Sunday, April 13, 2008
I see this post on Shimei's Facebook notes, which tickles me so much that I have to post it up... and tempt myself to come up with a few more composers' effects LOL
The Mozart Effect
A new report now suggests that the Mozart effect may be a fraud. For you hip urban professionals: no, playing Mozart for your designer baby may not improve his IQ or help him get into that exclusive pre-school. He’ll just have to be admitted to Harvard some other way.
Of course, we’re all better off for listening to Mozart purely for the pleasure of it. However, one wonders that if playing Mozart sonatas for little Hillary or Jason could boost their intelligence, what would happen if other composers were played in their developmental time?
LISZT EFFECT: Child speaks rapidly and extravagantly, but never really says anything important.
BRUCKNER EFFECT: Child speaks very slowly and repeats himself frequently. Gains reputation for profundity.
WAGNER EFFECT: Child becomes a megalomaniac. May eventually marry his sister.
MAHLER EFFECT: Child continually screams - at great length and volume that he’s dying.
SCHOENBERG EFFECT: Child never repeats a word until he’s used all the other words in his vocabulary. Sometimes talks backwards. Eventually, people stop listening to him. Child blames them for their inability to understand him.
BABBITT EFFECT: Child gibbers nonsense all the time. Eventually, people stop listening to him. Child doesn’t care because all his playmates think he’s cool.
IVES EFFECT: the child develops a remarkable ability to carry on several separate conversations at once.
GLASS EFFECT: the child tends to repeat himself over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again.
STRAVINSKY EFFECT: the child is prone to savage, guttural and profane outbursts that often lead to fighting and pandemonium in the preschool.
BRAHMS EFFECT: the child is able to speak beautifully as long as his sentences contain a multiple of three words (3, 6, 9, 12, etc). However, his sentences containing 4 or 8 words are strangely uninspired.
AND THEN OF COURSE, THE CAGE EFFECT — CHILD SAYS NOTHING FOR 4 MINUTES, 33 SECONDS. PREFERRED BY 9 OUT OF 10 CLASSROOM TEACHERS.
* * *
And then I add a few more:
DEBUSSY EFFECT: child’s vision is extremely hazy with continuous complains of mist before the eyes, speech tends to be peppered with déjà vu
SHOSTAKOVICH EFFECT: child will have a history of trauma, beware of rebeliious tendencies.
BACH EFFECT: child is a mathematical genius... and very anal too
SIBELIUS EFFECT: child becomes icy cold, loves the bleak and barren
RACHMANINOFF EFFECT: child grows to become a crooner
MUSSORGSKY EFFECT: child eventually learns that the spirit is mightier than the pen
¶ 4/13/2008 10:16:00 pm The Mozart Effect
A new report now suggests that the Mozart effect may be a fraud. For you hip urban professionals: no, playing Mozart for your designer baby may not improve his IQ or help him get into that exclusive pre-school. He’ll just have to be admitted to Harvard some other way.
Of course, we’re all better off for listening to Mozart purely for the pleasure of it. However, one wonders that if playing Mozart sonatas for little Hillary or Jason could boost their intelligence, what would happen if other composers were played in their developmental time?
LISZT EFFECT: Child speaks rapidly and extravagantly, but never really says anything important.
BRUCKNER EFFECT: Child speaks very slowly and repeats himself frequently. Gains reputation for profundity.
WAGNER EFFECT: Child becomes a megalomaniac. May eventually marry his sister.
MAHLER EFFECT: Child continually screams - at great length and volume that he’s dying.
SCHOENBERG EFFECT: Child never repeats a word until he’s used all the other words in his vocabulary. Sometimes talks backwards. Eventually, people stop listening to him. Child blames them for their inability to understand him.
BABBITT EFFECT: Child gibbers nonsense all the time. Eventually, people stop listening to him. Child doesn’t care because all his playmates think he’s cool.
IVES EFFECT: the child develops a remarkable ability to carry on several separate conversations at once.
GLASS EFFECT: the child tends to repeat himself over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again.
STRAVINSKY EFFECT: the child is prone to savage, guttural and profane outbursts that often lead to fighting and pandemonium in the preschool.
BRAHMS EFFECT: the child is able to speak beautifully as long as his sentences contain a multiple of three words (3, 6, 9, 12, etc). However, his sentences containing 4 or 8 words are strangely uninspired.
AND THEN OF COURSE, THE CAGE EFFECT — CHILD SAYS NOTHING FOR 4 MINUTES, 33 SECONDS. PREFERRED BY 9 OUT OF 10 CLASSROOM TEACHERS.
* * *
And then I add a few more:
DEBUSSY EFFECT: child’s vision is extremely hazy with continuous complains of mist before the eyes, speech tends to be peppered with déjà vu
SHOSTAKOVICH EFFECT: child will have a history of trauma, beware of rebeliious tendencies.
BACH EFFECT: child is a mathematical genius... and very anal too
SIBELIUS EFFECT: child becomes icy cold, loves the bleak and barren
RACHMANINOFF EFFECT: child grows to become a crooner
MUSSORGSKY EFFECT: child eventually learns that the spirit is mightier than the pen
