Soft Machine³ - Arts

Wikimania 2012 proposal accepted: Saving Egon Petri

richardwalker — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 02:26:32 +0000

My proposal to Wikimania 2012 has been accepted! I’ve committed to a presentation no longer than five minutes, so hopefully I can inspire or intrigue, and leave them “wanting more” as the saying goes.

In 2009 I had a unique opportunity and privilege to secure this photo of Egon Petri for the future. In doing so, I learned about Polish copyright law, the public domain, and why so much of 20th century culture will be lost. The tsunami of digital media today washes away our memory of decades past, while the incredibly draconian copyright laws dissuade us from saving it. I ask you to consider how my single small victory against cultural amnesia might inform a discussion on what is possible, likely, or futile. Lifetime plus seventy is enough time to forget why we should care about photos, letters or unpublished works. Should they be stored and catalogued until the copyright term expires, it is probable that natural decay will have made the effort pointless.

Even if the copyright term were restored to something reasonable, we have another problem, and that is the automatic transfer of rights of authorship. One problem comes to light in the litigation against the book The Wind Done Gone. Another problem is how to deal with a deceased person’s possessions. The heir inherits the remaining copyright term, so all of the original works in possession are encumbered by copyright. Even if the heir were willing to release all rights, they do not necessarily know to whom the work is of interest. I argue that inheriting the rights of authorship is simply wrong, and what should be transferred is only the right to profit from the work for the remaining term. The right to profit from someone else’s unpublished work is therefore questionable in my mind.

Let me illustrate an absurdity. Suppose your dear devout Grandmother dies leaving you everything, including evidence of an interesting, secret life. Amongst her belongings is a photograph of her in fragrante delicto with a former President of the United States. The roll of film is clearly hers, taken with her camera. She appears in a few photos by asking people to snap them for her. Thoughtlessly, she dies without filing the proper documents with the authorities, and as the heir, you have now inherited seventy year’s worth of … the right to track down the photographer and get a release. Who is dead.

What if copyright terminated on death? The funeral is an opportunity to share freely and celebrate the deceased, by offering photo albums and other digitized memorabilia. The author’s letters are shared by his friends and fans. The composer’s unfinished music is made available to musicians. The only problem with the above scenario is that corporations never die, and they will never agree to a reduction in copyright. Corporations hold most of the valuable copyright, and in their greed they have made it illegal to save the recent past for the benefit of the near future.

Genius Trolls and Fakes on YouTube (Muppets v. BarelyPolitical)

richardwalker — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 05:20:14 +0000

BarelyPolitical: BEST TROLL EVER ?!?

If you make videos and show them (with comments enabled) on YouTube, you will encounter nasty trolls. Here BarelyPolitical interviews a few “A-list” YouTube-rs on that subject.

The user “TroliPoli” or “TrolyPoly” is a complete fiction, created for the purpose of making fun of trolls. The youngster who plays the troll does a very good job, but I don’t find the “breaking down sobbing” part at the end believable.

The Muppets: Beaker’s Ballad

Muppet genius: Beaker starts to “meemee” a cover of Kansas’ Dust in the Wind when all of the sudden, 4chan- and YouTube- style troll commentary starts interrupting the song. The YouTube “annotations” feature is used to simulate hateful commentary in the video frame itself, as though poor Beaker were enduring the trolls live and in “real time.” Of course, the incendiary comments cause poor Beaker to go up in flames. Most users don’t quite get that it’s a vehicle for satirizing opinionated trolls and as such it’s a perfect piece of meta-commentary. It’s the gestalt of YouTube and 4chan trolling.

Best throw-away line on social media evar:

“Absolutely! Let’s keep Digging until this thing’s buried!”

See Urban Dictionary under “LOLspeak” for a refresher on the lingo.

Mashup culture: the Bootie Nightclub Phenomenon

richardwalker — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 18:00:00 +0000

photo by Leo Herrera

Adrian & Mysterious D, a pair of San Francisco DJ’s, started a monthly “mashup” night at a small club in 2003. Then they moved to the DNA lounge, the current home of Bootie SF. Guest DJs spin their own mashups and live music performances are common. This is all out in the open. Only one mashup track from last year’s “best of” compilation was subject to a complaint from a label, so far.

Bootie is now a small international empire, serving a market that obviously isn’t being served by the music industry. Key to avoiding legal trouble is the way they profit: from people paying the $12 cover charge, minus the cut the venue takes ($15 for special events such as the upcoming seven year anniversary party)

No royalties, no products for sale, just ongoing live events where people are paid to spin or perform.

