Saturday, 23 March 2013

pulse

in music and music theory, the pulse consists of beats[1] in a (repeating) series of identical yet distinct periodic short-duration stimuli perceived as points intime[1] occurring at the mensural level. "This pulse is typically what listeners entrain to as they tap their foot or dance along with a piece of music (Handel, 1989), and is also colloquially termed the 'beat,' or more technically the 'tactus'.

frippertronics


frippertronics is a specific tape looping technique used by Robert Fripp.[1] It evolved from a system of tape looping originally developed in the electronic music studios of the early 1960s that was first used by composers Terry Riley and Pauline Oliveros and made popular through its use in ambient music by composer Brian Eno.

frippertronics (a term coined by poet Joanna Walton, Fripp's lover in the late 1970s) is an analog delay system consisting of two reel-to-reel tape recorders situated side-by-side. The two machines are configured so that the tape travels from the supply reel of the first machine to the take-up reel of the second, thereby allowing sound recorded by the first machine to be played back some time later on the second. The audio of the second machine is routed back to the first, causing the delayed signal to repeat while new audio is mixed in with it. The amount of delay (usually three to five seconds) is controlled by increasing or reducing the distance between the machines.
fripp used this technique to dynamically create recordings containing layer upon layer of electric guitar sounds in a real time fashion. An added advantage was that, by nature of the technique, the complete performances were recorded in their entirety on the original looped tape.
in the mid-1990s, Fripp revamped the Frippertronics concept into "Soundscapes", which dramatically expanded the flexibility of the method using digital technology (delays and synthesizers).

ostinato


in music, an ostinato (derived from Italian: stubborn, compare English: 'obstinate') is a motif or phrase, that persistently repeats in the same musical voice, usually at the same pitch. The best-known ostinato-based piece may be Ravel's Boléro.[1]

an ostinato is always a succession of equal sounds, where each note has the same weight or stress. 
The repeating idea may be a rhythmic pattern, part of a tune, or a complete melodyin itself.[2] 
Both ostinatos and ostinati are accepted English plural forms, the latter reflecting the word's Italian etymology

strictly speaking, ostinati should have exact repetition, but in common usage, the term covers repetition with variation 
and development, such as the alteration of an ostinato line to fit changing harmonies or keys
if the cadence may be regarded as the cradle of tonality, the ostinato patterns can be considered the playground in 
which it grew strong and self-confident.

—edward e. lewinsky

sampling


in musicsampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a sound recording in a different song or piece.
originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically manipulated tape loops orvinyl records on a phonograph by the late 1960s, the use of tape loop sampling influenced the development of minimalist music and the production ofpsychedelic rock and jazz fusion.