If you are a fan of 1980s hip-hop, you already know what "beatboxing" is. If you are unfamiliar, beatboxing someone produces drum beats and rhythms just by using their mouth. For an example, see this Wikipedia page.
Humans aren't the only one's with beatboxing skills. Earlier this week, TechCrunch had a story about how to turn Google Translate into a Google Beatbox. Here are some examples of Google Translate beats:
Example 1
Example 2
Inspired by the examples above? Post any great beats you have come up with using Google Translate in our comments section.
Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts
December 3, 2010
November 10, 2010
35 Years Ago Today: The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
On November 10, 1975, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, an American Great Lakes freighter, sank in Lake Superior, about 80 kilometers northwest of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
The freighter, the size of two and a half football fields, was on a run from Superior, Wisconsin, to Detroit, laden with 26,000 tons of iron ore. While traveling on a routine run, the Fitzgerald ran into a November gale. Th ship sank without sending any distress signals. All 29 crew members aboard died; no bodies were recovered. When the wreck was found, it was discovered that the Fitzgerald had broken in two.
The Edmund Fitzgerald is still one of the largest freighters ever to have sunk on the Great Lakes.
In November 1976, Canadian folk singer Gordon Lightfoot's The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald reached #2 on the Billboard Pop Chart.
In the Detroit area, there are several events which commemorate the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The freighter, the size of two and a half football fields, was on a run from Superior, Wisconsin, to Detroit, laden with 26,000 tons of iron ore. While traveling on a routine run, the Fitzgerald ran into a November gale. Th ship sank without sending any distress signals. All 29 crew members aboard died; no bodies were recovered. When the wreck was found, it was discovered that the Fitzgerald had broken in two.
The Edmund Fitzgerald is still one of the largest freighters ever to have sunk on the Great Lakes.
In November 1976, Canadian folk singer Gordon Lightfoot's The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald reached #2 on the Billboard Pop Chart.
In the Detroit area, there are several events which commemorate the Edmund Fitzgerald.
September 10, 2010
Fun Friday: The Wilderness Downtown
Interested in the next generation of music videos, not to mention web video? If so, take a look at The Wilderness Downtown, which utilizes the song We Used to Wait from the Arcade Fire's new The Suburbs album. Enter in an address such as your childhood home, and the address you enter will be incorporated into the video using images from Google Maps and Google Street View.
"The Wilderness Downtown" is an amazing example of what web designers are going to be able to create with new technologies such as HTML 5. Please be aware that it is processor intensive, and needs to use a browser that is capable of rendering HTML 5, such as Google Chrome.
"The Wilderness Downtown" is an amazing example of what web designers are going to be able to create with new technologies such as HTML 5. Please be aware that it is processor intensive, and needs to use a browser that is capable of rendering HTML 5, such as Google Chrome.
June 24, 2010
Library of Congress Preserves Recordings
The Library of Congress announced its selections for the 2009 National Recording Registry. Selections must be at least 10 years old and be culturally, historically or aesthetically significant. The Library of Congress will ensure that these recordings are always available to the American public. The selections for the 2009 registry bring the total number of recordings to 300.
Among the selections are Tupac Shakur's "Dear Mama;" Loretta Lynn’s "Coal Miner’s Daughter;" Bill Cosby’s album, "I Started Out As a Child;" Little Richard's "Tutti Frutti;" R.E.M.'s "Radio Free Europe;" and the Marine Corps Combat Field Recording Collection of the second battle of Guam, which documents rare battle sounds and personal accounts by troops before, during and after the battle.
What do you think of the selections? Are you surprised by any of the inclusions? Share your comments with us.
Among the selections are Tupac Shakur's "Dear Mama;" Loretta Lynn’s "Coal Miner’s Daughter;" Bill Cosby’s album, "I Started Out As a Child;" Little Richard's "Tutti Frutti;" R.E.M.'s "Radio Free Europe;" and the Marine Corps Combat Field Recording Collection of the second battle of Guam, which documents rare battle sounds and personal accounts by troops before, during and after the battle.
What do you think of the selections? Are you surprised by any of the inclusions? Share your comments with us.