Check out the reviews on Yelp:

The house band, Smash Up Derby, is FANTASTIC. (in 29 reviews)

In the end, I had a fabulous time drinking and dancing to mash-ups. (in 33 reviews)

The mashups are amazing, and I love the eclectic crowds. (in 38 reviews)

To sell a mashup you would need to negotiate with all rights holders for everything, because there is no compulsory license for such use. Up-front fees for one mashup could run from the thousands to the hundreds of thousands of dollars, just for the privilege of selling it on iTunes. Per-item fees could be greater than total sale price. Only the labels can really sell mashups, which seems to finally be a big deal with the upcoming Gaga remixed album.

That said, most of the mashups premiered at Bootie events are available for free download at their blog.

Other resources:

Disclosure: I’ve met A+D, I’m a fan/friend of theirs, so much so I wanted them to join me and attend Larry Lessig’s “Remix” book gala, but they couldn’t. He wasn’t familiar with A+D at the time.

Performance Nightmares (weddings and funerals)

richardwalker — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 08:55:20 +0000

I just woke myself up from a nightmarish dream about the “gotcha” situations one ends up in as a keyboard player. I have played Puccini’s “O mio babbino caro” at a friend’s wedding, to accompany a singer:

That was no nightmare, except for an incredibly loud noise the piano bench made when I moved it on the concrete patio. One other time I was given the opportunity to play a very old organ at a (Catholic of course) church in Sóller, Mallorca. That was a little nightmarish because there were registers (the reed ones) that were in such a state of disrepair as to be comedic. I should mention that the church was open, and I had a small audience I was told later. I was sight-reading from whatever ancient sheet music I found there.

View Larger Map

So here’s the nightmare: I’m attending a funeral ceremony at the home of an acquaintance / organ maker, high up in a loft area, and all the sudden I find myself part of the ceremony. Somehow I’m being lowered down to the stage area with the singer / shaman woman, who I am to accompany in a rendition of “O mio babbino caro.” I end up at the organ console (in another room) filled with strange things. I’m looking for the familiar 7 white and 5 black, and am distressed that I don’t see the foot pedal register at all. Then the singer helps me activate the lower register where the keys are paired positive and negative feet and hands which must be dragged together to activate a pitch. Which pitch exactly is a mystery.

Of course I have no sheet music and it’s assumed I can remember the part. I think it’s in D flat major, it’s fairly simple. I only mention this dream because it is a recurring theme, one not appreciated by musicians who play portable instruments. It’s very much like being put at the spot at a party, where upon hearing one is a “concert pianist” one is presented with a casio keyboard on which to render Rachmaninoff. Truly, the people who put one in these situations are the stuff of nightmares. Please don’t be one of them!

Savant Location Scouting in Pope Valley (Sheepskin wipe)

richardwalker — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 17:29:21 +0000

Thanks to family connections, Robert was invited to scout a second location in Pope Valley. This beautiful area will be a funeral scene set in the Basque country. There are no sheep on this land, so Robert describes an old-school technique to blend sheep from another shoot into the funeral scene. A sheepskin (or single sheep) can make a wipe unnecessary, so only cuts are needed. This lightens the workload for the editor.

No digital effects have been employed in the film.

View Pope Valley, California in a larger map

Inline Skates from Black Diamond Sports in Palo Alto

richardwalker — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 15:00:45 +0000

A decade of hard use is a good life span for a pair of inline skates.

Richard & Tony skate dancing

After looking hard and doing a bit of research, I discovered that the old “Skates on Haight” retail shop no longer sells inline skates. Not only that, they own skates.com now, a large warehouse, and a worldwide operation. This skater attempted to schedule an appointment to visit the facility, by opening a “service ticket” as the website instructs. They never responded, and I left the ticket open. I told them I would go elsewhere, and make sure skaters know there is no place to buy skates in San Francisco.

I was surprised by and disappointed in this new “online only” sales situation in San Francisco. I needed to speak to a knowledgeable person, and luckily ran across a mention of Black Diamond Sports in Palo Alto.

View Larger Map

As it happens I was traveling there to help a friend with his project by standing in as proxy in a “brainstorming” meeting.

Time was short and logistics complicated, so I called Black Diamond from Caltrain to warn them I was coming and hoped to buy skates. They are ideally located a few blocks from the station, and right away I was trying on a pair, getting expert help from someone who knew his stuff.

