Give a warm welcome to Bobby McFerrin.
For those who don’t know, McFerrin is a New York-born composer, conductor and vocalist. In fact, he may be one of the best known vocal innovators who some have said has the “perfect pitch.” He has spread his love for music far and wide, teaching audiences and students alike about creativity and improvisational vocal arts. We may know him best for his sunny 1988 hit, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy,” which was the first a cappella song to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
One of his most memorable shows comes from a 2009 clip of him immersing the audience in the power of sound at the World Science Festival.
His clever delivery and contagious enthusiasm will have you instantly smiling!
McFerrin appeared on a panel of experts, discussing “Notes and Neurons: In Search of the Common Chorus.” The discussion was about how music relates to the brain. While academic leaders of music and psychology patiently began to discuss the expectations the brain has for music, McFerrin excitedly leapt from his chair to take it one step further and engage the audience.
Dry theories were brought to life effortlessly with his unmatched passion.
He gives the crowd a starting note and jumps up and down, getting them all to sing along with him.
From there, he illustrates the power and importance of the pentatonic scale, brilliantly manipulating the audience purely by gesture. McFerrin effortlessly turns the stage into a piano of sorts, sliding his body to the left to get the audience to sing higher notes.
No sooner is he jumping all around the stage, orchestrating new melodies on top of the audience.
McFerrin successfully marries music and science in an easily digestible way, giving an entire room full of people the chance to participate as he conducts them.
The audience eagerly follows his vocal instruction, singing the scale in compliance with his body movements, and going as far as anticipating a note he hadn’t shown them. This fantastic performance emphasizes instincts, intuition and the deep rooting of the pentatonic scale in all cultures on earth.
In reference to the audience experiment, McFerrin shares:
“It’s something I’ve been doing as part of my solo shows for years, and it seems to work everywhere I go. I’ve always wanted to break down the line between performer and audience. We’re a roomful of strangers and music is the one thing that binds us together, makes us an instant community. I’d like to think that people leave my concerts realizing that they know a lot more about music than they realized.”
The demonstration gets applause and praise from the audience and the panel alike.
With a smile and a jump, McFerrin reminds us that music can be made everywhere and that it’s inside all of us.
Since it’s been posted, this video has had more than eight million views on YouTube.
Even today, McFerrin continues to tour, sing, and spread musical joy to all.
His efforts and music have gone on to win 10 Grammys, enjoying much success. His greatest passion is connecting people through the unlimited possibilities that music has to offer.
Watch the video below to see Bobby McFerrin teach us just how universal music is!
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