The video above introduces Zenph: its vision, its people, and its possibilities. It’s narrated by Branford Marsalis, who heads our Artist Advisory Board, with interviews of advisors Quincy Jones and Gordon Goodwin. We’re fortunate to work with numerous studio heads, and they also discuss their vision of Zenph’s work. Footage of violinist Joshua Bell is courtesy of Michael Lawrence, creator and director of the wondrous film “Bach & Friends” (watch for it on PBS in 2012).
Here’s a TEDtalk by Zenph CEO and founder John Q. Walker, made in 2007. As it’s a bit disconnected, Dr. Walker thinks a few words are in order: “I was the first speaker on the second day, and the first day had been a revelation as an audience member. I filled a page with dramatic quotes from the other speakers, and that night decided to rewrite my presentation from scratch. I would show a slide with a quote and its attribution, then weave it into a story of how it was relevant to our work. For instance, the speaker who was an expert on snowflakes noted that they were extremely sensitive to temperature and humidity. Our work is too, so I quoted him, then showed examples of how much we go through to get our physical instruments to precisely play what the original musician intended. I had maybe a dozen quotes in my 18 minute talk.”
“The audience and I had a great time, and my talk was very well received. However, when it came time to edit it down to a TEDtalk video, the editors removed all the quotes and references, since they had no apparent context. So, I’m thrilled to have a TEDtalk, but a little embarrassed that it seems really disconnected (why am I suddenly talking about Star Trek?), and that I appear to be chuckling with the audience throughout. Oh well, you had to be there. Also, it represents where we were in early 2007, and many topics I discuss have borne fruit since then.”
The video above shows the power of Zenph’s software product called “Internet MIDI.” It’s hosted by Zenph’s CTO, George Litterst, one of the great pioneers in music education technology. Synced over the Internet is Zenph’s Shana Kirk. You’ll see that when George plays a note on his piano, it plays in perfect video sync on Shana’s.