ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Eddi Reader - Singer/songwriter
In her warm, glorious voice, Eddi Reader sings thoughtful songs about love, longing and introspection.

Why you should listen

Scotland-born Eddi Reader was an '80s pop star in the UK, where her band Fairground Attraction had a #1 hit with the supercatchy "Perfect." Now, as a solo artist, her sounds has matured; quiet acoustic arrangements and gentle harmonies put her lush voice front and center. TED Music Director Thomas Dolby calls her his favorite singer of all time.

Albums such as Candyfloss and Medicine and Angels & Electricity established her as a thoughtful songwriter and interpreter, with an affinity for wistful songs of longing and loss -- and a nice sideline in what used to be called "message" songs, which call to the listener to think about war and peace, the Earth and our place in it.

Reader has also become a noted interpreter of the poems of Robert Burns. Her latest album, Peacetime, offers a compelling mix of Burns lyrics, traditional folk tunes and new songs written by Reader and her longtime songwriting partner, Boo Hewerdine. Fun fact: The title song on the album, "Peacetime," Eddi first learned backstage at her 2003 TED performance.

More profile about the speaker
Eddi Reader | Speaker | TED.com
Thomas Dolby - Electronic music pioneer
Thomas Dolby has spent his career at the intersection of music and technology. He was an early star on MTV, then moved to Silicon Valley, then went back on the road with his album, "A Map of the Floating City."

Why you should listen

Perhaps best known for blinding us with science, Thomas Dolby has always blurred the lines between composition and invention. As a London teenager, Tom Robertson was fascinated with the convergence of music and technology. His experiments with an assortment of keyboards, synthesizers and cassette players led his friends to dub him “Dolby.” That same fascination later drove him to become an electronic musician and multimedia artist whose groundbreaking work fused music with computer technology and video. Two decades, several film scores, five Grammy nominations and countless live-layered sound loops later, it's clear Dolby's innovations have changed the sound of popular music.

In the 1990s, Dolby re-created himself as a digital-musical entrepreneur, founding Beatnik, which developed the polyphonic ringtone software used in more than half a billion cell phones. From 2001 to 2012, Dolby served as TED's Music Director, programming great music for the TED stage, assembling a wide variety of house bands and collaborations to play between speakers. At TED2010, backed by the string quarter Ethel, he premiered the song "Love Is a Loaded Pistol," from his sweeping, A Map of the Floating City. The album marked his return to recording and touring after a 15-year hiatus, and used seriously retro technology -- '40s-era oscilloscopes and Royal Navy field-test equipment -- to control modern synthesizers, in shows at once nostalgic and cutting edge.

In 2014, Dolby took on a new name: professor. He was named the Homewood Professor of the Arts at Johns Hopkins University, teaching the course "Sound on Film."

More profile about the speaker
Thomas Dolby | Speaker | TED.com
TED2003

Eddi Reader: "What You've Got"

Eddi Reader singt über das "Was man hat"

