Music only dogs can love
Music only dogs can love
Some in the audience howled with glee, others stood on trembling legs and a few drooled in delight as famed performance artist Laurie Anderson debuted her original "Music for Dogs" composition outside the Sydney Opera House on Saturday.
Hundreds of dogs and their owners bounced around as Anderson entertained them with 20 minutes of thumping beats, whale calls, whistles and a few high-pitched electronic sounds imperceptible to human ears.
"Let's hear it from the medium dogs!" Anderson called out from the stage, as a few dogs yipped in return. "You can do better than that — come on mediums! Whoo! WHOOOOOO!"
Anderson — who often plays music for her rat terrier Lollabelle — said the idea originated during a chat with cellist Yo-Yo Ma while the two were waiting backstage at a graduation ceremony.
"We thought, 'Wouldn't it be great if you're playing a concert and you look out and everyone's a dog?'" Anderson said. "So I thought if I ever get a chance to do that, I'm gonna do it. And today was it. So this is like a highlight of my life."
The music had varying effects on the pooches, with a series of high-pitched whale sounds working several into a frenzy. Many wagged their tails and barked in apparent encouragement, while others stared at the stage with glazed eyes.
Not all of the pups were thrilled. Oliver, a Jack Russell terrier who tends to have issues with high-pitched noises, folded his ears back and exploded into a barrage of frantic barks as he lunged toward the stage, dragging owner Jacqui Bonner along with him.
Others appeared entranced. April Robinson giggled as her small dog Spot swiveled his head toward the stage, ears perked high.
"He loves it!" she squealed while Spot stared wide-eyed at Anderson.
The concert was originally billed as a performance for dogs' ears only, and was going to be largely limited to electronic noises played at a frequency too high for human ears. But Anderson changed things up when she decided she wanted people to have some fun, too.
"We didn't want to do something that humans couldn't hear," she said. "We brought the octaves down into our hearing range so we could all have the experience."
Anderson, who turned 63 Saturday, said the crowd was one of the best-behaved she's ever played for, and considered the whole event a howling success.
"That was the most amazing concert I've ever, ever gotten to give!" she said with a grin. "It's really a dream."
Share on Facebook
- Posted on June 7, 2010
Animals
Art
Your stories
I would love to bring my dog to one of your shows!I love dogs.Your cool!Do you have a dog?I have one named Daisy.She's so cute!
I love the idea of a concert for dogs. With my dog, I also try to see what kind of music she likes. She seems to like classical music. Her favorite song is from the movie Titanic played on the piano. I wish I could find a CD with music made especially for dogs. It would help to calm them in new and scary situations. I have read about methods of helping nervous dogs to feel safer in thunderstorms like snug clothes for dogs and soft music, too. The 'thunder-shirts' make them feel like they're being held or protected by their mothers. I hope music for dogs is available soon, not just live but also recorded.
Not only dogs love music cats birds and some other animals like music you must have thought wrong but it is ok I use to think that not no.
i love dogs i do not care what they look like they are cute and love to cutte it is cooland love music it is cool.
thats cool i that would be great for when you loos your dog and all you have to do to get him back is play sthat music if it is even music
That was the weirdest concert I've ever heard of. They are definitely not like Justin Bieber. They were much better, but that was out of the ordinary. Why would they would put on a show for dogs. She even made music for her rat terrier Lollabell. This is just wrong.
That's so cool! I never knew a dog would like music to actually howl and dance along. That must have been a good singer to attract over 100 dogs and their owners. I think I want to go see this guy!
That is so nice and creative to have a concert for dogs! I would love to do that in the future or attend a concert like this one. My dog would absolutely love it! I wish it would come to a city near me.
I think that having animals dancing to music is great because its very creative. If i ever see a dog dancing to treysongz i am going to be so surprised.
It's so cool that there's a concert like that. I wish she would come to Colorado just so I could bring my dogs there. I don't think that very many people go to those concerts, but for dog lovers like me, they would come all the time.