Shut up and play yer guitar.
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« The Fourth Anniversary Edition of I and The Bird is Now Available | Main | Today's Linux One-Liner »
The ultimate ... ah... I'm not sure what this is.
Category: Music
Posted on: August 6, 2009 10:55 AM, by Greg Laden
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TrackBack URL for this entry: http://scienceblogs.com/mt/pings/116430
Comments
He's not nearly as good at singing guitar as the snake from Emmet Otters Jug Band Christmas.
Posted by: José | August 6, 2009 11:40 AM
That wasn't too bad, actually. I'm surprised. I wouldn't think that the human vocal chords would be able to reproduce the sound of an electric guitar that closely. I'm always astounded when I hear a parrot faithfully reproduce mechanical sounds like a telephone ringer or a flushing toilet. I wonder where humans rank overall in the animal kingdom in regards to the range of sounds we're able to reproduce. I would imagine we're pretty high on the list, if not quite to the level of songbirds, surely we're a step above barking seals and hissing snakes.
As a side note, learning to master this technique seems cheaper and easier than years of guitar lessons.
Posted by: H.H. | August 6, 2009 12:30 PM
Is it bad that I want to jump up on that stage and smack that dude?
Posted by: mk | August 6, 2009 1:04 PM
I love how they kept switching to a close-up of his left hand until they realized he looked like he was diddling the air...
Posted by: MiddleMan | August 6, 2009 2:15 PM
That's a skill that'll get you chicks at roughly the same quality and quantity as being a roadie for a Whitesnake tribute band.
He doesn't even really need any equipment. He can just walk up to chicks waiting in line to buy scratch off lottery tickets, and impress them right out of their acid-wash jeans.
Seriously though, it was kinda interesting for about fifteen seconds, then it just seemed weird and wrong.
Posted by: Kitty'sBitch | August 6, 2009 3:03 PM
An educated guess (having been involved in the pro audio and music industry from the technology side for several years as a designer):
It's not his voice. They ran his voice through a frequency to midi converter and then used that to drive a lead guitar sampler. Not often used live, usually a studio trick, and not usually to a screaming lead sample. The clue is the harmonic content, and the absence of any chord or chord transients. But yes, done very well. Too bad he stuck to doing only what it is possible to do on a guitar, The human voice is capable of some remarkable excursions that would not be possible to follow on a guitar. These technology experiments I find more interesting when used to do things not possible any other way. Otherwise, why not just play a guitar like the other two guys?
A functioning "Air Guitar" has been a goal for the synthesizer / midi master industry forever. This is not one of those, because it does not 'play' off his guitar-playing arm+hand motions. I have however seen some pretty close approximations. One guy put muscle tension sensors on his body, ran them through a custom MIDI converter, and was able to perform a credible "Stairway to Heaven". But that was it, and it took some painful contortions to do it.
Posted by: Gray Gaffer | August 6, 2009 3:43 PM
... but ... a "functioning" air guitar would require talent! What good would that be?
Posted by: Paul | August 6, 2009 3:45 PM
talent, yes, but unless it is at least possible for any competent musician to aspire to, and to play any tune on, it exists only as a curiosity. That is not very lucrative for either the instrument maker or the performer. Creds, yes, money, no.
We are ages away from an air guitar for the fans to get away with. That's the one that would make money.
Posted by: Gray Gaffer | August 11, 2009 2:28 PM