BORROW 8 ITEMS AND STAND A CHANCE TO WIN A PAIR OF TICKETS TO ~THE IMPERIAL ICE STARS~
CINDERELLA ON ICE!

All items must be borrowed from library@esplanade.

• Write your Name, NRIC, Telephone Number and Email at the back of the receipt.

• Promotion ends 31 Jul 2009.

• Tickets issued are not exchangeable

*Terms and Conditions apply

Postcards from Spain
Fri, 31 Jul 09
6.30pm – 7.00pm
library@esplanade

Speaker: Mona Lim, music consultant, educator and composer

This July, embark on an exhilarating journey with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra’s Pre-Concert Talks as we bring you two exciting Fridays of musical discoveries. Join Ms Mona Lim as she brings music to life with captivating tales of distinguished composers and their selected works.

********

SSO Pre-Concert Talks

Want to know interesting facts about the music and composers to be performed by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra?

Join our speakers one hour prior to selected concerts as they pour their passion and energy into bringing music alive for the novice and the experienced music lover alike.

Our talks are informal, informative and interactive. Get the most out of your concert-going experience by attending the concert after each pre-concert talk!

Admission to all Pre-Concert Talks is free.

********

For ticketing and other information, please visit the SSO website.

To the answer proper then.

To say the least, this is a complex question on which debates and discussions continue to wage today. Based on what I’ve read about this topic, I think one can conclude that while music and mathematics share similarities and may be tightly-related, there is no proven, direct link between the two subjects.

To begin, let’s look at how H.L.F. Helmhotz describes music and mathematics as highly contrasting, yet inseparable “intellectual activities”:

Mathematics and Music, the most sharply contrasted fields of intellectual activity which one can discover, and yet bound together, supporting one another as if they would demonstrate the hidden bond which draws together all activities of our mind, and which also in the revelations of artistic genius leads us to surmise unconscious expressions of a mysteriously active intelligence (qtd. in Archibald 1).

Bonded they may be, but note how Helmhotz characterises this tie between the two subjects as a “hidden bond”. One might then say that mathematics and music are not exactly one and the same, and while somehow seemingly related, the link might perhaps be tenuous at best.

We only have to refer to Guy Warrack’s wry observation on this supposition to understand why the study of one does not necessarily mean you’ll excel in the other:

How often has it been said in conversation that ‘Music and Mathematics go together’? It is certainly no more absurd than most other such generalizations, but it is certainly no less so . . . Certainly many mathematicians are interested in music, and many musicians in mathematics, but that proves nothing. It would be easy to point to at least as many tone-deaf mathematicians and to as many musicians whose idea of mathematics is making an income-tax return ([and] probably getting it wrong) (Warrack 21).

What then, are we left with when we talk about Music and Mathematics? Professor Thomas Fiore gives a good suggestion:

Music and Mathematics are intricately related [but there] is not an equation that will model all works of music and we should not spend time looking for it. Nevertheless, there are certain mathematical structures inherent in all works of music, and these mathematical structures are not given by equations. The language of mathematics is a convenient tool for comprehending and communicating this underlying structure . . . [so as] to find a good way to hear a piece of music and to communicate that way of hearing (Fiore 5).

Needless to say, everyone will have his or her own ideas how best to listen to a piece of music, music theorists, mathematicians and musicians included.

Here then, is a list of selected journal articles that explore the relationship between music and mathematics, between art and science, between structure and flow within the enclosure of our minds:

[i]
Boettcher,Wendy S., et al. “Mathematics and Music: A Search for Insight into Higher Brain Function.” Leonardo Music Journal 4 (1994): 53-58. http:// www.jstor.org/stable/1513181. 16 Dec 2008.

Abstract:
A profound problem of historical origin and continuing interest is the relationships and similarities among higher brain functions relating to music, mathematics and chess. The authors present the results of detailed interviews with 14 professors of mathematics concerning their research and possible relationships between mathematics and music. The results provide interesting insights into higher brain function, suggesting a common theme of pattern development. In addition, the authors propose some new behavioral experiments.

[ii]
Hsu, Kenneth J., et al. “Fractal Geometry of Music.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 87.3 (Feb 1990): 938-941. http:// www.jstor.org/stable/2353742. 16 Dec 2008.

Abstract:
Music critics have compared Bach’s music to the precision of mathematics. What “mathematics” and what “precision” are the questions for a curious scientist. The purpose of this short note is to suggest that the mathematics is, at least in part, Mandelbrot’s fractal geometry and the precision is the deviation from a log-log linear plot.

[iii]
Vaughn, Kathryn. “Music and Mathematics: Modest Support for the Oft-Claimed Relationship.” Journal of Aesthetic Education 34.3/4. 2000: 149-166. http:// www.jstor.org/stable/3333641. 16 Dec 2008.

Librarian’s note:
This article investigates the relationship between music and mathematics based on the supposition that “if music is based on mathematical principles, and if an understanding of music requires some understanding of these principles, then it is possible that music education can lead to an improved understanding.” Its focus is on the relation between music and mathematics in education.

