Manufacturing the Music

Like vinyls and record players, cassette tapes are an older music technology intended for audio storage. Cassette tapes are even more obsolete compared to record players, but, who knows, perhaps in a few years it will become trendy to walk around listening to cassette players. Thinking of cassette tapes makes me remember listening to audiobooks such as Hank the Cowdog, or songs like Puff the Magic Dragon, as a kid. The cassette tape uses magnetism to store and play music and really began a revolution on the storage of data. Previously, only external hard drives could be used to store large amounts of data on the computer, but these were generally even more expensive than the computer itself. The tape used in the cassette is a thin plastic coated with ferric oxide powder, an oxide of iron, which is ferromagnetic (Nave). When placed in a magnetic field, this iron oxide can become permanently magnetized. The tape can also be played on either side, A or B, so the cassette can be turned a

Despite being generally thought of as outdated technology, there is a huge trend in the purchase and use of vinyl mediums of music. Some claim that vinyl sounds better compared to digital formats due to more depth of sound and musical detail, while others are mostly interested in it for the nostalgia or a different experience while listening to music compared to simply pressing shuffle on their phone. Other groups of people are just into it because its 'retro' and a cool thing to have. Several of my friends have record players and routinely buy new albums and, despite not having a record player myself, I often spend time browsing through old records at thrift stores. How Does a Turntable Work? - Science Channel Record players have no rewind or shuffle button and can play music for about 25 minutes before needing to flip or replace the vinyl disc. Unlike most data-storing technologies used today, records store music mechanically, not electronically. The discs are made

One of the most important inventions for the integration of music in everyday life are headphones. They allow people to listen to whatever music they prefer, without disturbing others, while traveling, studying, or working. Headphones work in a very similar fashion to speakers, with the exception of performing on a much smaller scale. Compared to the air across a room being manipulated by speakers, headphones only affect the air within your ear canal. Headphones - Chris Woodford The image above shows the primary components in earbuds: casing, wires, a magnet, a coil, and a plastic cone (Woodford, 2016). The casing holds all of the components and is designed to fit comfortably inside the ear. Some headphones are less ergonomic than others and can become noticeably painful after extended use. (You may have even heard of Yurbuds, a Saint Louis startup company that has recently had a massive amount of success due to their earphone design after the founder was tired of his earbud

Pianos are a stringed instrument, which means that they require tuning from time-to-time. The tuning of stringed instruments is dependent on the tension in the strings, which can be affected by temperature, wear, or humidity. Most pianos contain 88 keys and one to three strings are associated with each key, depending on the key being a bass, tenor, or treble note (Zeigler, 2016). Overall, there are generally 200+ strings in a piano! Tuning can certainly become quite the daunting task with all of these strings, and is usually undertaken by a certified professional. Self-Tuning Piano - NewAtlas Don A. Gilmore, a mechanical engineer and classical pianist from Kansas City, developed and patented an automatic piano tuner in 1996. His system has been developed to be capable of tuning a piano within a minute, potentially saving time and money for pianists everywhere. This invention is fantastic and John B., a classmate of mine, suggested that I check it out. Sustainer Modules in t

The room that music is played in can be a major factor when either playing a live show or recording a new album. The shape and materials of walls can cause sound to be either pure and synchronized or distorted and out-of-sync. The importance of room acoustics is why good auditoriums have a different shape compared to a standard room and why walls of recording studios are lined with jagged foam material.  Just like a rubber ball, sound waves can bounce off walls or other surfaces. A standard room has a total of 6 flat surfaces, all connected by right-angles. Imagine that two sound waves, A and B, are created from the same point and projected towards you, but at different angles. Wave A is sent directly at your ear while wave B is angled so that it hits the wall to your right and then hits your ear. Wave A will enter your ear first while wave B hits a few moments later. Over large distances or many bounces against surfaces, this delay can certainly become very noticeable. There a

Some instruments are much too large or bulky to be transported easily, which can be frustrating to musicians who travel a lot or enjoy creating music on the go. Drummers are certainly no exception to this issue, and are unable to work on new songs unless they are physically at their instrument. While riding the metro to and from work, I often feel the need to tap my fingers to the rhythm of the songs I listen to, but wouldn't it be cooler to actually be able to play along with the song? There has been a recent interest in mobile and smartphone-based instruments, and DrumPants is one of the more interesting ways to create music while on the move.   DrumPants consists of wearable sensors than can be attached to any type of clothes or worn under clothing that transmit signals to external speakers or headphones (DrumPants). The sensors use a MIDI, or musical instrument digital interface, Bluetooth connection to play the user's choice of over 100 different sounds when activated

Auto-Tune has been a major part of the music industry for over two decades. A countless number of artists from all genres use it, as it allows them to record songs with fewer flaws and, therefore, fewer renditions are required before a successful recording can be made in the studio. It was originally created by Andy Hildebrand for use in prospecting oil underground by correcting and interpreting sound waves, but was later introduced into the music industry after Hildebrand founded a new company, Antares (Hadhazy, 2010). Although the first artist recognized to use Auto-Tune was Cher in 1998 with "Believe", T-Pain remains one of its most recognized innovators of its use and his entire musical style is defined from it.  T-Pain - Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin') ft. Yung Joc As we learned before , the sound that a note makes is dependent on its frequency. Therefore, altering a note's frequency can alter a note to be perfect or change it to a completely different n

Electric Guitars and Pickups Journey of Guitar Solo - CollectiveCadenza In acoustic guitars, vibrating strings send waves into the body and these waves resonate and amplify as they bounce around the guitar before leaving and entering our ears. Electric guitars on the other hand do not have these openings - they are generally made of solid wood. Instead, the vibrations are converted into electrical current, are processed, and convert back to sound waves inside of an amplifier. The pickups are where all the magic begins and are probably the most important part of an electric guitar. The electric guitar I use in my dorm room has a total of three pickups: one double-coil near the body-end of the strings, a single-coil at the top of the body, and another single coil in the middle of the other two.  The pickups in an electric guitar are a transducer, capable of converting a mechanical vibration into electricity (Duncan). They consist of one magnet per string on the guita

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have been one of my favorite bands ever since I was young enough to pick out a favorite band. Having sold over 80 million records worldwide and being awarded 6 Grammy Awards with 16 nominations, it is certainly difficult to question their success. I was even lucky enough to see them live last month at the Scottrade Center and ever since, I have been unable to stop listening to them and learning their songs. I also began listening to John Frusciante, former guitarist of the Chili Peppers, who began his solo career in 2009. One of his songs, Murderers, is among the songs I have been hooked on for the last few weeks. The main riff has a simple note progression, capable of being played on only the E and B string, between frets 9 and 12. In understanding many of the advances in music technology and creation, it is important to begin with the basics of music and what makes sound sound different . Murderers - (John Frusciante) Primarily, guitars consist o

Music is enjoyed universally, in a wide variety of forms. It promotes creativity, offers a sense of achievement, and enables people to communicate in different ways. Despite its enriching effects, it is often neglected in school systems. The arts promote skills such as "project management, team building, and effective time administration" yet these programs are labeled as "secondary to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), which "robs not only students, but also parents and communities of one of the most honest public measures of student achievement and success" (Williams). As a senior at Saint Louis University, studying biomedical engineering, mathematics, hoping to attend medical school, and working two jobs, I oftentimes forget about how much music helps me - relaxing me during periods of stress, motivating me at the gym, or keeping me attentive while studying. Beginning last Fall, I picked up one of my dusty guitars, a Takamine Jasmine