“I don’t like the sound of saxophones. It sounds like a fart. To my ears.”

Mike Oldfield, 1999.

“A new platform is like a new musical instrument. You can transpose existing music for it, or write new music that exploits its unique expressive power. The saxophone, for example, solved two problems: it provided better coupling and impedance between the reed and the air mass; and the mechanics offered better, faster fingering and a wider range of notes. You could play Bach fugues on a saxophone (rather nicely) or explore the then-emerging genre of jazz.”

Jean-Louis Gassée, Be Newsletter, Volume II, Issue 49. From The Quotable JLG.

• Separate Year tags for composition and recording/performance
• More precise Date than Year for live performances
• Separate Year for a compilation album and its individual tracks
• Classical catalogue number
• Performers and Producers

The shortest music track in my library: Introduction to Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, op. 43, by Rachmaninoff: 7 seconds.

And the longest: Amarok by Mike Oldfield: 1 hour. (Note that a section of Amarok is called Rachmaninoff.)

While you can download Amarok for 99 cents, Rachmaninoff might look more popular on last.fm… These 2 guys don’t take the time into account…

Hockey referee or Macarena dancer?

The man who brought the mouse to the market.

Magnesium	Titanium	Aluminium		next?

Update: DamienG is more voluble. Berylium, anyone?