A Change of Tune

Thoughts and Discoveries

2010-11-17T13:56:00.002-05:00

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Since my 20th century music history class during the fall of my senior year of undergrad I've been following The New Yorker's music critic, Alex Ross' blog, "The Rest is Noise." It's the namesake of Ross' breakthrough book on the music of the 20th century in it's cultural context. Its frequent that I encounter posts that in some form or fashion align with my own studies. This time its from a post about Lincoln Center's White Light Festival in October. The opening night features a free art installation by Janet Cardiff. The exhibit is multidisciplinary. The visual concept focuses on the arrangement of 40 speakers (you might realize where I'm going with this) in a room, each playing something different to invoke the idea of spacial meditation. Each speaker plays one of the voices of the motet Spem in alium (1573) by Thomas Tallis. Read about The Forty-Part Motet exhibit here http://new.lincolncenter.org/live/index.php/white-light-2010-the-forty-part-motet

I find that I repeat some ideas a lot in my research. This one in particular keeps poking its problematic little head up. That is the concept this, new music has an uncanny ability to sound and function a lot like early music.
That being said, though early music is more popularly performed now because of an increased interest in musicology and historically informed performance. Perhaps accidentally or perhaps with a real influence or connection, choral music in particular sounds a lot like early music. Arvo Pärt and Eric Whitacre are easy examples of this. Pärt's "Magnificat" is unmetered, with the stress and rhythm dictated by the natural rise and fall of the text. Whitacre specializes in unaccompanied works for choirs with close harmonies that require non-vibrato tone color.

Through the silences of space their soundless music sings, part 1

2010-03-30T09:18:00.004-04:00

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Over the past 5 years of being employed as a church musician, I have begun to collect some favorite hymns. Usually, I gravitate towards ones that have beautiful texts, along with beautiful melodies and harmonies. However in a post like this it's difficult to give examples of the melodies, so my focus will be on text.

First is one I grew up loving and the text is "Bí Thusa 'mo Shúile", better known by it's hymn tune name "Slane" or the English title, "Be Thou My Vision."
I grew up with the English translation in the Methodist Hymnal. Translations seem to show some variation in wording, some are a little more traditional and Old English in feel, others have a more modern language appeal. Different hymnals have different numbers of verses, for example the Hymnal 1982 used in the Episcopal church only contains 3 verses. This is the translation by Eleanor Hull from 1912.

#1
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

#2
My second is one originally written in English, a poem by Timothy Dudley-Smith (b. 1926) based on Psalm 19.

The stars declare his glory;
the vault of heaven springs,
mute witness of the Master's hand
in all created things,
and through the silences of space
their soundless music sings.

The dawn returns in splendor,
the heavens burn and blaze,
the rising sun renews the race
that measures all our days,
and writes in fire across the skies
God's majesty and praise.

So shine the Lord's commandments
to make the simple wise;
more sweet than honey to the taste,
more rich than any prize,
a law of love within our hearts,
a light before our eyes.

So order too this life of mine,
direct it all my days;
the meditations of my heart
be innocence and praise,
my rock, and my redeeming Lord,
in all my words and ways.

#3
This is one where I like the words better than the tune.
Words by George Matheson: "My hymn was composed in the manse of Innelan [Argyleshire, Scotland] on the evening of the 6th of June, 1882, when I was 40 years of age. I was alone in the manse at that time. It was the night of my sister’s marriage, and the rest of the family were staying overnight in Glasgow. Something happened to me, which was known only to myself, and which caused me the most severe mental suffering. The hymn was the fruit of that suffering. It was the quickest bit of work I ever did in my life. I had the impression of having it dictated to me by some inward voice rather than of working it out myself. I am quite sure that the whole work was completed in five minutes, and equally sure that it never received at my hands any retouching or correction. I have no natural gift of rhythm. All the other verses I have ever written are manufactured articles; this came like a dayspring from on high."

O Love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.

O light that followest all my way,
I yield my flickering torch to thee;
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in thy sunshine’s blaze its day
May brighter, fairer be.

O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be.

O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red
Life that shall endless be.

Bonus post for the week

2010-03-04T19:01:00.001-05:00

Sunny day, chasing the clouds away...

2010-03-02T20:39:00.007-05:00

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Yes, this post is about Sesame Street, where the good music goes to relax and educate. Norah Jones and Leslie Feist are among those. I think this probably goes hand in hand with my love of covers.

I wonder a bit about how much a two year old really takes from these cameo appearance by great musicians and actors, but I forget that the target audience of Sesame Street is more than just young children. There are the parents and caretakers who watch too, myself included. I never expected that my nanny job to provide musical material for me to explore. This first video of Leslie Feist singing new lyrics to the hit from her 2007 release "The Reminder." The video for "1,2,3,4" was shot in a single take and featured in an iPod commercial the same year, rocketing her quiet indie status to a mainstream pedestal. I assume that's about where Sesame Street picked her up. She now takes her place among some of the greatest performers of all time, from Little Richard to Marilyn Horne.

When I first discovered these little pieces of pop culture crossing into other pieces of pop culture, I got so excited. I'm fascinated by the creative combinations
Feel free to explore on my new favorite Youtube channel SesameStreet.

"1, 2, 3, 4 penguins that went by the door..."
Just listen and enjoy.

Elmo is so precious.

Another recent sky rocketing from relative obscurity to world wide fame with Jason Mraz and his hit "I'm Yours." Now retitled, "Outdoors"

Marilyn Horne! One of my favorite voices of all time.

One bonus, non musical, celebrity appearance. Love this man.

Sharing the limelight: Ben Sollee

2010-02-28T13:23:00.008-05:00

It was brought to my attention that, for a headliner, he shares the spotlight almost constantly. Whether the spotlight is shared with the cause of his choice, or with the musicians he's playing with, there is an air of graciousness about Ben Sollee's playing.

Everything seems to be handcrafted to make each moment about something more than him. There were beautiful, transcendent moments like Try, Try, Try (featured below) and moments of pure hilarity, thanks to a cover of Tom Waits' of Chocolate Jesus.

Ben Sollee LIVE @ WFPK Live Lunch June 2008: Try (re-mastered in HD) from Keith Robbins on Vimeo.

I'm back! And obsessed with this song

2010-02-26T16:12:00.002-05:00

Les Trois Cloches AKA The Three Bells
In it's English words, it's often called Jimmy Brown or Little Jimmy Brown.
I guess I originally heard this song sung by Edith Piaf in French on an Artists Choice disc, favorite songs by Joni Mitchell. It was a beautiful song, and one that introduced me to Piaf. The song never struck me as of importance until I recognized the tune listening to WNCW one afternoon. The English version, recorded by The Browns sounded strangely familiar as I drove. I couldn't place it, so I began to Google. At first I couldn't remember the title, but once I figured it out I realized where I knew the tune from.
Click here to watch Edith and her ensemble Les Compagnons de la Chanson.
You can watch the version by The Browns here, and then my personal favorite by Allison Krauss here

It's a sad song, but beautiful in both languages.
[Originally a French tune written in 1945]
[Original French words by Bert Reisfeld]
[Music by Jean Villard]
[English words added by Dick Manning]

There's a village hidden deep in the valley
Among the pine trees half forlorn
And there on a sunny morning
Little Jimmy Brown was born

All the chapel bells were ringing
In the little valley town
And the songs that they were singing
Were for baby Jimmy Brown
Then the little congregation
Prayed for guidance from above
Lead us not into temptation,
Bless this hour of meditation
Guide him with eternal love

There's a village hidden deep in the valley
Beneath the mountains high above
And there, twenty years thereafter
Jimmy was to meet his love

All the chapel bells were ringing,
Was a great day in his life
Cause the songs that they were singing
Were for Jimmy and his wife
Then the little congregation
Prayed for guidance from above
Lead us not into temptation,
Bless oh Lord this celebration
May their lives be filled with love

From the village hidden deep in the valley
One rainy morning dark and gray
A soul winged its way to heaven
Jimmy Brown had passed away

Just a lonely bell was ringing
In the little valley town
Twas farewell that it was singing
To our good old Jimmy Brown
And the little congregation
Prayed for guidance from above
Lead us not into temptation,
May his soul find the salvation
Of thy great eternal love

SXSE

2009-08-15T21:46:00.005-04:00

WARNING: Shameless self-promotion in this post.

In my mind I've been thinking of offering my assistance to my familyfriends (these friends are family too, so henceforth, when i say family or friends i mean they are one entity). I have a small, but growing number of contacts in the Carolina music scene who I could share, along with a hung connection to encouraging my demographic to participate in a wonderful organization.

A brief description and video.

SouthxSoutheast Website

"The South by Southeast Music Feast is a local non-profit/charitable organization formed in 2003 by a group of Myrtle Beach, SC area music lovers and educators to preserve and promote American music not usually heard in traditional venues.

Our mission is to provide assistance and support to local music education programs, with our goal being to offset some costs associated with the musical education of young people in our area. In this time of budget cuts and strangulation of funding for the arts, our goal is to help young people in their pursuit of the joys of music."

My two cents.
I'd like to be the one to tap in to advertising and raising awareness through social media (as it is now being called) such as this blog, Facebook, and Myspace. We have a website, but it's not likely that it gets much traffic. I know that there going to be some changes in the way its run business wise that will hopefully keep us afloat, and Weekly Surge, a magazine in Myrtle Beach, recently published an amazing article telling our story and really promoting us well. View it here.

http://achangeoftune.blogspot.com

Chills

2009-08-06T19:25:00.003-04:00

Thanks to Dr. Robbin's American Pop Music class junior year, I've been well acquainted with a version of "Hound Dog" that gives me chills. Yes. I know how could Elvis singing "Hound Dog" give me chills? How could just the song? There's nothing incredible moving or special about the song except for one woman.
The meaning of the song wasn't fully clear to me until I heard Big Mama Thornton sing it. It's incredible. On NPR today I discovered a video of her that I'd never seen before. I started listening and chills just moved through my body.

Check it out.

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Grace like rain

2009-07-21T23:47:00.002-04:00

Part of being involved in arts education is being aware in greater detail than usual of the personal lives of those you are working with. And with that, seeing the accomplishments of students who have endured not only their daily artistic struggles but their own personal trials, both their deepest emtions and with their relationships with those around them.

I rarely find myself in tears during a classical music performance. However, when I do, there are is some amount of knowledge that is not obvious about the performer or the situation surrounding the event. Last week when the kids from the Academy program at the summer SC Governor's School for the Arts gave their recitals, I had the privilege of attending 3 out of the 4 music recitals. On Friday, I found myself wiping my eyes as one of the girls in my building sang her sweet, but broken heart out.

Prior to coming to Governor's school she had experienced a tremendous loss in her family, there were multiple deaths, including her mother. I watched her during those two weeks, struggle to find her place between her friends who cared for her and her deep sadness and depression. There were some difficult nights for her, but when the last night of the program came around, it appeared that she had gone through the program with no problem. She gave what was probably the best performance of her life.

My tears were a mix of being so taken by her talent and a level of pride in her victory. I was reminded in that moment of what makes it all worth it. My roll as a residential life counselor is perhaps not as important to her artistic development per se, but I think that the nurturing of the spirit, which falls in the realm of my duties, is essential to the nurturing of the artist. I love my job. I love being a part of the artistic growth of kids. I love working with kids in general, but to see them excell in the arts, and continue to impress me with their passion and professionalism, makes it so worth it.

I'm looking forward to that same feeling as I watch the Discovery program recitals next week.

Music+Camping=The Music Camp

2009-06-23T20:49:00.003-04:00

Image credit: John Grubbs

The Duhks, the Belleville Outfit, the Infamous String Dusters, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Boombox, Donna the Buffalo, Casey Driessen, and many others came together for two days of incredible music and beautiful weather in the South Carolina foothills. The crowd braved the heat during the daylight hours finding seeting in the shade and keeping their cooler's close. But at night was when the real heat was turned on. The majority of the crowd, old and young, swelled toward the stage and the energy created by the music fed the crowd's dancing and singing. In turn, the bands truly responded to the excitement and festive spirit of the audience. Bathing suits, body paint, and beers were the name of the game along with swimming with friends in the river to keep cool and rinse of the dirt and sweat of the day after the music was over.

The low-key nature of the festival gave the musicians the ability to relax into the jovial atmostphere of the hot southern hills, frequently making guest appearances with one another during sets and dancing with festival goers during late night concerts. The bands, especially the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, encouraged audiences to be participatory, even calling them up on stage.

I spent the weekend at a fledgling music festival in Spartanburg called The Music Camp. The majority of attendees set up camp in the field and forest that surrounded the festival grounds. Tents and campers created temporary community of individuals dedicated to loving music and the outdoors.

Donna the Buffalo kicked off the night on Friday with their rollicking, exhuberant zydeco and Americana got the crowd dancing. The energy snowballed as The Duhks launched headlong into an incredible set. I happened to meet a little girl named Katie that had been seeing Duhks concerts since their first singer, Jessi. She sang along to all of the songs and new all about the band members. Luckily, her love of music has led her to take violin lessons. I hope to see her again.

After The Duhks played overtime, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band of New Orleans continued the French/American/Canadian/African connections. They invited Ms. Sarah Dugas of the Duhks to sing with them, and eventually several audience members to dance during a call and response style blues jam.

The Infamous String Dusters lead the crowd into the nighttime on Saturday, preparing the way for hometown favorites and organizers of the very special festival, the Belleville Outfit. The band features 3 members who are Spartanburg natives. Rob and Jeff took it upon themselves to use their connections to bring together the people and the bands. The crowd was incredibly appreciative of their hard work and their music. Heartfelt thanks were made and the audience really soaked up their amazing set.

A change of pace came for the last set of the festival. Even when Boombox was setting up, it was clear this would be a differnt set than those before it. Electronic music equipment filled the stage and only one guitar. No fiddles or banjos. The main lights went down and beat rose from an unseen instrument as the color filled the stage. The dancing changed and so did the mood. Everyone danced themselves into exhaustion until just around 2am before everything fell silent for the night.

It's safe to say that it was a hit and I think everyone's looking forward to seeing something just as spectacular next year.

Videos involving friends.

2009-06-05T17:37:00.002-04:00

The first is of Ben Sollee's bike tour to Bonnaroo. His travel companions are a set of siblings I grew up with. They both now reside in California and flew out to KY to film and accompany Ben on his Oxfam Bike tour. One of my favorite parts of the clip is towards the end when Katie and Marty try Ale-8 for the first time. I love Ale-8. I was blessed with a roommate from Kentucky that introduced me to it. We had it at our junior recital reception rather than punch. Yum.

On a more serious note, what Ben is doing should be something other musicians consider following. Taking up a cause to make the world a better place. The Duhks already have their Green Duhks campaign, and I would challenge others to act similarly. It's just as important as making beautiful music.

Ben Sollee bike tour day 1 - Lexington to Frankfort from marty benson on Vimeo.

Continuing with the local connections is a video featuring two guys who have a long time friendship, Jim and Charlie. They both play in a band with my uncle Sam Hannaford called The Chainsaws.

You can read Randall Hill's blog and watch the video here. The blog is brought to you by our local news paper The Sun News.

The offshoots of musicians who play in and with The Chainsaws have been instrumental in my development as a musician and as a person. Their passion and talent has inspired me, and it is with thanks that I am writing this blog in the first place.

Overload

2009-06-01T21:35:00.002-04:00

Tonight you can listen to or watch Dave Matthews Band on at least 3 different pieces of technology all at once. Hulu and Fuse have teamed up to bring their concert live online from The Beacon Theater in New York. For those lucky enough to have a large digital cable package, it can be watched on the Fuse channel. And finally for those that pay for radio, it is on Sirius on Dave Matthew's own Sirius Satellite Radio channel. Additionally, if you haven't gotten enough yet, you can get the iTunes Pass for the new album. Comes with lots of extras and automatic downloads.

Falling off the wagon

2009-05-20T23:39:00.004-04:00

I fell off for a bit. Back now.

I guess I can talk about what's been happening in my own musical life.

For starters, I dreaded the day that I had to give a senior recital. An hours worth of music, all by myself. Second of all, I had no idea at the end of junior year what I wanted to be, or if I even wanted to sing anymore. Over the summer last year I broke my arm working at Asbury Hills. It was so frustrating, not because I broke my arm, but because I felt like I was missing my opportunities of reaching kids at camp. Being away from Asbury made me appreciated being there even more, and then returning and finding myself in roles I had not anticipated, I began to explore my own spiritual growth and mission. In the final weeks I was called on to lead singing. I had only had a few days training and had only been back enough to have 2 weeks of campers.

