COASTAL RENAISSANCE - Photos & Discussion

[Scott (Former Account)]

denelson83 said:

scott said:

Airchime whistle set (E, G# and B)...

The notes are actually E, G and B♭, although I wish they were E, G♯ and B, which are an E-major chord. The Super Cs' whistles put out an E-diminished chord or a C-major chord without the fundamental.

I am sorry but you are incorrect, David.

The whistles either can be sounded at E-minor, E-major or a single G note.

Listen to a recording of her horn again, and plunk it out on the piano...

[ProudCanuck]

That is an awesome pic of Vancouver at sunset

[DENelson83]

scott said:

The whistles either can be sounded at E-minor, E-major or a single G note.

Listen to a recording of her horn again, and plunk it out on the piano...

I have perfect pitch, Scott, and I can tell you that the CR's whistle is definitely not an E-major chord. I can even identify the exact frequencies her whistle is emitting--165 Hz, 200 Hz and 240 Hz. For her whistle to be an E-major, her individual horns would need to be tuned to 165 Hz, 206 Hz and 248 Hz--minor differences in the two upper frequencies, but enough to change a diminished chord to a major one.

Just compare your video of the CR's whistle to this audio file of the QoCow's whistle sped up to an E-major, and you can clearly hear that the two whistles do not sound the same chord.

[Low Light Mike]

denelson83 said:

scott said:

The whistles either can be sounded at E-minor, E-major or a single G note.

Listen to a recording of her horn again, and plunk it out on the piano...

I have perfect pitch, Scott, and I can tell you that the CR's whistle is definitely not an E-major chord. I can even identify the exact frequencies her whistle is emitting--165 Hz, 200 Hz and 240 Hz. For her whistle to be an E-major, her individual horns would need to be tuned to 165 Hz, 206 Hz and 248 Hz--minor differences in the two upper frequencies, but enough to change a diminished chord to a major one.

Just compare your video of the CR's whistle to this audio file of the QoCow's whistle sped up to an E-major, and you can clearly hear that the two whistles do not sound the same chord.

[aside]

Well, you can't argue against perfect pitch.

DENelson, I'm interested to hear your story re this: how it was discovered in you, and how it helps you (if you're a musician or singer).

I've only ever encountered one person who had perfect pitch. It's a funny story:
- We were both in a community orchestra.
- I played trumpet, he played cello
- Before rehearsal, I was warming up by practicing some of the items on a piece of sheet-music.
- He was standing near me, and so he watched the sheet-music while I played.
- He then said the infuriating words to me "You're playing the WRONG NOTES".
- I said "no", he said "yes", I said "no"..............
- He revealed to me that he has perfect pitch.
- I then revealed to him that the Bb-Trumpet is pitched 1 full-tone above a concert-tone, and so a Concert-C note is a D-note to me.
- I think that was the first time that he realised that different instruments are pitched differently, re how their various notes are named. (yes, us trumpeters are happy that we just have to transpose up 1 full-tone, from a concert-score).
- But the way he said "Wrong Notes" infuriated me at the time. Although he had perfect-pitch, he had imperfect-social-skills.

Mr. Nelson, I suppose that walking into a high-school band-room would be torture for you, to hear a bunch of poorly-tuned instruments played by students. Painful to your ears?

[/aside]

[Northern Exploration]

Is it possible that over time the pitch of the notes change? I don't know anything about air horns. We had a two note trumpet one put on our motorhome when we had it many years ago. From when it was first installed over about 5 years it seemed to change in pitch.

I went to school with someone who had perfect pitch. Any and everything that had a sound he could instantly name the note. We used to check him everytime until we got bored with it because he was always right. The beeping of the deep fryers at restaurants saying the fries were done, microwave oven beeps, car horns, elevators etc. etc.

Another friend with perfect pitch was an amazing pianist and for quite a while was the accompaniest to Ben Heppner.

[Low Light Mike]

A Housekeeping Reminder:

The Coastal-Renaissance topic is very popular on this forum. Some members and guest post and view almost exclusively on the main Coastal-Renaissance thread in the "new ships" board:
ferriesbc.proboards20.com/index.cgi?board=newferries&action=post&thread=1167803153&page=110

Some may not be aware that there is a separate forum-page for ferry-photos. You will find some Coastal-Renaissance photos located there.

Now, re the Ferry-Photos page:
- We've got some Coastal-Renaissance photo-thread clutter; meaning that there are multiple-threads that have the same type of photo content.
- We've got 3 of those, and all 3 are in current use.
- We try to avoid these multiple-thread items, as they make it more difficult for people to find photos and to decide where to post them, and it makes for some confusing cross-thread discussion.
- All 3 of these photo-threads have ongoing discussion, so we don't want to lock 2, and leave 1 open.
- We also aren't able to move posts or combine threads.

Here are the 3 photo-threads in question:

1) ferriesbc.proboards20.com/index.cgi?board=photos&action=display&thread=1200875272
- originally started by Kiernan as "MY CR pictures", it's been used by others too.
- Hint: if you start a new thread and name it "my", it makes it confusing for others to decide to post their own pics there.
- For a photo-event where we expect lots of people to take and post pics, lets stay away from member-exclusive photo-threads, in the future.

