Demos, ThumFest™ 2005, www.thummer.com Videos

TunedInAndOut Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - The Thummer looks very interesting! If it brings even one more person to music, it will be of great value. I wish you good luck!

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - This device promotes musical idiocy. My main problem is the inventor is somehow trying to "improve" upon over 400 years of SUCCESSFUL musical tradition by replacing it with this useless toy.

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - I am guilty as charged... just as Henry Ford was guilty of trying to "improve" upon centuries of SUCCESSFUL transportation tradition and Vint Cerf was guilty of trying to "improve" upon centuries of SUCCESSFUL communications tradition. Their useless toys have helped millions."Promoting musical idiocy"? How so? With the Thummer, a higher percentage of people can successfully gain the knowledge and skills necessary to read, perform, and compose music. Is this not a good thing?

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - If jacydawn82 is the country singer Jacy Dawn, then her comments above are quite ironic. Is she not aware that in the early years of country music, most of its performers could not read traditional notation (Peterson, "Creating Country Music," p. 13), which was used as an excuse to keep them out of the musician's union, thereby marginalizing country music for decades? By exposing the simple structure of music, I am removing the very obstacles that her country music forebears struggled to cross.

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Then, of course, there's the "Nashville Numbering System," invented by a Hee-Haw musician in 1957 to make transposing chords easier -- thereby presumably challenging musical tradition.

harmono Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - I'm 43 years old. I'm interested in learning to improvise. I don't have the etime to learn to play a standard 88 key piano, so this could really help me.

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - 1) I'm not the country singer Jacy Dawn.2) Are you seriously comparing yourself to Henry Ford and Vint Cerf? Give me a break!3) You don't fool me...your BS about wanting to spread the joy of music with your trinket is completely lost and fake to me between interjections of how much you want to make money. The developers of the Theramin or MOOG sought to further music as an art form, something you obviously don't intend to do as a musically challenged (however brilliant) businessman.

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Your claims are erroneous.Leon Teremin patented the Teremin all over the world; hardly a sign of unbridled altruism.Robert Moog made theremins for a living, both before and after developing the synthesizer, and always worked (albeit with mixed success) to commercialize his innovations profitably.By offering a simpler, cheaper, and more expessive instrument, I can make the world a better place and a fortune, too. That's the American Dream; as an American, that's good enough for me.

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - How is it that this device is going to make the world a better place? Be very specific, please. How are you contributing to the world as a businessman (because, sir, you are NOT an artist) with your musical innovation?Cut the nonsense; you are very much more interested in tapping into a "$30 billion a year industry."If you would only change your view that the problems of the less musically-inclined is the fault of the music. That just completely boggles my mind.

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Face it: what you are indeed promoting is not innovation, but idiocy. You're not talking about cars versus horse and carriage. Music is an art (to some, art in its highest form) and should be experienced by everyone. That much I agree. But to suggest that your way is better and that your device is superior in some way is completely ludicrous. There are countless interested individuals who have toiled for many years learning their instrument -

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - whether piano, violin, guitar, cello, clarinet - both amateur, professional, or somewhere in between who would be more than happy to try or even learn your device (myself included would be interested in at least trying it out). But I cannot let go of your ridiculous claims about how the thummer is a "solution" to the problems presented by learning the above instruments, all veiled under the guise of making the world a better place.

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - "By offering a simpler, cheaper, and more expessive instrument, I can make the world a better place and a fortune, too."

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - "By offering a simpler, cheaper, and more expessive instrument, I can make the world a better place and a fortune, too."Simpler? Maybe a little (although it doesn't take too long to learn chords on a guitar or basic progressions on a piano).Cheaper? At $450 US, that's not exactly cheaper than a beginner's guitar, and that's just for the thummer alone, correct?

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - More Expressive? The only claim that is just outright wrong. People: compare the thummer examples here to a fine performance of a Chopin etude or Beethoven sonata on the piano, an Albeniz Tango on the guitar, a Bach partita on the violin, or a simple lullaby sung by a parent to their child.

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - JacyDawn82, I appreciate your taking the time to post such obviously strongly-felt thoughts regarding the Thummer here. But perhaps my blog would be a better place to continue this discussion? See ThumMusings, at thummer com / blog.I am particularly interest in understaind exactly what you believe musical idiocy to be, and what aspects of the Thummer and ThumMusic System you believe promote musical idiocy.Thanks! :-)

jacydawn82 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Sounds great!

xylenz Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - You can tell that Jim is ex-Microsoft by the way he measures value by counting features. In music TONE is King not DoF.

frenzitti Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Your idea is kind of fun but who will use it? Certainly not a musician. On stage with a thummer? Yeah thats likely. The instrument is ugly. The only way this will ever make it is if it were easier to learn. Piano in my opinion is already perfectly logical. What makes yours more logical. This is the beta of musical instruments.

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Yesterday I got an email from a musician finishing a European tour, saying "Just writing to ask: when may I buy a Thummer? How much wqould it cost us to buy a prototype? Thanks, steady on, and best of luck! Can't wait to see it in stores and schools!"Of the hundreds of people who've signed up to be notified when the Thummer ships, 75% rated its looks as "cool."So there are many people for whom the Thummer's raw expressive power, Dynamic Tonality, and keyboard logic are very attractive.

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - This would be a valid criticism if the Thummer emitted any tones at all, but it does not. It is a MIDI controller, enabling the control of any MIDI-compatible tone generator, ow which there are squillions. The most expressive of these are the "waveguide" synths, such as the Yamaha VL70m, which produce amazingly realistic sounds -- if driven by a sufficiently-expressive controller. The Thummer can control such realistic sounds more expressively (and polyphonically) than any other MIDI controller.

frenzitti Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Thanks for the quick reply. I just don't see it on stage at all. Maybe it could be used for composing? Every other instrument out there is much like a piece of art. Guitars=beautiful,Pianos=beautiful, Saxophone=beautiful. The only thing I can see anyone using this is for composition, and that is only feasible if it is a country mile easier to express your musical ideas.

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Have you seen video lWK1d9fzlVQ? Most musicians tell me that its motion sensing would be great for live performance. Do you disagree?

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - As to the Thummer's lack of beauty -- that's a matter of taste. The Thummer was designed to minimize weight and bulk, thereby maximizing the utility of its internal motion sensors -- i.e., making it more musically expressive. The function of a digital controller is different from that of an acoustic instrument, and form should follow function. In my opinion, adding ornamentation to the Thummer just to make it prettier would be criminal -- but there's room for disagreement. :-)

elefanten4 Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Thats a lame instument

JimPlamondon Says:

Oct 12, 2008 - Could you be more specific? If there are specific features or qualities that you're looking for, I'd like to hear them.