I was just thinking about how Hans Zimmer tends to choose a key strategically. In his Masterclass, he uses the key of D minor to make it so the strings have something to land on, aka a deep and dark pedal tone. He chose D minor because that key works to establish a pedal tone as well as be a little dark.

This made me wonder about the vibes of specific keys. So, if D Minor is dark, what about F Major? Or Db Minor? No doubt, I’d like to have a better understanding of this!

One statement I hear from other artists is “I hope I’m not being egotistical, but...” Then, the artist tells me of what they created.

I get it. No one wants to be remembered as a narcissist. But perhaps there’s a better way to frame it.

To accomplish a kinder share of our creative output, include the following proviso:

Hey, I created this [work of art, music, etc] and thought to share it with you. I don’t want you to write me back and tell me how much you like it, especially if you don’t. I require no praise, and besides, I’m so slammed that I won’t remember sending this to you in the first place! I’m only sharing it to make your day a little brighter. That’s all. Take good care!

Two people are not needed for this conversation.

Many thanks to Jenny Davis for this bit of conversational kung-fu.

Via Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, Eric Partidge.

I want the book mentioned in this entry: On Feigned and Factitious Diseases, chiefly of Solders and Seamen.

The Sidekick: Get Up and SCREAM!!! (in the middle of the night)

$9.99

Imagine you are having the most incredible night of dreams. In one, you are whistling a tune on top of a thundercloud. In another, you are speeding far beyond the speed of light in your brand new intergalactic hovercraft. Vivid dreaming is what this Sidekick record is all about.

Add to cart

San Francisco Earthquake Aftermath, Part 2. Public Domain

…analysis looks backwards while design looks forwards.

Absolutely in agreement.

Dave Wirth: Flutters

$9.99

13 songs, 38 minutes, perfectly chill music for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Add to cart

It’s been a long, long time since a jingle made me laugh (first five seconds):

Otherwise, the video was solid BTW…

I had no idea…

When R&B and pop recordings are over-compressed and over-limited, the lack the extremely fundamental qualities of both primitive energy and smooth high frequencies.

Bruce Swedien in his book Make Mine Music

What does music really express? It’s not about the sensations apprehended from the external world but about the intimations, intuitions, dreams, fantasies, emotions, the feelings within ourselves…

Michael Tippett

[I would like to assert the idea that our collective unconscious and the music that comes from it be the bridge to the outside world, that it’s not just within ourselves]

God gave man two ears but only one mouth, that he might hear twice as much as he speaks!

Epictetus

Slowly but surely, the Acoustic Fields’ QD23 is coming closer to completion. While our job before was to create rough and therefore imprecise cuts, today’s work was centered around cutting the wood exactly to fit. If there’s one thing I can say about this process, I’ve got mad respect for both professional and amateur woodworkers. The precision, the craft, the dedication? Upwards.

Earlier this week I called in an order to Austin Fine Lumber and Plywood. For the price of the wood plus a cut fee, this was what they gave me. The scrap are the long pieces, but the shorter ones are for the top and the bottoms of the diffuser. I picked up the wood on Wednesday. 

A close up of the tops and bottoms of the diffuser. After dealing with Austin Fine Lumber and Plywood, there’s no doubt I’ll probably have them cut all the wood upfront for me. It’ll be more expensive, but that would leave me with the fun part: Assembling. 

We needed to create this setup to cut multiple pieces at once. The next pictures show how. 

Using a square to line up the corners. 

A little bit of adjusting to make sure of a tight fit. 

Here, we’ve got it. All good!

This is the rough edge. See how there are multiple pieces of wood? Yeah. We measured the length we needed on both sides and then put a square on that line to safely guide the hand saw. 

Here is the result of the custom jig: All of the wood is cut exactly to the correct lengths. 

Up close shot of the well dividers. 

Our next job was to cut the well pieces exactly to fit. One edge was the factory edge, and the other was our rough. We had to line them all up with the factory edge to get a perfectly straight line. Then, we could get an exact cut on the mitre saw.

My friend measured out one of the pieces so that we could repeat the task with accuracy, quickly. 

All of our pieces are ready! The thick pieces toward the back are the sides and the back of the diffuser. The thin pieces are the dividers. The really narrow but thick pieces in the front will be placed in between the dividers at specific depths. 

All the wood that’s fit to print. Enroute to my studio, with a stop at a Texas BBQ joint first (of course).

What’s Next?

Now that all the wood is cut exactly to where we want it to be, I now have to consider staining. It’s looking like it’ll be a bit rainy for the next couple of days, so I’m refusing to think about it for now. However, I’m going to have that done hopefully at some point soon.

After the staining, we’ll cut each dado, and then assemble this wonderful diffuser.

Stay tuned for more details…