Filmed:
515,331 views

Die Liedermacherin Eddi Reader stellt uns ihren Song "Was man mit dem, was man hat, macht" vor, eine Meditation über ein typisches TED-Thema: Wie wir unsere Gaben und Talente nutzen, um etwas zu verändern. Am Piano: Thomas Dolby.
- Singer/songwriter
In her warm, glorious voice, Eddi Reader sings thoughtful songs about love, longing and introspection. Full bio - Electronic music pioneer
Thomas Dolby has spent his career at the intersection of music and technology. He was an early star on MTV, then moved to Silicon Valley, then went back on the road with his album, "A Map of the Floating City." Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:25
This songLied is one of Thomas'Thomas favoritesFavoriten,
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Dieser Song ist eins von Thomas' Lieblingsliedern
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callednamens "What You Do with What You've Got."
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und heißt "Was man mit dem, was man hat, macht."
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♫ You mustsollen know someonejemand like him ♫
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♫ Jemanden wie ihn muss man gesehen haben ♫
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♫ He was tallhoch and strongstark and leanlehnen
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♫ Er war groß und stark und schlank ♫
00:52
♫ With a bodyKörper like a greyhoundWindhund
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♫ Mit einem Körper wie ein Windhund ♫
00:55
♫ and a mindVerstand so sharpscharf and keendaran interessiert
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♫ Und einem Geist so scharf und kühn ♫
00:59
♫ But his heartHerz, just like laurelLorbeer
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♫ Sein Herz aber wand sich wie Lorbeer ♫
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grewwuchs twistedverdrehte around itselfselbst
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♫ Immer mehr um sich selbst ♫
01:05
TillBis almostfast everything he did ♫
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♫ Bis fast alles, was er tat, ♫
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broughtgebracht painSchmerz to someonejemand elsesonst
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♫ Anderen nur Leid zufügte ♫
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♫ It's not just what you're borngeboren with ♫
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♫ Es zählt nicht nur, wie die Natur dich erschaffen hat, ♫
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♫ It's what you choosewählen to bearBär
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♫ Sondern das, was du selbst zu erschaffen bereit bist ♫
01:21
♫ It's not how biggroß your shareAktie is ♫
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♫ Es zählt nicht, wie groß dein Anteil ist, ♫
01:25
♫ It's how much you can shareAktie
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♫ Sondern wie sehr du Anteil nehmen kannst ♫
01:28
♫ It's not the fightsKämpfe you dreamedgeträumt of ♫
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♫ Es zählen nicht die Kämpfe, von denen du nur geträumt hast, ♫
01:31
♫ It's those you really foughtkämpfte
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♫ Sondern die, denen du dich wirklich gestellt hast ♫
01:34
♫ It's not what you've been givengegeben
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♫ Es zählt nicht, was dir in die Wiege gelegt wurde, ♫
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♫ It's what you do with what you've got ♫
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♫ Sondern das, was du daraus machst ♫
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♫ What's the use of two strongstark legsBeine
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♫ Was bringen schon zwei starke Beine, ♫
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♫ if you only runLauf away? ♫
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♫ Wenn man mit ihnen nur davonläuft? ♫
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♫ And what's the use of the finestfeinste voiceStimme
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♫ Und was nützt die schönste Stimme, ♫
01:55
♫ if you've nothing good to say? ♫
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♫ Wenn man damit nichts Gutes zu sagen weiß? ♫
01:58
♫ What's the use of strengthStärke and muscleMuskel
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♫ Was nützen Stärke und Muskeln, ♫
02:02
♫ if you only pushdrücken and shoveschieben? ♫
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♫ Wenn man nur drückt und stößt? ♫
02:05
♫ And what's the use of two good earsOhren
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♫ Und was nützen gute Ohren, ♫
02:08
♫ if you can't hearhören those you love? ♫
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♫ Wenn man die jenigen, die man liebt, nicht hört? ♫
03:11
♫ What's the use of two strongstark legsBeine
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♫ Was bringen schon zwei starke Beine, ♫
03:16
♫ if you only runLauf away? ♫
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♫ Wenn man mit ihnen nur davonläuft? ♫
03:18
♫ And what's the use of the finestfeinste voiceStimme
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♫ Und was nützt die schönste Stimme, ♫
03:21
♫ if you've nothing good to say? ♫
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♫ Wenn man damit nichts Gutes zu sagen weiß? ♫
03:24
♫ What's the use of strengthStärke and muscleMuskel
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♫ Was nützen Stärke und Muskeln, ♫
03:28
♫ if you only pushdrücken and shoveschieben? ♫
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♫ Wenn man nur drückt und stößt? ♫
03:31
♫ And what's the use of two good earsOhren
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♫ Und was nützen gute Ohren, ♫
03:34
♫ if you can't hearhören those you love? ♫
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♫ Wenn man die jenigen, die man liebt, nicht hört? ♫
03:37
BetweenZwischen those who use theirihr neighborsNachbarn
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♫ Wer von denen, die ihren Nächsten ♫
03:40
♫ and those who use the caneZuckerrohr
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♫ Und denen, die den Rohrstock benutzen
03:43
BetweenZwischen those in constantKonstante powerLeistung
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♫ Wer von denen, die stets die Macht haben ♫
03:46
♫ and those in constantKonstante painSchmerz
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♫ Und denen, die stets das Leid tragen ♫
03:49
BetweenZwischen those who runLauf to gloryRuhm
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♫ Wer von denen, die die Straße des Ruhms gehen ♫
03:52
♫ and those who cannotnicht können runLauf
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♫ Und denen, die gar nicht gehen können ♫
03:55
♫ Tell me whichwelche onesEinsen are the cripplesKrüppel
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♫ Sag mir, wer von denen ist der wahre Krüppel ♫
03:58
♫ and whichwelche onesEinsen touchberühren the sunSonne
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♫ Und wer von denen berührt die Sonne? ♫
04:35
WhichDie onesEinsen touchberühren the sunSonne
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♫ Wer berührt die Sonne? ♫
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WhichDie onesEinsen touchberühren the sunSonne
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♫ Wer berührt die Sonne? ♫
05:05
(ApplauseApplaus) Thank you very much.
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(Applaus)
Translated by Wolf Ruschke
Reviewed by Selen A. Ercan