In the fall I decided I wanted to approach singing differently. I really learned over the summer, and in reflecting about my four years of experience in my church job, that I don't sing because I want to be a performer. I don't sing because I want to share interesting literature. Those are are just parts of what being a singer is to me. I've long believed that I experience my spirituality through music. And that my faith and my music are inextricable things. This lead me to choose an all sacred recital.

My recital ended up truly being a culmination of many different aspects of singing. Especially when it came to those that attended.

From camp there was Karl. He had been my closest co-counselor throughout the summer.

Both my voice students that I teach were there along with their families, Kelly and Sha.

Some of the girls from children's choir at church, the Dowlings, Shannon and Kara.

Also from church were Brennan, my boss, and Rev. Roy Cole.

Merlefest 2009

2009-04-27T01:40:00.001-04:00

A Quick Photo Tour

Please clean filter

2009-03-24T19:45:00.004-04:00

This one goes out to my vocal pedagogy teacher, Dr. Macphail. Everyday upon turning on the projector in the room, it always said, "Please Clean Filter" on the screen. So this first paragraph of The Dirty Projectors from SXSW 2009 goes out to here.

The Projectors, courageously lead by David Longstreth are youthfully avant guard and thought provoking in their approach to music making. At times they are rather raucous and their direction is unclear, but in the moment where you feel you are loosing it, something happens that refocuses your attention. Whether that is a sudden monophonic melodic vocalise backed by a simple beat or a steady ostinato guitar riff The Dirty Projectors are sure to keep it interesting and listen-able. (kind of like drinkability...listenabilty)

NPR SXSW Coverage

This second paragraph goes out to my dear friend, Kristina Lewis, pianist, contralto and hippy extraodinaire.

I just gave her Neko Case's new album, Middle Cyclone and I told her about The Decemberist's new album The Hazards of Love. So... she should check it out.

The Hazards of Love made me think about my recent studies in music history, both classical and popular.

I want to talk about concept albums, song cycles, rock operas, rap operas, and finally folk operas.

Origins:

In Italy in the 1500s there were a group of artists, philosophers, and musicians that got together to promote their causes. As a result they created a dramma per musica event called and Intermezzo that was intended to be preformed in between a larger event. It was a hit, and the form eventually expanded into what we now know as opera.

This concept of dramma per musica, the telling of story through song, has permeated Western music ever since.

The term "concept album" have been thrown about in pop music since The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. They produced the first concept album in 1966. This meant that all the songs were meant to go together in a particular order due to the story or images they portray. Like a song cycle or an opera. Later examples were to follow with The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds, and most notably the "rock opera" Tommy by The Who.

We have Beethoven to thank for the first song cycle.

Thao and the Get Down Stay Down

2009-03-19T22:27:00.007-04:00

Thao was a favorite from the moment my roommate played a song that was a Song of the Day on Minnesota Public Radio last year.

I miss the set today as it was played live because I was in class, but luckily the performance is now archived on NPR.org.

You can catch the show there, or when the All Songs Considered podcast is posted. The set is quite short, and full of energy and quirkiness.

Photo from NPR site. Joel Didriksen kingpinphoto.com

"Bob Boilen is boiling hot" -Thao Nguyen

She's right. I love him, but I want his job when he retires/dies/looses his voice.

I started my application for internships at various places today including NPR. It would be a dream job to work there. I'm also applying to Smithsonian Folkways and Oxford American.

In other SXSW news, my friend Ross is there, and I'm so jealous I could strangle him. Follow the man on Twitter.

I had a good time networking a bit last night in the chat room for the live performances on NPR. I'm going to work on my networking skills as much as possible in the next few months.

Brain Overload

2009-03-19T02:24:00.002-04:00

Tonight i listened to the Avett Brothers and The Decemberists live from SXSW in Austin streaming on NPR. I also got up to the minute Twitter feeds, and chatted in the NPR chat room. I loved listening to the commentary from Bob and Robin after the double encore. They played the entirety of their new album, and then 2 encores. The crowd just wouldn't let them go, and the chat room folks listening online didn't want the show to end either.

Awesomeness.

