Introducing Bjork's Gameleste, a bespoke Gamelan Celeste Hybrid

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The epic Bjork Biophilia experience includes a live show, studio album, a new web site, a documentary, and a collection of iPad apps. 

Part of the Biophilia project sees Bjork commissioning the creation of new instruments, including the Gameleste. Part Gamelan, part Celeste, it’s the first of its kind. The mutant instrument can be played remotely via a MIDI keyboard. Watch the making-of below. 

Björk commissioned several custom instruments for the shows surrounding the release of 'Biophilia' - one is a hybrid gamelan celeste; the original steel bars of a vintage orchestral celeste were replaced with bronze tonebars hand-made by UK cymbalsmith Matt Nolan, and the instrument was rebuilt and MIDIfied by Iceland's top organ-maker, Björgvin Tòmasson. This is a 2-minute brief montage of the making of the 'Gameleste' Camera: Andy McCreeth Editing: Andy McCreeth and Matt Nolan Soundtrack Music: Matt Nolan

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Antonio Ortiz

Antonio Ortiz has always been an autodidact with an eclectic array of interests. Fascinated with technology, advertising and culture he has forged a career that combines them all. In 1991 Antonio developed one of the very first websites to market the arts. It was text based, only available to computer scientists, and increased attendance to the Rutgers Arts Center where he had truly begun his professional career. Since then Antonio has been an early adopter and innovator merging technology and marketing with his passion for art, culture and entertainment. For a more in-depth look at those passions, visit SmarterCreativity.com.

2CELLOS (Sulic & Hauser) Deliver a Cello Whirlwind of “Welcome to the Jungle”

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2CELLOS (Sulic & Hauser) – Welcome to the Jungle (Guns n’ Roses Cover)
via covermesongs.com

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Let's end the week with a great reminder of what happens when creative ideas are juxtaposed and used as a foundation for something new.

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Antonio Ortiz

Antonio Ortiz has always been an autodidact with an eclectic array of interests. Fascinated with technology, advertising and culture he has forged a career that combines them all. In 1991 Antonio developed one of the very first websites to market the arts. It was text based, only available to computer scientists, and increased attendance to the Rutgers Arts Center where he had truly begun his professional career. Since then Antonio has been an early adopter and innovator merging technology and marketing with his passion for art, culture and entertainment. For a more in-depth look at those passions, visit SmarterCreativity.com.

Yo-Yo Ma, cellist and Lil Buck, dancer, improvise a new ballet

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via washingtonpost.com

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The world-famous cellist in a suit and a young man in a baseball cap make an unlikely pair. Until the music starts playing and the young man starts slowly moving, his body bending and collapsing to the mournful tune. A friend of Yo-Yo Ma’s, the cellist, caught Lil Buck dancing on YouTube and paired the two for a collaboration for an event to bring the arts back into schools.

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Antonio Ortiz

Antonio Ortiz has always been an autodidact with an eclectic array of interests. Fascinated with technology, advertising and culture he has forged a career that combines them all. In 1991 Antonio developed one of the very first websites to market the arts. It was text based, only available to computer scientists, and increased attendance to the Rutgers Arts Center where he had truly begun his professional career. Since then Antonio has been an early adopter and innovator merging technology and marketing with his passion for art, culture and entertainment. For a more in-depth look at those passions, visit SmarterCreativity.com.

Selling Classical Music on Milk Bottles

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Ingenious and charming. Glad they went with milk and not, say, concert soda. Clever, very clever.

If every piece of advertising could be this wonderful and thought-out, people would start hugging us the way they do firemen at the grocery store. Can you hit this bar with something you do this year? Let's make it a mission.
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Antonio Ortiz

Antonio Ortiz has always been an autodidact with an eclectic array of interests. Fascinated with technology, advertising and culture he has forged a career that combines them all. In 1991 Antonio developed one of the very first websites to market the arts. It was text based, only available to computer scientists, and increased attendance to the Rutgers Arts Center where he had truly begun his professional career. Since then Antonio has been an early adopter and innovator merging technology and marketing with his passion for art, culture and entertainment. For a more in-depth look at those passions, visit SmarterCreativity.com.

A Remarkable Guide to the Orchestra

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Amazing how comprehensive this hour long program is, while also being incredibly funny. Another great find by Open Culture.

Bill Bailey’s Remarkable Guide to the Orchestra, an hour-long musical special “conducted” by one of the UK’s most popular performers, is also one of the funniest hours of television you can watch with kids in the room. The wildly inventive comedian (see his bio here) weaves in jokes, music history and orchestral rearrangements of everything from classical pieces to ringtones to music from TV news shows. Keep an eye out especially for his jazzified version of the “Doctor Who” theme. (One more reason to love Bailey: He’s an avid sci-fi fan who named one of his children after a character on “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”)
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Antonio Ortiz

Antonio Ortiz has always been an autodidact with an eclectic array of interests. Fascinated with technology, advertising and culture he has forged a career that combines them all. In 1991 Antonio developed one of the very first websites to market the arts. It was text based, only available to computer scientists, and increased attendance to the Rutgers Arts Center where he had truly begun his professional career. Since then Antonio has been an early adopter and innovator merging technology and marketing with his passion for art, culture and entertainment. For a more in-depth look at those passions, visit SmarterCreativity.com.