[iv]
Budden, F. J. “Modern Mathematics and Music.” The Mathematical Gazette 51.377 (Oct 1967): 204-215. http:// www.jstor.org/stable/3613237. 16 Dec 2008.

Librarian’s note:
Mr. Budden talks music with mathematical formula. A technical discussion of music and mathematics that should be rewarding for readers with an aptitude for both. Which basically means not me, heh heh.

[v]
Henle, Jim. “Classical Mathematics.” The American Mathematical Monthly 103.1 (Jan 1996): 18-29. http:// www.jstor.org/stable/2975210. 16 Dec 2008.

Librarian’s note:
An interesting treatise that argues that it is not music that is mathematical; instead it is mathematics that is musical.

[vi]
Siddharthan, Rahul. “Music, Mathematics and Bach.” Indian Institute of Science. http://www.iisc.ernet.in/. 16 Dec 2008.

Librarian’s note:
Mr. Siddharthan delves into the science of music with Bach as his focus.

List of Works Cited

• Archibald, R. C. . “Mathematicians and Music.” The American Mathematical Monthly 31.1 (Jan 1924): 1-25. http:// www.jstor.org/stable/2298868. 16 Dec 2008.

• Fiore, Thomas M. “Music and Mathematics.” Lectures on Mathematical Music Theory. http://www.math.uchicago.edu/~fiore/1/musictotal.pdf. 16 Dec 2008.

• Warrack, Guy. “Music and Mathematics.” Music & Letters 26.1 (Jan 1945): 21-27. http:// www.jstor.org/stable/727804. 16 Dec 2008.

Note:

It isn’t quite possible for me to go into the historical breadth and depth of analysis that has been devoted to this question, so for a good overview, do consider looking up the entry, “Numbers and music” in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Vol. 18. This is available at the library@esplanade.

Title: The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
Editor: Stanley Sadie
Call No.: RART q780.3 NEW v. 18
For Reference Only
Location: Arts Central

Another useful book for further reading would be Leon Harkleroad’s The Math Behind the Music:

Title: The Math Behind the Music
Author: Leon Harkleroad
Call No.: R 510 HAR
For Reference Only at Lee Kong Chian Reference Library

Read on to find out how! (more…)

Thanks to its bold melodies and heroic spirit, Beethoven’s fifth and last piano concerto “Emperor” remains one of his most popular compositions. What is it about this work that makes it legendary? Join Dr Rebecca Kan as she brings new insights into one of the great concertos in the repertory.

According to Don Herbison-Evans*,

the origins of the convention of progressing anti-clockwise around the ballroom dancefloor are obscure. It was clearly already evident in the the early 19th Century, when the Viennese Waltz became popular. Paradoxically this was achieved by only dancing ‘natural turns’, in which the couple turns clockwise. Not until the 20th Century did the ‘reverse turn’ become equally popular. Progressing anticlockwise while dancing the anticlockwise ‘reverse turns’ requires considerable skill and practice, and until the 20th Century was considered antisocial.

Perhaps the convention arose much earlier when dancing was disapproved of by the Church, and dancing was the [sic] associated with witches, and hence had to progress ‘widdershins’. Alternatively, perhaps doing ‘natural turns’ was considered more natural, as the turning direction was the same as the movement of the sun (in the Northern Hemisphere), and the anticlockwise progression around the floor was found by inexperienced dancers to be easier doing these turns.

Another possibility is that it has something to do with the men wearing swords on their left hip. This was the normal position for a scabbard, as it enabled the sword to be drawn more easily with the right hand than if the sword were worn on the right hip. Thus in an Allemande, the lady would normally be on the man’s right to avoid tripping over the scabbard, and it would be reasonable to progress anticlockwise, putting the man inside the circle, to avoid hitting the legs of the audience with the scabbard also (Herbison-Evans).

The last theory, that the anti-clockwise direction of ballroom dancing has its roots in men wearing swords on their left hip, is also mentioned by another website, DanceTutors.co.uk.

In addition, they suggest it may also have something to do with the lengths of the ladies’ skirts. As the experts from DanceTutors, with reference to the “closed hold [of hands when dancing]” write:

The ‘closed hold’ descended from the courts of Western Europe. It probably saw its origins around the 1500s, when men carried swords on their left side. As a result, ladies danced on the right of the man. In making turning, the men traditionally took the inside of the circle, to avoid hitting the surrounding audience with their sword. Also, ladies could not promenade backwards as the length of their skirts would become caught beneath their feet, As a result, couples promenaded anti-clockwise, which is why modern ballroom dances progress anti-clockwise around the floor (”The History of Ballroom Dancing”).

