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November 9

reface a clarinet mouthpiece

What does it mean to "reface" a clarinet mouthpiece? Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 00:54, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Refacing a clarinet (or saxophone) mouthpiece usually means adjusting the length of the gap between the reed and the mouthpiece itself. Refacing is done mostly to change the responsiveness of the mouthpiece, but it can impact other factors as well. It's also a rather finicky procedure, requiring lots of precision sanding. Regards, Orange Suede Sofa (talk) 01:06, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks, is there a name for sanding out the tooth marks? Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 02:28, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The part of the mouthpiece where the player rests their teeth is the biteplate. Some biteplates are removable and/or replaceable. In that situation, you're talking about biteplate repair or replacement. Or simply describing this as "buffing out the tooth marks" might work just as well. Regards, Orange Suede Sofa (talk) 02:49, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Resolved

thanks (I'm trying to describe one on eBay). Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 03:09, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Help finding a movie name

I've seen a movie on TV which name ended in "Must Die" and before that there was a name, but I can't figure out which name it was. The movie has a presentation which shows that it was made in Japan or somewhere like that. The movie it's about the life of a boy who's friends who make him steal, and firstly his mother is angry with him because he'd been playing truant and he's never home. But then he starts viewing the videos of the company where he and his friends'd stolen and he kept a laptop. I've not seen the whole movie so I can barely say anything more.. I'd be pleased if anyone can tell me the name of this movie! 186.54.15.61 (talk) 02:52, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I suppose it's not Romeo Must Die? Adam Bishop (talk) 03:20, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Alpha Must Die: [1] ? StuRat (talk) 05:09, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

John Tucker Must Die? Evanh2008 ^{(talk|contribs)} 05:36, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Adam Bishop, StuRat and Evanh2008... It's non of them, but thanks anyway! 190.134.23.99 (talk) 00:28, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Harmonix Songs Online

I may have tried to ask this before but I couldn't phrase it well.

Where can one find the bonus songs in Rock Band 1, 2, and (if any) 3 for download online? That is, is the music by the Harmonix employee bands available online? Are they too obscure? Is there a centralized location, or are they all on different record labels? If so, does it matter? The same goes for any of these in from the first two Guitar Hero games.

I suppose I went on a tangent, but I would love to know. 75.73.226.36 (talk) 03:44, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Looking for name & author of science fiction story

I heard a short story years ago about a young girl who lives with her father alone in an old house. There's a room to which she is perpetually denied access, until one day she breaks into the room and finds an electronic version of herself being constructed. Shocked, she races out of the room, falls down the stairs and breaks part of herself off, realizing that she herself is a robot. My question is... where does the story come from?Markjoseph125 (talk) 14:06, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Scroll up this page to 5 November, where the near-identical question was asked, and was answered to the best of the RefDesk's abilities at the time. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 84.21.143.150 (talk) 14:12, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Excellent; but this just screams to have its original source in a 1950s science fiction story. I'm wondering if anyone can identify the story. Thanks!Markjoseph125 (talk) 05:21, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Help in recognizing two musical compositions

I think I've heard before the two pieces played in these videos (during the written times), but I can't remember their names.

Do you recognize them?

Thanks a lot! 109.64.211.75 (talk) 15:06, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The first is the final galop from the "Dance of the Hours" from Amilcare Ponchielli's opera La Gioconda. It was famously danced by hippopotamuses in the original Disney film Fantasia. The first part of the piece (not heard in the clip) was parodied in the song "Hallo Mudda, Hallo Fadda".

The second is the "Can-can" from Jacques Offenbach's opera Orpheus in the Underworld.

See, opera can be fun (for all you operaphobes out there). -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 15:12, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks! I actually like operas (and classical music), and now I found another one: 13:35–14:35. 109.64.211.75 (talk) 16:03, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

While I totally agree that opera can be fun, La Gioconda (opera), despite its name, is probably not the best example to prove this, as it has a gruesome and tragic plot. The Dance of the Hours is a rather incongruous interlude in the general gloom. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 22:54, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Yep, gloom, gruesomeness, tragedy, drama, murder, blood, death, anguish, despair - you've just described my idea of fun, Andrew. :) -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 05:06, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The late actor Tony Randall used to turn up on the Johnny Carson show occasionally, and he talked about opera. He said he liked it quite a lot, because the storylines were, in his word, "dirty". ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 23:48, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Dish Tv

