David Sprouse

21 hours ago, Michael Vogel ( MUDGEL) said:

This discussion has really helped me understand my motivation for sharing these thoughts in the first place.

Thanks. 

Mike,

I think there's a career in psychology ahead of you!

IT's funny.  Don Quixote was a constant theme in my family as my dad loved the story (and the musical).  Another well written song...Loved the variety of textures.

Are you Lee Ritenour?  Such great chops.  Is that  a live sax, I hope?

Makke,  Haven't seen you in awhile.  I love your style.  Easy to listen to, thanks for posting.

Beautiful song!  Is there a way to get a translation of lyrics?

On 3/21/2020 at 1:23 PM, Johnbee58 said:

Interesting arrangement.  This would work well as background music for a documentary on the subject matter of the picture.

😀John B

Interesting idea John.

On 3/20/2020 at 11:21 AM, freddy j said:

Very creative and inventive indeed.  I particularly like that dissonant sound (brass?) that comes in at the 0:30 mark.  It has been a doggone long time since I have listened to any classical music but if I remember correctly, this reminds me a bit of some of Stravinsky's work.  Well done!

thank you freddy.  I thought the poor kid in the pic with his hands up was like edvard munch's *the scream*.  It's a really powerful picture;  wish I knew more about it.

On 3/19/2020 at 5:09 AM, Wookiee said:

Haunting, abstract and inventive.  Apart for some distortion in the first few bars which I suspect were more Internet than production it sounds OK here David.

Thanks for listening wookie.

Was that Lyndon Johnson who said *very, very troubled soul* in the beginning?  This was a clever assemblAge.  I'm enjoying lemon cream pie whilst I listen,

Oh no! 

You guys really are old.  This is your calling card!  don't disagree with the lyrics though. :D:D  It's just *differAnt* not better or worse.  Pardon my

french.

On 3/15/2020 at 2:52 PM, craigb said:

Song suggestion?

"I've got those Coronavirus blues!"

Craig, did you grow up in pdx?

10 hours ago, Tezza said:

The notion of free will is mainly pushed by those who are in a position to have more choices in the first place. It is a stable of middle class capitalists for example. It goes something like this: People have the freedom to make choices in their lives, those who make good choices will have a successful and happy life and should be respected for their good choices and seen as beacons for the rest of us. Those who make bad choices will have an unsuccessful and unhappy life but it's their fault due to their incompetence in decision making and we should condemn them. They brought it upon themselves.

This is also pushed by various religious authorities who will site their written dogma as being "good choices" and if you deviate from their dogma, you are engaging in "bad choices". This notion of free will and decision making is lapped up by many as it gives us the feeling that we have total control over our lives, it makes us feel safe and secure. All we have to do is make good choices and we will be ok, those who make bad choices, well, they got what they deserve. It follows then that anyone who succeeds has done so because of their great character and decision making but anyone who doesn't make it in our society or struggles, it's their fault for their poor character, bad choices and decision making.

The problem is, people can and do end up "successful" and happy through little input of their own. They are simply born healthy into a family, society and/or business  that is already healthy and prosperous. They lead a sheltered life with little empathy for those less successful because they personally have never experienced hardship. It is essential to their self esteem that they believe they ended up where they did because of their own efforts and that those who are less fortunate ended up where they did due to their incompetence.

Conversely, people can also be born unhealthy into a family and/or society that is poverty ridden with high crime and drugs. From childhood, they learn to navigate their world according to it's rules and what they are physically and mentally capable of doing. Very often, they are just trying to survive within that world. They also very often cannot escape that world because there are no opportunities around them and because they are rejected by the more successful. They also don't have the mental framework or education to allow them to step up and all of their social resources exist in that world. they may also have physical limitations in what they can do.

It is essential to their self esteem that they believe they are doing the best they can given their circumstances and those who are better off than them were either given a silver spoon or are probably rich, distrustful criminals.

Did both these groups of people arrive at their destinations due to exercising their "free will"? We all fall somewhere in between these groups, if not align exactly with them, all of us, no exceptions. Life is more about serendipity, ladders and statistics than it is "free will". We may luckily be born into a favorable environment, we may have the ability to recognize or be given ladders by others so we can step up. These can be simple advice or practical help etc and then we may recognize or not that we can adjust our lives according to statistics. You can control a bit what happens to you by recognizing how to place yourself statistically in life. Don't want cancer? don't smoke, have a good diet and exercise. Don't want a car accident? drive sensibly, own a safe car and don't drive a black car

Maslow's hierarchy  of values shows that in order for anyone to reach a place of "self actualization" where they have control and power over their own direction, a number of other factors have to be taken care of first.

I think what you're getting at is(and I agree) that one has to take into account power relationships.  There's the power of society over us and us over society...etc, etc. most of the pseudo-sciences look at man in his milieu and not him just staring at his navel on some remote deserted island eating a coconut.  

3 hours ago, emeraldsoul said:

I think it's just supposed to be a static picture. ? The music is a bit of a macabre circus. And is inventive. I'd say keep throwing those pics up there , the one you chose I'm not sure if it really fits the tune you wrote. The music is elegant and the pic is, well, not super elegant. I dunno.

I appreciate you  listening, Tom.  I need to reconsider the picture.

Doublas what are you doing up this late?  :D:DThanks for listening.  I'll have to rethink this.

Words are great as usual.   

The flute sounds a little sharp  at times.

:D:D

Dave most folks here are from old Cakewalk site.  I remember you posting there.  Not sure if I heard this then, but it's still great  (if that makes sense.)

Does this work?

http://davidsprouse.bandcamp.com/track/what

... I'm going to start working with pictures.  Here's my first experiment.  It's called *WHAT?*

I wish everyone would write songs with positivity.  You performed it with sincerity.  Kudos.

Who's the chick?  Jesse, you're so versatile:  One minute you're avant garde the next you're playing golf!

You have a nice rock voice!  The vocodor sound is  a unique one.  Sounds like you had fun.

Can't help you with mix, but it's  a great tune.   There's sort of a swiss army knife plugin by UA called K-stereo that is good I hear.  It changes mid/side stuff.   

I get a virus notice when I try to play it!  Looking forward to hearing all 14 minutes wookie.

who wrote the lyrics?  Interesting angle on country music.  This is a good DEMO of your song!

14 hours ago, Toddskins said:

You mean mathematics brainwashing?  Maybe "Don't touch that hot stove?" Or the brainwashing that we should say "thank you" when given a gift?  Or maybe the brainwashing of being polite to our elders.  Or is it the brainwashing about taking a bath/shower so that we do not smell bad and offend others?  Maybe the brainwashing that we should not steal, or murder?

Are those the brain washings to which you refer?

I've been brainwashed by logic.