The death of Music.

Once upon a time the music roamed free. Impulsive, wild and to it’s own will. Syncopated, loud and honest. Sometimes threatening, sometimes soothing and kind but always surprising and it’s own. Then one day man got a hold of a piece of it. Not a big piece, just a small backend piece of music. Dumbfounded and proud he cherished his finding. Listening to it. Sharing it boastfully with others, talking constantly about it. It spread like bush fires in the wind. All of a sudden rhythms and ragged chants were everywhere. Soon the melodies were clad with grunts, snivels and coughs…before you knew it the coughs had been replaced by words. The music was easily outnumbered by mankind. Ripping it apart into small pieces. Translating it into human tongue. Rubbing of the edges and making systems. It wasn’t long before someone decided to make notes of it…” so that we can play it the same way every time…” “ so I won’t forget…”.” So that we can share it easily…”. The cages became smaller and smaller. Grids and lines catching and confining revolutionary and free thinking notes, rhythms and tones. Is it 8 or 4…? Even the silence between notes got their own symbols and words…

The final battle was not even fought by the humans. Machines and computers took over the task of dismantling and dissecting every note into convenient, brightly coloured boxes. Mechanical shiny and fast insects scurrying around ripping the music apart in frame rates, bits and sampling frequencies. On computer screens everywhere the music was defeated and lost. Quantized, edited and auto tuned. Dead and lifeless.

But the music still had some allies. Musicians who turned the machines against themselves…forced them to create noise where there was none before. The grids cracked and broke. Speakers wept, cables curled up frightened in dusty boxes and notes and songs crept through the holes of silence.

Who’s side are you on ?

Welcome to the Roth Händle studio.

February, 2006.