Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2011 July 24

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July 24

The Suite Life on Deck episode

Which episode was it that London Tipton wanted her own twin and that twin had a jersey accent and her name was Tess Wong? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.29.34.9 (talk) 01:24, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

This one[1]? --Colapeninsula (talk) 08:55, 25 July 2011 (UTC)

Freestyle piano

Hi. Does Wikipedia have an article covering the concept of what I call "freestyle piano", in which a pianist composes spontaneously without using any sheet music? This can be either for personal entertainment or in front of a crowd and is sometimes accompanied by other instruments during a jam session. However, freestyle piano often involves solo playing, and must adhere to a tune that "makes sense" so to speak. What are some online resources for this practice, and articles on famous instances of people performing freestyle, even sitting in front of a piano and producing only silence? What are some of the specific challenges, stereotypes and known techniques associated with this musical art form? Thanks. ~AH1 ^(discuss!) 01:45, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

It sounds like you're talking about improvisation on a theme, where the theme is a familiar chord progression like a twelve-bar blues, or on a fairly simple chord progression with a good melody, as is common in jazz standards. Anyone who is a reasonably skilled and experienced piano (or any other instrument) player can spontaneously string together chords (and chord fragments, and appropriately chosen excursions into chords of a higher factor), arpeggios, runs, and little melodies, messed around with grace notes and trills, dissonance and its resolution, syncopation, call and response, and brief mistakes that you then repeat so they sound deliberate, all over the underlying framework of the (usually fairly basic) tune. The skill (what separates Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker and Chet Baker from we mortals) is deviating from this in a way that sounds novel and exciting without a discursion into downright anarchy. I think where you're hearing something complex and novel the player is thinking "12 bar blues in A with the IV played 9th and the V 13th, and just mess around differently each turnaround, and bounce up and down the keyboard until someone brings me another beer". A great deal of it is just musical muscle memory. 87.113.56.103 (talk) 02:15, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

Agree that your describing a "jam band" format. Usually, you'll have one person who is the "lead" determining the "key". A keen eye will often observe subtle signals when one person is taking the "lead" and the others will "follow;" the result being a constant flow of improvised music. With more established bands (i.e. those who have played together for a long time- a signal is often either unnecessary or subconscious. In that, a "change" in the musical flow is often simply "felt.") Anyway, as long as everyone is on the same page, as it were, this could go on, theoretically, forever. Quinn ^{❀ BEAUTIFUL DAY} 04:11, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

As for sitting at a piano and producing silence, that's not as crazy as it might sound - see John Cage's 4′33″. (My next published work will be called "Grand Symphonic Rhapsody in the Form of Variations on a Theme of John Cage" - specifically on the Love Theme from 4′33″). -- Jack of Oz ^{[your turn]} 06:22, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

I'm familiar with theme and variations, but the type of performance I'm describing is closer to real-time improvisation, in which the pianist creates the theme instantaneously. There are many examples of "freestyle piano" on Youtube and Google Video. ~AH1 ^(discuss!) 15:28, 25 July 2011 (UTC)

Sure, some pianists specialize in this style, and it has nothing to do with "jam bands". First one I can think of is Keith Jarrett. Totally improvised solo concerts. --jpgordon^{::==( o )} 20:09, 26 July 2011 (UTC)

Cecil Taylor would be another. --Viennese Waltz 22:43, 30 July 2011 (UTC)

Dice game

Does anyone know how to play the Dice Game known in France as piste de 421

I am an australian and the local frenchmen in a Tabac play this dice game that is like Blackjack but the language problem stops me understanding it

The dice game is called

piste de 421 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.221.185.68 (talk) 10:37, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

French Wikipedia has an article on it: fr:421 (jeu). Here's a brief description in English. See also this old question. ---Sluzzelin talk 13:09, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

Nyan cat song

The nyan cat article says that the music is a remix of a song called "Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya!" Does anybody know where i can download an mp3 of this song, preferably from an officia/original source? THanks. 18:03, 24 July 2011 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.112.136.243 (talk)

It's available to stream at Grooveshark (search for Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya, or for the artist Momonemomo). I think if you have their paid service you can download it to play offline (which may depend on the deal that Momonemomo's label has with Grooveshark, if at all). -- Finlay McWalter ☻ Talk 18:12, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

If not, there are several sites out there that will let you download MP3s and such from Youtube videos, such as listentoyoutube.com. ^Avic_ennasis @ 06:14, 24 Tamuz 5771 / 26 July 2011 (UTC)