Musician jams with whales

Read more: http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19826572.100-review-ithousand-mile-song...

Watch musician David Rothenberg jam with whales.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• David
• Rothenberg
• musician
• jam
• whales
• music
• vocalisations
• new
• scientist
• newscientist

[kerumble]

it's people like this that make this planet great. All is not lost.

[SirReptitious]

It might be even worse. He might be saying insulting things to the whales accidently, like, "your momma screws sharks". ;p

[diddlybop]

LOL

do the whales really hear him? we dont really know...probably not..but he's still sitting there hoping the do ^____^

[krrrruptidsoless]

Why is he playing jazz. Since when is jazz relaxing. And as he catches them off guard with music a Great White moves in an attacks. Next week on the show. Jazz Influence In Nature when Bulugas get eaten because of jazz influence.

[critterfreek82]

Interesting. Certainly, many kinds of whales and dolphins are known to be very fascinated by music, and probably do take an aesthetic enjoyment in it. Lord knows what message they recieve from the actual sound patterns though, if any.

[theend1245]

0:33 wtf is that ?!!!

[slessorpr]

hey con, i like what u said, but i wd remind u that our own brain is the same as other mammals with the exception of our precious pre-frontal lobes. we respond with the same areas of the brain present in all other mammals and reptiles. The reptilian brain from which ours has evolved is still there. Whales may well make music, but their 'song' may be no more than artifactual info; no human definitions really apply. Considering Japs eat them with relish i don't think they have much 2 sing about!

[conuropsis]

Must we reduce all non-human vocalizations to some rudimentary "code"? Human songs convey information, too, but their music still has a life of its own, beauty we experience immediately and which enhances the communication of the song's "information." Why should that be different for whales or birds? The effects music has in our own brains go far deeper than the neocortex into very primitive regions we share with other animals. And we know that many animals respond with pleasure to human music.

[hockeyisgood1234]

white beluga whale...as a pose to the rare black beluga whale?

[ryanincro]

I think that it would be a little bit mroe interesting...if they didn't have a woman with a speech impediment ranting about cereal.

[slessorpr]

ok i read all the comments first and i have a couple of points 2 make. we actually know so little abt what is going on with whale 'song', typically anthropocentric perception. whale vocalisation may have NOTHING 2 do with song or music. It may be instructions on how to get 2 the best food grounds! point Two, here's a guy who doesen't actually understand what the whales r doing any more than me 'interacting' with their 'song'. He may be passing out bum road or rather sea maps 4 all we know.

[vdubmerc3]

This would be a cool way to communicate with whales.