Games for May

Games for May was a concert by British rock band Pink Floyd, which took place at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall on 12 May 1967. The group first used a surround sound technology in this presentation.

History

During their performances Pink Floyd had experimented since 1966 with various show elements, particularly with light shows. In the spring of 1967 they were about to record their debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, released in August of the year later. The concert promoter Christopher Hunt asked if the band would like to give a multimedia concert.

Hunt described the concert as a Space age relaxation for the climax of spring - electronic Compositions, color and image Projections, girls and THE PINK FLOYD ( " relaxation in the space age for the climax of spring - electronic compositions, color and image projections, girls and THE PINK FLOYD "). The Queen Elizabeth Hall was usually used for classical concerts, the equipment was accordingly quite unusual for a rock concert.

After the band had already been in the studio with surround sound experiment, they now put this around on stage. Four groups of speakers were installed in the corners of the room. Bernard Speight, one of the engineers at Abbey Road Studios, built a control system which made ​​it possible to distribute the sound by means of a joystick on the different speaker groups. In this way the music could wander around the room. With tape recordings of steps could be raised, for example, the impression someone through cross the room. The device was baptized Azimuth Coordinator.

Pink Floyd played for two hours, starting with tape recordings of noise in the early morning, while the light simulated a sunrise. The songs played were mainly from their debut album, including the first two singles, mostly written by Syd Barrett. See Emily Play was written especially for the concert, initially titled Games for May Between the pieces, there were small theatrical deposits whose sound through the Azimuth Coordinator was sent Barrett. So Nick Mason sawed a board fix the microphone securely on the saw, Roger Waters threw tomatoes on a large gong, Syd Barrett worked his guitar with a plastic ruler, Richard Wright operated a machine that generated giant bubbles, and the roadies threw daffodils into the audience.

Due to the bubbles and the trampled flowers the expensive establishment of the Queen Elizabeth Hall has been damaged so that Pink Floyd were lifelong ban after the concert. The Azimuth Coordinator was stolen after the show; until 1969, a second was built.

Title sequence

  • Dawn ( Dawn; tape recording )
  • Matilda Mother ( Barrett )
  • The Scarecrow ( Barrett )
  • See Emily Play ( Barrett )
  • Bike ( Barrett )
  • Arnold Layne ( Barrett )
  • Candy and a Currant Bun ( Barrett )
  • Pow R. Toc H. ( Barrett, Waters, Wright, Mason)
  • Interstellar Overdrive ( Barrett, Waters, Wright, Mason)
  • Bubbles ( Bubble; tape recording )
  • Ending ( Final; tape recording )
  • Addition: Lucifer Sam ( Barrett )

Quotes

  • A genuine 20th century chamber music concert. ( " Truly a concert of chamber music of the 20th century. " ) International Times
  • The noisiest and prettiest display ever seen on the South Bank. ( " The loudest and most beautiful performance ever seen on the South Bank. ) Financial Times
  • In the future, bands are going to have to offer more than a pop show. They are going to have to offer a well presented theater show. ( "In the future bands have to be more than a pop show. , You must have a well- listed theater show." ) Syd Barrett
  • I think Games for May what one of the most significant shows we ever performed. ( "I think Games for May was one of our most important performances that we've ever had. ) Nick Mason
May 12 Richard Wright (musician) Wired (magazine)
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