|
Bernie Worrell
George Bernard Worrell, Jr. (April 19, 1944 – June 24, 2016) was an American keyboardist and record producer best known as a founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic and for his work with Talking Heads. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with fifteen other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. Worrell was described by Jon Pareles of ''The New York Times'' as "the kind of sideman who is as influential as some bandleaders." Biography Early life Worrell was born in Long Branch, New Jersey, and grew up in Plainfield, New Jersey, where his family moved when he was eight. A musical prodigy, he began formal piano lessons by age three and wrote a concerto at age eight. He went on to study at the Juilliard School and received a degree from the New England Conservatory of Music in 1967. As a college student, Worrell played with a group called Chubby & The Turnpikes; this ensemble eventually evolved into Tavares. 1970s After meeting George Clinton, l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Long Branch, New Jersey
Long Branch is a beachside city in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the city's population was 30,719,DP-1 - Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 for Long Branch city, Monmouth County, New Jersey , . Accessed July 3, 2012. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New England Conservatory Of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Hall. NEC is home to 750 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate studies, with 1400 more in its Preparatory School and School of Continuing Education. It offers bachelor's degrees in classical performance, contemporary improvisation, composition, jazz, musicology, and music theory, as well as graduate degrees in accompaniment, conducting, and vocal pedagogy. The conservatory has also partnered with Harvard University and Tufts University to create joint double-degree, five-year programs and provide multi-passionate students access to Boston's premier academic resources. The New England Conservatory's faculty and alumni comprise nearly fifty percent of the Boston Sy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Moog Synthesizer
The Moog synthesizer is a modular synthesizer developed by the American engineer Robert Moog. Moog debuted it in 1964, and Moog's company R. A. Moog Co. (later known as Moog Music) produced numerous models from 1965 to 1981, and again from 2014. It was the first commercial synthesizer, and is credited with creating the analog synthesizer as it is known today. The Moog synthesizer consists of separate modules which create and shape sounds, which are connected via patch cords. Modules include voltage-controlled oscillators, amplifiers, filters, envelope generators, noise generators, ring modulators, triggers, and mixers. The synthesizer can be played using controllers including keyboards, joysticks, pedals, and ribbon controllers, or controlled with sequencers. Its oscillators can produce waveforms of different timbres, which can be modulated and filtered to shape their sounds ( subtractive synthesis). By 1963, Robert Moog had been designing and selling theremins for s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ARP String Ensemble
The Solina String Ensemble, also marketed as the ARP String Ensemble, is a fully polyphonic multi-orchestral synthesizer with a 49-key keyboard, produced by Eminent BV (known for their ''Solina'' brand). It was distributed in the United States by ARP Instruments from 1974 to 1981. The sounds it incorporates are violin, viola, trumpet, horn, cello, and contrabass. The keyboard uses 'organ style' divide-down technology to make it polyphonic. The built-in chorus effect gives the instrument its distinctive sound. Technology The core technology is based on the string ensemble section of the Eminent 310 Unique electronic organ in 1972, manufactured by the Dutch company Eminent BV. The main oscillator consists of twelve discrete tone generators with octave divide-down to provide full polyphony (however all notes come from the same envelope and filter, so it is actually a paraphonic string machine); and the built-in triple chorus effect utilizes bucket-brigade devices (BBDs) controll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hammond B3 Organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated sound by creating an electric current from rotating a metal tonewheel near an electromagnetic pickup, and then strengthening the signal with an amplifier to drive a speaker cabinet. The organ is commonly used with the Leslie speaker. Around two million Hammond organs have been manufactured. The organ was originally marketed by the Hammond Organ Company to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, or instead of a piano. It quickly became popular with professional jazz musicians in organ trios—small groups centered on the Hammond organ. Jazz club owners found that organ trios were cheaper than hiring a big band. Jimmy Smith's use of the Hammond B-3, with its additional harmonic percussion feature, inspired a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hohner Clavinet
The Clavinet is an electrically amplified clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds by a rubber pad striking a point on a tensioned string, and was designed to resemble the Renaissance-era clavichord. Although originally intended for home use, the Clavinet became popular on stage, and could be used to create electric guitar sounds on a keyboard. It is strongly associated with Stevie Wonder, who used the instrument extensively, particularly on his 1972 hit " Superstition", and was regularly featured in rock, funk and reggae music throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Modern digital keyboards can emulate the Clavinet sound, but there is also a grass-roots industry of repairers who continue to maintain the instrument. Description The Clavinet is an electromechanical instrument that is usually used in conjunction with a keyboard amplifier. Most models have 60 keys ran ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wurlitzer Electric Piano
The Wurlitzer electronic piano is an electric piano manufactured and marketed by Wurlitzer from the mid-1950s to mid-1980s. Sound is generated by striking a metal reed with a hammer, which induces an electric current in a pickup. It is conceptually similar to the Rhodes piano, though the sound is different. The instrument was invented by Benjamin Miessner, who had worked on various types of electric pianos since the early 1930s. The first Wurlitzer was manufactured in 1954, and production continued until 1983. Originally, the piano was designed to be used in the classroom, and several dedicated teacher and student instruments were manufactured. However, it was adapted for more conventional live performances, including stage models with attachable legs and console models with built-in frames. The stage instrument was used by several popular artists, including Ray Charles, Joe Zawinul and Supertramp. Several electronic keyboards include an emulation of the Wurlitzer. As the Wu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grand Piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboard, which is a row of keys (small levers) that the performer presses down or strikes with the fingers and thumbs of both hands to cause the hammers to strike the strings. It was invented in Italy by Bartolomeo Cristofori around the year 1700. Description The word "piano" is a shortened form of ''pianoforte'', the Italian term for the early 1700s versions of the instrument, which in turn derives from ''clavicembalo col piano e forte'' (key cimbalom with quiet and loud)Pollens (1995, 238) and '' fortepiano''. The Italian musical terms ''piano'' and ''forte'' indicate "soft" and "loud" respectively, in this context referring to the variations in volume (i.e., loudness) produced in response to a pianist's touch or pressure on the keys: the gr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Funkadelic
Funkadelic was an American funk rock band formed in Plainfield, New Jersey in 1968 and active until 1982. The band and its sister act Parliament, both led by George Clinton, pioneered the funk music culture of the 1970s.John, Bush. Funkadelic: Biography ''AllMusic''. Initially formed as a backing band for Clinton's vocal group the Parliaments, Funkadelic eventually pursued a heavier, more psychedelic rock-oriented sound. They released acclaimed albums such as ''Maggot Brain'' (1971) and '' One Nation Under a Groove'' (1978). History Background The group that would become Funkadelic was formed by George Clinton in 1964, as the unnamed backing section for his doo wop group The Parliaments while on tour. The band originally consisted of musicians Frankie Boyce, Richard Boyce, and Langston Booth plus the five members of the Parliaments on vocals. Boyce, Boyce, and Booth enlisted in the Army in 1966, and Clinton recruited bassist Billy Bass Nelson and guitarist Eddie Ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parliament (band)
Parliament was an American funk band formed in the late 1960s by George Clinton as part of his Parliament-Funkadelic collective. More commercial and less rock-oriented than its sister act Funkadelic, Parliament drew on science-fiction and outlandish theatrics in their work. The band scored a number of Top 10 hits, including the million-selling 1976 single " Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof off the Sucker)," and Top 40 albums such as '' Mothership Connection'' (1975). History Parliament was originally The Parliaments, a doo-wop vocal group based at a Plainfield, New Jersey barbershop. The group was formed in the late 1950s and included George Clinton, Ray Davis, Fuzzy Haskins, Calvin Simon, and Grady Thomas. Clinton was the group leader and manager. The group scored a hit single in 1967 with " (I Wanna) Testify" (co-written by Clinton) on Revilot Records. To capitalize on this chart success, Clinton formed a touring band, featuring teenage barbershop employee Billy Nelso ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 census, making it the 27th-most populous city in the United States. The metropolitan area, known as Metro Detroit, is home to 4.3 million people, making it the second-largest in the Midwest after the Chicago metropolitan area, and the 14th-largest in the United States. Regarded as a major cultural center, Detroit is known for its contributions to music, art, architecture and design, in addition to its historical automotive background. '' Time'' named Detroit as one of the fifty World's Greatest Places of 2022 to explore. Detroit is a major port on the Detroit River, one of the four major straits that connect the Great Lakes system to the Saint Lawrence Seaway. The City of Detroit anchors the second-largest regional eco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Parliaments
The Parliaments were an American vocal quintet from Plainfield, New Jersey, United States. Originally formed in the back room of a barbershop in 1956, the quintet was named after the cigarette brand. The Parliaments initially performed doo-wop music; after some early personnel changes their lineup solidified with George Clinton, Ray Davis, Fuzzy Haskins, Calvin Simon, and Grady Thomas. Clinton was group leader and manager, and part owner of the barbershop where the group convened to entertain customers. The group later changed its style, evolving into the bands Parliament and Funkadelic, which found success in the 1970s. History The group was originally based on Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers, but by the 1960s had developed a unique sound based on emerging styles of soul and funk music, with a notable penchant for bizarre lyrics. The group struggled for hits during most of the 1960s, recording singles on a variety of small record labels. They switched labels many times, and r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Hammond B3 Organ")
.jpg "Click for more on -> Wurlitzer Electric Piano")
