I have a cat and two dogs, so far, the cat has absolutely no interest in anything I play or do with the whistle. One dog will regularly howl if I play the old USSR National Anthem or police sirens on youtube (or if she hears them in person), but the other… absolutely needs to join in whenever I play “Out on the Ocean.”
She’ll make little rumbling noises, and basically tell me she must immediately have my attention, the same way she does when she wants more water in her bowl, so I’m not convinced she’s actually enjoying the tune, but it’s the ONLY one so far that has gotten her attention at all.
I don’t yet know a lot of tunes, but over in another thread, there’s chatter about playing for seagulls, and horses, and mention of how cows don’t care… so it made me wonder if anyone here does have animals that seem to have a preference, or a clear dislike for any particular tune!
Also reminded me of this oldie but goodie, which I HAD to learn as my first tune simply because of this video:
My dog, and especially my cats, hate all tunes universally. Last night I played the Feadóg in the living room, and my dog started tearing around the house. She doesn’t react like that when I play in the bedroom. The cats usually leave the area when I play. They seem to be least hateful toward the wood whistles.
I had a dog quite a while. The only music it seemed to enjoy was steady pleasant music with low dynamics; moving steadily and with calm meditative tones. Mild steady low key jazz was ideal; mid-period Miles Davis from Kind Of Blue or something like that. Solos were preferred in the low frequencies. Piano was good, not trumpets. I bet it would have liked Hawaiian music too. It liked the acoustic guitar I played but never the flute, recorder, whistle or any percussion toys around.
I’ve never seen a cat respond to music. I’ve seen YouTube videos of elephants dancing when music is turned on. I suspect birds “get” music.
I’ve noticed various birds in the park respond with singing if I play the soprano or sopranino recorder or the Tony Dixon DX006 aluminum D. Gulls and Canada geese will look at me and if they like the music, they’ll stick around, if not, they’ll walk away. After having that experience often, I think gulls and geese tune into the mood of the music as key to whether they’ll put up with it or not. “That creature is making weird sounds; are they going to freak out or are they relaxed?”
Some cats really dig music, but how and what they go for when they go for it is pretty random. When I was a teen I had some brash stuff cranked up (Bowie or the Stones, like) and the cat - Puff, I think her name was - plunked herself down right in front of the blaring speaker with a smile on her face. Given the volume and the character of the music, it was the last thing I expected. Other cats were more likely to prefer mellow, soothing things, and Classical was a dependable draw.
My last cat Lester couldn’t be arsed about music at all unless it was Julie Fowlis: he’d throw himself down and sleep like the dead, and let me tell you, sleep was not on this amiable pest’s agenda until the end of the day when he’d worn himself out from all his adventuring. But JF had that effect on him while we were new to each other. Later on he got over it because he felt secure, and being super-social, visiting other people’s homes and their pets for sport and play took top billing over all else. As you might imagine, he made himself famous among the neighborhood. He was more one to accost you, than to be lulled. Music wasn’t fun.
And then there was Mubu: she was a critic. If I was playing a new tune well and she liked it, she would excitedly flip about in my armchair and shoot me crazy looks; it was definitely approval, but she was also intentionally trying at the same time to get me to laugh and screw up. And it often worked. But if I was playing a new tune poorly, she would sit in the same (apparently official) chair with a disapproving and unmistakable “Seriously?” look on her face. She had an ear, that one. She liked Trad in general, be it whistle or flute - or any instrument, for that matter - and she liked flat-set uilleann pipes; could be because you can make cat-like sounds on them when you go for the “nyaah”. She really liked the album Kitty Lie Over: she would jump onto my lap, eyes closed and purring like blazes. I would leave Public Radio on for her when I was out of the house, because I noticed that she liked that too, so I figured it was a kind thing to do when leaving her on her own for extended periods.
I did have a bird-- was it a cardinal? Can’t remember-- this past summer who seemed fond of Drowsy Maggie one day when I was playing outside. I think maybe some of the intervals were similar to her song? Anyway, she came by to a nearby tree and if I recall correctly, did make some noise.
My mom had zebra finches who liked music… they were into Highland bagpipes for a while, and I can’t remember what else. I seem to recall they liked the Eagles…
My current cat seems offended by Marilyn Manson and Rammstein and the like. Some music he’ll put up with, albeit looking annoyed (“I was over here trying to sleep and now you’re blaring music!”), but he’s actually left the room before if some types of metal come on.
I think not long ago I found an older post of mine here where I said my former cat wouldn’t tolerate any whistle higher than B-flat…
This brings to mind more: I had a parakeet that would go nuts during the refrain to Eric Carmen’s “All By Myself”. Dependable as clockwork. I’ve captivated squirrels when playing flute outdoors, and I once captivated - get this - a toad. It was going from point A to point B when it noticed me, stopped, and oriented itself toward me for a time while I played. Then after a bit it seemed to remember that it was exposed, and sensibly moved on to shelter.
The dogs I’ve had never seemed to care about music one way or the other.
Had a cat that absolutely hated the GHBs. She’d come up to the attic where I was playing, yell the cat equivalent of, “For the love of all that is holy, STOP!!”, and then gnaw on my ankle.
Perhaps I’ll shoot a video of mine someday. The responses can be tearing around the house, doing parkour along the walls, pawing/walking on/laying on my gear, or merely leaving the room.
I had a cat once who came and tried to rub her head against the whistle when I played or sat on my shoulder. She also came when simply whistling (without any whistle) like when calling a dog. Once she sat on my shoulder she would lick my neck and only leave when gently forced to.
Those are pretty cool! I remember my days of whistling to chickadees (actual whistling, not on my whistle). They’d come close and land on a branch near me. It was fun to see and “chat” with them, but I stopped doing it after I realized it was probably mean-- they were probably sitting there wondering where the other bird was! (Or maybe just musing at the dumb human, who knows.)
Animals I’d like to play music to, to discover which music they would like the most or if they respond at all to it, or in any way could be set up to play it themselves with adapted instruments:
elephants, whales, dolphins, chimpanzees, crows, sea gulls, owls, hummingbirds, horses, buffalo.
Maybe music could serve to keep a channel of communication open a way that obviously human languages would not work. Far more can be expressed clearly in music than in words, and faster, to someone not knowing that language.
“Koko the gorilla like Chieftains! Take me to Carrickfergus!”
Well, that’s clear as mud. Guess I’m going to have to search the elements for myself and try to piece it together.
[quote="Greenfire"]
Not going to explain it on a family site though, if you watch the show you'll know it.
[/quote]
Okay, I figured it out. You know what they say about having to explain a joke...
And no, I haven't watched the show. Pop culture and I parted ways some time back.
