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Technology
which changed or modified Rock music
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| Week 6 |
Music 36: History of Rock You are in section 3092 or 4228 Music 36 - Parnell. |
One of the main reasons we have rock music at all is because of electricity. This new technology is still in the process of changing any and everything on our planet and beyond. It is a technology that works at almost the speed of light – faster than we can keep up with at this juncture. But it is the reason we have rock music. By 1900, the world was getting wired. Electricity was heating up small wire filaments in a vacuum tube and creating an almost instantaneous source of light when the switch was turned on. Prior to that, we had fireplaces, candles, and eventually, gas lights which took a bit of time to light and adjust: sometimes leading to tragic fires. Electricity turned night into day. If you give that a bit of thought, it's pretty boggling. In a very short time, electricity (electric-city) became indispensable, first to city dwellers and then, more slowly, to rural areas. Our railroads had been a major force in creating cities, centralizing things in urban areas. Electricity in the present era actually de-stabilizes the city as the center of communication by allowing people anywhere in the world via social media to gather in groups, make decisions, create new companies, etc. from anywhere in the world: thus the Marshall McLuhan term “Global Village.” “Sound is by nature a democratic medium,” says Ian Condry, an anthropologist and professor in MIT’s Department of Global Studies and Languages, adding that “sound lets us listen around the margins and to follow multiple voices coming from multiple directions.” https://news.mit.edu/2018/sound-technology-unlock-innovation-at-mit-1226 With the promulgation of electricity and its many uses, musicians and scientists began to discover how to record the voice and then how to amplify it. Not only the voice, but almost anything which could make sounds. /by the late 1930's the microphone (micro-phone) allowed singers and speakers to amplify their voices electronically to large masses of people. The ramifications of this alone change the world of acoustical sound forever. No longer, for singers, was it necessary to have a vocal technique which specialized in self-amplification, using the voice and body of the singer alone. Now it was possible for singers with practically no vocal training to step up to a microphone and be heard by hundreds or even thousands of people. As a consequence new styles of singing appeared, and the operatic voice (which, because of the need for its self amplification, sounded “operatic” rather than “natural,” in many people's opinions.) Obviously, today's singers, (rappers, screamers, crooners, folk-singers, etc.) are not singing with the operatic tone or style because they have electronic amplifiers at their disposal. Even opera singers are using mics in outdoor venues to make large sums of money from more massive audiences. Not only were speakers and singers affected by electronics, but so were musical instruments and recording techniques. Early developers of adding electricity to instruments were Leo Fender, Adolph Rickenbacker, Les Paul, Orville Gibson, Hammond B3 - Lorens Hammond, Wikipedia article about the Theremin and many others. For rock music, the amplification of guitars, basses, and keyboards allowed the musicians to play ever louder, sometimes reaching thousands of people at the scene, but even hundreds of thousands of listeners all over the world at the same time. This is one way rock music has changed and perhaps, influenced society. Here's a website that mentions some of these technologies: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/24-inventions-that-changed-music-16471/ This is not a complete list!! Here is another. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronics_in_rock_music These technologies led to the techniques we have and use today to record and play music. More recently, we have computers and software allowing almost anyone who can afford to buy this equipment to create worldwide hit songs and “albums” in their bedrooms. Often with singing styles that range from whispering to screaming. Rock music is by no means “highbrow.” In its early stages, it was music to which teenagers responded, en masse. Originally delivered in “mono” (which meant all speakers delivered the same exact sound) there was no depth or field of sound. Phil Spector attempted to create the effect with his “wall of sound,” but was not successful. What was successful was the addition of “stereo” (stereophonic sound). This two loudspeaker system, recording with two microphones at the same time, spaced slightly apart (like our ears) created a completely new dimension in recorded music: depth and movement. The movement part was very gimmicky at first, moving sounds from right to left in the speakers and back again. Soon thereafter, it was discovered that by “mixing” and processing the recorded music in certain ways, a field of depth could also be perceived by the listener. (The singer up-front, the drums further back behind the singer, a guitar or two in between, etc.) This seems more “real” to our ears and brain, as we use our ears for distance perception and location perception. As such, we now have music in what seems to be three dimensions, creating a virtual environment. This creates a change in perception, much like cubism attempted to do. However a sonic environment is surrounding and simultaneous – differing sounds coming from different places and depths in the virtual sonic environs. |