A staple of cartoons that will be familiar to most boomers or (for that matter) most boomer parents, this middle section of Raymond Scott’s “Powerhouse” came to be inextricably bound in classic 1940s Warner Bro’s cartoons to depictions of assembly lines or just about any other ponderous, mechanistic animated action.
The frenetic framing “A” section was also used, but for hectic urban scenes or whenever the action was “fast and furious.” According to Wikipedia (Raymond Scott), the composer never actually scored for cartoons. But that didn’t keep his music from being excerpted to one degree or another in some 120 classic shorts from the Warner Bro’s studio — or being covered by other musicians over the decades. (He signed over rights to this title, among others, to Warner Bro’s in 1943).
Raymond Scott
(Born Harry Warnow, 1908 – 1994.
From Wiki Commons, public domain.)
So, here’s my preliminary take on “Powerhouse, Part B,”* as implemented with computer instruments in Reason. Repeated listening tells me the balance is less than ideal. The virtual high hat cymbal is disproportionately loud and needs to have its EQ tweaked. Call it yet another work in progress.
Download my “cover” (such as it is): 04:18, 2.46 MB.
* “Powerhouse” is currently available (in two versions, both a single page, arranged for piano) from Musicroom.com, the online portal of Music Sales Group. Print-on-demand copies ship from the UK, but copies can also be viewed and printed on line.
Joseph Ervin Jr: Synthesizer Fan 