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Animusic - A Computer Animation Video Album (Special Edition)x$14.99
  (81 reviews)
Best Price: $19.98 $14.99
Watching Animusic is like being mesmerized by the world's most elaborate Rube Goldberg devices: You're so astonished by their ingenuity that you can't look away. This "computer animation video album" is the brainchild of Wayne Lytle, a progressive-rock keyboardist and 1988 graduate of Cornell University's Program of Computer Graphics. Modifying techniques originally applied to the visualization of scientific data, Lytle partnered with graphic artist and 3D modeler Dave Crognale to create elaborate virtual stage sets and imaginary musical instruments that are driven via MIDI interface to virtually "play" the music that Lytle has composed for them. "The music drives the instruments," explains Lytle in his engaging DVD commentary, "and not the other way around." Using proprietary software called MIDImotion™, Lytle and Crognale have invented self-playing musical instruments that exist in a magical realm of musical and mathematical precision, perfectly synchronized to the kind of fully-synthesized prog-rock that Lytle obviously enjoys (and if you're a fan of Keith Emerson and Rick Wakeman, you will, too). It's the kind of audiovisual bombast that appeals to some more than others (and there's something oddly impersonal about removing humans from the performance of music), but Animusic is so intricately clever that anyone can be captivated by the meticulous novelty of these beautifully engineered musical marvels. Take, for example, the most popular track, "Pipe Dream," in which thousands of animated balls take on a life of their own, popping out of an intricate system of pipes and barrels and bouncing, with percussive precision, onto all varieties of strings, drums, xylophones, timbales, cowbells... it's just hypnotically amazing. The same holds true for all of these videos, and while the colorful 3D rendering of Animusic (first released in 2001) is no longer state-of-the-art, the underlying mechanics remain timelessly appealing. For this special edition DVD released in 2004, Lytle opens his toy-box to reveal the creative process of Animusic from conceptual drawings to final 3D rendering. There's also a "solo-cam" function allowing viewers to switch angular focus from one instrument to another, along with animated set-construction demonstrations to show how everything fits together in the realm of Animusic. The 5.1-channel surround mix makes Animusic a perfect demonstration disc for high-end video systems (this is nothing if not a geek's delight), and Lytle's first animation (from 1996) is included along with a sneak-peek at Animusic 2, the follow-up DVD released in 2005. --Jeff Shannon
UPC: 821143115198
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Customer Reviews
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Animusical Nirvana
By AKER2J7Q8P7TA on 2005-05-06
I was first made aware of this DVD from a video clip on PBS. It is an excellent program, at least on the same par as the "Mind's Eye" computer animation series, with the usual technical advances in the art since "Mind's Eye" was produced.
The quality is excellent, both visually and aurally. I always thought that computer animation and music could be successfully integrated in some way, and "Animusic" is the successful result. Unlike other computer animation subjects, where the music drives or complements the action, in "Animusic," the music IS the action.
The viewer is transported to a futuristic concert where the musician is a complex, sophisticated computer able to weave many intricate melodies and harmonies at once, playing instruments that are very futuristic -- laser-beam-controlled guitars, a four-handed drum kit, violins that seem to play themselves, string and metal harps played by flying balls, huge clockwork drum kits, high-voltage musical transformers, and other fantasic, out-of-this-world musical instruments of the sort that one might find only in a science fiction novel.
It is easy to see how one can be drawn into the different musical settings and be mesmerized by the music and the visual surroundings. In addition, this DVD has various "angles" available on each track that allow the viewer to watch a separate instrument as it is played or sits idle over the course of the selection.
This DVD is a very good starting point for those who have never before experienced computer animation firsthand. The producers have done a splendid job on "Animusic" by making the music literally come alive.
There are seven selections on this DVD:
1. Future Retro
2. Stick Figures
3. Aqua Harp
4. Drum Machine
5. Pipe Dream
6. Acoustic Curves
7. Harmonic Voltage
Each selection conveys a different mood, using unique instruments and realistic backgrounds. My personal favorites are 1, 5 and 7.
I am very impressed with "Animusic." I await, with great anticipation, the release of "Animusic 2" later this Fall.
Kudos to Wayne Lytle!
Novel and Captivating
By A1CC98FA6HS47B on 2005-11-17
This is very different and very cool! Really good, easy listening, slightly technopop music that appears to be played by fantastic music equipment sans human musicians. All seven vignettes are several minutes long and each one is completely unique from the others. There is something continously interesting for the eye. It's like studying an item from the Museum of Unworkable Devices. It's fascinating trying to decipher how it is so perfectly synchronized.
Ingenious work---but, sadly, poor video quality
By A1ZPFWVG7DN0SZ on 2005-03-02
Have you ever seen a high-quality computer-animated movie on a high-resolution display? The sharpness, clarity, and color can be breathtaking.
When my son and I saw the small-frame sample clips on the ANIMUSIC website, we knew we had to order the DVD. We didn't expect ANIMUSIC to look like a Pixar feature, but when it arrived, the video quality was a real letdown.
We tried the ANIMUSIC DVD on three devices:
_ A standalone DVD player with a 25" TV
_ A portable PC with a 1024x768 LCD display and average graphics processor
_ A fast desktop PC with a 1280x1024 LCD display and fast graphics card
On each, the video looked as though it was recorded from an analog source, like a videotape, rather than a digital one. During pans, the edges of objects visibly pixilated. The colors were dull. The picture was fuzzy and showed the "halos" characteristic of highly-compressed JPG images, leaving surfaces and textures unrealistic-looking. (If I didn't know better, I'd wonder if they recorded it by pointing a videocam at a monitor, as in "Tron," Disney's pioneering 1982 feature.)
Producing 3D animation is very time-consuming, even with powerful equipment. Perhaps Wayne Lytle had to use a lower resolution to speed up his rendering time (to meet distribution deadlines?). Or maybe he was limited by his production environment. Or maybe the DVD was just poorly mastered. For whatever reason, ANIMUSIC is NOT digital-quality video---not even close.
I agree that ANIMUSIC's concept and animation are ingenious, and the music rocks. That makes it all the sadder that the DVD wasn't produced with more care.
Babies Love it too !!!
By A2LY14JXPKIA0J on 2004-08-23
I ordered this DVD because I thought the animation looked really cool, and the tunes were pretty catchy and jazzy. On a whim, I decided to put it on for my 4 month old baby, and he was instantly glued! He was not just glued, he was also interactive with it... Smiling, giggling and becoming animated himself with the music. He loves the whole DVD, but I can tell he especially loves the DRUM segment. I totally recommend this video because on occasion it will buy you enough time to make and enjoy a quick dinner if you have a baby in the house ;-)
I'd rate it with 10 Stars if I could!
I just can't resist it...
By A3OI841P5R6FCH on 2005-02-12
I first caught this as part of a demo on a big-screen TV at a local B&M electronics store, and I'll be d@mned if that NaTe DoGG fellow ain't right on the money about this booger's ability to grab a guy's attention. If I were just listenin' to the music, I probably wouldn't have given this a second glance (second listen???). But thanks to the inclusion of the visual element, I couldn't help but stand transfixed in front of the screen for several minutes on end... along with a half-dozen other shoppers.
Anyhoo, after my demo experience, I grabbed a rental copy of "AniMusic" at the local Blockbuster, and gave it a view at home. The imaginative array of computer-generated orchestras that "play" each piece was delightfully otherworldly, and had an odd robotic "one-man band" quality to `em. Needless to say it was a pretty trippy experience...
Needless to say, I've added "AniMusic" to my "to buy" list. I'm gonna get it `soon as I get through this huge stack o' movie DVDs I've been pilin' up over the past year. DVDs like the entire "Police Academy" franchise, "Critters", and "Bubba Ho-Tep".
Eh, on second thought...
`Late
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