Miscellaneous Loroi question-and-answer thread

[Bamax]

It is a well-worn trope that warrior societies are not as cultured as more "civilized" ones (the word "Spartan" itself has become a synonym for austerity), but warrior societies can become as obsessed with culture and the arts as more "peaceful" societies, especially in an era when there aren't any wars to fight. One only has to look at Edo Period Japan to see a clear example of this: warrior-poets spending their days in contemplation of Buddhist ideals and attending performances of Noh and dancing geisha, and master weaponsmiths turning their skills to works of pure aesthetic. Like Japan, Sparta also had an artisan middle class, and especially in the pre-Classical age Sparta produced many great works of art.

I think there is less surviving evidence of what music was like in Sparta and Athens, but it seems to have at least been an important part of preamble for battle, and the Greek epic poems like the Odyssey and Iliad were sung accompanied to music, probably similarly in all the Greek subcultures. I think this is a common element between many warrior cultures, from the singing skalds of Norse mythology to the throat-singing of the Mongols to the storytelling music of Native American songscapes.

However, the Loroi are not one of those "single-city species," so there is a wide variety of appreciation of different music types, the common themes being mostly martial or mythological subject matter, conservatism in styles (as opposed to styles that change every generation), and a general absence of vocals.

So classical more or less?

That is what classical more or less is.

It evovles sure.. but people still enjoy Mozart even now.


Probably his most startingly near modern piece I have listened to is his fantasy and fugue for piano.

Speaking of instruments.... I presume they are no different than humans?

Because 5 fingers?

Though i reckon their may be some large instruments or rube goldberg-like contraptions that only teidar and mizol play with.. . am I right?

What I am saying is.... the loroi havd classical quartets with violins snd rock bands no?

[Arioch]

So classical more or less?
That is what classical more or less is.
It evovles sure.. but people still enjoy Mozart even now.

Probably his most startingly near modern piece I have listened to is his fantasy and fugue for piano.
Speaking of instruments.... I presume they are no different than humans?
Because 5 fingers?
Though i reckon their may be some large instruments or rube goldberg-like contraptions that only teidar and mizol play with.. . am I right?
What I am saying is.... the loroi havd classical quartets with violins snd rock bands no?

They'll have similar types of instruments... percussion and strings and woodwinds and brass, etc.... though a Loroi stringed instrument probably doesn't closely resemble a violin, etc.

Prior to radio and the phonograph and the advent of our media culture, music was something heard in person, either attending a public performance, or listened to privately on home instruments. Popular songwriters made their money by selling sheet music, to be played on the home piano, etc. This is most where Loroi music is within the mainstream Loroi culture: played in person. There are a wide variety of styles, most of which would sound to us like classical or folk or "marching band" or tribal music, with some more modern contemporary styles mixed in. Some Loroi listen to digitally recorded music, but for most part it's recordings of live performances rather than made-for-recording-in-a-studio type stuff.

Loroi also have wide exposure to alien music. Probably the most widely listened to are Barsam string and song music (of a wide variety, but mostly religious in nature) and Delrias chantry (which have similar themes of heroic mythology). The shrieking vocals and atonal percussion of Arekka music (imagine an unholy combination of thrash metal and Chinese opera) are not generally popular with the Loroi, except perhaps amongst the most extreme audiophiles.

But no, there are no Loroi rock bands. There might be some angsty civilian teenagers putting together some experimental music in a garage somewhere on Donei, and such music might attain some kind of underground status in the civilian subculture, but such music is unlikely to enter the consciousness of the warrior class (and, therefore, the mainstream Loroi culture).

[Bamax]

So classical more or less?
That is what classical more or less is.
It evovles sure.. but people still enjoy Mozart even now.

Probably his most startingly near modern piece I have listened to is his fantasy and fugue for piano.
Speaking of instruments.... I presume they are no different than humans?
Because 5 fingers?
Though i reckon their may be some large instruments or rube goldberg-like contraptions that only teidar and mizol play with.. . am I right?
What I am saying is.... the loroi havd classical quartets with violins snd rock bands no?

