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3 points - live vs's recorded, looping origin, and looping as genre



I have 2 points I'd like to raise:

    1) It may be helpful to distinguish between live looping and recorded
looping as they are (only) as different as live vs. recorded music.
    2) Looping is a musical technique as old as music itself.
    3) Available technology creates musical genres -- specifically and
directly.

1) Live looping and recorded looping are (only) as different as live vs.
recorded music.
Potentially definitions of looping need to deal, and possibly distinguish
between looping in live and recorded situations.  Today, recording
technology allows for musical elements to become repeated literally with 
cut
and paste simplicity.  It's valid, it's cool.  I love it.  Isn't it looping
too?  And if so, maybe it's good enough to just distinguish between
"realtime" looping and "recorded" loops.   My points 2 & 3 partially
explains why.

2) Looping is a musical technique as old as music itself
With so many posts on the "origin of loop music" flying by, this point may
already have been made -- and if so, please excuse the repetition -- but 
the
idea of musical motifs repeating in some fashion has been standard practice
in all music, pretty much always.

Either an individual repeated something him/herself (perhaps a chorus or
melody), or others would repeat a motif (flute plays theme, violin plays
theme etc., in an orchestra).

The "technique" of repetition in a song can be executed by an individual, 
as
he or she sequentially repeats elements/motifs/choruses.   A song structure
provides the architecture of the loop itself.   The "technique" of
repetition in music created by multiple players can be both sequential AND
parallel, as elements can be executed at different times by different
individual in the ensemble.   Composers loop motifs all the time, and they
use the "technology" of an orchestra to execute repeated themes.

OK -- so, if you accept this idea, looping as a musical technique is as old
as music itself.  Whoop-di-doo.

What we here on L-D commonly talk about as looping is the ability for one
individual, in real-time and in live performance, to create and repeat
musical motifs in series AND in parallel.  He or she can operate solo or in
an ensemble, but what they create they can realtime working in series and
parallel.

Yer Cage's and Stockhausen's used orchestra's to do this.  Then they used
tape to accomplish this.  And the technology that enables looping has
certainly evolved.  And today we have our Reason's, EDP's and the like.
These allow folks to create and repeat musical motifs in series AND in
parallel.


3) Available technology influences the musical genres specifically and
directly.
- In a nutshell, if they hadn't figured out how to cast iron to a certain
level of strength, they could not have "invented" the Piano.
- Without the trumpet, there would be created no music specifically for
trumpet.
- No electricity, no Marshall amp and Jimi Hendrix would have created
different music altogether.

I agree with Kim's basic point: that if he is given a CD of music said to
contain "looping" he has no idea what style of music is on the CD.  
However,
without the invention of the "amplifier" we'd not have any "Rock Music,"
itself another term describing another rather amorphous genre of music.
Indeed, an amplifier isn't an "instrument" in the traditional sense (an
interface tool designed to control the creation of sounds across the
variables of pitch and time).  But take away all amplification, and you
would not have the "Rock" genre.   So too today's tools and technology like
tape-delays, EDP's and Reason enable a kind/genre/style of music we can 
call
"loop-based" -- and that the musical diversity under the banner doesn't
negate the validity of the banner.

Phew!  That's enough from me.   I'll let you guys point out all the holes 
in
my logic.

David Kirkdorffer




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Goddess" <thefates@earthlink.net>
To: <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Sent: Tuesday, May 27, 2003 10:52 PM
Subject: Re: Dig if u will my research paper(liveloopinggenre)


>   woohoo!  Tell me about it!, yeah!, the jacket really does it for me!!!
> *sigh*  *swoon*
>
> Smiles,
>
> Cara
>
> At 06:12 PM 5/27/03 -0700, you wrote:
> >At 03:59 PM 5/27/2003, Steve Lawson wrote:
> >>  some like the
> >>solo bass angle, some like the looping, others (shock! horror!) 
>actually
> >>like the freakin' music and don't care how it's done... it's all good, 
>I
> >>tell yer...
> >
> >what about the fashion? that's why I go.
> >
> >kim
> >
> >
> >______________________________________________________________________
> >Kim Flint                     | Looper's Delight
> >kflint@loopers-delight.com    | http://www.loopers-delight.com
> >
>