Jeezy, Rachmaninov, etc.

So I’ve written about this topic before, but I remain interested in it for pretty obvious 1+1 reasons: rap songs that borrow classical music for their sample sources!

As anyone who knows me is aware, (and as I tend to comment on often ’round here,) I am both a classical nerd (lifetime of Suzuki violin training, NPR-devoted parents) and a hip-hop nerd (Public Enemy-loving older brother, being a sentient suburban boy in the ’90s). This is sort of a weird, fun place to be, but it makes for tons of interesting listening.

But what’s REALLY fun, for pure trainspotting-geek reasons, is when something from one world pops up in the other. The worlds of classical and rap are pretty far apart, so there is usually some story behind the inclusion; at the beginning of Method Man’s “Tical,” for example, RZA starts off the track his usual onslaught of found sounds and samples – kung fu dialogue, car horns, that sort of thing. And then, out of the clear blue yonder, in pipes in the famous Promenade Theme from Mussorgsky’s “Pictures At An Exhibition.” The theme is so sprightly, so elemental-sounding, that it almost sounds like the test-tone for an emergency broadcast network. Then it’s gone. The weird sounds fade back in, the beat starts to coalesce, and then Meth starts rapping. The little snatch of Mussorgsky’s theme NEVER comes back.

To anyone who recognizes and can place the tune, it almost feels like you are being beamed a secret code by RZA himself. “MEET ME AT THE LOCAL CONCERT HALL AT 8. BRING A HONEY-DIPPED SPLIFF, AND I WILL EXPLAIN BLACK-FORCE CONTINTENTAL DRIFT.” To put it mildly: WTF?

Well, this little factoid became a full-fledged story when a fellow violinist/rap nerd helped me connect the dots. RZA’s fascination with kung-fu is kind of a “duh,” and apparently, a famous early-morning kung-fu show (came on in the wee hours, like 3 or 4am I think) used that foghorn version of Mussorgsky’s “Promenade.” Probably was imprinted on a young Bobby Digital’s brain bank, and ended up floating through the sound-flotsam of one of his famous tracks. Mystery solved. Cool, no?

There are, of course, many other examples of this phenomenon, and I’ve made it one of my (many) nerdy pastimes to track them. Below are some favorites. Chime in with more in the comments section!!

1) Dr. Octagon, “Blue Flowers” – This one is predictably crazy – it is Kool Keith, after all. The beat, which makes use of a slippery, chromatic moment in Bartok’s Second Violin Concerto, has that same hazy, slightly off-kilter, disoriented feel that RZA put his stamp on. Seeing as how consumed with respect and admiration for folk music Bartok was, and how fascinated he was by how it worked its way into the DNA of other kinds of music, I can’t help but assume he would have been totally down with this.

2) Madvillian, “America’s Most Blunted” – This is another peek-a-boo, like the Meth example up above. Within the first thirty seconds of Madlib’s track off of 2004′s beyond-classic Madvillainy, anyone familiar with the early tape-loop works of Steve Reich will get a nice jet of cold water to the face: that’s “Come Out,” one of Reich’s earliest experiments with finding the natural music in the human voice.

3) The Diplomats, “Santana’s Town” – Samples “Carmina Burana.” No, “samples” isn’t quite the right word. “Slaughters.” “Completely and utterly destroys,” perhaps, or “wipes muddy feet all over.” This is either the “epitome” – if you’re a fan – or the “nadir,” if you’re not, of the endearing low-budget-ness of the Diplomats crew.

4) Nas, “I Can” – “Fur Elise!” I admit, I absolutely love this beat. And hey, the song is about piano lessons! Perfect.

To quote Busta, “Gimme some more!” Comments section in 3,2,1…..