> it seems plausible that toneshifting is merely the audio equivalent of > this process. in a stark environment (in this case, with very few sounds, > rather than few colors) the brain attempts to insert melody because that is > what it thinks should be there. perhaps an effort to maintain balance or > status quo, familiarity, normalcy, etc.
Yes and no... I don't think it is the brain is simply inserting what it thinks should be there, as you put it, but the lack of melody is certainly a trigger effect, for any defined melody would ultimately destroy a toneshift. No, I think its more of a communicating and expression thing. The fact that really monotonous techno is indeed so stripped, yet so powerful, invites one to project onto it real imaginative emotions as opposed to just "filling in the blanks" in some mundane matter. The process you bring up is simply our psyche coping, where toneshifts are far more emotionally based. The reason why I gave it a name, and talk about this effect frequently is that I think it is far more important than we believe it to be, its not just some hum-drum thing that we should forget about... I again assert that now is the time to attempt a deep assessment of the music we created, but we are often too busy debating the philosophy behind it that we forget the importance of the music itself, aside from it being pretty neat-o and having produced good musicians, I truly feel that we created something entirely new, almost from the ground up (that is raw repetition, I am not referring to the techno or anything else that resembles non electronic music, to me, that is just "electronic music", not much new there). For instance, assuming Toneshifts are indeed a common and real thing, then it would be a new musical approach in that the artist is only half of the piece and the individual listener the other half, true and undeniable interaction, whereas before, music was almost entirely entertainment and/or interpretation... The other thing, I am very curious as to why techno even exists the way it does, and why does it bring some to tears. What is this "vibe" that permeates a techno room? I am beginning to think that almost tear jerking vibe is due to the toneshifts in that the listener is no longer being told what to feel, rather the joy and freedom of imagination is thick throughout, thus producing "vibe". This is obviously common with all musics, but rhythmic techno seems to carry itself on a whole different level, and justly so... Remember in Modulations, when I think Saunderson said that techno was the only way out, the only escape of such a desolate city? Well, everyone usually feels trapped somehow in some manner (if not, your probably an artist!! LOL!!), and techno was created to alleviate that feeling of being ultimately controlled... I also think that tonshifts have something to do with tribalism, and the creation of very mystical moments, for the repetition of the tribal dance sounds strange and powerful to them, and being primitive, their only option is a God who creates these magical sounds... darw_n "create, demonstrate, toneshift..." http://www.mp3.com/darw_n http://www.sphereproductions.com/topic/Darwin.html http://www.mannequinodd.com