▲Back to top

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Eddi Reader - Singer/songwriter
In her warm, glorious voice, Eddi Reader sings thoughtful songs about love, longing and introspection.

Why you should listen

Scotland-born Eddi Reader was an '80s pop star in the UK, where her band Fairground Attraction had a #1 hit with the supercatchy "Perfect." Now, as a solo artist, her sounds has matured; quiet acoustic arrangements and gentle harmonies put her lush voice front and center. TED Music Director Thomas Dolby calls her his favorite singer of all time.

Albums such as Candyfloss and Medicine and Angels & Electricity established her as a thoughtful songwriter and interpreter, with an affinity for wistful songs of longing and loss -- and a nice sideline in what used to be called "message" songs, which call to the listener to think about war and peace, the Earth and our place in it.

Reader has also become a noted interpreter of the poems of Robert Burns. Her latest album, Peacetime, offers a compelling mix of Burns lyrics, traditional folk tunes and new songs written by Reader and her longtime songwriting partner, Boo Hewerdine. Fun fact: The title song on the album, "Peacetime," Eddi first learned backstage at her 2003 TED performance.

More profile about the speaker
Eddi Reader | Speaker | TED.com
Thomas Dolby - Electronic music pioneer
Thomas Dolby has spent his career at the intersection of music and technology. He was an early star on MTV, then moved to Silicon Valley, then went back on the road with his album, "A Map of the Floating City."

Why you should listen

Perhaps best known for blinding us with science, Thomas Dolby has always blurred the lines between composition and invention. As a London teenager, Tom Robertson was fascinated with the convergence of music and technology. His experiments with an assortment of keyboards, synthesizers and cassette players led his friends to dub him “Dolby.” That same fascination later drove him to become an electronic musician and multimedia artist whose groundbreaking work fused music with computer technology and video. Two decades, several film scores, five Grammy nominations and countless live-layered sound loops later, it's clear Dolby's innovations have changed the sound of popular music.

In the 1990s, Dolby re-created himself as a digital-musical entrepreneur, founding Beatnik, which developed the polyphonic ringtone software used in more than half a billion cell phones. From 2001 to 2012, Dolby served as TED's Music Director, programming great music for the TED stage, assembling a wide variety of house bands and collaborations to play between speakers. At TED2010, backed by the string quarter Ethel, he premiered the song "Love Is a Loaded Pistol," from his sweeping, A Map of the Floating City. The album marked his return to recording and touring after a 15-year hiatus, and used seriously retro technology -- '40s-era oscilloscopes and Royal Navy field-test equipment -- to control modern synthesizers, in shows at once nostalgic and cutting edge.

In 2014, Dolby took on a new name: professor. He was named the Homewood Professor of the Arts at Johns Hopkins University, teaching the course "Sound on Film."

More profile about the speaker
Thomas Dolby | Speaker | TED.com