Bobby McFerrin hacks your brain with the pentatonic scale

[phenbuz]

The audience have musical knowledge. Anyway Bobby is a genius.

[mrmrssatan161]

This is awesome.



[Lucy00ana]

What kind of sorcery is this!??!

[nickb1795]

are the notes part of an actual song? if so what song?

[janporra]

@nickb1795 dude he's just fooling around with the pentatonic scale

[Playstazn167]

Oh Bobby McFerrin... you so crazy

[MuzzafuzzaGaming]

Kevin Pereira sent me. I'm glad he did.

[CanadianPancakes]

@MuzzafuzzaGaming Holy crap its muzzafuzza

[Yuxsxr]

Coolio

[Petrelli2012]

I would love to buy a song like this! The tune he creates is SO catchy I've played this so many times! This is so great! It makes me happy just listening to this. So many people having fun making music TOGETHER! Bobby makes my day

[nanookthecrazyskulla]

I hope this man never dies.

[drknudy]

audience is a bunch of music majors.

[rxsuperhero]

@TronPancake Life Hack

[heydancegirl]

Please when I grow up can I be Bobby McFerrin? PLEAAAAASE??

[harveyparadox]

See how easy it is to get the response you want from virtually ANYONE?

[sofikoism]

It's really amazing  and this video shows, that in simplicity is a truth and god too. .

[griever01]

i love this video

[Cokecanninja]

Holy cow, he has mind control!!!

[ztanyalcin]

this man is something else..

[ElEmiXD]

WOOOOW,  This facts will explode your mind

►This scale is also called the Chinese Scale (That proves it`s universality)

►This scale is the mother of all the Rock and Roll solos (also metal, hardrock.etc

►The mother of most USA genres of music like: country,blues,jazz,funk,disco

►Created (formally) by the greeks

►And its just perfect!

[zoyros92]

@ElEmiXD Thumbed up for the Greeks :D

[jose77845chivas]

Is it just me, or is this pretty damn cool? When Boby starts adding his own singing with the audience in the background. LEGIT!

[GypsyLeah]

Does anyone know if the tune has a name?

[Coltbullseye]

this was mildly cool in comparison to what the human mind is really capable of achieving

[maxsgirl452]

11 people are tone-deaf.

[liambrownmusic]

Wank

[93AhJoe]

ok the amazing science aside, HOLY CRAP the audience sure can sing.

[georginave]

Gracias, Magnífico.

[jimjim]

This is what made us who we are today as humans -our ability to infer communications between ourselves. We can make up whole systems of communications based on a very small initial basic set.

[janporra]

@jimjim syntax man!

[TheJohn8765]

Now try this with a non-Western European audience.

[slutbunwallah]

@TheJohn8765 And you will get better music coming out.

[jeffkussman]

@TheJohn8765 In the full lenght program they do talk about non-western scales and music. Sometimes things differ. However, the pentatonic scale is found in many places in the world, including Africa, China, India, and in Native American music.

[katka76]

Damn' gooood!

[TBearThompson]

i think this is really cool what you can do just having a vocie and jumping

[TheLuckySausage]

@qwert4125 Americans and Europeans are exposed to the minor, the octatonic and the whole tone scale all the time, especially in their movie music, tv shows, etc.... However, I would bet real money that a lot of them wouldn't be able to reproduce a minor scale in the same fashion and it would be even less likely that they could do so with a whole tone scale or an octatonic one.

[Cheater357]

Wow... 11 thumbs down? How do you not like something like this? Unless you just don't understand what is going on.

[NoobOfLore]

How many people do you know that can play an audience like a giant keyboard?

[pmagrafix]

Has anyone noticed that, from his perspective, he is "playing" the crowd backwards. If you think of the stage as a piano keyboard, from the audience, the notes climb up the scale as he moves to the audience's right. From his point of view, the notes get lower as he moves right. Just an observation.

[jkman10]

@pmagrafix That's not something out of the ordinary. If i'm facing an audience and i say left, i will put my right hand out. It's just presentation.

[swbuerer]

@lanainfla Are you referring to gay as in perverse or happy or you don't appreciate his headiness. Some people get it some don't,

[krissstemland]

@lanainfla Thanks for the insight, Einstein :-)

[giovannidema]

9 peppole listen to justin bieber

[idonotcare420]

@giovannidema nice one

[SoCoLittleBird]

interesting stuff

[nawmmbr]

I don't get why I'm laughing and crying at the same time! I LOVE YOU BOBBY (NOT in a Whitney Houston voice either).

[RhythmicMystery]

That's just awesome!

[Auquis]

Coolest person on the planet

[Treblaine]

My mind just got hacked!

[paddedshell]

this fine man knows how to play a crowd. takes me back to close encounters.

[TheSpazzofMuffins]

9 people were off key

[Wiggyify]

AWESOME...

what an a cool audience :)

[qwert4125]

people correctly singing the implied notes =/= to "hard-wired" knowledge of the scale. The pentatonic is prevalent throughout all cultures, it's a stronger argument saying that that prevalence is evidence of a "hard-wiring" that citing this video. This is just people singing notes to a very basic scale they've heard literally countless times in their lives. Exposure that frequent over so long a duration simply does not require any formal knowledge of the scale to sing the correct notes, period.

[PokerJoker811]

I lost it at 0:44. So damn funny!

[machinalabs]

To all the people who are stuck on the issues of Pent = Five, the Pentatonic scale is built on the INTERVALS between the notes (primarily the perfect FIFTH, where the frequency is 3/2 the root freq, and the octave, which is double the freq). Using that ratio, you construct the whole scale. Why the brain "likes" that scale is all of the notes are simple fractions, 3/2, 5/4, 5/3, 9/8, of the root note. There are five "nice" notes per octave. Pentatonic scale. Tada.

[laurathespicer]

It is a fabulous demonstration, beautifully demonstrated, with multiple interesting inferences. Thanks FDChannel. More please.

[KDALove]

What song is he singing?

[cubsfan4life33]

@KDALove Probably one he just made up. That man is true genius.

[manifest08]

Okay a bit disappointed in Bobby here. How could not make the audience play Close Encounters? What a missed opportunity.

[Skate2bate]

apparently 9 people on youtube are without vocal chords.

[hippiezombie]

why are people saying that he gave them 3 out of 11 notes? Am I missing something, since the PENTatonic scale only has 5 notes... is it including semitones?

[flabbyhabbybabby1]

This is awesome.

[blondu88neuroni]

why would anyone dislike this video?

[floydiot]

how's this impressive? anyone with half a brain will know the next note. obviously it's "programmed" into our brain. 99% of humans also know that 1+1=2 (seems more like 50% unfortunately)

[floydiot]

how's this impressive? anyone with half a brain will know the next note. obviously it's "programmed" into our brain. 99% of humans also know that 1+1=2 (seems more like 50% unfortunately)

[jarosikzero]

@floydiot This video isn't going to impress everyone, obviously. It's only going to appeal to people with an interest of human behaviour, logic, reasoning and innate responses (those musically, psychologically and philosophically just to name a few degrees of knowledge base). The whole point of the article/video/study is to offer some understanding human intuition, logical reasoning and essentially the human condition.

[KDALove]

@floydiot But this is not an acquired knowledge. You learn the function of addition in school, but this scale is already HARDWIRED.

[Obscuredistopia]

@floydiot Sometimes, 1+1=10 though

[TinyWeasel]

I've always thought the pentatonic was hard-wired into your brain. Sweet that it's true.

[bulutapeace]

very very nice!

[cjones062789]

Stumbleupon just led me to this amazing video. It makes me happy.

[InterrobangMusique]

Pentatonic is understood worldwide, even in places where the notes are alternative to the Western methods. Like he said, no matter where he goes, it works.

