HOW ABOUT I JUST DON'T PLAY
January 2, 2017 1:03 PM   Subscribe

 
The tuba story in there is great
posted by DowBits at 1:19 PM on January 2, 2017 [1 favorite]


Would ffffff be white noise?
posted by evidenceofabsence at 1:49 PM on January 2, 2017 [17 favorites]




How many fs are there, Jean-Luc?
posted by tobascodagama at 2:04 PM on January 2, 2017 [8 favorites]


The tuba story reminded me of one of my experiences in Beginning Band back in jr. high. The first few days of class involved the band director teaching each section individually how to make the required noise with their mouthpiece, so it was a while before whole sections started playing a note together with their entire instruments.

When he eventually got around to directing the tuba section to play a note together, it was...well, remember those old WWII movies on TV, with shots of a squadron of propeller-engined bombers flying toward their destination? That is exactly what 5 or 6 brand new barely-trained tuba players sound like when asked to play in "unison".
posted by Greg_Ace at 2:06 PM on January 2, 2017 [9 favorites]


24 fortes = ninety-sixtes, right?
posted by oneswellfoop at 2:10 PM on January 2, 2017 [1 favorite]


I get your joke, evidenceofabsence.
posted by maryr at 2:13 PM on January 2, 2017 [2 favorites]


Oh. I get jokes.
posted by thelonius at 2:14 PM on January 2, 2017 [9 favorites]


Interestingly, Donald Byrd's Extremes of Musical Notation page (previously on MeFi) only lists pieces going up to 8 f's. I suspect that the example of 24 f's is actually in a wind band arrangement of Fucik's original piece, but beyond that I'm not sure why it wouldn't qualify.
posted by Johnny Assay at 2:16 PM on January 2, 2017


I suspect that the example of 24 f's is actually in a wind band arrangement of Fucik's original piece

this is what a Youtube commenter says:

Dear tumblr people...the original doesn't have 8 f's. The original never gets above fortissimo...that was just that arrangement

posted by thelonius at 2:19 PM on January 2, 2017


Yo Johnny Wallflower, Imma let you finish but Julius Fučík had one of the most famous tunes of all time
posted by languagehat at 2:52 PM on January 2, 2017 [2 favorites]


Hahaha. This is great. Band geek love.
posted by limeonaire at 3:26 PM on January 2, 2017


THERE ARE FOUR F'S!

Yes, I immediately went there, too, tobascodagama
posted by greermahoney at 5:08 PM on January 2, 2017 [2 favorites]


but this goes to eleven.
posted by ardgedee at 5:54 PM on January 2, 2017


This seems like a good time to bring back this classic.
posted by 4ster at 7:29 PM on January 2, 2017 [3 favorites]


Thank you for putting the 24 fs inside the post as it made it that much more amusing to come upon.
posted by fungible at 7:38 PM on January 2, 2017


Presentation Is Everything
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 8:46 PM on January 2, 2017




I tell my middle school orchestra students that fff is "As loud as you can get play without making a garbage sound" and even that is a big task for my sensitive quiet orchkids. If they saw 24 fs my delicate nerds would probably faint. Or at least wilt significantly, it really doesn't take much.
posted by charmedimsure at 11:27 PM on January 2, 2017


I was in orchestra but once I was playing a Wagner ffff and snapped my bow right in half.

It stands for ffffuckin Wagner, you just cost me ffffour hundred dollars!
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 12:44 AM on January 3, 2017 [12 favorites]


« Older Airlines Take Note   |   Seeing comes before words: John Berger 1926-2017 Newer »


This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments