the original new timbral orchestra

The Expanding Head Band at the helm of TONTO, the ENIAC and ENIGMA mainframe of modular synthesisers, fronted by pioneering electronic duo Malcolm Cecil (†2021, pictured) and Robert Margouleff, as Things Magazine informs, produced few recordings themselves but widely and extensively collaborated with artists of all backgrounds and genres to help their signature psychedelic (see also) sounds gain a purchase in mainstream music. They worked with Stevie Wonder, the Isley Brothers, Joan Baez, Richie Havens, Randy Newman, Quincy Jones, Ravi Shankar and the Doobie Brothers—just to name a few. More at the link above and enjoy their 1971 album Zero Time below.

music for grocery stores

We really enjoyed this ambient soundtrack, via r/ Obscure Media, to accompany one’s shopping list in this 1975 muzak selection Sounds for the Supermarket. The track titles that I suppose match the arc of the hunter-gatherer quest and could be suited to some independent gaming adventure are a bit strange and evocative: Mister Satisfied, Mister Lucky, To a Dark Lady, A Touch of Class, Harvey Wallbanger, Delicate Treasures, Departure, etc.

rebound

Though it never occurred to us that such equipment needed inventing and a champion—despite the fact that every exercise and intervention does, we enjoyed learning of the contributions of avid gymnast and promoter George Peter Nissen (*1914 - †2010) who developed the trampoline and made the sport and pass-time an enduring world-wide sensation through this rather arresting feat of man and kangaroo. Inspired by the safety nets of trapeze artists and having toured fairs and carnivals of North America after university studies as a performer and learning the word trampolín—springboard, Nissen registered a trademark for his bouncing apparatus. Having petitioned for the sport to be included in the Olympics for decades, Nissen finally succeeded with trampolining added to the Sydney Games in 2000. The stunt however was captured in 1960.

santa bona

Early eleventh century Augustinian nun venerated on this day, Bona of Pisa, helped conduct pilgrims on their journeys and is considered the patroness of tour guides, couriers, flight attendants as well as her well-touristed home town. Her father a Crusader in the Holy Land, Bona made no fewer than four sojourns there to visit him and see to his well-being and after being taken hostage by pirates and necessitating a ransom and rescue by her compatriots, redirected her focus to the route of Santiago de Compostela, undertaking the arduous trip ten times and leading others along the way.

can’t stop, shan’t stop

Previously we’ve been presented for our consideration with one early twentieth century Russian poet as the primogenitor of the genre which seemed like a valid nomination but we were especially taken with this new to us performance by English playwright, cabaretist and near contemporary Noël Coward of one his signature numbers “Mad Dogs and Englishmen,” which certainly bares some correspondence with modern rap recitations. Acknowledged precursors include spoken-word poetry sessions and the expressionist vocal technique loosely classed as Sprechgesang—a touch operatic and dialogue delivered somewhere in between sung and parlando—realised as popular music in the Bronx in the early 1970s, articulated from the role of the master of ceremonies (MC) to entertain between disc-jockey (DJ) sets.

homo signorum

Public Domain Review indulges our curiosity and resurgent obsession with astrology (see also) in these early Renaissance anatomical depictions of the Zodiac Man, with star signs appended to the organs and humours that they were thought to influence. The inclusion of such diagrams (see previously) in medical texts was to ensure auspicious (or at least not oppositional and ill-timed) scheduling of treatments and surgeries—avoiding, for instance, bloodletting when the Moon was in Aries as a cure for headaches. The full correspondence, at least according to the observations and experience if one seventeenth century physician, is listed below: 

ARIES: Head, Sinus, Eyes, Blood Pressure TAURUS: Ears, Neck, Throat, Shoulders
GEMINI: Nervous System, Respiratory Stems, Arms, Hands
CANCER: Chest, Lymphatic System, Plasma
LEO: Heart, Spleen, Spinal Column
VIRGO: Trunk, Intestines, Gallbladder, Pancreas, Liver
LIBRA: Back, Hips, Endocrine Gland, Kidneys
SCORPIO: Reproductive Organs, Urinary Bladder, Rectum, Pelvis
SAGITTARIUS: Legs, Thighs
CAPRICORN: Skin, Knees and Bones
AQUARIUS: Ankles, Blood
PISCES: Feet, Serum 

More details and collections from Public Domain Review at the link above.

seashore—never more

Via Strange Company’s Weekend Link Dump, we learn that during his life time, Edgar Allen Poe’s most popular and best-selling work was the field guide “The Conchologist’s First Book.” In the 1830s, geology, due to the rising interest in coal as a fuel source, and its sister-science of conchology (see previously) were the hottest commodities as combined, it allowed one to expound on Earth’s history through studying successive strata, and Poe’s slim and portable contribution to the discipline was well-received and had the poetic and evocative subtitle: A System of Tesataceous Malacology—that is, the study of small, soft-bodied creatures by exhuming their hardened ruins. Though perhaps not the most expressive vehicle, some of the author’s flair and license does manage nonetheless to shine through. Much more to explore at the links above.

tbilisoba

We enjoyed exploring the gallery of the visual essay about the endangered Brutalist monuments and buildings of the Georgian capital of Tbilisi (previously here and here) including a quite arresting 1976 of the city’s vocational college bas-relief (nicknamed the Soviet Batman) that fronted one of the main thoroughfares that was slowly and unceremoniously scavenged for scrap metal and now is no more and

the better looked after and protected Chronicle of Georgia (საქართველოს ქრონიკები, not to be confused with this other set of pillars), the post-and-lentil colossal structure depicting the culture, history and heroes of Georgia above and Gospel stories and various hagiographies below. Created by Zurab Tsereteli in 1985, a few panels have yet to be completed, the complex commemorates Georgia’s embarking on its fourth millennia and should inspire preservation of all architectural treasures.