Yes my question to you is why doesnt Dish Tv carry the Christian Channel 'The Word Network' - This channel should be included in the christian package. Access to all christian channels should be automatic with any package no matter what. Please keep me informed if any changes could be made within this satellite network. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 184.21.200.123 (talk) 16:20, 9 November 2012 (UTC) [reply]

I suspect, based on your question, that you found one of our over 4 million articles and thought we were affiliated in some way with that subject. Please note that you are at Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia that anyone can edit, and this page is for asking questions related to using or contributing to Wikipedia itself. Thus, we have no special knowledge about the subject of your question. You can, however, search our vast catalogue of articles by typing a subject into the search field on the upper right side of your screen. Best of luck. --Jayron32 17:20, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I suggest you call the company, request the mailing address of their corporate office, and send them a letter. Letters like that get a lot of attention because they assume that you represent thousands of people with the same view who are too lazy to bother to write. μηδείς (talk) 20:23, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Hugo and Nebula First Contact

I am interested in getting lists of Hugo and or Nebula award nominated or winning novels which deal with aliens or alien first contact. Is there a way to search for the intersection of various categories that will get me what I want? How would I go about that? Thanks. μηδείς (talk) 19:54, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

WP:CATSCAN may help... --Jayron32 21:50, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

One that sprung to mind right away is Rendezvous with Rama. --Jayron32 21:51, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

First contact (science fiction) has some examples as well. --Jayron32 21:54, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Rendezvous with Rama was great, but it had no effing sapient aliens! (Tried to read the sequel, but wasn't able to get into it. A Gentry Lee novel, no?) I will try CATSCAN. Thanks. But more suggestions will be welcome. μηδείς (talk) 23:50, 9 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Well, then who built Rama? --Jayron32 05:32, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The Lama Ding Dongs of course. Anyhoo, there's Have Space Suit — Will Travel, The High Crusade, Little Fuzzy, Ringworld, The Gods Themselves, The Mote in God's Eye, Titan, The Pride of Chanur, Cuckoo's Egg (sort of), Footfall, The Forge of God, and A Fire Upon the Deep for the earlier Hugo winners and nominees (not that familiar with the more recent).Clarityfiend (talk) 06:57, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Here's a little RD-best marquee for the lama ding dong answer. I have read all those books except Titan, Cuckoo's Egg and The High Crusade, and Little Fuzzy--which I actually began reading yesterday! I have tried to read A Fire Upon the Deep but I can't stand the guy's style. Thanks. μηδείς (talk) 16:28, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I asked the same question in IRC not too long ago. From the suggestions offered, I read and finished the main novels of the CoDominium series. As for the rest of the Rama series... they were meh. I'll save you the trouble by telling you that in the end even the "administrators" who oversaw the "collection" of samples of sapient lifeforms didn't have the faintest clue of who built the cylinders and the waystations as well, kind of like the monoliths in the 2001 series.

Though I'm pretty sure you've probably read these as well, I recommend Stephen Baxter's Xeelee Sequence, which I'm reading through myself right now, though they're not Hugo or Nebula winners. I've just finished the first four book, and I liked them so far. Even though it gets pedantic and repetitive (ideas and entire paragraphs often get transplanted verbatim from one book to another), it still contains some of the most alien settings I've encountered in science fiction. I recommend Flux and Raft especially, though they're technically not first contact novels. I'm having trouble getting into the first of the next books in the series though, the first of the Destiny's Children arc is set in the boring present... meh. I'm planning to put it off a bit and read Alastair Reynolds' Revelation Space series which has raving reviews (though also no Hugo nor Nebula).

You might also try using Goodreads to look for lists of books on that topic. Like this one on "Best aliens". And... OOOOOOOOOOH. A new Culture novel is out! :D *Disappears* -- OBSIDIAN†SOUL 17:32, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

November 10

Sega Saturn 3D/polygonal police-action beat-em-up game?

I played an arcade game in Akihabara on vacation a few weeks ago, which was a kind of retro beat-em-up game from the 1990s. The graphics were composed of polygonal models and environments instead of hand-drawn imagery, and you controlled a generic-looking police officer who brawled his way past various eccentric criminals and baddies. You could pick up all sorts of objects and use them as weapons. I asked the owner if the game was only on the arcade and he replied, "No, Sega Saturn." I thought I got the name of the game, which was something like "Metro Cyber City 2000" or something like that (don't remember exactly), but later at my hotel I looked it up, and it turned out that the logo scrawled on top of the game's cabinet was the name of the company that produced the cabinet. Oops.

