Re: Bach Parts to hum

[Tim Conway <timcon@COMSWEST.NET.AU>]

Elisha Tseng wrote:

>Just a curiosity question: when you listen to Bach, which part do you
>usually hum?

Good question. Kate's and Juozas's answers were, I think, what most of us
would have said. In my case I follow and hum the bass line, and not just
for GG and Bach. I can never hear the melody line of The Beatles's 'Lady
Madonna' because I'm too busy humming McCartney's bass line.

The same applies to many other pieces of music, including 'God Save The
Queen/King', which the Yanks have misappropriated and renamed something
like 'Our Country 'Tis Of Thee'. Harumph. But it's a good tune, one that
even LvB liked. Tchaikovsky also has some great bass lines in his
symphonies, to the extent that I can sing along with them but not the
melodies.

Elisha then wrote:

>I don't hum when people are around...only when alone.  Music teachers
>often like to tell their students to hum out a part while playing the
>notes to distinguish the voices as what Juozas said.  I find that a very
>difficult exercise to master, but I am amazed at people who can do it so
>well.

Listening to ABC radio a month or two ago I heard a recording of a man
who could hum and whistle at the same time, something I'm sure GG would
have been proud to be able to do -- rather like playing the piano with
the left hand while playing the the flute with the right hand.

I first tried to do the humming/whistling thing when I was a teenager and
found it impossible -- it still is, for me. That's just trying to whistle
and hum the same tune. This man on the ABC did more than that: he could
whistle the melody and hum the accompaniment. He did one of the movements
of Bizet's 'L'Arlesienne Suite' and sounded like two people.
Amazing...rather like listening to those Tibetans and Mongolians doing
throat/mouth music but with a bit more verve.

Regards to all,


Tim Conway
Broome, WA, Oz