They'll have similar types of instruments... percussion and strings and woodwinds and brass, etc.... though a Loroi stringed instrument probably doesn't closely resemble a violin, etc.

Prior to radio and the phonograph and the advent of our media culture, music was something heard in person, either attending a public performance, or listened to privately on home instruments. Popular songwriters made their money by selling sheet music, to be played on the home piano, etc. This is most where Loroi music is within the mainstream Loroi culture: played in person. There are a wide variety of styles, most of which would sound to us like classical or folk or "marching band" or tribal music, with some more modern contemporary styles mixed in. Some Loroi listen to digitally recorded music, but for most part it's recordings of live performances rather than made-for-recording-in-a-studio type stuff.

Loroi also have wide exposure to alien music. Probably the most widely listened to are Barsam string and song music (of a wide variety, but mostly religious in nature) and Delrias chantry (which have similar themes of heroic mythology). The shrieking vocals and atonal percussion of Arekka music (imagine an unholy combination of thrash metal and Chinese opera) are not generally popular with the Loroi, except perhaps amongst the most extreme audiophiles.

But no, there are no Loroi rock bands. There might be some angsty civilian teenagers putting together some experimental music in a garage somewhere on Donei, and such music might attain some kind of underground status in the civilian subculture, but such music is unlikely to enter the consciousness of the warrior class (and, therefore, the mainstream Loroi culture).

I see.... it is certainly interesting to worldbuild.... but it is also true that nothing is infinite in use, form, or shape, and certainly not optimality.

What I am implying is that if you want to sound like a violin there are a finite number of ways to do that... vary things too much and you will get something that sounds NOT like a violin.

OK so the warriors dominate the known musical scene since citizens are basically second-class citizens who are not allowed to procreate.


So.... it is known that classical music is so well known because western culture conquered the world via superior organization and technology compared to other cultures.

So since the warrior class dominate, what is their classical stringed instrument family like?

More middle eastern with percussion?

You should know I know classical music well enough that it would be hard for me to consider something 'classical' if it does not soumd do.

Viola de gambas were a precusor to violins, violas are part of the family and cellos provide bass, followed by the even more powerful bass.

[Quickdraw101]

I just want to know if one could play a guitar within earshot of some Loroi without them getting annoyed, which I reckon is a "it depends" type of question. For real though, the Loroi need to be introduced to Rock and Roll, they'd love it! Or hate it.

[spacewhale]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QN0Jaybe-aA

I imagine this is what human music would sound like to aliens.

[Arioch]

So.... it is known that classical music is so well known because western culture conquered the world via superior organization and technology compared to other cultures.

So since the warrior class dominate, what is their classical stringed instrument family like?

Western (European, really) culture is not a good analogue for the Loroi warrior class, which has significant ethnic and cultural variation between the many nations of the various Loroi worlds. A better analogue would be Deinar culture, which dominates the modern Loroi nation, but even on Deinar there are very different musical styles between, say, Zaral, Arran, Daiam, the Northern colonies and the Western continent.

As there's no music in a comic, this isn't a subject I've spent a great deal of time on. Because of where the events of the story take us, I think we'll probably see more of Umiak musical instruments than Loroi ones.

[Bamax]

So.... it is known that classical music is so well known because western culture conquered the world via superior organization and technology compared to other cultures.

So since the warrior class dominate, what is their classical stringed instrument family like?

Western (European, really) culture is not a good analogue for the Loroi warrior class, which has significant ethnic and cultural variation between the many nations of the various Loroi worlds. A better analogue would be Deinar culture, which dominates the modern Loroi nation, but even on Deinar there are very different musical styles between, say, Zaral, Arran, Daiam, the Northern colonies and the Western continent.

As there's no music in a comic, this isn't a subject I've spent a great deal of time on. Because of where the events of the story take us, I think we'll probably see more of Umiak musical instruments than Loroi ones.

