There are many great acts that have passed the Sesame Street threshold, sure, but a new video has surfaced of Herbie Hancock playing to puppets and children alike. And on this episode, kids, he demonstrates the Fairlight Computer Music Instrument synthesizer.
The Fairlight CMI was a synthesizer and sampler, according to Open Culture, with 28 megabytes of memory and was used by some big stars like Jean-Michel Jarre, Jan Hammer, Art of Noise and Depeche Mode.
Of course, Hancock donned the synth a time or two in his day as well. Herbie also may be one of the first jazz musicians to embrace an electronic keyboard of any kind.
With several versions produced between 1979-85 by an Australian company, at some point in time these keyboards were state of the art. Now, MIDI keyboards can practically do circles around the relics.
Old stones of music past, maybe, but the video is something to watch. The keyboard, too, is a two-man operation and so Hancock is backed by an engineer named Clive.
So while it may have been on a television in your family room — because who calls it a television or a family room, for that matter — we have it here from YouTube.
Check it out below:
