Music and the memories
Ifeel like I am on a swing going back and forth as I sort the music files on my iPod. Old tunes make me nostalgic and bring back many memories. I begin to hum when I hear my father-in-law remark that the iPod we have is a very old one. At first, I laugh at this paradoxical statement. The iPod is a recent phenomenon, is it not? But, then, the one we have is at least seven years old. Seven years in this digital age is a long time.
Despite this, one aspect that has not changed is the way we store music. I mean, the songs have to be put in some place so that we can play back and listen to it at leisure. Right?
In days gone by, radio channels were very popular. I remember waking up to melodious classical music every single day. Listening to music was tuning in to various radio channels at specific times. There were times when we waited for some popular shows. Then came the audio cassette era. These were popular for a very long period. It amazed us that music could actually be played from a magnetic strip of tape — anywhere and at any time.
We watched endlessly as the two circular wheels went around in motion as it unwound and wound the tape. I have peered through the little plastic square that held the tape, so many times, just to catch a glimpse of the marvel of science — sound coming out of a thin strip. It never ceased to amaze me. Sometimes, when the songs played out, the tape would entangle itself on a thin protruding needle. We would then take the cassette out and pull the tape ever-so-gently and wind it back by putting a pencil into the circular hole and winding it up slowly.
Quite unheard of
The audio CD era did not last long for me. Instead, suddenly, one fine day, I was shown a small device that could hold up to 100 songs — and that’s when I let out a gasp. A hundred songs! That meant at least 300 to 400 minutes of uninterrupted music. It was quite unheard of.
Then, within no time, a half-bitten Apple produced a rectangular object that cost the heaven and earth, with the capacity to store even more music.
Today, after just seven years, I find that the half-bitten Apple that entered our lives has gone quite stale. But, then, what else can I do about my musical needs?
As I wonder about the numerous possibilities, how listening to some favourite tracks can change in the coming years, I tell my father-in-law that the one thing that cannot be divorced from this activity of listening is the necessity for the auditory nerves and the music to co-exist. My father-in-law laughs in agreement.
The only thing, I reason, that can possibly change is the way music is stored and retrieved from time to time.
In the near future, I may just hum some tune to myself and a voice could ask me if I would like the song played from the iPod, have the song on my handheld device or have it as background music so that I can continue to hum and it can even correct me as I sing. The idea thrilled me.
But, strangely, I am convinced that I don’t want to live in such an era because, I think, when I stuck a little pencil into the plastic hole on the cassette tape, my singing ability was better and it sure was a lot of fun.
Sudha Subramanian is a Dubai-based author and writer.