2) ferriesbc.proboards20.com/index.cgi?board=photos&action=display&thread=1200981940
- This is FerryNutSeattle's "MY trip to see the C.R" and is his photo essay.
- Problem is, his photo-essay is 1 item in the thread, so this could easily have been posted into an existing CR picture thread (again, for next time).
- same reasonings as #1 above....as we all expect lots of different people to post pics of the same event, so no need for separate threads.

3) ferriesbc.proboards20.com/index.cgi?board=photos&action=display&thread=1199580615&page=2
- This is Scott's original thread, from the first employee open house.


In future, for the upcoming CR open-houses, and for the next few ships, we should have 1 photo-thread for each EVENT.
- That means 1 photo-thread for the CR open ship in Nanaimo
- 1 photo-thread for the CR open ship in Victoria
etc etc.

Hopefully, that will make it easier for people to navigate.

As for the existing photo-threads noted above, they are a good record of the open-houses to date. Just keep them specific to those first few events; and don't post any future-event items into them.

Thanks!

[DENelson83]

flugelhorn said:

Mr. Nelson, I suppose that walking into a high-school band-room would be torture for you, to hear a bunch of poorly-tuned instruments played by students. Painful to your ears?

Well, I guess that's one reason I never took band in grade school.

[shipchandler]

nice sunset scott, you should be a postcard photographer

[Airchime]

Hi Guys,
Sorry to be tardy for the party!

The Coastal Renaissance at Canada Place



The wheelhouse at the #1 end



Global BC reporter Jane Carrigan waiting to get a sound bite from the Captain.
The blonde mane to the right belongs to the lovely and talented Deb Marshall.



One of two empty staterooms



The Seawest Lounge is quite a bit smaller than the ones on the Spirits



On the Coastal Celebration, the Pacific Buffett will be in the place of the Sitka
Coffee place (at the #1 end).



The large amount of outside space is quite visible here.

[Retrovision]

Great account of a formidable excursion, ferrynutseattle; I do love these kinds of photo essays, though I'm biased as a fan of photographic essays, let alone considering my passion for the art of photography.

~

ferrynutseattle said:

Inside the snack car. This is a diner refurbished into a snack car for shorter trips. Very modern!

I know that I've asked before but I've lost track and now you've piqued my interest anew with yet another enticement, a retro-modern interior in a revival of such a classic form of transportation; when are the Superliner trainsets gone for so long again from the Vancouver-Seattle routing of Amtrak's Cascades? Please tell me it's later rather than sooner. (I read that the other Cascades routes are now using Talgo trainsets again, so this feels like an even more urgent question as a layman fan)

[Scott (Former Account)]

denelson83 said:

The CR's whistle is definitely not an E-major chord.

I stand corrected.

You are correct, David. It is a E-diminished chord, and not major.

Maybe we should get them to tune E down a semitone for a E♭major chord, then...

[DENelson83]

I'd have preferred it if the horns had been tuned to E-major, because that's the signature whistle of BC Ferries. Whenever I hear three horns sounding out an E-major chord below middle C, BC Ferries immediately appears in my mind.

pnwtraveler said:

Is it possible that over time the pitch of the notes change?

If a ship's horn hasn't been sounded for a long time, it will initially sound a different note, but quickly slide back to the note it was originally tuned to.

Edit: Aw crap! Stupid double post...

[Retrovision]

scott said:

denelson83 said:

The CR's whistle is definitely not an E-major chord.

I stand corrected.

You are correct, David. It is a E-diminished chord, and not major.

Maybe we should get them to tune E down a semitone for a E♭major chord, then...

For those like so many without any formal musical training, E " ♭ " is the musical note 'E-Flat', generalized here...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E%E2%99%AD_%28musical_note%29 (if you can consider that generalized )

For the laymen among us, including myself the longer I age from my >COUGHhigh schoolCOUGH< (so long ago) training, according to Wikipedia atleast ...

It lies one half of a tone above D and one half of a tone below E, thus being enharmonic to D♯ (D-sharp) or Re Dièse. However, in some temperaments, it is not the same as E-flat. E-flat is a perfect fifth below B-flat, whereas D sharp is a major third above B. Thus E♭ would be slightly lower in pitch.

When calculated in equal temperament with a reference of A above middle C as 440 Hz, the frequency of the E♭ semitone is approximately 311.127Hz. See pitch (music) for a discussion of historical variations in frequency.

...And now you know why only the so-called prodigies had the chance to relish in music theory to the utmost.

P.S. NO offence intended to those in the know, but for the vast majority, as the phrase an ex g/f of mine coined, such knowledge is over the head and in the valley. Though it should be made clear how much we not only appreciate the musical geniouses of our civilization, more to the point we need to aknowledge how much our culture relies on them and their contributions.

[Northern Exploration]

Ok here is a follow-on trivia question based upon my lack of understanding of the mechanics of a ships whistle/horn. I assume air pressure should not change the note produced similar to a wind instrument. (if you blow hard it is just louder). But if you change the aperature of your lips as you blow the note raises or lowers (smaller = higher, larger = lower). Assuming the whistle/horn is made of non-corrosive material so rust is not a factor, would other deposits from pollution and build up of salts/minerals/dirt from weather and atmosphere cause the notes to go off key over time? If so no two horns would stay the same. Pipe organs are similar and need to be tuned and cleaned over time.

