'Game of Thrones' theme song sounds good on just about anything, even calculators

Shawn Knight

Shawn Knight

Posts: 15,284   +192
Staff member

Game of Thrones features an iconic theme song that sounds good on just about anything it’s played on, even calculators.

YouTube user It’s a small world recently posted a video in which four Senbonzakura AR-7778 calculators are used to play the show’s main theme. What’s neat about this model of calculator is that tones can be assigned to keys, essentially turning the mathematics tool into a musical instrument.

The YouTuber is well-versed on the calculator and other improvised musical instruments as evident by her upload history. I’d recommend checking out this video of Super Mario Bros. being played as well as this rendition of the Star Wars theme.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/72734-game-thrones-theme-song-sounds-good-about-anything.html

 
Would love seeing it performed in the Great Sept, moments prior...

When I watched it the first time, I expected Hulk to come out, be he didn't, only his fart.
 
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@Shawn Knight It would appear you've managed to confuse the adjective "good", with the more appropriate one, "cute".

A theme such as this, which is deemed "important" and "pivotal", needs to be likewise performed on an instrument which easily establishes itself as "important", namely the pipe organ:


But I agree "everybody's getting into the act", as attested to by the Queen of England's Palace Guard,. proffering their rendition:

:

If it were recorded on something other than a crap cell phone,. the military band's performance would likely have been very moving.
 
Bao Nguyen said:
Probably the most Asian video ever, calculators and being talented at music
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No, I think this would have to be, "the most Asian video ever". I should be clear they tossed in a couple of Caucasians, to feign "diversity".


No? Then how about Tina Guo

:
 
Only nerds would enjoy the playing the theme song using calculators.
people like would rather enjoy seeing daenrys even without the sound...and the dress.... ;)
 
misor said:
....[ ]....people like would rather enjoy seeing daenrys even without the sound...and the dress.... ;)
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In fact, I am collecting all 8 seasons of GoT, before I watch any of them. I'm unwilling to accept being left hanging at the end of any season. The trouble is, I don't actually know if I'm going to like the show, since my tastes sometimes run somewhat outside of those of the masses.....:D

In any case, and from what I've heard, I'll practically get an overdose of queen Daenerys in the nude, when I binge watch the series... (y)
 
@Steve @misor @cliffordcooley and last, but certainly not least, @Julio Franco

I'm of the opinion that "epic music", should be played, and instrumented in an epic manner. Consequently, the whole calculator trick barely manages to hit "cute", let alone the grand intentions of the show theme itself.

Having been pubescent at the time what we now call, "oldies but goodies", were new releases, and in my late teens and early 20's through the "progressive rock era", IMHO, what today gets passed off as "music", namely hip-hop, is a lame excuse for inflicting extended barrages of profanity, on the lowest common denominator of consumers in the USA.

Movie themes are are actually in a genre of music called "epic music", and the composers of such, sell it in CD compilations, (And high priced compilations at that).

Throughout Europe, heavy metal has spawned sub genres, known as "symphonic metal", or less used,
"opera metal". These are truly heavy metal rock kits, backed by symphony orchestras, and fronted by classically trained, (in large part, female), vocalists.

With that in mind, give this anthem / dirge a listen, and you should understand why the calculator "trick" doesn't even come close to impressing me. (And again, sorry for running outside the pack).

 
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captaincranky said:
I'm of the opinion that "epic music", should be played, and instrumented in an epic manner. Consequently, the whole calculator trick barely manages to hit "cute", let alone the grand intentions of the show theme itself.
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That's not the point though. The point is that it was done on a calculator, and it was plainly recognizable. They wouldn't have bothered with a calculator, if the point was to make it epic.
 
cliffordcooley said:
That's not the point though. The point is that it was done on a calculator, and it was plainly recognizable. They wouldn't have bothered with a calculator, if the point was to make it epic.
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And my point is, "don't use a whiffle ball bat if you're trying to hit a home run in the major leagues".

Even at that, I've called it "cute" several times. It doesn't qualify for higher order superlatives than that. Once again, it's relegated to the "cute pile", which engenders the same musical status as "the cutout bin"...:p.
 
