MSC Splendida Musical Horns?

[Nathan H5]

Hi everybody,

 

I have been searching the web to no avail, trying to find out about what generates the music played from the Splendida when leaving/arriving to various ports. Here is a video link showing Splendida departing and playing "We Will Rock You":

 

 

I am an air horn specialist and the sound I am hearing is definitely not coming from an array of air powered diaphragm horns. The Splendida uses electric piston horns for her main whistle(s). These also are not what is generating the "whistle music" the ship plays, such as "We Will Rock You", "Happy Birthday" and others.

 

I am also musically gifted, and I am counting at least twenty separate notes in the songs played. There is no room anywhere on the stack for an array of large horns. Electronic speakers cannot generate sounds of that power.

 

Does ANYONE know what is making the music? It sounds like MIDI and generated by some type of sound signals.

 

In contrast, I watched a youtube video with the Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Victoria playing "Happy Birthday" to the berthed Queen Mary 2. This music was very definitely generated by several air powered diaphragm horns. This sound is quite different in timbre than that of the MSC Splendida.

 

Many thanks for any help!!

 

Nathan H5

[Beamafar]

I wouldn't have a clue, buuutttt, thanks so much for the link, I've really enjoyed it!

[Skier52]

Here's a link to magnifica playing Seven Nation Army and Happy Birthday

 

 

 

Edited May 22, 2015 by Skier52

[Janet&Carl]

I shall try and find out :) I am on Orchestra for two weeks. I'm thinking Orchestra is like Magnifica both of them "Musica" class ships.

 

I have no shame and will ask around - I will even ask the captain when he does his "past guests" cocktail party.

[travelberlin]

On our two cruises with the Splendida they played "Com te partiro" with Andrea Bocelli as singer.

[JoLoca2208]

On our last cruise on Splendida in May out of Hamburg, they played "Happy Birthday" and "Seven nation army" The White Stripes. I heard it is pre-recorded and they just playing it while leaving port

[Nathan H5]

Hi everybody! Well, I found out what the music is coming from, after doing research and connecting it with the video I had posted above.

 

LRAD!! Long Range Acoustical Device. These are and have been, used on cruise ships and other ships as weapons. They were set to emit very high pitched beams of sound at Samoan pirates, used also on military ships. What got me interested was that Animal Planet program "Whale Wars". The Japanese fleet was using LRAD against the Sea Shepherds. Well, the owner of the ship also purchased LRAD to use against the Japanese, however they were playing music through theirs, mainly "Ride of the Valkyries".

 

OK, the sound generated by a large LRAD is above and beyond anything a loudspeaker can create.The sound actually re-amplifies in the air in front of the LRAD, and by many times, hence the deep bass that carries for a long way. This LRAD could actually be used as the ship's main whistle!!

 

The people who came up with this idea, intentionally set this MIDI sequence up to play very slowly, as if it were being played through real horns.

 

OK if you watch the video again, you note the sound getting more and more powerful as the stern of the ship approaches. At 2.31 on the video, you see the LRAD hung out over the side of the ship, it is painted white to match the ship. Looking at other photos, shows the LRAD on the other side of the ship too. It looks kinda like radar dishes, but that is the LRAD.

 

Since pirates often try to board near the stern, these LRAD arrays can be used as weapons against the pirates too and have been used on other cruise ships, hence on some other MSC ships, their LRAD weapons are now being used to entertain people!! Good stuff!!

 

Please pardon the over-sized font. I have uncontrollable diabetes and I am losing my eyesight. Sux...

[AmoMondo]

How amazing that a weapon is being used to create music......thanks for letting us know.

[Pluto_fan]

How interesting. Thanks for reporting back to us after you found the answer!

[csb1986]

That's interesting considering lrads don't play low acoustical sounds... was not meant to play music was meant to play a pitch so high it hurts. It can play music but only high mid to very high pitch tones.