I see... still will be interesting. More so since the Umiak are less human than Loroim

[gaerzi]

I figure cultures that appeared on the ruined worlds of precursor empires, with a lot of still-somewhat-salvageable technologies, may have a "classical music" dominated with electrical instruments (think of late 19th/early 20th electronic instruments like the telharmonium, theremin, ondes Martenot, etc.).

[G. Janssen]

However, the Loroi are not one of those "single-city species," so there is a wide variety of appreciation of different music types, the common themes being mostly martial or mythological subject matter, conservatism in styles (as opposed to styles that change every generation), and a general absence of vocals.

Hmmm... Would Loroi who appreciate music that's like Earth's classical music, after having heard Beethoven's 9th symphony (and thus Ode to Joy) for the first time, coldly remark that the symphony's last part would be better without the vocals or be ecstatic and wipe the tears from their cheeks like humans?

[Keklas Rekobah]

Would Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida receive their praise, or would the Loroi likely pan it as ". . . 681.5 solons of our lives that we will never get back"?

[Arioch]

Reaction to specific styles will vary according to the musical traditions of the subculture and the tastes of the individual Loroi. Even within a culture, there are Americans who love a particular style of American music and others who hate it.

Also, I think that being able to appreciate the beauty of a particular style of music is not the same as wanting to listen to it on a regular basis. As an example, there are some regional music clips in the Civilization games like Polynesian and Native American vocals and Chinese opera (with its shrieking vocals and relentless hammering cymbals) which I can appreciate in small doses, but after listening to for hours really start to grate on my nerves. Even some Western traditional styles like Gregorian chants, which I find very beautiful, get really old after extended listening (especially those pieces with shrill falsetto solo parts can decalcify the spinal column).

Most Loroi have been exposed to alien music with vocals, so it's not a completely new concept to them. Some like it, some don't.

I think many of the Union cultures would be amused by our pop music's obsession with pair bonding and mating.

[Keklas Rekobah]

The Tenoin might appreciate "Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald", "Last Farewell", "Orinoco Flow", and various surfer tunes.

[Quickdraw101]

On that note, I'd get an absolute kick out of showing a group of Loroi an assortment of music videos that accompany various songs, just to gauge their reactions. Especially for more sexually explicit songs. It would be a fun time indeed.

[Snoofman]

…I think many of the Union cultures would be amused by our pop music's obsession with pair bonding and mating.

I bet the loroi would get a kick out of “Raining Men”. Well the females at least. What I’d give to see a Trade version of the song!

[Krulle]

Although I wonder how often the explicit meaning of the sexual explicit songs would get lost to the Loroi.
"Sweat (A La La Long)" by Inner Circle is one example of what I'm thinking of.

[Quickdraw101]

Somewhat related to a story idea I got going somewhere else, so this is a question I gotta ask. Its obvious the Loroi view themselves as superior to ever other species around them, and view themselves as the military superpower in the local bubble. But that's just it, the Local Bubble. The galaxy is much vaster than that, and can easily be hosting other interstellar communities and civilizations. In some wild scenario where they meet or get met by a larger galactic community, would they accept an invitation to it? Especially if said community is more advanced than they are, when the Loroi aren't used to playing second fiddle in space? I guess the same question applies to the Umiak as well. Both seem conservative in terms of their society, and the Loroi are full blown fascist, but how would they react to such a scenario, especially if they got to see a firsthand demonstration of what said community has and is capable of?

[Arioch]

Somewhat related to a story idea I got going somewhere else, so this is a question I gotta ask. Its obvious the Loroi view themselves as superior to ever other species around them, and view themselves as the military superpower in the local bubble. But that's just it, the Local Bubble. The galaxy is much vaster than that, and can easily be hosting other interstellar communities and civilizations. In some wild scenario where they meet or get met by a larger galactic community, would they accept an invitation to it? Especially if said community is more advanced than they are, when the Loroi aren't used to playing second fiddle in space? I guess the same question applies to the Umiak as well. Both seem conservative in terms of their society, and the Loroi are full blown fascist, but how would they react to such a scenario, especially if they got to see a firsthand demonstration of what said community has and is capable of?