I didn't catch the title in the game's intro graphics either, so does anyone know what game I played? --66.235.32.59 (talk) 00:11, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

We have a list of Sega Saturn games, so my guess would be as good as yours just going through there. There's also a list of arcade video games, so you could look for games that appear on both lists. It wasn't Die Hard Arcade, was it? It's from the 90s, has polygonal graphics, and has a "a variety of weapons that can be collected from enemies or the environment, from household items such as brooms to high-damage anti-tank cannons." Despite the name, it didn't really have anything to do with Die Hard, except that it took place in a skyscraper. The villain had kidnapped the president's daughter, and the goal was to rescue her. Could that be it? --BDD (talk) 04:06, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, that was it! You're right about it not resembling Die Hard -- even the game's villain looked nothing like Hans Gruber, it was more like some old Chinese guy with a large Santa beard. Damn fun game, though, so now I know what to seek. Thank you. --66.235.32.59 (talk) 19:18, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Does Robert Gant who played Ben on Queer As Folk sound and look like Kevin Sorbo?

Does Robert Gant who played Ben on Queer As Folk sound and look like Kevin Sorbo? Does Robert Gant who played Ben on Queer As Folk sound and look like Kevin Sorbo? I saw look at Queer as Folk reruns and I thought those to actors look like they could be brothers or something! And does Robert ever do action movies? Neptunekh94 (talk) 00:14, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

We aren't here to tell you what your opinion is. You can decide for yourself if you think they sound or look alike. --Jayron32 00:17, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

If the photo in the Gant article is any indication, the answer, in my observation, is NO. But if you think otherwise, then that's your opinion and could just as easily be right as mine. As for the types of pictures he makes, that would either be in the article or be linked from the article. P.S. How many Neptunekh.. user ID's do you have? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:46, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Younger Guy, Older Lady celebrity romances

Have their ever been a male celebrity in his 40's who is with a woman in her 60's or a eighty something lady celebrity with a sixty something guy? Neptunekh94 (talk) 18:55, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I don't know about those specific ages, but Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore were an item for many years and she's 15 years older than him, meaning that for at least some of their relationship she was in her 40s while he was in his 20s. --Jayron32 22:01, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

When Elizabeth Taylor was married to Larry Fortensky, she was between the ages of 59 and 64, while he was between the ages of 39 and 44. However, he hardly qualifies as a celebrity since no one would have heard of him if he hadn't been married to her. Angr (talk) 22:19, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

You could check the articles that link to Age disparity in sexual relationships. I thought we used to have a list of notable May-December romances but I can't seem to find it right now. Dismas|^(talk) 03:44, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

If you're interested in British couples, then Alfred Molina and Jill Gascoine come into this category (just). --TammyMoet (talk) 10:43, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Why "just"? From the time she turned 60 (shortly before he turned 44) until he turned 50 (shortly after she turned 66), he was in his 40s and she was in her 60s. So for six years from 1997 to 2003 they fit the parameters specified by the OP. And if they're both still alive and they're still together in five years' time, she'll be 80 and he'll be 64, so they'll fit the parameters again. And they were both already celebrities before they married. Seems like exactly what the OP is looking for. Angr (talk) 12:17, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Maths was never my strong point... --TammyMoet (talk) 13:52, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I also reckon Zsa Zsa Gabor's current marriage fits the bill. --TammyMoet (talk) 13:56, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Care for a younger couple? 22-year-old Aaron Taylor-Johnson is married to 45-year-old Sam Taylor-Wood. 216.93.234.239 (talk) 04:11, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Not quite meeting the specifications, but you might be interested to read about the tenor Hugues Cuénod, who died a couple of years ago at the age of 108. His boyfriend was a mere twink of 67 - an age gap of 41 years. They had married as soon as they were legally able to in Switzerland, when they were aged 105 and 64. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 07:15, 15 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Trying to remember a horrible Scandinavian bubblegum pop music video

A few months to about a year ago, I think, a Norwegian friend of mine linked me to this music video, but I can't remember what it is. It was pretty recent. The singer was a young woman, apparently recently removed or evicted from some type of American Idol-like reality show. She was made up to look very young (with pigtails, IIRC) and held a large rainbow-swirl lollipop throughout the song. The song was bubblegum pop, reminiscent of Aqua. It was in English with sexually suggestive lyrics, and I think "candy" was used in the chorus. She had a thick Nordic accent and I think her voice was autotuned in some parts. Suffice to say, it was very bad.

