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The Music Language

 What is music?   According to the Oxford Dictionary: “Vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion”. In other words, we structure the sounds we make with our voice or instrument primarily to relay an emotion or tell a story. Beauty of form and harmony hints at the use of rules and guidelines. Where do these guidelines come from? In essence, the human ear and the perception of audible harmony determines what is pleasing. Centuries of musical history and development and the vast material available have established rules that apply to their respective styles and genres. The basic elements of music are melody, harmony and rhythm. The harmony establishes the vertical framework or boundaries for the melody. The melody is the horizontal movement of a line or voice. Finally, the rhythm describes how the notes move, are spaced and organized. All three make up what is taught in music theory. This is where...
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The power of YouTube

You can say many things about YouTube. It's a tool, it's a nuisance, it's old, it's new, it's fun, it's annoying and the list goes on and on. What attracts my attention is the vast supply of music related videos. These can be music videos, concerts or other presentations. While others are posting or looking for new hilarious videos or the latest events on video I dive in to look for footage from bands, recent and especially past.

It is a goldmine. I am seriously surprised by what footage is out there. Videos from concerts in an age where there were only few video cameras around, and the ones available were expensive, huge and heavy. I've been wishing for years I could see a Tubes show from the 70s and I already gave up hope that they would ever release a DVD from their "What do you want from live" tour just for old times sake and sentimentalists like me. Thanks to YouTube I didn't have to look much further and found a wealth clips. I thoroughly enjoyed watching Fee Waybill entertaining live and it was even better than I expected.

Although I did see Living Colour and the 24-7 Spyz live I was happy to enjoy a few minutes of their shows and music videos.

Just recently I stumbled upon a gem that I had never dreamed of finding. A video released by Mind over 4. It is a music video and is a rapid-fire onslaught on your eyes. The bits and pieces of the band members playing are mere second fragments and it is quite tough to get the full impression but it's better than nothing.



Unfortunately, Mind over 4 never reached the success and acclaim that I thought they deserved. Maybe their music is too difficult to categorize or for some too difficult to digest. Either way, in the late 80s when hair metal ruled the world these four individuals proceeded to make music without compromises that oozed creativity. It is rare that artists express themselves so completely in disregard of commercial success. I'm still hoping for more material or maybe a reunion show to experience the energy.
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