I think the first public discussion I participated in about the new video iPod was in my Mass Communications class, when we were discussing file-sharing and swapping for electronic music. We were talking about MP3 players and how the Deaf community has accepted regular ol' auditorally focused iPods. Some cochlear implant users even plug their iPods directly into their cochlear implants, so they can receive the signals directly in their brain, and listen to the music with absolutely zero outside influence. Boy, these folks are really wired, if you think about it.

I had a discussion in my Theatre/English class, ASL Through Shakespeare, taught by not one, but four professors- Dr. Jennifer Nelson from the Department of English (M.A. Harvard), Dr. Willy Conley, chair of the Theatre Department (M.F.A. Theatre, Towson University, M.A. Playwriting, Boston University), Dr. Steven Smith, Assistant Chair of the English Department at LaSalle University (Ph.D, University of Notre Dame), and finally, Dr. Peter Novak, associate professor at the University of San Francisco (Ph.D, Yale). Quite a gathering of intellectual scholars, and we discuss things ad infinitum in that class 98.7% of the time. In theatre, professional actors often listen to their lines using a tape recorder or CD player. Obviously, this method is not applicable to deaf actors, but now with Apple's new iPod, anything is possible in theatrical terms. Deaf actors can now watch the exact translations of their lines on the fly, while they're travelling somewhere else- with their new video iPods.

The new video iPods would also foster a whole new understanding of visual music in the deaf community. On September 11th, I had the opportunity to go to this excellent exhibit at the Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum, titled "Visual Music". Summer, a good friend of mine in addition to being a visual music addict, and I went to the exhibit. She arranged for an interpreter for their tour, and we walked through the rooms absolutely dumbstruck at some possibilities that are just laying out there waiting for deaf folks to come and gobble up. I've always been fascinated by artists like Stan Brakhage, who made 380 films between 1953 and 2003, all between 9 minutes and 4 hours long.

Some examples of Brakhage's work, some on display at the Visual Music exhibit:

from ... Reel 2, 1998

from ... Reel 3, 1998

from Prelude 1, 1996

The visual component of music as a language has been ignored in mainstream hearing culture, but it can't be ignored in deaf culture. The idea of visual images on a screen accompanying music is amazing. For example, Imaginary Forces, one of my idols in the main title industry, designed the look of the 74th Academy Awards, by completely merging the visual and auditory components of all the films up for nomination that year, into one single throbbing idea, so we can actually "see music" through the gold circles moving on the screen. You can see the ideas below-

74th Academy Awards montage

Some people already have an inkling of what visual music would do for the deaf culture. Imagine ASL music videos, made by deaf bands and deaf filmmakers. And yes, there are deaf bands- Beethoven's Nightmare, for one. And all of this available to us, anytime and anywhere- something hearing people have enjoyed for decades since the first portable boombox was invented in 1976. The Marantz Superscope had the first configuration resembling our modern-day boombox:

the Marantz Superscope, which sold for over $200 in 1976

And, movies had their heyday with boomboxes too. Music finally became individualistic- people didn't have to listen to the stationary radio or jukebox anytime they wanted to get their thrill. In the 1980 film Times Square we see what the early 1980s were like, with their hefty boomboxes and bubble-gum chewing punks.

Still of the Times Square main title sequence

Nicki, a character in the film, playing The Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated" in -what else- a mental hospital

But how many deaf people really know who The Ramones are? All this will change if we go out and buy the new video iPod. We will finally be able to access an area we were never given the opportunity to explore before. With downloads from Apple's iTunes store, we can download the latest Madonna music video, or see the very first music video ever played on MTV- the Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star".

the cover of "The Age of Plastic"

Video killed the radio star

I heard you on the wireless back in fifty two
Lying awake intent at tuning in on you.
If I was young it didn't stop you coming through.

Oh-a oh

They took the credit for your second symphony.
Rewritten by machine and new technology,
and now I understand the problems you can see.

Oh-a oh
I met your children
Oh-a oh
What did you tell them?

Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.
Pictures came and broke your heart.

Oh-a-a-a oh

And now we meet in an abandoned studio.
We hear the playback and it seems so long ago.
And you remember the jingles used to go.

Oh-a oh
You were the first one.
Oh-a oh
You were the last one.

Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.
In my mind and in my car, we can't rewind we've gone too far
Oh-a-aho oh,
Oh-a-aho oh

Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.

In my mind and in my car, we can't rewind we've gone too far.
Pictures came and broke your heart, put the blame on VTR.

You are a radio star.
You are a radio star.
Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.

Video killed the radio star. You are a radio star.

So, go out and buy your new video iPod. Write letters to the Federal Communications Commission telling them that they need to develop regulation for closed-captioning on the new iPod. This is a crucial time, when the potential for the deaf community to jump on this bandwagon of visual music is at an all-time high, and we need to be sure that this new technology and new device is accessible. Write to the FCC, and Apple. And... enjoy!