Thoughts and anticipation: "4 days of total sensory overload"

2009-03-15T21:17:00.003-04:00

The folks at NPR put together the Austin 100. A list of their favorites, of songs they would listen to again. It's part of a new continuous mix of 100 favs they'll keep current. What a great time and event to launch the initiative. Beautifully, some of the songs are also available as MP3s on the SXSW website!
Bob Boilen and Stephen Thomas rock my socks. I love how excited they get when they talk about it.

(on a random note, I just noticed that NPR Music and iTunes have almost the same color background.
A list of old favorites, new interests, and names I like.

Personal Old Standbys (some new-ish folk that have been on my radar much longer than others)
The Decemberists
The Avett Brothers
Thao Ngyuen with the Get Down Stay Down, surprisingly discovered by my roommate when one of their songs was a song of the day on MPR (minnesota)
Phosphorescent one of Eric's recommendations last year
Okkervil River
Beach House
M. Ward, caught my eye while working with another favorite, the beautiful and talented Zooey Deschanel

Been around a while, but not as familiar with
Laura Gibson
Nellie McKay

It's that time of year...

2009-03-13T14:41:00.002-04:00

South by South West!!!!!!!

This is the who's who of new music. I'd love to have a press pass one day for this festival.

Although SxSW is a series of interactive multimedia festivals, the big even for me is obviously the music festival. Since I'm an almost religious follower of NPR music, and a fan of Bob Boilen and his radio show cohorts who host a special every year on NPR.org I'm more diligent in listening and scoping this year.

So I'll be reporting on my favorites that are coming through the tube.

If he has to reach way down...

2009-03-06T14:16:00.010-05:00

Upgrade!
I'm learning to be internet and computer savvy bit by bit.
Todays lesson is adding audio to a blog.

We'll see how this goes.

Jesus Will Pick You Up | Upload Music

Ok so now that we have successfully embedded music, I'll tell you a bit about it.
This is a group of ladies, including my friends Nell, her daughter Hasee, my sister and myself. But the bulk of the group, including the leader consists of the Bellamy Sisters. A group of 9 sisters born and raised write where I was. They belong to a family of 14 all told.

I posted this because southern roots music has been on my mind. And this is a fine example that it is still alive and kicking just as much as bluegrass is.

Popular World Music: More Hip Hop and Rap

2009-02-28T03:44:00.003-05:00

Brazil

A Filial

Found these guys while listening to The World Cafe on NPR. The discussion about their geographical placement is interesting.

The Brazilian government has also invested in the life of the countries hip hop culture.

Read the story in the NY Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/14/arts/music/14gil.html

Popular World Music: Hip Hop and Rap in France and Germany

2009-02-26T23:35:00.005-05:00

I think what I wanted more of in my ethnomusicology class was more discussion about popular music in other cultures and not just the indigenous, classical or folk music.

I was listening to a neat performance on NPR that sparked me Googling French rap/hip hop and R&B.
I found various videos on YouTube including some playlists people had made of their favorite French rap videos.
Artists I came across were Kaysha, La Brigade, K-Reen, and several others.
Read more on Wikipedia.
While there is some presence of promiscuous sexuality in the videos and lyrics. It appears that most rappers tend to gravitate towards social and political issues in their songs.

Another think I found interesting between French and German rap is that the leading German rappers are white. In France, they are actually black. You can see and hear a little bit of the difference in the French and American, because the black culture in France is different from that in the US. On the other side of that German rap is almost identical except for the white artist part.

Below are a few of the videos I found most interesting.
Kaysha and K-Reen. Notice K-Reen (the female) and her clothing. That would never appear in the US. But that is juxtaposed with the very American styling for the scene with Kaysha. He has the "look" and the dancers and the car. Very typical of the American style.

La Brigade, very politically charged with strong visual images. Even if you don't understand the words, the message is pretty clear in the sound and the video.

Over the past few semesters in my German class with the much loved Mirko Hall, we were not only introduced to the language but also contemporary culture.
This included several showings of videos by top rappers in Germany. Mainly Sido and B-Tight.

The first videos ars of Sido, the top selling rapper in Germany. He's famous for this odd mask he wears.

Next is B-Tight. Warning this one is a little racy. B-tight is like Barack Obama, he is "mullato." Neither fully black nor white.
The embedding for all the B-Tight videos has been disabled by Aggro Records. So here is the link. Ich bin's

Ok. there you have a crash course...

