Once again, MIDI is the focus of this weeks reading. This week focused in on "sequence stration", which is basically orchestrating parts using MIDI sounds. At first this sounded interesting to me, but really it is just common sense.
The author Scott Watson is an elementary band director in the Philadelphia area and uses sequence stration for his own bands.He talks about how to correctly use MIDI sounds to their fullest advantage, so you can have music that sounds real, but is just pre-programed noises.
Mr. Watson also talked about how to orchestrate MIDI parts correctly. Many of the ranges that MIDI gives instruments are incorrect and often sound terrible. He suggests stick to the instruments natural range, and you should not run into problems. Watson also suggests to use multiple octaves such as a bass sax a soprano sax and an ocarina. All of the MIDI sounds are similar, and will add a nice texture to you composition.
This is all nice and well, I am for MIDI use, but this is getting a bit over done. I feel like people are trying to take the human out of music. Yes, I believe that MIDI can help composers "hear" the parts they are writing, but beyond that I am having trouble seeing a proper function for it.
There is something special in hearing another human pour out their soul with their instrument, and MIDI is taking that away. I would rather hire a professional to play a part, rather than hear a computer play something back to me.
I really am trying to keep an open mind on the MIDI issue, but I am having trouble adjusting to the idea. I like that music is a necessity for human interaction, and a staple of society. I feel that we are taking the feel out of music when MIDI is used.
1 comment:
I hear what you're saying about MIDI sound versus human sound. Remember that this article is written by someone who is trying to expose other musicians to these concepts and perhaps diminish the old-fashioned ideas that MIDI is a)unapproachable and b)sounds like a late 1980s video game. Although the sound qualities are not comparable to live musicians, they are improving enough that they may be useful for a variety of classroom applications. I think it's all about how you choose to use MIDI. Obviously, you don't want students listening to MIDI as a model for musically expressive playing, but it can certainly be used to address other music concepts, or introduce the basic ideas behind expressive playing.
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