Anyway, I remember it because it was widely parodied in the Scandinavian countries at that time. The comments on YouTube revolved largely around different Scandinavian users pretending to be citizens of their neighboring countries, and then posting in their native languages urging their countrymen to do the same. The objective being to fool English-speakers into thinking that she came from another Scandinavian country rather than theirs (thus disowning her). And then the citizens of the other country also claimed that she was instead from another country (all of them relying on the inability of English-speakers to distinguish between the three Scandinavian countries easily). She got passed around Danes, Swedes, and Norwegians I think, though I can't remember her actual nationality. Does anyone know what that song was? -- OBSIDIAN†SOUL 20:42, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

A bit of googling led me here. There I found the artist Bambee, with a song called "Candy girl", which possibly could be what you're looking for. No video like the one you describe on YouTube though, although there are several versions of the song without the original video. I had never heard of Bambee before googling your question, and I have completely missed the YouTube phenomenon you mention. --NorwegianBlue^talk 23:05, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Nope, not Bambee, but thanks. She's also the first result I get when I google-fu, which is why I resorted to asking here. Anyway, I eventually found it, ironically by googling "worst music video ever". It was "Paradise" Iselin Michelsen and the song was "Chewing Gum". The video is here, if you're interested (note that the top rated comment identifies her as Swedish, but she's actually Norwegian). Our own article on her identifies her as Swedish of Danish descent, which I gather is vandalism. I've changed it back and tried fixing the article a bit. You might do a better job, seeing that you speak the language. :) -- OBSIDIAN†SOUL 17:06, 15 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Beethoven's Deafness

I recently heard that, after Beethoven's deafness was almost total, while he was playing, he placed a part of his body in order to feel the sound waves. He could not have place a hand on the piano, for one needs both hands in order to play, and he were to place his ear on the piano, I believe that would be such a contorted position that playing would be rendered almost impossible. I would like to know if this is true. I have researched this topic on the internet, and have found nothing to date. Thanks — Preceding unsigned comment added by Tauldi (talk • contribs) 20:52, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

A knee would work well. He could have a stool underneath the piano to raise his leg, so it contacted the bottom of the piano. I doubt if he could "hear" much that way, but probably enough to tell if a piano string was broken, when he hit it's key. (Although he couldn't use his knee full-time for this, as he needed his feet, and even knee, to operate pedals, at times: Piano_pedals#Beethoven_and_pedals.) StuRat (talk) 01:16, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

maybe he just got really excited by his work........gazhiley 15:31, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I once read somewhere (so no reference there, sorry) that he used some kind of blade. He put one end on the piano and the other end on his tongue. --Zoppp (talk) 17:31, 16 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Question on Glee

Who are the non-American actors on Glee? I know of Cory Monteith and Vanessa Lengies who are Canadians. Are there more foreigners? Thank you. Watterwalk (talk) 21:51, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Is there something preventing you from clicking the blue-linked name of each cast member and checking each biography yourself? Because I'm pretty sure that's what anyone trying to answer you question for you here at the Reference Desk would do. --Jayron32 21:59, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Okay, there's no need to be so rude. Watterwalk (talk) 22:29, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I can understand Jayron's confusion as to why you need to ask us here. You've shown that you know how to link articles and can presumably navigate to them and other articles on from them. So I'm also at a loss as to what you want us to help you find that you, even after displaying proficiency at navigating Wikipedia and thus the internet, cannot find yourself. Maybe there's some aspect of your inquiry that you didn't explain which we might be able to follow up on? Dismas|^(talk) 03:48, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The Young Ones dialogue (sort of) question

Can anyone help me fill in the lacuna in the following extract from Bachelor Boys? "Me" is, of course, Rick.

BOY GEORGE: "Do you really want to hurt me?"

ME: "Yes!"

ROD STEWART: "D'you think I'm sexy?"

ME: "No!"

MICK JAGGER: "I can't get no satisfaction"

ME: "I'm not surprised [missing bit here]. I bet that even a can of Cydrax gives you a runny bottom! Ha, ha, did you hear what I said, everybody?"