[dp535i]

it would be interesting to see the results from a middle eastern audience where there are 22 notes, rather than our western 12 notes alphabet system theory.

would people who are used to eastern music still think pentatonic?

[MrMacSunshine]

Bobby McFerrin is trying to turn us into humming zombies!

Awesome vid though

[Yoyo378]

He is hell good :D

[tapatipu]

Fascinating!

I just started using StumbleUpon today and thanks to that found this... amazing!!!

[RishavR]

This never gets old! It makes you so happy.

[616geek]

dude that was amazing

[jock411]

this is exactly why i never agree with people who sat they are tone deaf

[gauharjk]

Awesome...

[baevar]

In about 2 min he demonstrates 2 basic stimulus/response mimicing tasks, then proves that the audience is capable of logic and reasoning by gaining the correct response to a new stimulus that required both logic and application of previous knowledge of the scale when he didn't give them the note, unpairing the 2 previous stimuli.. And then, plays a little song using the newly conditioned audience as an instrument. THAT is why it's a big deal to the scientists, and it was just pretty damn cool.

[milenarual]

wow. that was something.

[drumstefan2010]

touching ...

[AlanSessler]

The pentatonic scale is pretty universal-Asian/African, American music. I suppose in European music too? (Italian, Celtic, Scottish?) Now if he had a Middle Eastern/East Indian audience and tried that he might have got some microtones thrown in. But, seriously, really cool.

[gitarmats]

Wow, that's awesome!

[kripssmart]

This is indeed brilliant! continue watching other parts too.

[Apollo2410]

Agreed. Brilliant, one of the great master improvisers in the World.

[gribbly]

Amazing.

You'd need to do more controlled experiments, though, as you might have "attractors" in the audience who know the scale. Others nearby align their pitch with the attractors confident note.

[Babalon]

Briliant!

[hockeyislife0193]

is there part of an actual song that he starts playing in there?

[Bridajyo]

wow!!!!

[jakrisken]

every now and then the universe chucks out a genius like this... cherish thtem

[Nomad7672]

OK...without getting all technical. This was Video was Simply Great! The audience response was amazing! No matter what the science is behind it, they responded as they should have.

[kilkennyfishblue]

im interested in watching the rest of this... where can i find it?

[drcoombez]

This is faulty. At 1:05, he sings FOR them the note that programs pentatonic into their heads. In movable solfege, it is syllable "la," or in the key of C, it would be the note A. Had he not sung the note FOR them at 1:05, I promise not everyone would have known where to go. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that most people would have sung a half step down (solfege "ti") instead of a minor third, because our western ears are more accustomed to a diatonic scale than to a pentatonic scale.

[GTGoforth]

You're missing the point of the video. Its not focusing on the scale. His presentation is about the crowd being able to infer what the next notes will be. He explains 3 notes out of the 11, that's pretty impressive.

[leakeg]

@GTGoforth well it is about the scale, because the audience seem to instinctively know what notes are in the scale without being told them! Must be a pretty important scale!

[tubaman539]

@GTGoforth he actually only gives them two

[billymiskimmin]

@tubaman539 no he does give them three.

one at 0:17

then at 0:28

and third at 1:05

[lockandkeynes]

you're trollin. he was still teaching them. the magnificence happens when he goes all over the place.

[drcoombez]

There is nothing impressive about that to me. The human brain is a wonder, but Bobby McFerrin isn't the first to "hack" it. In other words, what happens in this video is no surprise at all. If you want to see magnificent, try observing 4-year-old students in a general music classroom. They'll blow your mind.

[jeremyhillaryboobphd]

@drcoombez he also took a bigger step inferring a bigger interval

[drcoombez]

He didn't infer; he sang it FOR them. That's the point. All the audience had to do was match his pitch when he hopped down that minor third. He could have hopped down a minor 7th and they would have matched it. My understanding here is that this video is totally mind-blowing to people who have no prior exposure to the study of music/music education/music and the brain. Sorry for moving in on the "wonder" with my hopes for an informed discussion about tonal perception. Enjoy the video.