Finally, as books like The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Ballroom Dancing and The Complete Book of Ballroom Dancing explain, there is a very practical reason to standardise the movement of dancers around the dance floor: “It is a matter of courtesy to other dancers on the floor, and if everyone follows this progression there is less likelihood of interference or collision between couples” (Stephenson & Iaccarino 67) and also, a determined movement pattern like this helps to “maximise the available space for dance couples (Allen 122).

*Mr. Herbison-Evans is a member of the Advisory Panel of the Bachelor in Dance Education degree at the Australian College for Physical Education.

List of Works Cited

• Allen, Jeff.  The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Ballroom Dancing. Indianapolis, IN: Alpha, 2002. Call No.: q793.33 ALL
  

• Herbison-Evans, Don. “Symmetry and Dance.” 16 Jan 2009. http://linus.socs.uts.edu.au/~don. 19 Jan 2009.

• Stephenson, Richard M., Joseph Iaccarino. The Complete Book of Ballroom Dancing. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1992. Call No.: q793.33 STE

• “The History of Ballroom Dancing.” DanceTutors.co.uk. 19 Jan 2009. http://www.dancetutors.co.uk/TheHistoryOfBallroomDancing.html. 19 Jan 2009.

The audience will be privy to acoustic performances, interviews and artist trivia! Lending a local flavour to this intimate chat room series are hosts and local musicians Jack and Rai.

14 Mar 09, Sat
3.45 – 4.15pm: Mike Stern Band
4.30 – 5.00pm: The Yellowjackets
5.15 – 5.45pm: of Montreal
6.00 – 6.30pm: Claudia Acuña

15 Mar 09, Sun
3.45 – 4.15pm: TypeWriter
4.30 – 5.00pm: Indigo Girls
5.15 – 5.45pm: Jon Chan
6.00 – 6.30pm: Mocca

21 Mar 09, Sat
3.00 - 3.30pm: Naturally 7
3.45 – 4.15pm: Aiza Seguerra
5.15 – 5.45pm: Andre Harihandoyo and Sonic People
6.00 – 6.30pm: Wolfgang

Please visit the official Mosaic Music Festival 2009 website for more information!

Changes to Library Policy
From 1 April 2009, the following policy changes will be implemented:

Disruption of Borrowing Privileges

Members with unpaid library fines and fees will have their borrowing privileges disrupted. They can immediately start to borrow again once they pay up the outstanding amount.

With this policy, members can no longer accumulate unpaid library fines and fees.

Removal of Renewal Fee

The $0.50 renewal fee will be removed for each borrowed item to encourage members to renew their borrowed materials when necessary.

The current policy of allowing each borrowed item to be renewed once will remain unchanged. Audiovisual materials also cannot be renewed.

All borrowed items can only be renewed before or on the due date. Items which have been reserved by other patrons cannot however be renewed.

“Members who return borrowed materials promptly will not be affected and the policy changes will not cause any additional burden to the general public financially.”

Source: NLB press release.

Sign up for our Free Reminder Services by clicking on the cartoons above!

Guest Speaker: Leng Sher Lyn, Music Educator

Written out of admiration for Napoleon, Beethoven’s heroic symphony, Eroica, marks the beginning of his career’s second phase – a phase in which his music was greatly influenced by his deafness.

Find out more from Leng Sher Lyn as she brings you on a discovery journey of the composer and his masterpiece.

********

SSO Pre-Concert Talks

Want to know interesting facts about the music and composers to be performed by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra?

Join our speakers one hour prior to selected concerts as they pour their passion and energy into bringing music alive for the novice and the experienced music lover alike.

Our talks are informal, informative and interactive. Get the most out of your concert-going experience by attending the concert after each pre-concert talk!

Admission to all Pre-Concert Talks is free.

********

For ticketing and other information on SSO’s performance of Beethoven Festival: Eroica, please visit the SSO website.

Deb and Claire are friends who are both singer-songwriter. Deb writes most of her songs on the guitar whilst Claire pens most of her songs on the piano and together they create tulips and bougainvilleas . . . in a musical sense.

Deb’s inspirations come during insomniac nights and lazy mornings, when she is busy coaxing her guitar to sing. Claire picks up her pen to write when her imagination is fired up by anything from jingles to children’s music videos to bad eighties’ campy films.

The type of songs they like to write range from pseudo-canto-pop to psych folk, but generally, most of these songs fall under the big umbrella of folk-pop music. So when they get together, they see eye to eye and hear ear to ear… and make their music bloom!

Folk-Pop in Tulips and Bougainvilleas: this is the garden of music that Claire and Deb has cultivated and tended for many years. And it is from this garden that they wish to bring you a bouquet of songs written from their hearts and watered with their tears, shouts, laughter, split coffee and ink from runny pens.

Giving this gorgeous bouquet that extra sexy, is a special guest, Thomas, from local old-school indie rock band, Leeson, who will spice up the session with his cool licks and groovy grooves…

So be at the library for FTB! Folkpop in Tulips and Bougainvilleas!!!

(Ed: Feel free to check out Deb’s previous musings for the library@esplanade blog.)