Tevildo (talk) 23:43, 10 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

November 11

Question about a weird 80's song with an electrically generated voice

I heard an 80's song with an electronic voice on the radio here in Knoxville, TN USA on the way to work this morning. I am trying to find the name and lyrics of the song. When I turned it to the station, the song was already playing, but I think that it was close to the beginning. There was a narrator and a voice in the song. The voice (an eerie electronic voice) called the narrator's house (I think) and purported to be the narrator's mom and asked something along the lines of if she was home or not. The narrator and the voice interacted and the narrator ended up asking "who the voice was, really?". I can't remember much of what was said between them but I remember something about flames (or fire) was coming, but the flames (or fire) was american made, they are made in america. I think it's a pretty obscure song, but I hope someone can help me out. --174.50.224.31 (talk) 00:42, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I think you heard O Superman by Laurie Anderson. In which case, they're planes, not flames. American planes, made in America. Smoking, or non-smoking? ReverendWayne (talk) 03:38, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

same star, different characters

I know Sabine Singh played Greenlee on All My Children and Wendy on One Life to Live. Which other stars played one character on the first show and another character on the second show?142.255.103.121 (talk) 06:15, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Good golly, that would be a looooong list. Television likes to recycle its popular stars. You'd probably have to live more than one life or get all your children to help enumerate them all. People that spring to mind immediately are Lucille Ball, Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, Kelsey Grammer ... Clarityfiend (talk) 01:06, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Here's a more complete list. Clarityfiend (talk) 01:12, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

A more complete list of what? 91 actors that the compiler could name without trying? —Tamfang (talk) 09:55, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

A more complete list of what I thought the OP was asking for, as plainly stated in the title of the list. Clarityfiend (talk) 13:05, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

[2] lists 393 actors who have appeared in both series. It doesn't show their roles, though. (I got there from [3].) —Tamfang (talk) 19:55, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

D'oh. Clarityfiend (talk) 23:51, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

1.000.000 comments

Some forum themes and blog posts have tens of thousand comments, sometimes hundreds of thousand. Do we have a million_comments_theme or blog post somewhere?

If many, how about a million_comments_theme without a celebrity topic-starter? --Ewigekrieg (talk) 12:09, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Song clue

Could someone help to ID this song at the beginning (until 0:38)? Can't find by lyrics. Thanks. --93.174.25.12 (talk) 21:11, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I believe it's "Scream" by Thousand Foot Krutch. --Michig (talk) 21:14, 11 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

November 12

Lyricless compositions with vocals?

What are compositions which feature vocals with a melody line but no lyrics classified as? Are these instrumentals or are they not?

The above is my immediate question, but this is part of a deeper issue. It seems to me as if there is a continuum between unambiguously instrumental compositions and prototypical songs (with clearly understandable lyrics in a particular language): There are instrumental pieces featuring human voices or vocal effects (usually taking up only a small part of the piece), such as coughing, laughing, babbling – analogous to non-vocal non-musical noise effects or samples – but no sung melodies nor Sprechgesang; there are instrumental pieces with whistled melodies (which may take up a significant part of the composition, or may not); there are pieces with vocals performing only a melody, using a vowel such as schwa, [a], [i] or [u] as support; there are pieces with nonsense syllables (la la etc.), scat, (usually ad-libbed) gibberish; there are pieces using random syllables sounding vaguely like a particular language but only there for effect (Adiemus come to mind); there are pieces using random syllables sounding intentionally like a particular language (Era with pseudo-Latin monk chants); there are pieces with vocals singing lyrics in "invented languages", however without any clear (intended) meaning attached; there are pieces with vocals singing lyrics in developped invented and in principle translateable languages such as Klingon (or Elvish languages, which Enya is known for having used); and there are lyrics in extinct languages from Sumerian to Latin or even more exotic languages whose meaning may have become unclear. Where do instrumentals stop being instrumental? (Presumably, the main criterion revolves around the question if voices act or are used like instruments or as conveyors of meaning, but precisely this may be contentious and difficult to decide in some cases.) Is there an accepted boundary line? Have any definitions been attempted? Is the issue only relevant in popular music, or is the delimitation of vocal music or song from other forms a problem in art music too? --Florian Blaschke (talk) 00:26, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

This is really a request for opinion, and hugely complicated. Can you ask one or two simple questions seeking factual answers? As for an example of voice instrumental music, see The Great Gig in the Sky by Pink Floyd, or listen here. μηδείς (talk) 00:49, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Some good articles to read would be Non-lexical vocables in music and Scat singing. --Jayron32 01:40, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I'm really surprised that article has no mention of Vocalise. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 04:33, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

That might be the longest question I've ever seen here. I'm thinking Vocalese might qualify also. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 23:46, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

There's also Songs Without Words but they're instrumental pieces (piano solo), believe it or not. Some people have put words to them and sung them as songs, but that seems to fly in the face of Songs without Words. When you think about it, Songs without words with words is the same as just Songs, and that seems a pretty dumb thing to call, er, songs. :) -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 11:02, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Also, songs implies singing. Musical compositions with only instruments are given other names (i.e sonata, symphony, or simply Instrumental). But they aren't songs, per se. --Jayron32 14:42, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

No, not per se. But then, a symphonic poem has only music and no words, so it's not a poem per se either. But that's what we call them. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 19:39, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

And then there are things like The Song of Bernadette and similar, which contain no music at all. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 22:36, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

You might find an answer in Category:Glossaries of music.