Less than thirty minutes later I rolled away with a pair of skates that I couldn’t be happier with. I made it to the meeting with time to spare! As I skated to the station after, it was getting dark, and I was on unfamiliar roads. That was not a problem; my feet now have wheels again, like they did years ago.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Starz, Netflix)

richardwalker — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 20:37:27 +0000

DISCLAIMER: Adult content, explicit sex, explicit language, nudity, exaggerated violence (not gratuitous)

Starz Cable site for Spartacus:

Betrayed by the Romans. Forced into slavery. Reborn as a Gladiator. The classic tale of the Republic’s most infamous rebel comes alive in the graphic and visceral new series. Torn from his homeland and the woman he loves, Spartacus is condemned to the brutal world of the arena where blood and death are primetime entertainment. But not all battles are fought upon the sands. Treachery, corruption, and the allure of sensual pleasures will constantly test Spartacus. To survive, he must become more than a man. More than a gladiator. He must become a legend.

Starring Australian actor, Andy Whitfield (McLeod’s Daughters) as Spartacus, Lucy Lawless (“Xena: Warrior Princess”) as Lucretia, John Hannah (The Mummy, Four Weddings and A Funeral) as Batiatus and Peter Mensah (300, The Incredible Hulk) as Doctore, this unique mix of live action, graphic novel effects and brutal battle sequences is set to make this an epic television event.

A unique aspect of this series is the content arrangement between Starz and Netflix, seen here at “Starz Play” — making the episodes available immediately on Netflix Watch Instantly.

Netflix Watch Instantly: Spartacus Blood and Sand

Tragically, the star of the show, Andy Whitfield, was recently diagnosed with early-stage Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It is hoped that he can make a full recovery and continue with the already-renewed second season.

Wikipedia: Spartacus Blood and Sand

On December 22, 2009, it was announced that the show was renewed for a second season before even premiering.^[2]However, on March 9, 2010, IGN.com reported that the production of Season 2 has been delayed due to star Andy Whitfield being diagnosed with early-stage Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.^[3] According to the weekly New York magazine, due to the delay, Starz is developing a six-episode prequel to Spartacus: Blood and Sand.^[4]

Friday April 16, 2010, the first series concludes with episode 13 titled “Kill Them All”
IMDB.com: Andy Whitfield
IESB.net: Interview: Andy Whitfield Talks
EW.com: This Just In: ‘Spartacus’ delayed as star Andy Whitfield undergoes cancer treatment
Prnewswire.com: ‘Spartacus: Blood and Sand’ Takes Battle Worldwide in Time for MIP-TV

“Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” a ratings over-achiever on Starz in the U.S., the Movie Network and Movie Central in Canada and RTL5 in the Netherlands since it premiered earlier this year, the 13-episode program has just launched or is launching soon on:

Bravo TV in the UK, premiering May 25;

LAPTV’s MovieCity Pack in Latin America;

OCN in South Korea, where it premiered April 9;

HBO Central Europe in 14 territories across the region;

And on Star Channel in Japan.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand - Official Trailer

White Teeth - book adaptation by Channel 4 & WGBH on Hulu

richardwalker — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:23:41 +0000

White Teeth on Hulu

Four episodes, just under one hour each. A collaboration between Channel Four and WGBH.

A sparkling, epic comedy adapted by Simon Burke (Tom Jones) from the award-winning debut novel by Zadie Smith. White Teeth tells the story of three families living in Willesden, northwest London. Their lives, present and past, entertwine comically and explosively over three decades in the melting pot of modern Britain.

It is Channel Four content available for free in the U.S., which is unusual. Also it lacks an expiration date, and is apparently unavailable on DVD anywhere. Watch it, and thank me later.

Ronald Helfrich reviewed this show. It’s here!!!!!

White Teeth, Channel 4’s excellent adaptation of Zadie Smith’s prize winning novel, is television at its absolute best. What a pity that Channel 4 doesn’t make em like this and Tales of the City any more. And what a pity that White Teeth is not available on DVD in the UK or in the USA while tons of shows and movies that are no where near as good are. Come on Channel 4 and PBS.

Richard Walker commented on the review “It’s here!!!!!”

I wish there were more people here like you. I didn’t realize Channel 4 has changed… It’s odd that the DVDs aren’t available — but I’m sure the legal issues are enormous, being an adaptation and a Channel 4 & WGBH collaboration. It’s been available since it appeared here…. no apparent “expire” date. Curiouser and curiouser… .