[ProudCanuck]

airchime said:

One of two empty staterooms

I hope that the state room furniture is on back order!!!

Having to pay for a state room and you get a table and 3 "reception room" chairs is unacceptable. Maybe move that couch from the bridge there. I would expected that the staterooms would be similar if not better than the ones on the Spirits.

Am I correct to assume that there is a private washroom there?

I did not get a chance to look at the stateroom as the BCF employee behind me was rushing me away from the bridge.

[FNS]

tsawwassenterminal said:

Great account of a formidable excursion, ferrynutseattle; I do love these kinds of photo essays, though I'm biased as a fan of photographic essays, let alone considering my passion for the art of photography.

~

ferrynutseattle said:

Inside the snack car. This is a diner refurbished into a snack car for shorter trips. Very modern!

I know that I've asked before but I've lost track and now you've piqued my interest anew with yet another enticement, a retro-modern interior in a revival of such a classic form of transportation; when are the Superliner trainsets gone for so long again from the Vancouver-Seattle routing of Amtrak's Cascades? Please tell me it's later rather than sooner. (I read that the other Cascades routes are now using Talgo trainsets again, so this feels like an even more urgent question as a layman fan)

There is more info on this SUPERLINER car, which is DINER/LOUNGE CAR 37000:

web.mac.com/dzygmont/dazphotoworld/Car_37000_Diner_Lounge.html

www.nationalcorridors.org/df2/df02052007.shtml

Previous trial configuration
www.narprail.org/cms/index.php/resources/more/diner_lounge_car2/

Discussion forum on 37000 (quite neat, like ours on ferries)
www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?4,1411846
(Copy and paste the entire line on your browser if the last numbers are in black)

We now rejoin the main track on this thread's discussion on the MV COASTAL RENAISSANCE.

[Low Light Mike]

pnwtraveler said:

Ok here is a follow-on trivia question based upon my lack of understanding of the mechanics of a ships whistle/horn. I assume air pressure should not change the note produced similar to a wind instrument. (if you blow hard it is just louder). But if you change the aperature of your lips as you blow the note raises or lowers (smaller = higher, larger = lower). Assuming the whistle/horn is made of non-corrosive material so rust is not a factor, would other deposits from pollution and build up of salts/minerals/dirt from weather and atmosphere cause the notes to go off key over time? If so no two horns would stay the same. Pipe organs are similar and need to be tuned and cleaned over time.

If I play my horn after eating, without brushing my teeth, the gunk will build-up inside the tubes, and eventually narrow the tubes....mainly causing a decrease in volume-power, and a decrease in clarity.

re pitch, the key issue is "Length" of the horn / tube. So I think that gunk-buildup has a bigger impact on volume and clarity, and not on pitch.

Yes, I have a snake-cleaner (similar to a kitchen-drain snake) to clean my horn. It's a fun job.

[Northern Exploration]

Flug I played a trombone. And eeeeeew I could have gone a long time without being reminded of cleaning out a wind instrument and the spit valve.

[WettCoast]

Yesterday I went out to HSB to get more pics of the CR. I ended up traveling along Hwy 99 toward Lions Bay and took the first side road off the water side of the highway north of HSB. I then drove down steeply to the BCR tracks, found a small parking space, and then hiked the 1.5 km back toward the terminal (yes, me complete with cane and hobble). I got photos of the CR as well as the Surrey & Cap. Unfortunately the weather turned on me and I got soaked. I did however, get some pics, and got back in time for Easter dinner.


CR passing Q of Capilano @ entrance to HSB - 23 Mar 2008


Coastal Renaissance coming around the point at entrance to HSB


CR heading into her berth @ HSB
All photos © JST

[Dane]

I love the wake of the CR coming into Horseshoe Bay, it's really something. She certainly commands attention like no other ferry when she rounds the bend. I still am not used to seeing her in service, and while I do not mind the 2010 decals I do look forward to when she sports BC Ferries' current drab paint scheme and looks like a *real* ferry boat.

Thanks for sharing the photos!

[Canucks]

Those are some neat photos West Coast Kid. I like the first one the best because it shows the size of the CR and the Capilano adds some depth to the picture.

Here are some photos I have taken of the CR in service.

I took this from Piper's Lagoon. Sorry about the dark corners, I took the picture at full zoom and it got a bit distorted.


Here is how far away the Renaissance was.


Here she is coming out of Departure Bay.


Finally here an example of the wake she creates at the bow.

[Political Incorrectness]

Great pics Jim! Say where do you park to get there?

[Deleted]

Here are the pictures I got at the open house. It was my first time using this camera so I didn't know what settings to have it on lol.






















































While waiting in line







Video of the engine room

[WettCoast]

Very nice pics!

Even a couch in the wheel house - Why?

[Deleted]

wetcoastkidjst said:

Very nice pics!

Even a couch in the wheel house - Why?

Because they can.


lol