—Wavelength (talk) 17:00, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Since there haven't been any definitive answers, probably because none exist, allow me to descend into the realm of the individual example: the 2002 Grammy award winner for Best Rock Instrumental Performance, Approaching Pavonis Mons by Balloon (Utopia Planitia), includes pitched wordless vocals. So at least the Academy didn't view the presence of a human voice as disqualifying the piece as an instrumental (or at least they didn't when they considered the category worthy of individual recognition (which they no longer do)). Regards, Orange Suede Sofa (talk) 17:21, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Slovenian books

Hello, where in NY can I find/buy printed books of Slovenian authors? Bennielove (talk) 00:52, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

If you are in NYC I would go to The Strand at 12th and Broadway, and go to the basement (down the stairs or ride the elevator) and ask one of the people at the help desk where to look. Barnes and Noble used to have a foreign language bookstore in the West Village but it closed half a dozen years ago. So many good bookstores in NYC have close since 2000. The clerks at the Strand should help. There are plenty of Russian bookstores in Brooklyn. Some may have books in other Slavic languages. I would go visit them in person and ask a clerk there as well. μηδείς (talk) 02:41, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Myself neeraj singh rajawat s/o mr. Dhanraj singh rajawat

Vill. Rawanjana doongar Dist.= sawai madhopur' — Preceding unsigned comment added by Neeraj singh rajawat (talk • contribs) 04:59, 12 November 2012 (UTC) [reply]

Hello, and welcome to Wikipedia. This is the Reference Desk. Do you have a question for us? - Ka renjc 15:58, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

If you don't speak English, please post your question in Hindi or your native language. (यदि आप अंग्रेजी में बात नहीं करते, हिन्दी या अपनी मूल भाषा में अपने प्रश्न पोस्ट कृपया.) StuRat (talk) 23:19, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

This might be something about Sawai Madhopur district in the Indian state of Rajasthan. We have articles about four towns in the district, but the village of Rawanjana doongar is not one of them. Astronaut (talk) 19:39, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Although there are some pictures at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Sawai_Madhopur_district of 'Rawanja Dungar' railway station. I believe the OP is introducing himself as Neeraj Singh Rajawat, the son of Mr Dhanraj Singh Rajawat of the village of Rawanjana Dungar in the district of Sawai Madhopur. I'm not sure what we should do with this information. - Cucumber Mike (talk) 22:18, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I think he's asking the distance from he village of Rawanjana Doongar (also spelled "Dungar") to the city of Sawai Madhopur, not the district named after it. StuRat (talk) 22:31, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

fundraising for the same cause

I remember All My Children having a storyline. It was a Mardi Gras-themed masquerade ball. While it was airing, some cast members made pleas to viewers for donations to the American Red Cross. I also remember the cast of One Life to Live recording a compilation album called One Life, Many Voices. Both projects were for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. How much money has been raised through each project?142.255.103.121 (talk) 06:22, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

The leader of the project blogged some of the stats on the proceeds - http://robinstrasser.net/sweetnotes.html - There's also a link to a thank you letter from VH1 thanking them for a $17k donation. Foofish (talk) 19:45, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Great! But how much money has been raised through the aforementioned All My Children storyline?142.255.103.121 (talk) 19:58, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I still can't find actual donation amounts. A little more Googling tells me there was also an effort called Operation Soap Hope featuring folks from all the ABC soaps answering phones for donations while on The View. I think this was separate from the Mardi Gras thing. I can't find anything about it other than press releases. Foofish (talk) 17:49, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

I vant to sock your blodd!