[drcoombez]

Mmm, one of those 3 notes created the interval that separates the pentatonic scale from the diatonic scale. If you'd like to discuss further why this means that the only point NOT proven is that the pentatonic scale is programmed in us...or that musical perception is an area of special interest in neurology, not studied by your average brain scientist, i'd be happy to discuss.

If you'd like to get as heated over something like this as your comment suggests, please enjoy your closed-mindedness.

[musicalmiller]

@derbydriver there are only five notes in a pentatonic scale...

[Tyrmidden]

@musicalmiller yeah, but a lot of people don't even know what a pentatonic scale is...you can't expect them to know which note comes next in the scale if they don't even know what he's talking about...yet they did figure out the rest of the notes (out of the other 9 possible notes in the chromatic scale)...so it has a little bit of amazing what Bobby did there...

[DjRareware]

where do you live

[masterexploder83]

What you say is true, however, he did not supply the audience with the V tone in the scale. The audience did have to "infer" that tone. Even though the pentatonic "feel" was already established, the audience, as a group, had to supply the V tone for that scale.

[postermen]

I agree 100%. I myself would have sung the leading tone "ti" if he had not sung the next note. His first 3 notes are "do, re, mi".

[WhaddaRipoff]

@drcoombez The reason he sang it for them is because he's jumping around on stage. It's difficult to tell the difference between a large and small sideways jump, I think. Anyway, if you can provide video evidence to support the idea that if "la" isn't given in this type of experiment then the audience falls apart, then great. You're right. But as it stands you've just come up with another theory. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to bash you for your commentary, but...(cont.)

[WhaddaRipoff]

@drcoombez (continuation) I'd like to see an experiment that shows this.

[margotlorena1]

@drcoombez since he taught them tones from c to d and then by themselves th ey went to e, wouldnt it be correct to assume that they would have sung Bflat if he hadnt given them the A??? I mean, why would they know the semitone goes there?? why would they even sing a semitone? I wonder what people would do if you are not given the A

[board2bits]

great, the pentatonic scale is awesome

[Lissbirds]

Plus the pentatonic scale is easy to improvise on, and there are no "wrong" notes.

[FatTonyBBX]

What's incredible is not only the fact the audience knows what notes to sing without him telling them, but he doesn't even ask them to sing in the first place - crazy

-FT

[zestydressing]

amazing

[dcflip]

Amazing, I used the same scale playing the lead guitar.

[Katie471]

Did he found that out on his own? He said he tried that on other audience and it's always the same. Amazing.

[TiryaC]

I love this. I tried it on my family and it worked on them, too.

[XANDERXXZ]

I'd give him a job.

[mbkbenz]

I can do it automatically

[primalancia]

semplicemente grandioso!!!

complimenti!

[flounderize]

Is it spooky or just fun that the first piano note you hear at the intro of the video is the same as the first note Mc Ferrin sings to the audience?

[theGreatGaara]

jaw dropping amazing

[0c0c0c]

Oh wow...that's pretty sweet.

[FatTonyBBX]

I'm totally trying this one day

-FT

[Karaokeking17]

Dude is just legendary!

[intercactus]

:) kl

[AnthonyWhitehead1986]

awesome

[a5mcclelland]

intresting

[nwrayne]

Totally joyful!  Beautiful... and what a way to learn!

[campestree]

genious

[proceedapathy]

WOW!

[xilonqmb]

Freaking Awesome!!!

[fox40k]

thats awsome

[claudiomaracatu]

He's got the power of playing people's soul...

[toomanymoose]

the man is just brilliant.

[Enterobiusone]

my first time seeing this shit... this is crazy because i automatically knew which note he was "playing", just like the audience...ingenious