Edited February 1, 2017 by csb1986

[Skier52]

I've looked at the videos and images of the ship, as well as been on the ship and seen them in operation and can correct your impression and tell you they are

BALCONY and external SHIP WASHING GANTRIES

 

 

certainly not weapons used as musical devices.

What look like dishes are in fact hose reels which pay out the water hose as the gantry moves on its rails along the ship.

 

 

Sorry to disillusion some people

 

pete

Edited February 1, 2017 by Skier52

[Skier52]

here is an image of the stern of Splendida with the washing gantries circled in RED and the tracks they run along marked by BLUE lines (just underneath the tracks). the "dishes" pay out water hoses and electrical cables for the motors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pete

 

 

 

edit:- admittedly they do have a similar size and shape to a LRAD but rest assured they are not those,

Edited February 1, 2017 by Skier52

[Essiesmom]

And just another slight corrections: they are not Samoan pirates, they are Somali pirates...EM

[AEckhardt]

I've looked at the videos and images of the ship, as well as been on the ship and seen them in operation and can correct your impression and tell you they are

 

 

BALCONY and external SHIP WASHING GANTRIES

 

 

 

 

 

certainly not weapons used as musical devices.

 

What look like dishes are in fact hose reels which pay out the water hose as the gantry moves on its rails along the ship.

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry to disillusion some people

 

 

 

pete

 

 

 

Yep, I've seen them in action on my other cruises. They go up and down and side to side on tracks to clean the balconies, sliders and windows.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Pisang Ambon]

On 7/20/2015 at 7:04 PM, Nathan H5 said:

Hi everybody! Well, I found out what the music is coming from, after doing research and connecting it with the video I had posted above.

 

LRAD!! Long Range Acoustical Device. These are and have been, used on cruise ships and other ships as weapons. They were set to emit very high pitched beams of sound at Samoan pirates, used also on military ships. What got me interested was that Animal Planet program "Whale Wars". The Japanese fleet was using LRAD against the Sea Shepherds. Well, the owner of the ship also purchased LRAD to use against the Japanese, however they were playing music through theirs, mainly "Ride of the Valkyries".

 

OK, the sound generated by a large LRAD is above and beyond anything a loudspeaker can create.The sound actually re-amplifies in the air in front of the LRAD, and by many times, hence the deep bass that carries for a long way. This LRAD could actually be used as the ship's main whistle!!

 

The people who came up with this idea, intentionally set this MIDI sequence up to play very slowly, as if it were being played through real horns.

 

OK if you watch the video again, you note the sound getting more and more powerful as the stern of the ship approaches. At 2.31 on the video, you see the LRAD hung out over the side of the ship, it is painted white to match the ship. Looking at other photos, shows the LRAD on the other side of the ship too. It looks kinda like radar dishes, but that is the LRAD.

 

Since pirates often try to board near the stern, these LRAD arrays can be used as weapons against the pirates too and have been used on other cruise ships, hence on some other MSC ships, their LRAD weapons are now being used to entertain people!! Good stuff!!

 

Please pardon the over-sized font. I have uncontrollable diabetes and I am losing my eyesight. Sux...

 

 

Thanks, I was wondering myself how this would work.

For each tone you need a different horn or play with the air pressure.

I was imagining some kind of sliding trumpet system or a pipe organ system like they have in some churches (and icehockey rinks in the old days) and having the pipes replaced by horns ;)

But a LARD system makes sense!

Even though it's most likely not the thing in the picture. I saw some video's of where the sound might get out of.

In this video you see about 6 horns lined up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDJ9av7BobI

but in this video of the same boat they point the camera to the 'airvent horn thing' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJ8mMBwVKYE (start @2:40). They also mention the sound used to be louder so they can regulate the volume.

It would make sense to 'hide' the LARD in these big 'chimney/airvents' as it would spread the sound more widely and maybe even amplify the sound more, as the LARD system is a directional sound system.

Chris.