The myth of Loroi superiority is not what it was, since they have been... how shall we say... "not winning" a war for the last 25 years. But even before that, they presumed themselves to be the descendants of a much more advanced alien civilization, other remnants of which may be out there somewhere, and they have clear proof that they are not technological top dog in the Historians. So I don't think that most Loroi would be terribly surprised to learn that there are more advanced civilizations out there, somewhere beyond the heavens...

Would the Loroi join such a civilization? That depends an awful lot on who's doing the asking. Such a "more advanced" civilization might be the Asgard, or they might be the Borg. High technology is no guarantee of benevolence.

Also, the Loroi are not a solo nation; they are currently part of an interspecies Union. There would be complicated political questions to be answered if some new Federation showed up and started asking folks to join.

[Krulle]

Well, the galaxy is large, it could well be that the Soia are still alive and ruling in other parts of the galaxy.

And still have other Loroi as their servants/faithful allies/supporters/...

[GeoModder]

The question remains, why didn't they return? Hundreds of millennia have passed since the Fall.

[Quickdraw101]

Somewhat related to a story idea I got going somewhere else, so this is a question I gotta ask. Its obvious the Loroi view themselves as superior to ever other species around them, and view themselves as the military superpower in the local bubble. But that's just it, the Local Bubble. The galaxy is much vaster than that, and can easily be hosting other interstellar communities and civilizations. In some wild scenario where they meet or get met by a larger galactic community, would they accept an invitation to it? Especially if said community is more advanced than they are, when the Loroi aren't used to playing second fiddle in space? I guess the same question applies to the Umiak as well. Both seem conservative in terms of their society, and the Loroi are full blown fascist, but how would they react to such a scenario, especially if they got to see a firsthand demonstration of what said community has and is capable of?

The myth of Loroi superiority is not what it was, since they have been... how shall we say... "not winning" a war for the last 25 years. But even before that, they presumed themselves to be the descendants of a much more advanced alien civilization, other remnants of which may be out there somewhere, and they have clear proof that they are not technological top dog in the Historians. So I don't think that most Loroi would be terribly surprised to learn that there are more advanced civilizations out there, somewhere beyond the heavens...

Would the Loroi join such a civilization? That depends an awful lot on who's doing the asking. Such a "more advanced" civilization might be the Asgard, or they might be the Borg. High technology is no guarantee of benevolence.

Also, the Loroi are not a solo nation; they are currently part of an interspecies Union. There would be complicated political questions to be answered if some new Federation showed up and started asking folks to join.

I was thinking more of a scenario where no war ever erupts, or any that does doesn't last very long, and thus their reputation isn't shattered after 25 years of nonstop war. The Loroi are a warrior species and greatly proud of their military and culture. I don't imagine they'd hold great respect for a civilization, especially not a newly discovered one. They probably respect the Barsam and other Union species, but they've known them for centuries, and have provided technology to the Loroi. A new civilization or force appearing from the wild blue yonder, with a myriad of species, one with demonstrably more advanced technology, would put them on edge, would they not? Especially considering how the Loroi regarded the Umiak from the beginning, I can't help but think they'd be even more xenophobic or paranoid.

Especially if they caught a glimpse of what they could do if angered. A civilization like that, with all the above information, seeking free trade and cultural exchange with the Union, would likely be taken badly, wouldn't it? Especially if they wanted the Union to join under the pretext of peaceful cooperation for the galaxy?

Maybe I've read them wrongly, but to me the Loroi come off as extremely paranoid of any neighbors, are highly xenophobic, and view themselves as the peak of civilization and culture, and look down on aliens. Being presented with the above scenario sounds like it'd invoke a very negative reaction from them, including their allies. Meeting another civilization who dwarfs them, but claims to want peace, would make them extremely suspicious, wouldn't it?