroying the true meaning of music? |
Response - What is the true meaning of music? Communication? Self-expression? Spiritual and artistic fulfillment? The promotion of human communality and brotherhood? The music industry has pretty much stomped all over these things.
But if you're like me and think that the point of music is to entertain people while making money, then the "industry" is doing one hell of a job meeting demand. |
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| Dec 13, 2008 - Did U.S. President George Walker Bush do anything right during his terms as president? If so what? |
Response - The only good things he did were damage control for really awful things (Alito vs. Miers, etc.)
He did win two elections though, so theoretically he's accomplished twice as much as Barack Obama. |
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