Post a controversial opinion

I'm definitely having trouble getting into that headspace. Or were these records mainly played at public events?

My friend used to live across the street from where the university of michigan band practiced and I remember leaving his house once super high and they were like 100 feet away playing the Darth Vader march and it was amazing.

I'd never choose to listen to one as music but hearing 300 people playing together at close range is a crazy visceral experience; I can hear another giant one practicing daily almost a mile away.

I sometimes feel like this is a foreign concept for ilxors but listening to recordings at home is not the only way in which music can be enjoyed, not is it how music has been enjoyed for most of human history, and is not a definitive measure of musical value.

*nor is it

the Lake Nona High Varsity Marching Band new maxi single is out and it is fire. there's a ten minute version of Saints Go Marching In on it!

xpost (Sund4r otm)

Sund4r 100% OTM

marching brass bands of the Sousa variety were the dominant genre for the first two decades of recorded music, and were a vital step in the development of jazz

I mean I sure af don't spend most of my days listening to men's TTBB choirs on my headphones, but I enjoy the hell out of listening to them in person where possible.

I mean I guess I do have John Rutter's "The Lord Bless You and Keep You" on my Amazon playlist lol but if that piece don't move u then u can't move

I spent something like 10 years putting excerpts from the Martin Mass for Double Chorus into every playlist I made for myself, especially the Agnus Dei

But mainly my takeaway is that Ye Mad Puffin understood the assignment

controversial only to neckbeards I guess but Zakk Wylde is the most boring guitarist alive

Sorry, you'll have to take that one over to the "pure statements of fact" thread.

When I expressed an interest in classical music as a fourth grader, my father gave me a “Sousa's Greatest Hits" CD.

Peace, man

but if I remember correctly, when you compare them to other science centers, they lack a lot of hands-on activities. The recent renovation of the National Museum of Natural History still didn't bring very much in the way of interactive exhibits, I don't think. I mean, there were some things, but not as immersive as say, the Maryland Science Center.

Exactly. Here in DC we are completely spoiled by having a gazillion free museums. But we have never had anything as fun as the Maryland Science Center.

Baltimore is an an hour away and has at least four museums that are more interesting than Air & Space. St. Louis has two (Magic House and City Museum). Richmond's science museum is terrific as well. It's just something that Washington hasn't reliably been able to do. Baffling.

i have an old demo/idea thing put together by dj food.
it's a marching band edit of 'the 900 number', and despite that kev has never officially finished it off, i love it.

In the week that GCSE results come out in the UK, I've got one.

Abolish grades and give everyone their percentage mark as their exam result.

Even better, abolish GCSEs (and A levels) (I know this is controversial as the Tony Blair Institute agree with me)

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2022/aug/23/replace-gcses-and-a-levels-with-regular-assessments-says-tony-blair-institute

abolishing all grading and exams would be far less controversial if kids and their thoughts and feelings were considered at all important or relevant but our society seems to get off on making them suffer

no one should have to go to school

I assume the TBI's preferred policy would be even more relentless and more finely tuned micropolicing of children's thoughts and behavior

would have hated having continual assessment at school. liked exams in that you could take it easy for 2 years then cram, which was my preferred method of surviving education.

xp yes i would certainly part ways with the TBI on the need to teach children to 'thrive in a work environment'.

using a laser pointer to play with a cat is such a cruel prank.

they seem to enjoy it quite a bit

It’s a fine line between this is fun and this is torture.

an active cat is a happy cat, i don’t know if they grieve not having tangible prey

I mean, sure they might enjoy the thrill of the hunt, but they will never get the satisfaction of catching that red dot. They just running after it and get increasingly frustrated. At least when they chase after a fly they have a small chance of catching it.

all I can say is that my cats are extremely enthusiastic about this, and they don't hide it when they are unhappy about something

they do not show any signs of frustration, in fact, the thing they seem to like the most about it is endlessly running back and forth at top speed, they will specifically bring a toy to me for the sake of getting to run around a bunch chasing it

I don't know, the total confusion in my cat's eyes when the dot just suddenly disappears (because he jumped on it and it's on now on his back or whatever) was just too much for me.

When he plays with a tangible toy that I dangle in front of him for a while but which he eventually catches he just seems so happy when he finally has it.

the funniest is when I put on live birdwatching cams on YouTube for my cat, she gets so absorbed it’s like she’s watching a prestige drama or a sports game

i love putting on cat tv

I thought windows were cat TV.

Why must I be like that
Why must i

communicating with non-humans is hard but i reckon it's good to try

i love putting on cat tv

― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Friday, 16 September 2022 18:24 (thirty-eight minutes ago) link

Cat TV is a wonderful source for nature field recording ambiance, and the constant foreground bird wing fluttering is kind of ASMR

using a laser pointer to play with a cat is such a cruel prank.

― silverfish, Friday, September 16, 2022 1:43 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

My cat understands it won't catch the light, doesn't care and is just in it for the fun chase

I can't put on cat tv because my cats will actively assault my tv

it might just depend on the particular cat, but mine live for the rush of chasing stuff at full tilt, and don't seem at all confused about it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWeh4A600E0

and then one fine morning--

I mean, sure they might enjoy the thrill of the hunt, but they will never get the satisfaction of catching that red dot. They just running after it and get increasingly frustrated. At least when they chase after a fly they have a small chance of catching it.

what if, giant bong rip, the satisfaction that humans, i mean, cats, are after is really just the thrill of a hunt which can never be fulfilled

it's the journey not the destination, it's the wild hunt not the red dot

Having is not so pleasing a thing, after all, as wanting. It is not logical but often true.

-david avocado wolfe

all that said, i've had cats that absolutely love the laser toy and cats that seem indifferent to annoyed. each one of those little busters is a lil universe in itself, with different play preferences

or perhaps Christopher Cross idk

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D15kQwcWwAIgxD5?format=jpg&name=large