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You're the only one trying to put this topic in major leagues all because of song choice. It's not about the song, it's about the calculators playing the song. Even if you didn't like the song, you should at least be supportive of the attempt. Could you make a calculator sound better? I know I can't. I couldn't take any musical instrument and make them sound better than the calculators here.

At least they took what they knew and made something out of it in the garage. Much like you always tell people when they criticize Intel or AMD on processor manufacturing. When do you ever give people credit for what they do? If it was an actual competition it would be different.
 
cliffordcooley said:
You're the only one trying to put this topic in major leagues all because of song choice. It's not about the song, it's about the calculators playing the song. Even if you didn't like the song, you should at least be supportive of the attempt. Could you make a calculator sound better? I know I can't. I couldn't take any musical instrument and make them sound better than the calculators here.

At least they took what they knew and made something out of it in the garage. Much like you always tell people when they criticize Intel or AMD on processor manufacturing. When do you ever give people credit for what they do? If it was an actual competition it would be different.
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OK Cliff, you yourself said, "it wouldn't be nerdy if you listened to it just once". So, that indicates to me, that you believe, at least to a certain extent, you believe that the hours spent on learning it, would be put to better use elsewhere.

As it stands, the piano is the easiest instrument in the orchestra to play. Those calculators are simply avatars for a keyboard instrument. And although I'm way rusty, and a beginner at piano, I'd give the theme a shot on a keyboard, but surely not on a calculator, and I don't own a smart phone, so I don't have an "app" for that.

Your serve.......
 
captaincranky said:
Those calculators are simply avatars for a keyboard instrument. And although I'm way rusty, and a beginner at piano, I'd give the theme a shot on a keyboard, but surely not on a calculator
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Lets not assume the artist doesn't know how to play other instruments.

I think I will stop the ball here. I think it has been passed around long enough.
 
captaincranky said:
I'd still like to point out, you changed sides just to argue with me.
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No I didn't. I enjoyed watching the theme played on calculator. Would I watch it again, probably not. The song wasn't epic, but the fact it was played on a calculator was epic. You seem to think that it should never have been attempted all because you didn't like the outcome. If you don't like it, say so, and move on. You are the one trying to force your will on all of us, yet you think that is what I'm doing.

OMG here we are with the irony once again, you accusing me of the very thing you are doing. Everything we have said above only places negativity in what should have been a positive topic. I sincerely hope the mods remove everything we have polluted this thread with.
 
upload_2018-1-14_16-15-52.jpeg
From Wikipedia: "On November 18, 1963, the first electronic push-button system with touch-tone dialing was commercially offered by Bell Telephone to customers in the Pittsburgh area towns of Carnegie and Greensburg, Pennsylvania, after the DTMF system had been tested for several years in multiple locations, including Greensburg".

Note that "touch tone" indicates a different "tone" for each key, which can be, and often is, interpreted as a musical note

I believe Cliff, (wild guess actually), that's before you were born.

Calculators also possess a different note for each key, and that's so accountants, along with other high powered users, have an audible indication of when they've hit a wrong key, without looking at the keys.
 
cliffordcooley said:
No I didn't. I enjoyed watching the theme played on calculator. Would I watch it again, probably not. The song wasn't epic, but the fact it was played on a calculator was epic. You seem to think that it should never have been attempted all because you didn't like the outcome. If you don't like it, say so, and move on. You are the one trying to force your will on all of us, yet you think that is what I'm doing.

OMG here we are with the irony once again, you accusing me of the very thing you are doing. Everything we have said above only places negativity in what should have been a positive topic. I sincerely hope the mods remove everything we have polluted this thread with.
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Yeah Cliff, you're not only my favorite "victim", but you're your own favorite victim as well.

In any case, you whimper to the mods, while I head on over to YouTube, and watch the latest "epic", cat videos. Peace.
 
Thanks for the background info, whether or not I knew it already.

captaincranky said:
In any case, you whimper to the mods
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Everyone knows you wouldn't be yourself if you wasn't degrading others. For some reason even though it is against site policy, you go without penalty all the time. There is not a day goes by you are not badgering someone. I don't understand why they allow you to stay. You badgered Holdum and accused him of never bringing anything to a topic, while you do the same 90% of the time. That's irony for you again of your own making.
 
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