Did Bela Lugosi ever say that? (It's hard to imagine a context in which Dracula would say it rather than do it.) —Tamfang (talk) 19:58, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Pretty sure he never says that in the movies. There is a line about never drinking wine or something, but fairly sure the line comes from parodies. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.189.106.4 (talk) 23:23, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

It's not in the script for Dracula, just the never drinking wine part. Martin Landau says "I'm going to drink your blood!" as Lugosi in Ed Wood according to IMDb. Clarityfiend (talk) 00:03, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Cinema in Western_Sahara

Are the any films that are set or filmed in the African country Western_Sahara? Neptunekh94 (talk) 20:38, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Pierre-Yves Vandeweerd has made several documentaries there.[4] Javier Bardem partnered to make the documentary Sons of the Clouds about the country. Two more documentaries, Song of Umm Dalaila: The Story of the Saharawis (1996) and Beat of Distant Hearts (2000) by Danielle Smith[5] cover the struggle of the Polisario. Clarityfiend (talk) 00:25, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Song with skateboard sounds?

I'm looking for songs that use recordings of skateboards as elements in their music. I know there is a Propellorheads track that does this, using the sounds of trucks on concrete as a percussion instrument, but I'm thinking there must be more? Thanks! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.189.106.4 (talk) 22:46, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

OPM (band): Heaven is a halfpipe - Cucumber Mike (talk) 22:52, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

That's the kind of thing I'm looking for - not necessarily songs about skating, just songs that use skate samples in them - of course this is both! Thanks! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.189.106.4 (talk) 22:59, 12 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

November 13

Voiceover person for Miller Beer ad

Have kicked this around off and on never could find a source for the voiceover on this ad even through sources like slate.com and adland. Any help would be most appreciated! Marketdiamond (talk) 08:45, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Sounds a lot like Demi Moore. But that's just a guess. --Jayron32 14:38, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Appreciate the effort, something tells me that Ms. Moore may be out of the price range for a TV spot, I realize some big hollywood stars have started doing voiceover but usually those repeatedly cast as "co-stars" or B or C listers. Also sounds quite a bit younger and a tad more throaty. Would there be references that usually list voiceover for commercials? Thanks. -
^{Market St.⧏}_{⧐ Diamond Way} 05:48, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, most A-list stars do a LOT of commercial work. here is a set of commercials featuring stars like George Cloony and Sean Connery. This list shows many major award-winning A-list actors and the voice-over work they do. There's thousands more lists out there like this, and nearly every major A-list actor does major commercials. Yes, they are expensive, but you're basically paying for an hour or two of work, so it isn't much even at George Clooney prices, and what you get is instant auditory recognition. --Jayron32 15:34, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Celebrity endorsements go back a long ways. Here's a Coke add for G.C. Alexander, ca. 1915.[6] ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 23:30, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Help with identifying an 80's New Wave song

Hey there fellow Ref Deskers!
An acquaintance of mine once recorded a snippet of a song off of the radio station Live 105 in San Francisco (you may hear the snippet here: http://soundcloud.com/dj-gregory-groove/summer-luv). He's now searching for name of the band but has been thus far unable to find anything. Lyric searches as well as song identification software have both been dead ends. Does anyone recognize this song?
If you cannot listen to the snippet, the lyrics of this portion are:
Miles and miles of endless sand
We're too young for more than holding hands
One summer love, I'm thinking of
One summer love, I'm thinking of
Bodies in the night
Making shadows lit by firelight
One summer love, I'm thinking of
One summer love, I'm thinking of
Thanks! Helene O'Troy - Et In Arcadia Ego Sum (talk) 13:40, 13 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

November 14

Man with a wooden nose - antagonist from a story

Today I suddenly had a memory of a character in a book I had read several years ago, but I couldn't remember his name or which book he was from. The character was a man - I believe the captain of a ship - who was missing his nose. There was just a large hole in the front of his face. To appear more normal he wore a wooden nose which he tied around his head with a leather strip. When he breathed, the air would make a wheezing sound when it brushed around the prosthetic nose.

I could have sworn that there was at least one illustration of him in the book, and he truly looked quite evil and menacing. But I can't for the life of me remember his name or where he is from! If anyone out there has some ideas, I would be much appreciative! (Once I get thinking about a question, it will bug me until I figure it out.) Thank you! Stripey the crab (talk) 05:10, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Was it Captain Nerezza from Peter and the Shadow Thieves? -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 05:29, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Were you thinking of Justinian II? Although his replacement was made of gold. Those folks had some fun with their rulers, Political mutilation in Byzantine culture. CambridgeBayWeather (talk) 06:24, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

