Does Music Have a Speed Limit? And Why?

Video essay on why the Mahavishnu Orchestra slaps

And why is the Mahavishnu Orchestra's live version of Vital Transformation so damn fast? A journey into embodied musical cognition.

0:00 - Intro
2:17 Part 1 - Brain and Body
13:14 Part 2 - Vital Transformation
23:33 Part 3 - The Aesthetics of Fast Things

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[GHAddict]

Yo thanks for putting my Guitar Hero clip in the intro, I'm sorry to break this theory but I actually run sped up songs on real guitar now too 😭 it seriously means a lot to be featured by someone I've watched for so many years, you're a legend

[stevewhipple]

The fast tempo aesthetic existed even before this era in jazz. I used to play with Toshiko Akiyoshi, who was actually around during the bebop era, and she told me that in that style, there's a tempo where everyone just plays as fast as they can play. The drums and the bass don't really lock in, but the result is a unique kind of energy that you can't get any other way.

It's too bad that in jazz education, we focus so much on the harmonic content of bebop, as if that's the main lesson to be learned from it, when there's so much more visceral rhythmic interplay that made that music what it is.

[pthelo]

Wow. I had a back injury post-car accident. I used to write, dj and enjoy music around 128 bpm. The injury has lowered my walking and movement speed, and I've been drifting towards lower tempo music since. I would feel physical pain trying to write music at 128, but 96 provides enough recovery time to not feel pain with every beat.

Thanks, Adam! This was super interesting - and I'm only 9:43 in!

[Impotantmink]

"Playing fast is for the artist " was always my feeling. If you can comfortably improvise with another being at a pace that's challenging for all parties, its almost like flying.

[dliessmgg]

My favourite speeding up happened to the song Hocus Pocus from the Dutch prog rock band Focus. On the album it was about 6m30 long. When they appeared on a TV show, their slot was only 4m30 long, so the show producer suggested maybe cutting out part of the song. To that they said, "what if we just play it faster", and so they did.

[scottvandiver]

That 16/18 interpretation of Vital Transformation immediately felt so much more natural to me. 💜

[TheAntiburglar]

I am eternally grateful to Adam for succinctly defining what walking is for me 😃 oh, and all the interesting musical and biological stuff too I guess

[isterkvarn]

I think a great exemple of when going fast is serving a purpose is punk. Punk to me is just raw emotion. You play punk to express your chaotic hate and frustration, so going fast becomes a tool to make the music feel more chaotic and also disorganised as the band dosent really hold it together. Somehow that "i don't care if it's good this is how i feel!" just sounds so great to me.

[ufoufo]

I think mathcore music has a lot of moments that try to force you into these sections you can’t physically feel. It’s like trapping your body in a dance you can’t do, and it’s awesome

[brooksharris]

Adam, you’re the best. You are providing people with university-level music education blended with humor, brilliant tangents, and your inimitable style all at once. There are few programs of any kind at this level and yours is so enjoyable to watch. Bravo, 10/10 every time.

[skibaa]

17:18 amazing how Adam illustrates different ways to interpret 9/8, for me it is like a miracle, converting the same phrase to something completely different every time

[gooseabuse]

This makes so much sense as an old punk rocker, the "D-beat" is one of the most simplistic intuitive rock beats but when the tempo is turned up the beat stops sounding like that same beat. It sort of sounds like random banging but everything is hitting together so you know there's structure. There's a Mars Volta drum chops video where someone is showing some of their fast beats starting real slow and progressively speeding up. They start off sounding simple then they hit a tipping point and the beat is transformed into something completely new by the blistering speed.

[Felix-nzlq]

As someone who regularly listen to audiobooks at 200% speed I find it fascinating how quickly one can get used to higher tempos, and how going back can feel so sluggish.

[evamarias]

This is interesting to me. I always wondered why I couldn’t really communicate to my friends why I’m skilled at rhythm games. “How do you not fall of tempo? How can you read all of that?”
“I… good question. I don’t know? I just kinda feel it?”
I don’t look at the judgement zone when I hit a note in a rhythm game I just sense when to hit the note from the song. This video explores this in a very neat way. Didn’t realize how much my body literally vibing with the music helps me.

[doriandays]

My favorite example of this concept is on the song Bubblehouse by Medeski, Martin & Wood. The main riff feels similar from bar to bar but when you skip a few seconds, the feel completely changes

[macleadg]

I became a musician because of the Mahavishnu Orchestra. So glad you appreciate them! I went to three MO concerts. The first was great; the second was unreal — they had really hit their stride. At the third concert, though, I remember thinking they had degenerated into a “I can play faster than you” contest instead of conveying a musical message. It was also too loud, even for a teenager as I was at the time.

[TheHippie]

I'm so glad you're highlighting this album, it's one of my desert island pics for sure. A friend of mine showed it to me when I had come over tripping on some bad acid. He handed me a djembe, put the record on, turned off the light and left me alone to enjoy to majesty of the Mahavishnu. Utterly life-changing....

[collinbeal]

I love the rep for Mahavishnu Orchestra. I want everyone to hear their wonderful music

[dougnulton]

We already basically covered the perceived minimum speed limit; “how slow can music be”. It kinda makes intuitive sense that there would be an opposite upper limit.

[ethanpispas]

Incredible video. That short bit at the end of an old John Mclaughlin talking about liberation gave me actual goosebumps.