cooltunes

Got to work today, but it’s okay, doing something I really like.

Images at their site are downright creepy, but this Finnish group has created a new art form.

Here they are singing their version of our national anthem:

Being several days ago, I have forgotten the dinner part. The movie is wonderful, the story of an Egyptian police band stranded in a tiny Israeli town. Wariness on all sides, and high awkwardness as a few Israelis extend food and other hospitality to the visitors. But, as all the principals discover, music is a universal language, never more than when seated around a somewhat hostile dinner table, singing ‘Summertime’ in English.

And btw, do you speak Chet Baker?

After watching two episodes of State of Play tonight, I went looking for the soundtrack by Nicholas Hooper. Not much luck there, but I did find a blog about the movie, The Girl in the Cafe, starring Bill Nighy and Kelly MacDonald, who also star in State of Play. Hooper did the soundtrack here too. There’s a link at the blog to a free download of this song:

A family member has remarked that attending a concert that consists solely of the performer onstage with his laptop lacks a certain visual excitement.

In the world of classical music, technological advances are moving the usual group-of-musicians-with-conductor scenario into a more futuristic realm. Nowadays, a concert-goer might see the conductor decked out in a specially wired jacket that allows a Wii-minded directing of an orchestra.

This orchestra would include a section that is not visible to the audience, but gleaned from a database of digital sounds that gives an unprecedented depth and range to the listening experience.

When experts listen to samples of computer-generated music embedded in a Beethoven symphony performance, they find it difficult to tell the difference from the real thing.

The aptly named ‘Stayin’ Alive’ has just the right beat that emergency workers need to remember when they perform chest compressions. The right tempo for cardiopulmonary resuscitation is 100 times/minute, the song is paced at 103/beats/minute.

According to the link, a Queen song also fills the bill - ‘Another One Bites the Dust’. However, some might feel this one might not be as appreciated by patients.