May 28, 2010
Fun Friday: Six Degrees of Black Sabbath
So, how many steps away musically is Miles Davis from Garth Brooks? Using Six Degrees of Black Sabbath, you can find out.
Six Degrees of Black Sabbath is based on popular games that show connections, such as Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. To use it, just type in two different musicians or bands, and see how closely they are related.
So, how far apart (or close) are Kiss and Eminem? Use Six Degrees of Black Sabbath to find out.
(via downloadsquad.com)
Six Degrees of Black Sabbath is based on popular games that show connections, such as Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. To use it, just type in two different musicians or bands, and see how closely they are related.
So, how far apart (or close) are Kiss and Eminem? Use Six Degrees of Black Sabbath to find out.
(via downloadsquad.com)
September 4, 2009
August 30, 2009
Grooveshark: Easy To Use Music Search Engine
Frequently, I find myself trying to hunt down a particular song that I'm in the mood to listen to, only to find that I do not own the song. So my next step is to do a Google search, go through tons of results, and find the one song to which I want to listen. Thanks to Grooveshark, I won't have to do this anymore.
Grooveshark is a new website that makes finding and listening to songs simple and straightforward. Looking for "The Wonder of You" by Elvis? Go ahead and enter the title into the search box on Grooveshark's homepage, and you will quickly be presented with a list of all the results of your search.
The best part is that instead of giving you a straight list like you would get with Google, you are able to instead organize the list by artist, title, album, and genre. After you select the song you want to hear, you can instantly listen to the song through the iTunes-like, easy-to-use interface.
On top of just listening to songs, you are also able to create an account which allows you to create playlists, and to mark a track as a Favorite. Grooveshark will remember all your Favorites, and create a playlist, for you to listen to at your leisure.
I encourage all music fans to checkout Grooveshark. I have already found it to be an indispensable tool.
July 23, 2009
Book Review: Ripped: How the Wired Generation Revolutionized Music
Ripped: How the Wired Generation Revolutionized Music by Greg Kot, music critic for the Chicago Tribune and co-host of NPR show Sound Opinions, is an excellent study of how the music industry has changed during the past decade.
Kot begins by discussing the state of the industry before the Internet: payola exchanged to get radio airplay; the increasing tendency for labels to look for a "hit" to move product instead of allowing artists' careers to develop; and the overall dominance of the major music labels. This began to change when artists such as Prince abandoned the major label system and began making distributing music through their own label, and, more importantly, with the development of the Internet.
Kot begins by discussing the state of the industry before the Internet: payola exchanged to get radio airplay; the increasing tendency for labels to look for a "hit" to move product instead of allowing artists' careers to develop; and the overall dominance of the major music labels. This began to change when artists such as Prince abandoned the major label system and began making distributing music through their own label, and, more importantly, with the development of the Internet.
Kot recounts the major music stories of the late 1990s and 2000s, including the rise and fall of Napster, the RIAA's court battles with consumers accused of illegal downloading, and the development of iTunes. This is framed within studies of bands such as Bright Eyes, Radiohead, and Wilco who have used the Internet to tremendous advantage to market their music.
One of the more important discussions is the influence that music blog and review sites such as Pitchfork play in the role of shaping a band's fortunes. For some, such as Arcade Fire, this has led to tremendous success. For others, such as Black Kids, whose initial EP was lauded by Pitchfork but whose album was panned with a one word review, this flavor-of-the-month celebrity can come at the expense of a band not yet ready for playing sold out shows at 2,000 seat venues.
Ripped is a great read for anyone looking into the recent history of the music industry. Those interested in music from the 1990s and 2000s, especially those who like indie rock, will also find much to love. Additionally, this is an excellent book for people whose industries are being affected by the new content distribution model which the Internet has made possible. By learning from the pitfalls of the music industry, industries where change is happening rapidly can be better prepared for the future.
June 30, 2009
Quincy Jones Will Not Let Vibe Die
Earlier today we learned that Vibe Magazine was folding. Now Vibe founder Quincy Jones is distraught over the news and determined to save the magazine. How? "I'm'a take it online because print and all that stuff is over."
