Cool Stuff 2!

Okay so something that really interested me about Australian culture is the didgeridoo. I think it is a neat concept and a very unique sound, so I decided to look up didgeridoo covers, and I was not disappointed.

 

Something I found exciting in Arabic culture is the Arabic “Dabke” dance. This is a dance performed by males at an arabic wedding. It involves lots of kicking and jumping around.

 

A cool part of African-American history is the blues music. The blues originated from the slaves old gospel songs, and many of those gospel songs had hidden meanings. One of my favorites “Follow the Drinking Gourd”; is telling slaves to follow the North Star, The “drinking gourd” translates to a hollow dipper for scooping water, which is a metaphor for the Big Dipper, which the North Star is part of; a symbol for freedom.

 

Final Post !

1. Tell me about something you learned about another culture this term that surprised or intrigued you.

Something that surprised me in this class is that not all sounds or songs are considered music. For example I think it’s interesting how songs in the Islam religion aren’t considered music but simply a necessary part of their religion/culture. That shocked me, because I’ve always believed that any sort of notes is music, and it was neat to see a different perspective.

2. Tell me about something that you realized about your own culture through our discussions.

I realized how much our music is influenced by countries other than our own. A lot of the instruments we have today aren’t originally from our country, and they are based off of an earlier instrument from a different country.

I also realized how ignorant I am to the music of other cultures. I used to say that music is a universal language, and although I still believe that to be true, this class has taught me to be open to all kinds of music, and that as a musician I have a duty to be knowledgeable about music other than my own.
3. Tell me about something that this course has inspired you to learn more about.
After taking this course, I really want to learn more about rap music in other cultures. I feel like rap music in the United States used to be about meaningful things, but now is about drugs, money, etc; but I’m curious to see if rap music in other culture is about different things, and how it compares to the American version of rap.

Cool Stuff Round 4!!

Okay so the first really neat thing I found was a music festival in the Philippines. It takes place in early October and it’s called Neverland Manilla. It’s know as the the biggest EDM (electronic dance music) event in the Philippines, and hosts some of the biggest names in EDM.

 

 

An interesting aspect of Asian culture is the Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA). The awards began in 1999, and were Korea’s first and only music video awards ceremony.  The ceremony was held only in South Korea for the first couple years, but since then has been held in China, Japan, Singapore, and Vietnam. The top three prizes are Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Artist of the Year. This ceremony is one of the leading K-Pop music awarding ceremonies, and is broadcasted to South Korea, Japan, China, Indonesia Canada, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States.

 

A genre of music that was never really discussed in class that I came upon in my research for cool things is the South-East Asian Psych Funk. This genre of music pairs surreal lyrics ( like with psychedelic music) and lengthy guitar solos with groovy pop, jazz, and disco. This type of music was big from the 1960’s to the 1980’s, and it was popular all throughout Southeast Asia, inspiring a unique sound all over the world.

 

Music and Family

I decided to interview my mom, but before going into the interview I’d like to share a really cool story of how my mom ended up getting to meet Foghat (the band that sings Slow Ride) and getting backstages passes to one of their concerts when she was sixteen.

“I was flying down by myself for the first time to see my uncle in Florida, and I was sixteen. I heard some of stewardess talking about celebrities in the front of the plane, so as soon as we landed,  I caught up to the celebrities that they were talking about and asked for an autograph. We started talking, and they told me they’d be playing in Providence, RI next month and that they’d hook me up with tickets if I asked for them. So, I took my older brother to the concert and at first the bouncer didn’t recognize me, but then I pulled out the autograph and then he recognized me. It was better than I could’ve ever imagined. We got VIP passes, we could watch the bands from onstage, we had access to all their hospitality with all of their food and drink, and the warmup band was Triumph (they sing Eye of the Tiger). After the concert was over they were taking their limousine and going out and they invited us to come, but I was only sixteen and I thought I probably shouldn’t go, so I said farewell to the band, and that’s it.”

–

-Describe your earliest musical memory

Mom: “It was listening to bands at my dad’s bar up in Killington, when I was about 4 years old”

-What was a meaningful musical experience you had (time of life)?

“Going to see Elvis Presly right before he died, it was his second to last concert.” (She was about nine years old)

-How did your parents influence your musical choices and experiences?

“You know, what they listened to, also they had a jukeboxes in their restaurant, so I listened to a lot of what was on there, I would get a big cup of quarters and play the songs on there, so that determined a lot of what they listened to.”

-What genre of music do you gravitate to?

“Right now contemporary christian”

-What kind of music did you listen to growing up?

“Oldies, 80’s pop music”

-And what do you listen to now? Did it change? Why?

“Contemporary christian and probably pop music. It changed because music became a big part of my faith and my relationship with God”

-Have you been to live performances? What was that like?

“Uh yeah I used to go a ton of them, I loved it. Especially if they were a good performer and played into the crowd and told stories.”

-What do you think of the music I like?

“You exposed me to a lot of cool music, you had a lot of eccentric tastes. But, the music you listen to at college probably wouldn’t be anything I’d want to listen to, just because of the content.”

-If you could learn any instrument, what would it be?

“The harp”

-If you could talk with any artists, alive or dead, who would it be?

“Probably Louie Armstrong. I just, he was the start of something, and I’d just wonder what he’d think of music today and where it’s going.

Cool Stuff Pt. 3

So something that I found very interesting when researching different aspects of Indian culture, was wedding dances. Indian wedding dances are a very happy and joyous occasion, and I actually discovered that India has a company called KatyPicturesIndia which actually has an Indian wedding dance channel.

“Indians are popular for tossing exorbitant, lavish wedding events with great deals of color, loud music and passionate dancing. An Indian wedding event is an advantageous celebration celebrated with fantastic enthusiasm, fervor and enthusiasm. Wedding events all over the world are famous enthusiastically, but things that seems to separate Indian weddings from the rest are the dances.

Dance is the soul of any Indian wedding event. Those dancing may be far from expert, however nobody can withstand the urge to move around on the dance floor to the rhythm of the music to celebrate. By revealing their joy and love through dance, the wedding event guests gladly welcome the new couple into the world of marriage.”

 

 

Another aspect of India that interested me was the show “Dance India Dance”. “Dance India Dance” is an Indian dance competition reality show. It first aired in January 2009. Each season of the show is judged by an Indian film actor named Mithun Chakraborty in addition to 3 Bollywood choreographers. The judges are called “masters” and the film actor is called “grand master”. The show has had 6 seasons so far and continues to be extremely popular; tying together traditional and modern dances and music.

 

A surprising part of Latin American culture is Latin rap, but more particularly “Narco-rap”. Now you’re probably thinking narco sounds like narcotics, so it must be rapping about drugs, and if that is what you’re thinking, you are right! Narco-rap is a specific type of rap, much like the American “gangsta-rap” scene, that has emerged in Northern Mexico. The type of music produced is a sort of hip hop sounding song that has been influenced by organized crime and drug wars in the area.

“Mexican Narco-rap contains lyrics similar to those of a narcocorrido (drug ballad). However, unlike corridos, which relate to rural regions of Pacific Mexico (and which are generally linked to the Sinaloa cartel) narco-rap emerged in the urban area of Tamaulipas, on the border with Texas, a turf currently under armed dispute between the Zetas and the Gulf Cartel.”

The top three major artists of this genre are  Cano y Blunt, DemenT and Big Los.

Music and Gender

My main two encounters of gender affecting music are through show choir and marching band. In marching band, only boy played the heavier instruments, like the tuba, and only boys could play the heavier drums in drumline. However, my Sophomore year of high school, we had a girl tuba player march. It came as a shock to everyone in the band, but it definitely helped to break down barriers and show that girls are just as capable as boys.

 

As far as music and gender in show choir, boys were often treated as much more valuable than girls, because we always had a need for boys. For example, one year we had 20 girls audition and only 5 boys audition, so they could only take in 5 girls. In class the boys would often joke around and goof off, but the teacher only gave them empty threats, because we needed them in order to have enough dance partners for everyone. Also, as far as auditioning, girls often spent months preparing and still not make it, whereas a boy could come in and not even have a song prepared and still make it in to the choir.

However, times are changing, and I think that gender is becoming less of an issue in the music world.

Cool stuff pt. 1

1. So a certain aspect of Native American culture is stickball. Many Native American tribes developed ball sports and often these sports were used to settle disputes as an alternative to going to war. Native American Stickball, which is similar to lacrosse, is one of the oldest team sports in North America.

