​

Songs without words – these tracks provide examples of how humans created sounds with inanimate objects. There is variety in the rhythms. The range of frequencies reflect the spectrum of sounds that humans could hear, record, and replay.

 

1. "Melancholy Blues,\" performed by Louis Armstrong and his Hot Seven. 3:05,

This track represents how a human can sing with an instrument other than vocal chords. The song begins with the sound of a metallic wind-blown instrument, which is soon accompanied by percussion, wind and string instruments. The sounds are produced to a skipping rhythm with the metallic wind-blown instrument playing as the lead voice.

 

2. Azerbaijan S.S.R.\, bagpipes\, recorded by Radio Moscow. 2:30,

This track has a single chord created by human breath, stored within the cured organ of an animal. The organ holds the human’s breath such that it can provide a base sound that lasts the length of the song, upon which pipes powered by the same breath are played. The drone of the chord shows the human ingenuity in extending sound beyond a single lungful of air.

​

3. Beethoven\, String Quartet No. 13 in B flat\, Opus 130\, Cavatina\, performed by Budapest String Quartet. 6:37

This track reveals the intricacies of variation upon a theme. A group of string instruments whose strings differ in length take turns reproducing variations of the same melody, moving from extrapolations back to the repeated stanza.

 

4. China\, ch'in\, "Flowing Streams,\" performed by Kuan P'ing-hu. 7:37,

This track reveals the reverb of a metal string instrument. The plucking of the strings over a sound board allows for the sounds to echo slightly before fading into the next note. The flow of the reverb elicits the idea of water for humans, and perhaps will bring the idea of continuation to the listener.

 

5. Peru\ panpipes and drum\, collected by Casa de la Cultura\, Lima. 0:52,

This track is a consistent repetition of drums and pipes. It evokes the idea that repeating rhythms may have been used in rites in human cultures.

 

6. Stravinsky\, Rite of Spring\, Sacrificial Dance\, Columbia Symphony Orchestra\, Igor Stravinsky\, conductor. 4:35,

This track represents musical dissonance. This feels like the most different piece of instrumental music in the entirety of the tracks. It shows how the same instruments (strings and percussions) could be used to create an entirely different sensation. Will the listener feel the urgency and the chaos?

 

Songs with words – these tracks provide examples of how human voices are used in the space of music. Messages are conveyed in the words, the volume, the speed, and the emphasis of each sound made by a human.

 

7. Bulgaria\, "Izlel je Delyo Hagdutin\," sung by Valya Balkanska. 4:59,

This song includes the human female voice. It reflects the track with the bagpipes. The human voice is sung upon a background drone. Will the listener notice this similarity?

 

8. India\, raga\, "Jaat Kahan Ho\," sung by Surshri Kesar Bai Kerkar. 3:30,

This song includes the human male voice, creating vocalisations that move up and down the vocal range, accompanied by a wind, a string, and a percussion instrument. The wind instrument follows the human’s voice, providing a musical shadow to the song.

 

9. Mozart\, The Magic Flute\, Queen of the Night aria\, no. 14. Edda Moser\, soprano. Bavarian State Opera\, Munich\, Wolfgang Sawallisch\, conductor. 2:55,

This mixes the string orchestra with the human female voice. This extravagant aria shows the incredible range that a female singer may have. It also shows how a single musical piece may vary in volume, rhythm, and emotion.

​

10. Peru\, wedding song\, recorded by John Cohen. 0:38,

This is once more a song with a human female voice. This is sung solo. It represents the ability of the human to carry a song with just the power of their own vocal chords as the instrument. This song shows that the human is able to repeatedly sing the same notes