Jones created Vibe back in 1993 to showcase rap and R&B music in a voice that was younger and edgier than other publications existing at the time, hoping to appeal to young, urban music fans. In 2006 the magazine was purchased by the Wicks Media Group.
[via Gawker]
Jones created Vibe back in 1993 to showcase rap and R&B music in a voice that was younger and edgier than other publications existing at the time, hoping to appeal to young, urban music fans. In 2006 the magazine was purchased by the Wicks Media Group.
[via Gawker]
June 25, 2009
Michael Jackson: 1958-2009
From Wikipedia:
Michael Jackson's Thriller is a 13-minute music video for the song of the same name released on December 2, 1983 and directed by John Landis who also co-wrote the screenplay with Jackson. The mini-film music video was broadcast on MTV three weeks before Christmas 1983. It was the most expensive video of its time, costing $500,000, and Guinness World Records listed it in 2006 as the "most successful music video," selling over 9 million units.
During the video, Jackson transforms into both a zombie and a werecat (although makeup artist Rick Baker referred to it as a "cat monster" in the "Making of Thriller" documentary); familiar territory for Landis, who had directed An American Werewolf in London two years earlier. Co-starring with Jackson was former Playboy centerfold Ola Ray.
The video was choreographed by Michael Peters (who had worked with the singer on his prior hit "Beat It"), with Michael Jackson. The video also contains incidental music by film music composer Elmer Bernstein, who had previously also worked with Landis on An American Werewolf in London. The video (like the song) contains a spoken word performance by horror film veteran Vincent Price. Rick Baker assisted in prosthetics and makeup for the production.
Jackson, at the time one of Jehovah's Witnesses, added a disclaimer to the start of the video, saying: “Due to my strong personal convictions, I wish to stress that this film in no way endorses a belief in the occult.”
May 15, 2009
Fun Friday: Mother of All Funk Chords
What happens when you take videos from YouTube, sample the sounds and images from them, and combine them to create an entirely new song? You get this amazing mashup video:
May 11, 2009
Online Jazz Festival, May 12- 14
Have you enjoyed the jazz posts here at The Tech Desk? Well, there is more music coming your way. As part of the launch of its new database, Jazz Music Library, database publisher Alexander Street Press is hosting an Online Jazz Festival from May 12 to May 14. Not only will the Jazz Music Library be free for this time, but there will also be contests, free music downloads, and drawings for free CDs.
Jazz Music Library features over 18,000 audio tracks from over 3,800 different artists. Labels that comprise the database include Verve, GRP, Fantasy, Concord Jazz, Original Jazz Classics, and many more. Be sure to go here starting Tuesday, May 12 to participate in the Alexander Street's First Annual Online Jazz Music Festival. For more information about the festival, click here.
Jazz Music Library features over 18,000 audio tracks from over 3,800 different artists. Labels that comprise the database include Verve, GRP, Fantasy, Concord Jazz, Original Jazz Classics, and many more. Be sure to go here starting Tuesday, May 12 to participate in the Alexander Street's First Annual Online Jazz Music Festival. For more information about the festival, click here.
April 10, 2009
Mr. Rogers Swings During Jazz Month
One more for Jazz Appreciation Month:
Holly Yarbrough's Mister Rogers Swings! is a fine collection of swinging, jazzy, uptempo covers of songs from classic episodes of the old children's television show, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. Imagine grooving to the cool sounds of "Won't You Be My Neighbor," with a big, brassy band backing sweet, passionate vocals.
[via boingboing]
Holly Yarbrough's Mister Rogers Swings! is a fine collection of swinging, jazzy, uptempo covers of songs from classic episodes of the old children's television show, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. Imagine grooving to the cool sounds of "Won't You Be My Neighbor," with a big, brassy band backing sweet, passionate vocals.
[via boingboing]
Fun Friday: Jazz Appreciation Month Edition
April is Jazz Appreciation Month. To celebrate, enjoy this excellent YouTube video of John Coltrane's Giant Steps.
March 13, 2009
Fun Friday: Books and Music That Make You Dumb
Here are some books and some music that make you dumb, according to Virgil Griffith, a PhD student at CalTech.
