ClassicalCode

I have recently observed, on Youtube, a very interesting method of turning any barbershop tag into a jazzy eight part tag: simply double each part a perfect fifth higher. Or, said another way, have a second quartet simultaneously sing the same tag a fifth above.

Despite everything I was taught in college, I have been curious to try this myself. However, due to sound bleed-through from my upstairs neighbors, I can’t really record in my apartment these days. So I multitracked this one tonight in my car on my Zoom H4. Although I am sure I looked quite suspicious, I think it was worth it.

You can hear the original four part arrangement here.

I present to you “In Dixie Land Where I Was Born” from David Wright’s collection: Classic Tags for Men’s Voices in parallel fifths:

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Update: I have typeset the complete octet in the key of “C” as a pdf file and also generated a midi file.

Since I began multitracking, my recordings have suffered from “recorded-with-the-built-in-microphone-itis” which has greatly reduced the quality of my multitracks. Recently I got my hands on a Zoom H4 “Handy Recorder”.

This thing is awesome. In one portable package its: a high quality USB microphone, a portable recorder, a four-track machine, an effects pedal, and much more. To take the new contraption for a spin, I recorded an old favorite tag. I did all the multitracking on the Zoom, and then transferred the individual tracks to my MacBook where I added reverb and adjusted some levels (which I could have done on board if I had wanted to).

I have recorded this tag a few times before on my MacBook microphone and the difference of sound quality is pretty noticeable. Have a listen to this new recording of “In Dixie Land Where I Was Born”:

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Edit: Most of the explanation I came up with for this turns out to be wrong. I will update when I understand more thoroughly.

I recently had a conversation with my dad regarding “overtones” (a note that can be heard in a chord that is not acutally being sung). He informed me that what we in the barbershop community call overtones can be more accurately called sum tones, or as wikipedia calls them combination tones. The explination is that all tones, or sounds that we percieve as a single note, are actually comprised of that note, and an infinite number of notes above it (overtones). These notes are arranged according to the harmonic series: the root and octave above, the fifth above that, the root above that, the third above that, and so on with the intervals between these notes getting smaller as we Read More…

Due to a rehearsal, I am not going to be able to see my Mama on Mother’s Day, so I am celebrating it with her a day early. My acquaintance/idol/current-ipod-favorite H.P. Mendoza, and a girl at 16th and Mission Poetry who read a poem about her mom, reminded me that being an artist is pointless if you can’t use your art form to express yourself. So for Mother’s Day I made my mom an audio/barbershop Hallmark greeting card multi-tracked in a noisy practice room at school.

Happy Mother’s Day Lisa:

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