After World War II, when tape recorders had been invented and were becoming popular, composers started to use them to make music. The tape recorder was needed for the performance. Composers used them to combine lots of different sounds. Sometimes it was music played on ordinary (acoustic) instruments which was then changed in some way by the tape recorder. Sometimes they took sounds from everyday life such as the sound of water, traffic noise or bird song. All these noises were put together in the way the composer wanted by using the tape recorder. Tapes of sounds were often cut into pieces, then the pieces were 'spliced' – put back together in a different order. The results were often very interesting, but there were problems. Some people asked: “Is it music?” Others thought it was boring to just look at a tape recorder during a concert instead of being able to watch live musicians play.
Composers in Paris were experimenting with electronic music in the 1940s. They called it “Musique concrète” because they used natural, concrete sounds. (“Concrete” in this sense meant the opposite of “abstract” music which was written down for performance). The sounds were played back at different speeds, combined in lots of ways, played backwards or played continuously (repeated in a 'loop'), or played into a mixer and re-recorded onto another tape recorder. The sounds could be filtered. Effects such as vibrato or echo could be added. Sometimes composers used synthesizers which were machines that could make electronic music in real time. They sounded more like normal instruments than the sound effects on a tape recorder.
Computers have often been used for composing electronic music.
Composers who have used these ways of making music include John Cage (1912-1992), Bruno Maderna (1920-1973) and Karlheinz Stockhausen (b.1928). Very often composers combined electronic music with ordinary instruments being played.
In popular music, the use of electronics to create new sounds began in the 1960s. Producer Joe Meek and inventor Bob Moog both expanded the range of sounds that could be used in pop music, and by the end of that decade electronics had become accepted in the industry. In the next few years the work of people like Giorgio Moroder, Jean-Michel Jarre, Brian Eno and Kraftwerk made electronic music famous.
In the early 1980s electronic music became fashionable, and bands like New Order, The Human League, Pet Shop Boys and Depeche Mode became famous. Sometimes these bands would mix electronic music with rock music.
In the 21st Century electronics are so much a part of popular music that using it is no longer strange - in fact, many artists use nothing else.
A subgenre of electronic music is electronic dance music, or EDM. Electronic dance music is a form of electronica which is generally made with the intention of being danced to, thus making it generally club-friendly and often (but not always) up-tempo in nature. Whilst a lot of electronic genres are also classified as EDM, not all forms of electronic music fall within the specific category. Examples of EDM genres include post-disco, house, techno, Eurodance, trance, trip hop, drum and bass and dubstep, as well as several others.
In 2018, Billboard released a market statistic that proved the value and worth of the electronic dance music market. In this statistical statement, the company shows a 12-percent growth within one year where many changes took place with this musical revolution. One of the biggest helpers in this EDM market growth was YouTube.
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre that began in Jamaica in the late 1960s. Most music from Jamaica comes from the reggae style.
The music has regular chops on the back beat (off-beat). These are called “skank”, and are played by a rhythm guitarist. The bass drum hits on the second and fourth beat of each measure (each bar). These are called the “drop”. Reggae bands also use a bass, a keyboard or organ, and horns.
Reggae music is often used by Rastafarian groups. They are usually songs about religion, love and social problems. Bob Marley (1945-1981) was a famous reggae artist.
Famous instruments in reggae music are drums, guitar, saxophone, trumpet and trombone.
Reggae was started in 1960 but became famous in the 1970s.
Reggae songs often have lots of backing singers.
Rapper Snoop Dogg released an album of reggae music in 2013.
Some recent songs, like Cheerleader and Rude are reggae.
Reggae is related to ska and dancehall.
Bebop
Bebop or bop is a kind of jazz that became popular near the beginning of the Second World War, in the mid-1940s. Bebop is often fast. The musicians improvise using a small group of chords which are repeated again and again. Charlie Parker (1920-1955), who was famous for his saxophone playing, was a bebop artist. The famous trumpet player Dizzy Gillespie (1917-1993) was also a renowned artist of this genre.
The term "bebop" originates from a group of syllables used in scat singing, where random strings of sound were used in place of words.
Magnetic resonance imaging
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMRI), are techniques that doctors use to give a visual representation of soft tissue (flesh) inside the body. Magnetic resonance uses nuclear magnetic resonance to generate these images.
To take an MRI image, the patient lies on a movable bed. The bed enters a strong magnetic field and then radio waves are applied for a short time in a different direction. This sudden shift causes certain atoms in the patient's body to make special signals. The MRI scanner detects those special signals.
The MRI scanner then sends the signal information to a computer, and the computer creates an image of the inner body by using the signal information.
The MRI is used to diagnose disorders of the body that cannot be seen by X-rays. The MRI is painless and has the advantage of avoiding the dangerous X-ray radiation.
It is an expensive medical procedure, due to the high cost of the equipment. Some metallic objects may distort the image, like hip, shoulder and knee replacements but the exam can still be done. Cochlear (ear) implants, some (older) aneurysm clips in the brain, and most pacemakers are not MRI compatible. Obese and severely claustrophobic patients often need sedation and/or imaging with an "open" magnet, which is much less confining. Contrast agents may or may not be indicated for some patients, and those with compromised kidney function may not be able to receive the contrast, due to a serious but rare skin reaction.
MRI scans can be used to study the brain, spinal cord, bones, joints, breasts, the heart and blood vessels. It can also be used to look at other internal organs. MRI scans can be used to find blood clots as well.
An MRI scan can be used as an extremely accurate method of disease detection throughout the body.
Neurosurgeons use an MRI scan not only in defining brain anatomy but in evaluating the integrity of the spinal cord after an injury. An MRI scan can evaluate the structure of the heart and aorta, where it can detect aneurysms or tears. Furthermore, MRI is nowadays used intraoperatively.
It provides valuable information on glands and organs within the abdomen, and accurate information about the structure of the joints, soft tissues, and bones of the body. Often, surgery can be deferred or more accurately directed after knowing the results of an MRI scan.
Refugee camp
When there is a war or some other armed conflict in a country, many people will try to flee (run away) from that country. They will go to other countries, around the country where there is no war. Because they fled, they are called refugees.