On Music and Technology
I was at a lecture in 2017 at Berklee College of Music to hear Thomas Dolby talk about his book The Speed of Sound: Breaking the Barriers Between Music and Technology. You might remember Dolby from his 1980’s hit She Blinded Me With Science. That song was originally released as a single before being included in the re-release of his album The Golden Age of Wireless. It’s pretty amazing that he used such an interesting title in 1982. Most of the wireless devices and technology that we currently use like laptops, iPhones, wireless headphones and speakers, and TV remote controls, were not even invented or widely used yet. If you think about it, we now live in the golden age of wireless technology.
And that brings me to the topic of today: What musicians do you think about when it comes to music & technology?
I first think about The Edge from U2. The amount of guitar effects pedals and effects units he adds to his sound is synonymous to him and the music produced by U2, but countless other guitar players have since followed suit. Things that sound otherworldly or extremely difficult to play sometimes are just a few notes bouncing off of each other due to the amount of delay, echo, reverb, or whatever else he’s dialed into his sound.
I think about Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran and Gary Numan who are two of the biggest synthesizer players to make that instrument stand out in songs and helped to shape the best electronic new wave music to come out of the 1980’s.
Peter Frampton’s use of a ‘vox box’ to relay sounds that are coming from his guitar through a plastic tube connected to his microphone. This would give him the ability to create a robotic-like voice that coupled his guitar notes.
What about Rick Allen from Def Leppard. After his horrific car crash where he lost one of his arms, he was able to piece together a special set of drums and electric pads for him so that he could continue to play. He has been able to create most of the drum sounds he needs with the use of his drum foot pedals….amazing!
I think about Eddie Van Halen who was a constant tinkerer when it came to his guitar. There was nothing stock in the instruments that he played (or at least not until he started the EVH model guitars). If you have ever seen a close up of his Frankenstrat you’ll get it.
And what about the countless musicians and DJ’s who were able to create beats, sounds, and loops with the help of drum machines, samplers, and MIDI keyboards. Numerous genres of music benefited from the use of this technology, including Rap, EDM, Hip-Hop, and LoFi.
What will be the next big technological advancement that will help us create music? I have no idea, but whatever it is, there is someone out there eager to try it, manipulate it, and make something of their own.