Questions tagged [musicians]
12 questions
43
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1 answer
Was Mozart black?
Currently on Facebook and Tumblr I’ve stumbled onto this claim that Mozart was in fact black, and of African descent.
Is this true?

Himarm
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Do old master musical instruments sound better than their modern equivalents in blind trials?
Musicians who play string instruments often believe that some of the early examples of the modern form of their instruments produce better sound than recently-made examples with similar designs. This is one contributing reason why a typical…

matt_black
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Did Rick Astley receive only $12 in royalties for "Never Gonna Give You Up' from YouTube?
I found this claim originally in Wikipedia, quoted from the Register.
The return to the artists is pitiful; ironic 80s icon Rick Astley's Never Going To Give You Up was played 39 million times on YouTube, but he received $12 for his performance…

Casebash
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10
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Was Johnny Cash the first American to learn of Stalin's death?
I just came across this claim in a letter to The Economist:
He worked the line
SIR – Charlemagne considers it “safe to assume that Johnny Cash… gave
little thought to European foreign policy” (September 20th). Actually,
Cash worked as a radio…
user17967
8
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4 answers
Do famous musicians die at the age of 27 more often than other humans?
Since today Amy Winehouse died, she joined the 27 club.
The Club 27 is based around the statement that the death at the age of 27 for famous musicians is more common than in any other group of people. Is there any other similar group of people that…

Jader Dias
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Did Mozart improvise?
After I had discussed the lack of improvisation in classical music with a friend, he showed me this article from WQXR.org (the website of a classical music radio station), which claimed that Mozart often improvised his music:
Improvisation is a…

Shokhet
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7
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Does auto-tune make singing (without talent) easy?
Has autotune made singing as easy as people claim? Or is it just a tool that slightly aids already trained singers?
For an example of the claim, see this (SFW) parody music video, by KSics and Alex.
I've never tried autotune (but I will soon). Is it…

b0x0rz
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4
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Rihanna is the "Princess of the Illuminati"?
There has been a lot of buzz around the web lately about Rihanna being a part of the Illuminati. Then, I was like, "bah, this can't be real." Until someone pointed out small portions of her S&M video, where it says "Princess of the Illuminati."
Now,…

Sal Rahman
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Did Marilyn Manson kill a chicken on stage?
An interesting conversation occurred in the office today, I'll summarise: Marilyn Manson sacrificed a chicken during a concert.
Marilyn Manson is known for being... unusual. So, after a quick Google, it seems like there are mixed reports.
For the…

Coomie
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Does Lemmy Kilmister from Motörhead have toxic blood?
The book White Line Fever: Lemmy - The Autobiography is an autobiography of "Lemmy" Kilmister, the lead singer/Bassist of Motörhead.
It claims:
in 1980 his blood was officially diagnosed as toxic to other human beings.
This claim is repeated in…

Nox
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Was Kurt Cobain listening to R.E.M.'s Everybody Hurts when he killed himself?
Kumail Nanjiani on why he hates R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts”
The above article on the A.V. Club website makes the following claim:
This might not be true, but the legend is that this is the song that Kurt Cobain had cued up in his CD player when he…

Tom77
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Is Paul McCartney dead?
Is it true that Paul McCartney died in 1966 and was replaced by a look-a-like, or was this really just a conspiracy theory? Is there any proof either way, or all just speculation?
"Paul is dead" is an urban legend alleging that Paul McCartney of…

Tester101
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