 

2. Marlon Brando boycotting the oscars.

“At the 45th Annual Academy Awards in 1973, Marlon Brando was awarded the Best Actor Oscar for his iconic role as Vito Corleone in The Godfather. However, Brando didn’t show up to accept the statue. Instead, he sent a Native American activist named Sacheen Littlefeather in his place to decline the award. Littlefeather stood behind the podium and, to a mixed reaction of boos and applause from the audience, explained why the movie star, at the height of his career, was rejecting the Academy’s most prestigious individual honor. “He has asked me to tell you … that he very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award,” Littlefeather, wearing traditional Apache dress, said. “And the reasons for this being are the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry.” The controversy over a lack of diversity among this year’s nominees thrust Littlefeather’s remarkable moment back into the spotlight earlier this month.”

She is the reason that Native Americans are now portrayed more accurately in movies and respected more.

 

3. The Native American Music Awards

The Native American  1998, which recognizes outstanding musical achievement in styles associated with Native Americans, mostly in the United States and Canada. While Native American performers in a variety of genres are also recognized, nominees do not have to be Native American themselves. The awards were created in 1998 to offer Native American musicians greater recognition from the American music industry and to create opportunities for bettering themselves.

https://www.nativeamericanmusicawards.com

Music and Religion or Philosophy

The main music that is associated with my family’s religion on my Dad’s side is Jewish chanting. Not most people know this about me, but my Dad was raised Jewish, and converted to Christianity as an adult. So although my family is Christian, we still celebrate Hanukkah and we do the ceremonial lighting each year, and one of the key elements of that ceremony is to sing the Hanukkah blessing. I really enjoy this aspect of the holiday because it is an interesting way to connect with my family and my ancestors.

Ba-ruch A-tah Ado-nai E-lo-he-nu Me-lech ha-olam a-sher ki-de-sha-nu be-mitz-vo-tav ve-tzi-va-nu le-had-lik ner Cha-nu-kah.
Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to kindle the Chanukah light.

 

However, my family is Anglican and we go to church every Sunday, and the majority of our worship music is hymns. I have a particular fondness for revamped hymns, or old hymns that are sang in a modern style, and one of my favorites is O Come to the Altar.

My Global Music Autobiography

My experience with music of cultures other my own is somewhat limited, but what I have experienced outside of my culture, I have enjoyed a lot.

In high school, I took IB french, which meant I took french every semester all four years. My junior/senior french teacher taught us more than just the French language, he also talked to us about the culture. I learned all about the life of Edith Piaf, and also I was introduced to some French rap, and the song “Ma France et moi”. I have attached the links to some of the songs that are particularly interesting, but I would like to highlight the background behind “Ma France et moi”. The artist “Diam’s” actually wrote this song to counter the anti-immigrant feelings throughout France. “She knows what it is like to grow up between two worlds. She never felt Cypriot – she was only 3 years old when she left – but for a long time she resented France, which promised equality but did not seem to deliver”.  Her song inspired a country-wide change in feelings towards immigrants and how they are treated; and her song is still relevant today in all sorts of cultures.

As far as other cultures, last spring break I went to Paris and London, and every time I saw a street performer I took a video, so I’m going to also add the highlights from that trip.

 

Final Project

So my poem is split into three parts; before, after, and ahead. Each part represents a certain period in my life; the ‘before’ is life before college, the ‘after’ is life after arriving at college, and the ‘ahead’ is life after college, or where I want to see myself in 10 years. Before college, I was very sure about my idea of home. Home was where I had a strong support system and a loving family always at my fingertips. Home was also where I had rules and structure. In college, I am redefining the idea of home. Home can be bittersweet. Also, I am currently trying to switch my focus from the past, or where I was, to the present, and where I am now. After college, I plan to be using Music Therapy to help people in third world countries, and to make the world a better place.

The words to my poem are listed below.

 

 

Before:

Expectant uncertain inexperienced

Hopeful excited scared

Sandy feet and salty skin

Constant support

Surrounded by love

A stranger to change

 

After:

Focused on who you were, not who you are

Consumed with the past

Learning to look ahead, learning to grow

Bittersweet memories

Something new, something old

Both can be good

Redefining home

 

Ahead:

Helping others doing good

Turning everyone into someone

Making a change

Living the dream

Being everything i’ve learned to be