Today’s musical marvel

King Crimson’s “Discipline” performed by a marimba trio:

I love this song so much, and hearing it on marimba is interesting because it really underscores the mechanical nature of the whole thing. This version is missing the jaw-dropping awesomeness of Bill Bruford drumming in 17/16 time, though, so go listen to the original when you have a chance. Bill Bruford is a machine. I may mean that literally.

I have long thought this would be a piece of particular interest to dragons because it is so dispassionate (and tell me Robert Fripp isn’t a dragon. Say that to my face). Everyone is playing in different time signatures, and those change over time for each player. It would require a tremendous amount of concentration to maintain your own rhythm and keep it in synch with everyone else. Years ago, when I played cello, my teacher taught me how to beat three against four and four against five. It was a fun exercise, but it required a prodigious amount of counting. I can’t even imagine keeping it up at this speed.

Speak, friend!

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