July 10, 2011
Alf (a.k.a. Gordon Shumway) is an alien from the planet Melmac. Everyone knows that.
What you may not know is that Alf is also a musician who plays Tonal Plexus keyboards. You don't believe me? Consider the evidence. In an early episode of the 1980's television series called "Alf", a situation comedy which gave millions of humans a glimpse into the life and times of Alf, there is a scene in which Alf is found playing an upright piano in the living room. The lady of the house remarks, "I didn't know you played the piano", and Alf replies, "Well, I was winging it. It's tough to play without the red keys." [ALF, Season 1, Episode 5: "Keepin' the Faith", time: 04:40]
Now take a look at this Tonal Plexus keyboard.
That's right; it has red keys. Therefore, Alf plays Tonal Plexus keyboards. This is bullet-proof logic, folks. True, Alf does not mention the grey keys, but after all, one cannot expect a space-alien to give away everything all at once. Alf plays Tonal Plexus keyboards. Why the media continues to suppress this information is unknown.
For example, a recent article in Computer Music Magazine called Pitch Invasion includes a picture of a Tonal Plexus keyboard, but fails to mention Alf.
It may be noted, however, that a cryptic quotation appears in the text below the keyboard image, stating that "Even in 2011, microtonal MIDI controllers are still being developed." This obtuse remark may be a veiled allusion to the fact that the television series Alf enjoyed its prime time viewing slot during the 1980's, and it may seem remarkable that some thirty years later, while Alf seems to have vanished, Tonal Plexus developments flourish.
[Editor's Note: A slight correction should be offered concerning the Computer Music article, where it is stated that Tonal Plexus keyboards have 211 pitches per octave. This is a common mistake. The master tuning of the H-System is 205 tones per octave, not 211. Although there are in fact 211 keys per octave on a Tonal Plexus keyboard, six of those keys provide duplicate pitches. But, the keyboard can in fact be tuned arbitrarily to anything, so if someone wants to tune every key within an octave pattern to a different pitch, that is certainly possible. It would also be possible to tune the entire keyboard to divide only one octave, which for six octaves would give 1266 pitches in an octave. Or, those same 1266 pitches could be tuned to span only a third. The possibilities are infinite. Kind of like outer space? Which brings us back to … ][ Showing 1 entry | Next entry | Show all entries ]