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Comments

• [1] christopher rock from bolton, ct July 11, 2007 - 09:48PM

  Dear Radio Labs

  Somehow I stumbled upon Radio Labs and have found myself listening for the past 6 hours, absolutely loving every episode. Six hours, what is wrong with me?

  I have never heard such an amazing broadcast with the shear quality, enthusiasm and joy for producing radio works.

  Please keep up the great work and to WNYC, please continue to fund this series. I shall become a member of the WNYC family, simply for this program.

  Thanks again for the smiles and joy

  Chris Rock

  
  
• [2] bleezer from US July 21, 2007 - 04:14PM

  One theory dismissed by the host is that genetic factors contribute to more Chinese having perfect pitch. Isn't it possible that tone languages themselves exist in populations that are genetically disposed to higher intelligence, which are thus able to comprehend them more effectively? And has anyone investigated whether there a significant correlation between higher innate intelligence, tone language and perfect pitch (as politically incorrect as that might be)?

  
  
• [3] jbl from Cochise County, AZ August 06, 2007 - 12:33PM

  Among the many fascinating aspects of Diana Deutch's work, the subject of music extracted from a spoken phrase came sharply to mind when I was just listening again to a work by a contemporary American composer.

  Check out "Different Trains" by Steven Reich. He makes terrific use of this phenomenon.

  
  
• [4] Garth from Berkeley CA August 27, 2007 - 03:32AM

  I have just discovered Radio Lab. What a great show! Thank god things like this exist.

  Thank you!!

  Garth~

  
  
• [5] Michael from Milwaukee, WI September 10, 2007 - 06:05PM

  Absolutely wonderful program, as usual. For many more amazing examples of the musicality of human speech, check out the music of The Books:

  http://www.thebooksmusic.com/

  The song "Be Good to Them Always" is a particularly great example.

  
  
• [6] Al from Columbia, SC September 28, 2007 - 03:39PM

  I'm a new listener and this show just blew my mind. Excellent!

  
  
• [7] Max Growth November 10, 2007 - 06:16PM

  The spoken word/song part of the segment reminds me of electronic/sample-based music.

  Almost any dance music has songs with samples taken from films/programs/speeches where this principle is demonstrated.

  Luke Vibert is a good example.

  Great show!

  
  
• [8] Kurtis Henderson from Bloomington, IN December 28, 2007 - 10:36PM

  I'm interested in why the singers chose to change the last pitch of "Sometimes behave so strangely." Speaking in solfege, the notes the singers sang were La La Sol Fa La Sol Do. But if you listen to Diana's speech, the tones she uses are La La Sol Fa La Sol Si (Ti for the Sound of Music fans out there.). It makes sense, too, because having the phrase end on a leading tone keeps the listeners' ears perked for what she'll say next, and of course she does go on to finish her sentence eventually. The singers change this last note, though, presumably to make the loop have more of a feeling of finality.

  
  
• [9] Luis Emilio from Columbia, MD January 27, 2008 - 09:05PM

  I am amazed that Mussorgsky was not mentioned in this program: This composer believed that music should reproduce the music of the natural language. Very interesting program!

  
  
• [10] Sarah March 25, 2008 - 06:47PM

  I love how the first bit relates to rap music. Great rappers are not only very aware of the inherent musicality and rhythm of language, they exploit and experiment with it.

  
  
• [11] Al December 22, 2008 - 07:09PM

  Turns out speakers of tone languages are exponentially more inclined to have absolute (AKA 'perfect') pitch.

  Dr. Oliver Sacks in "Musicophilia" discusses this from the anthropology perspective.

  
  
• [12] Meph from Springfield, IL December 23, 2008 - 12:42PM

  This link comes from a very low-brow site, but when I saw it I was reminded of this Radio Lab episode and specifically the "Sometimes behave so strangely" bit. Here, someone has made an explosion, a yelp, and then Macho Man saying "Art thou bored?" into music. The beauty of it is that it begins with simply these elements then comes in with music later. Then, just as with the Radio Lab segment, you can't hear these sounds again as simply the sounds, but as the music. Just thought I'd share!

  artthoubored.ytmnd.com

  
  
• [13] Will from New York January 30, 2009 - 04:43PM

  It is so inspiring to know that programs like Radiolab are being made and reaching an audience.

  However, in Fantasia, Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" was not accompanied by mushrooms (this was The Nutcracker Suite). More appropriately, it involved the early history of the planet, spanning the origins of life to the extinction of the dinosaurs.

  
  
• [14] Laura February 10, 2009 - 11:22AM

  The Musical Language episode was my first exposure to Radiolab and to this day remains one of my favorites. Imagine my surprise when I read this...

  http://www.slate.com/id/2209818//GT1=38001

  Perhaps a modern day side effect of the same mechanism that caused the Rites of Spring riots?

  
  
• [15] ben from NJ February 14, 2009 - 07:41PM

  I love this show

  I listen to it every week and download all the podcast

  I wonder if they can send me the audio file of the high school singing

  with the email I put in

  
  
• [16] Billy Boy from Arlington, TX May 01, 2009 - 12:00PM

  I was watching this skit on TV and couldn't stop laughing when the Janitor hit the "I don't cleam, I'm not cleam... OK?" part. Even though they modified the pitch in the repetitions, this is just like the "Sometimes behaves so strangely" phenomenon.

  http://www.truveo.com/Cinco-Urinal-Shower/id/3524934232

  It even got made into a remix:

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgDwNd1qukU

  
  
• [17] Paul from California May 02, 2009 - 04:18AM

  You guys are right. "Sometimes behave so strangely" becomes musical after repetition... while everywhere else in the sentence, it's still words...

  
  
• [18] Sudhir from NJ November 13, 2009 - 10:55AM

  Ever since I discovered Radio lab, my IPOD did not play anything else. This episode especially was more informative and insightful. Science, arts, culture and personal anecdotes perfectly blended. Thank you very much!