As you take a look, I'll be reading 100 Years of Solitude and listening to a little bit of Beethoven.
[via MetaFilter]
As you take a look, I'll be reading 100 Years of Solitude and listening to a little bit of Beethoven.
[via MetaFilter]
March 5, 2009
Play Rock Band with the Beatles -- Soon!
In case you ever dreamed of backing up John Lennon and Paul McCartney:
According to Rolling Stone, MTV, Harmonix and the Beatles’ Apple Corps, Ltd.. announced that they will partner to create a video game for Rock Band, based on the music of the Beatles, to be released in 2009.
The game will take the player on a musical journey of the Beatles music, from Please, Please Me to Abbey Road. It is the first time that Beatles music has been presented in an interactive, video game format.
It is not clear at this point whether Beatles content would be available for Rock Band or whether the game would feature avatars of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
According to Rolling Stone, MTV, Harmonix and the Beatles’ Apple Corps, Ltd.. announced that they will partner to create a video game for Rock Band, based on the music of the Beatles, to be released in 2009.
The game will take the player on a musical journey of the Beatles music, from Please, Please Me to Abbey Road. It is the first time that Beatles music has been presented in an interactive, video game format.
It is not clear at this point whether Beatles content would be available for Rock Band or whether the game would feature avatars of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
March 2, 2009
So What? 50 Years Ago Today
On March 2, 1959, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley and others recorded So What for the definitive jazz album, Kind of Blue.
Sit back for a minute and groove to the mellow sounds.
Sit back for a minute and groove to the mellow sounds.
January 14, 2009
Cellist Yo-Yo Ma Sponsors Online Music Competition
Ever dream of accompanying a famous classical musician? Well, now your dream might come true.
World-famous cellist and 15-time Grammy winner Yo-Yo Ma is hosting an online competition, inviting listeners to add their own accompaniment to his performance of the traditional hymn “Dona Nobis Pacem,” from his album, Songs of Joy & Peace.
In October, according to Wired.com, Ma posted his cello solo to the online site Indaba Music. Since then, Indaba's users — amateurs and pros alike—have used the site's free Flash-based mixing board to add their own variations and countermelodies. In January, Indaba users will vote for their favorite arrangements, with the winner receiving a recording session with Ma that will be featured on both Indaba and the cellist's own site.
"Just releasing a CD is constraining to an artist," Ma told Wired. "You know: 'I'm the product, you're the consumer' — it's no longer like that. Technology lets you share ideas. By sharing and learning and teaching, you expand your imagination."
In the past, plenty of indie, hip hop, and pop artists have welcomed others to remix their songs online. Now classical music lovers can get in on the act.
World-famous cellist and 15-time Grammy winner Yo-Yo Ma is hosting an online competition, inviting listeners to add their own accompaniment to his performance of the traditional hymn “Dona Nobis Pacem,” from his album, Songs of Joy & Peace.
In October, according to Wired.com, Ma posted his cello solo to the online site Indaba Music. Since then, Indaba's users — amateurs and pros alike—have used the site's free Flash-based mixing board to add their own variations and countermelodies. In January, Indaba users will vote for their favorite arrangements, with the winner receiving a recording session with Ma that will be featured on both Indaba and the cellist's own site.
"Just releasing a CD is constraining to an artist," Ma told Wired. "You know: 'I'm the product, you're the consumer' — it's no longer like that. Technology lets you share ideas. By sharing and learning and teaching, you expand your imagination."
In the past, plenty of indie, hip hop, and pop artists have welcomed others to remix their songs online. Now classical music lovers can get in on the act.
January 12, 2009
Happy Birthday, Motown
On January 12, 1959, Berry Gordy, Jr., borrowed $800 from his family and founded the Motown Record Corporation on West Grand Boulevard, in Detroit.
Take a minute to relax, sit back, and enjoy the Motown sound.
And when you're done, come by the Troy Public Library and check out our Motown display of books, music, and DVDs, ready for you to take home.
Take a minute to relax, sit back, and enjoy the Motown sound.
And when you're done, come by the Troy Public Library and check out our Motown display of books, music, and DVDs, ready for you to take home.
December 30, 2008
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