Had trouble embedding 3 & 4 — but they are available at the link at top, and by browsing “more episodes” after the above finish playing.

De Profundis by Frederic Rzewski for piano and voice (Oscar Wilde, Lisa Moore)

richardwalker — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 07:36:25 +0000

Frederic RzewskiI suspect the microphone you see in front of Lisa isn’t turned on, as the voice part is barely audible.

My discovery of Rzewski’s (zheff-skee) music is thanks to Sarah Cahill’s radio program Then and Now on KALW. I consider this work to be very important. It is a piece by a living composer, played by a wonderful performer, incorporating passages of a work of tragic literature by a noted historical figure.

Demands on the pianist include speaking, whistling, laughing, humming, sighing, moaning, whispering, snapping, slapping, and the use of a bicycle horn. Present in the work is a fluency in many genres and techniques — including fugue, impressionism, post-romanticism and poly-tonality — all serving to illustrate and highlight the text. Also quite effective is the combination of finger drumming on the keyboard lid, shaking and hitting the piano, and whispering, during passages where Wilde addresses his vivid memories of time spent with “Bosie.”

Buy Lisa’s album Which Side Are You On - Music Of Frederic Rzewski from Amazon.

Lisa Moore

Oscar Wilde

Yamaha Vocaloid robot singer (with robot piano)

richardwalker — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 01:39:48 +0000

The embedded video shows a robot powered by the Vocaloid “voice synthesis” software. The movements and expressions were pre-programmed, but the generation of the singing voice from lyrics and score can be done in real-time apparently.

The piano is a Yamaha Disklavier of course, being controlled by the same program that is controlling the Vocaloid robot. This is a good example of state-of-the-art synthesis technology, and sounds natural and human to my ears.

The inputs for Vocaloid are:

phonemes (lyrics)
vocal line (music)
expression (stresses, vibrato, etc.)

The inputs for Disklavier are:

precise key presses
precise pedal controls

Other inputs for the robot shown in the video are for mouth, face and head movements.

Wikipedia: Vocaloid (Crypton Future Media)

The Character Vocal Series is a computer music program that synthesizes singing in Japanese. Developed by Crypton Future Media, it utilizes Yamaha’s Vocaloid 2 technology with specially recorded vocals of voice actors. To create a song, the user must input the melody and lyrics. A piano roll type interface is used to input the melody and the lyrics can be entered on each note. The software can change the stress of the pronunciations, add effects such as vibrato, or change the dynamics and tone of the voice.

The series is intended for professional musicians as well as light computer music users. The programmed vocals are designed to sound like an idol singer from the future. According to Crypton, because professional singers refused to provide singing data, in fear that the software might create their singing voice’s clones, Crypton changed their focus from imitating certain singers to creating characteristic vocals. This change of focus led to sampling vocals of voice actors.^[11]

Each Japanese Vocaloid is given an anime-type character with specifications on age, height, weight, and musical strengths (genre, pitch range and ideal tempos). The characters of the first three installments of the series are created by illustrator Kei.

Any rights or obligations arising from the vocals created by the software belong to the software user. Just like any music synthesizer, the software is treated as a musical instrument and the vocals as sound. Under the term of license, the Character Vocal Series software can be used to create vocals for commercial or non-commercial use as long as the vocals do not offend public policy. In other words, the user is bound under the term of license with Crypton not to synthesize derogatory or disturbing lyrics. On the other hand, copyrights to the mascot image and name belong to Crypton. Under the term of license, a user cannot commercially distribute a vocal as a song sung by the character, nor use the mascot image on commercial products, without Crypton’s consent.

It is encouraging to read that “professional singers refused to provide singing data” because, as you were warned in The Performing Pianist (a pocket primer, 2002), page 27 (Digital vs. Analog):

Pianists are for the most part analog creatures. They may be transformed into digital entities by such things as the glorified player piano, the Yamaha Disklavier. This hybrid machine digitally and precisely captures the manipulations of the keys and pedals, also known as performance capture, which can then be reproduced exactly, ad infinitum, on the analog piano. A lazy individual could purchase and not play this instrument, thus avoiding the need to hire (or bribe) musicians, take lessons, or even go to concerts. This is not in the best interests of the art form. You should consider carefully the degree to which you agree to be digitized…