Do animals make music?

[JimineySnicket]

Unrelated to the VSL but I reckon this is the place to bring it up (my last post had a healthy response).

Is anybody aware of any form of creature other than humans who actively make music for pleasure. And I dont mean (atleast I dont think I mean) birdsong which we may interpret as being 'musical' but is actually a form of communication.

I'm just intrigued to find out if there is and if so what does it sound like? Do they have problems with keyswitches and RAM I wonder?

Cheers
Jim

[MarkOfTheStoat]

@JimineySnicket said:

And I dont mean (atleast I dont think I mean) birdsong which we may interpret as being 'musical' but is actually a form of communication.

Why wouldn't the birds interpret their song as musical too? And, ' .....actually a form of communication' .... why should that disqualify it as being music - surely music is ALL ABOUT communication?

I understand what you mean though (I'm not really arguing [[:D]] )- how much of animal behaviour is just 'mundane' .. or how much do we actually romantacize ('Disney- fy') animal behaviour and thus make it more abstract/artistic than it really is?

I think animals DO make music for pleasure - but they just don't really THINK about doing it that's all!

And like us it usually has another more practical side to it - we do it to make a living and so do they! (defining territory, announcing location to friends/potential mates over long distances, maintaining the cohesion of flock, pod, herd, pack etc, anouncing all clear/danger).

Here's a question: how many HUMANS make music PURELY for pleasure!

...........It's good to close all your projects and switch the mac off every once in a while! [[:D]]

[Angelo Clematide]

The cat plays piano, she does that to get my attention, or more likely for cat food. She is a composer with a large oeuvre, a determinist as well an aleatoric performer well known in the cat & mouse community.

On the tree nearest to my bureau window, often a blackbird is singing something shortly before sunset, I accompany him, he adjust in no time to my key, not matter how complex the chordscale is. I tried to teach him singing harmonies, but wasn't successful till now

.

[jamriding]

My dad's cat played the piano as well: he was quite a virtuoso [:P]

You can find out all about him on my Dad's website which I've created in his memory.

Look under Ted's pets for details... There's even a picture of Arthur (the moggy) sat on the piano, ready to give us a burst of Grieg's piano concerto... Never has a finer performance been heard [[:|]]

http://www.tedamriding.co.uk/

[Patrick Wilson]

How about whales? They have a huge song catalogue apparently!

[jamriding]

@Patrick Wilson said:

How about whales? They have a huge song catalogue apparently!

And don't forget Alan Hohvaness' "And I saw great whales" from the 1960's (???)

Sorry but I don't know anything more about him.

[Ron 14]

Chimpansees are great percussionists.And they're really enjoying it. [:D]

[lgrohn]

@Patrick Wilson said:

How about whales? They have a huge song catalogue apparently!

As far as I know whale sounds have been transposed to pitches pleasing humans. So ...

[Martin Bayless]

ok, this is weird. i worked with a director who just got back from guatamala filming a documentary on the guy that "founded" the elephant orchestra. what struck me as scary was the level to which these animals are communicating with each other.

look/listen and have fun with this one:

http://www.mulatta.org/thaieleorchpage.html