Saturday, December 19, 2009

Trans Siberian Orchestra In Lights

This one started the Craze, I Think

There is a phenomenon in American culture right now, small in its devotees, but robust none, the less. That is the use of music with Christmas lights, and technological bits and pieces to make a light and sound show out of your house. This was the first one I ever saw a few years ago, and I found it last night. The light sequencing is done to the Trans Siberian Orchestra playing Wizard in Winter.

Here is the info from the You Tube Video:
Wow, this thing has really gone crazy with the viewers. Let me first start by saying that this is not my house. Regardless of what any of the comments read, this house really does exist, I have seen it with my own eyes and nothing you see in the video is trickery, it's all real.
This display was the work of Carson Williams, a Mason, Ohio, electrical engineer who spent about three hours sequencing the 88 Light-O-Rama channels that controlled the 16,000 Christmas lights in his annual holiday lighting spectacular (from Christmas 2004). His 2005 display includes over 25,000 lights that he spent nearly two months and $10,000 to hook up. So that the Williams' neighbors aren't disturbed by constant noise, viewers driving by the house are informed by signs to tune in to a signal broadcast over a low-power FM radio station to hear the musical accompaniment.

The rough quality of the video has led some viewers to believe it was put together in stop-action form from still photographs, but that is an artifact of the high compression used in the clip circulated via e-mail. Mr. Williams has posted instructions for recreating his "Wizard in Winter" sequencing, and another of his choreographed Christmas light music shows can be viewed here.

Carson's Christmas display proved so popular that it was featured in a Miller Lite beer commercial in December 2005.


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