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Happy 80th Birthday Wendy Carlos


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Electronic music legend Wendy Carlos (of "Switched-On Bach" fame) is 80 years young today! The Moogseum, which is part of the Bob Moog Foundation, shared this article from the pop culture website Messy Nessy Chic. I was initially tempted to dish out some snark about the headline (you've never heard of her? really?) but the article is well-written and respectful, and a decent introduction for those who have indeed never heard of her. I'm ambivalent about how it leads with her being transgendered. On one hand, it provides a role model for anyone who may be dealing with this issue themselves; on the other, it's a legit question whether sensationalizing the identity of LGBTQIA people, even in a positive way, is a boost or an obstacle on the path to normalization and equality. There is no doubt that coming out about it in a public interview in 1978 showed tremendous courage, especially for a musician with a high public profile. At any rate, please feel free to share how her music has affected, influenced, and inspired you. In my case, "Switched-On Bach," which my pianist mother got me because she thought it would make me pay more attention to classical music, was one of the first records that made me want a synthesizer. When I had enough money from chores and odd neighborhood jobs, I'd seek out other albums that had "Moog" in the title or description, and in the late '70s there were plenty. I remember in particular a Star Wars soundtrack cover by some folks calling themselves the Electric Moog Orchestraâas the original John Williams soundtrack double-album was beyond my reach (until Christmas, when I received it as a gift. On 8-track.) I was always utterly hypnotized by how unlike the piano, a note could change character over time.

Stephen Fortner

Principal, Fortner Media

Former Editor in Chief, Keyboard Magazine

Digital Piano Consultant, Piano Buyer Magazine

 

Industry affiliations: Antares, Arturia, Giles Communications, MS Media, Polyverse

 

 

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In my case, "Switched-On Bach," which my pianist mother got me because she thought it would make me pay more attention to classical music, was one of the first records that made me want a synthesizer.

 

Well, THAT one back-fired! :confused:

 

The Law of Unintended Consequences Strikes Again.

Muzikteechur is Lonnie, in Kittery, Maine.

 

HS music teacher: Concert Band, Marching Band, Jazz Band, Chorus, Music Theory, AP Music Theory, History of Rock, Musical Theatre, Piano, Guitar, Drama.

 

 

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Happy birthday Wendy! SOB was an absolutely huge record when it came out. I bought it immediately. I remember watching a segment with Wendy on one of the morning shows (Good Morning America?) where they interviewed her and played a track from the album. They also had a big Moog sitting there blinking away but not actually doing anything.

 

I had known about synthesizers for a year or two. I had the Nonesuch Guide and had checked out the local University's Putney. But while the EMS made some interesting noises, the sheer musicality of that album had a huge impact. I was instantly hooked and immediately started saving for my first synth.

Moe

---

 

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I was working in a record store when Switched On Bach came out and was a big seller and a constant seller for years afterwards. I remember listening to it and getting excited about synths and classical music being I was a young rocker then. Happy Birthday Wendy and thanks for opening my ears to more sounds.
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I was just listening to "By Request" and marveling at what a well-mastered modular can do, so the topic is timely. 80. That's hard to parse, but it might explain part of her lack of releases in recent years. Its esthetically and metaphysically wrong that her work is not in an active catalog for purchase. I was knocked out by even the iffy synth records of the SOB time, but Wendy is a separate, higher form of life. Her breadth exceeds that of anyone else in the general arena. If I want to show anyone what they're up against as a standard for modular playing, I put on the full version of "Timesteps." Its the perfect balance between classical precision, a major lesson in synthing and a solid reason to fire up a spleef. :puff::clap:

 "I want to be an intellectual, but I don't have the brainpower.
  The absent-mindedness, I've got that licked."
        ~ John Cleese

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Clockwork Orange soundtrack changed my life at a young age in a haunting and unforgettable way. My dad had the vinyl and somehow didn't realize that it had a lot of graphic pictures from the film (nudity and ultraviolence) but I loved listening to the jarring synth sounds as a young kid in the early-mid '70s. Proudly, I still have this album and the same turntable in my listening room.

 

Happy birthday, Wendy,

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When SOB came out I was in high school. My friend had just bought an Electrocomp 101 and we started making multi-track recordings using the synth, a marimba, a piano... inspired by and poorly emulating Wendy's ground-breaking work. All the Bach interpretations were amazing, but when her album from A Clockwork Orange came out I was transfixed and transformed. Just stunning...
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Electronic music legend Wendy Carlos (of "Switched-On Bach" fame) is 80 years young today...

 

My experience is almost identical to yours, Stephen. My parents weren't musicians, but nurtured my skills and threw everything at me including SOB. It changed the trajectory of my life and that's not an overstatement. Somewhere in the depths of an old Facebook archive is a picture of me with WC, an encounter that left me speechless. "Thank you" is about all I mustered.

 

Timesteps and Pompous Circumstances should be required listening in any electronic music, orchestration or composition curriculum. They're flawless. I'd like to revisit Beauty in the Beast but I can't find my cassette copy. I seem to remember really enjoying it much to the chagrin of my band mates who shared the commute.

 

Happy birthday, Wendy.

9 Moog things, 3 Roland things, 2 Hammond things and a computer with stuff on it

 

 

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