JackofOz: yes! Thank you so much! When I read the name it sounded right, and sure enough, there's my wooden-nosed character! And CambridgeBayWeather, I'll have to take a look at Justinian II - that sounds very interesting! Thank you again! Stripey the crab (talk) 14:10, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Whew, that eclipse is finally over, apparently. Back to Perfection Unlimited. :) -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 18:38, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Which ties in neatly with the 16th century astronomer Tycho Brahe, who lost part of his nose in a fencing duel. The scholarly debate over what his replacement nose was made of is covered in Tycho Brahe#Tycho's nose. Alansplodge (talk) 21:50, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

That is a very cool connection, Alan. -- Jack of Oz ^[Talk] 21:56, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Popularity of oval and stock car racing

I've noticed something: why are oval racing and stock car racing only very popular in North America? I know that there are oval tracks outside the United States, such as Twin Ring Motegi and EuroSpeedway Lausitz, and there are stock car series in other countries such as Argentina and Brazil, but ovals are in the minority and road courses are more common and popular, while stock car racing is overshadowed by rallying, drag racing, touring car racing and Formula One (even in countries with stock car racing, they usually race on road courses). Why is this the case? What is the reason for the relative lack of popularity of either oval racing or stock car racing outside of North America? Is it because of tradition? I'm aware that oval racing evolved from attempts to race on horse racing tracks, but why didn't this idea catch on in Europe and elsewhere? Narutolovehinata5 ^tccsdnew 12:01, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

It's a chicken and egg problem: Oval racing is popular in America because that's the style that developed in the earliest forms of the sport where it became popular: the oldest and most important races in America are the Indianapolis 500 (open wheel) and the Daytona 500 (stock cars) and those are both run on ovals, so the sport developed around oval tracks. Also, most minor-league racing in America occurs on short 1/4-1/2 mile dirt or paved ovals (i.e. Bowman Gray Stadium in North Carolina, my own hometown of Hudson, New Hampshire has such a track: [7]) so that racers and fans are raised on the oval style of racing. Americas best driver grow up driving ovals in small town race tracks, fans watch local races on ovals, and ovals have always been the major form of racing in America since it became a major sport. It also helps to remember that in America, racing is primarily a rural sport: building a dirt oval with some bleachers in an unused field outside of a small town is it happened in America; NASCAR developed around such venues and races: Talladega, Alabama and Loudon, New Hampshire are still tiny towns despite having a major race tracks. In Europe, Racing developed around the Grand Prix circuit, which has always been organized as road races on existing roads. Many of the oldest and most prestigious Grand Prix races are street races, on the city streets of a city: The Circuit de Monaco hosts the Monte Carlo race, one of the oldest and most prestigious in Europe. Such races are usually held in urban areas. --Jayron32 15:17, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

In England stock car racing (and its close relation, banger racing) have their following, but obviously have nowhere near the profile that F1 or even Touring Cars have. --TammyMoet (talk) 16:19, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Have a look at some proper British stock car racing - this video shows a Reliant Robin race. Beat that if you can. Alansplodge (talk) 17:32, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Piano solo music with stand-out notes to produce a newer melody within a main theme?

File:Rach op 23 No. 5 m42.jpg

From Rachmaninoff's Prelude in G Minor. The left hand is playing arpeggios, and the right hand is playing the main melody, also in chords, but in the middle of the measure is a second theme that is shared (played) by both hands. These are sometimes presented as notes with separated stems or sometimes double-stemmed, like in the last half of the measure. I'm looking for the term for this line of melody-within-a-melody, or maybe the name of this technique. Thank you so very much! – Kerαunoςcopia^◁_galaxies 17:24, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Wow, I thought I'd read the article on the prelude, and it does mention counter melody. Well, any additional responses on this would still be extremely helpful. Is this, therefore, an example of counterpoint? – Kerαunoςcopia^◁_galaxies 17:28, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

another Hurricane Sandy benefit concert

I learned there's bound to be another Hurricane Sandy benefit concert. It's going to be called NOLA Pay It Forward. It's being organized by New Orleans Mayor Mitchell J. Landrieu. It'll also be held on November 20, 2012, at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts in New Orleans. When I tried to submit an article about it with the best of my knowledge on the information, I learned the article was declined. I used my own words. There should be an article about the upcoming benefit concert.142.255.103.121 (talk) 22:51, 14 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]

November 15

Lyrics starting with the word "starting"

Here's a random question: Can anyone think of a reasonably well-known song whose very first line begins with the word "starting"? Thanks! Fbv65edel — t — c // 05:03, 15 November 2012 (UTC)[reply]