Blog by Sumana Harihareswara, Changeset founder
Notes Notes
Hi, reader. I wrote this in 2011 and it's now more than five years old. So it may be very out of date; the world, and I, have changed a lot since I wrote it! I'm keeping this up for historical archive purposes, but the me of today may 100% disagree with what I said then. I rarely edit posts after publishing them, but if I do, I usually leave a note in italics to mark the edit and the reason. If this post is particularly offensive or breaches someone's privacy, please contact me.
Karaoke lesson: I do not actually know the lyrics or melodies of pop songs. At least, not the ones I pick. As it turns out, "I'll Be There" by Mariah Carey has many words and notes with which I was previously unfamiliar, which shows the difference between hearing a song a million times and listening to that song even once. But "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash, "Sunday Morning" by No Doubt, "Part Of Your World" from The Little Mermaid, the songs others my age have chosen, those I can sing. Funny how developing a karaoke repertoire is partially a matter of discovering what songs you already know, a preexisting natural resource.
If I were a committed filker, I would attend karaoke nights and sing my own compositions to the tunes of pop tunes. Karaoke-friendly instrumental tracks are audio exploitables, after all. I am also envisioning a karaoke/Dance Dance Revolution hybrid game.
Comments
Kat
mindspillage.org
26 Feb 2011, 10:51 a.m.
Avram
http://agrumer.livejournal.com/
27 Feb 2011, 1:23 a.m.
Isn't Rock Band already a karaoke/DDR hybrid?
Rock Band is also the game that taught me the lesson you just learned. "Oh, hey, Beck's 'E-Pro', I know that." And then it turns out no I don't!
"If I were a committed filker, I would attend karaoke nights and sing my own compositions to the tunes of pop tunes."
I have done this! Unfortunately the group that I went with was at a conference--most people I know won't even do karaoke, much less with made-up words...