Brief Update.

2009-02-18T22:42:00.003-05:00

My photographs are up on The Lovell Sister's website.

They'll be performing along side all the big guns at both Merlefest and Bonnaroo this year!!!

http://www.lovellsistersband.com/photos/live-shots

4th row: second from left,
5th row: 1st pic,
6th row: 1st and last pics,
7th row: first pic

Thoughts on writing a research paper in 20 days

2009-02-18T22:02:00.002-05:00

My advice to future professional musicians is simply to choose wisely.

As you go through your musical training, just as you do in life, really listen to what you gut, mind, and heart are telling you about what you are doing artistically. If you find yourself contemplating other majors, or trying to figure out what else you can be doing, don't feel pressured to always remain in what you're doing because people tell you that you can.

I spent 3 years with a voice teacher who kept telling me I could have a big career if I wanted it.
That's great and fabulous news. Right?
Well, yes. If you want to be an opera singer.
I tried it. I did some work on actual operas, preparing a role, working on some scenes. I did well with it, but simultaneously I was always online exploring other concentrations in music and the arts in general.
I didn't listen to myself early enough. I kept feeling pressured to pursue performance, and ignored what my gut was telling me.

So...here I am, having made the decision just a few months ago to become a musicologist rather than a singer, writing a 12-page research paper in 20 days

Here are some thoughts on that experience and what I've learned.

Exploit your resources. This sounds "wrong," but trust me it's not as bad as it sounds. Use your librarian's knowledge, and scourer the brain of your professors for information and ideas.

Make a rough schedule, and try to be as reasonable about your free time, and try to stick with the plan.

Make sure you're in a class and frontload the paper. This way you have a professor as a resource, and an ever-growing abundance on the time period you choose. The bonus is that you're done with your paper when everyone else is flipping out near exam time.

Focus your topic as you research. If it's a time period you aren't as familiar with. Start reading as much as you can and take notes. Be sure to write down the bibliographical information of the sources you use. As you take notes and get ideas, keep track of where your info is coming from. This will help later when you are documenting and formatting.

Don't misplace that style manual you were required to buy freshman year. Make sure it stays on your shelf every year.

And work a little bit whenever you have free time.

Like A Version

2009-02-03T20:47:00.002-05:00

I spent sometime over the weekend with my friend Kaung exchanging favorite YouTube videos and exploring our iTunes libraries. I found myself sharing lots of covers of songs.
A list:
"When Doves Cry" (Prince cover) Damien Rice
A beautiful cover. Rice's voice has so much depth and emotion it brings a new color and meaning to the piece

"A Case of You" (Joni Mitchell cover) Prince
He leaves out the first verse. My favorite verse, but his classic falsetto really makes the song his own.

"Sweet Home Alabama" (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover) The Leningrad Cowboys
Just funny. Worth a view on YouTube. Europeans are strange. They're so good, but I don't think they'd survive working in the U.S.

"Teardrop" (Massive Attack cover) and "Heartbeats" (The Knife cover) Jose Gonzales
Gonzales is a highly skilled guitarist from Sweden. He has two arrangements of pop electronica songs.

"The One I Love" (R.E.M. cover) and "Free Man in Paris" (Joni Mitchell) Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan rocks, and folks.

"Lithium" (Nirvana cover) The Polyphonic Spree
Note for note this cover is almost dead on, except for the fact that there are a choir of voices rather than Kurt Cobain.

"Irreplaceable" (Beyonce cover) Sugarland
At one of the music awards shows last year. Almost better than the original, even when Beyonce herself came out to join them. On YouTube as well.

"Sadie Hawkins Dance" (Reliant K cover) The Bluegrass Tribute
Silly.

"Jolene" (Dolly Parton cover) The White Stripes
Just fun.

Back! I'm going to revive and maintain

2009-01-25T01:33:00.003-05:00

Rebecca and Jessica Lovell
Originally uploaded by alienpodgeranium

I had the most amazing weekend.
Thursday night I went up to Asheville to The Grey Eagle. I got to see The Lovell Sisters. Their band is made up of 3 sisters all under the age of 25, and some younger than 20, plus a guitar player and bassist.
I also got to see Asheville's own Kellin Watson along with her band and friends Zach John Blew, whose twin identical I later embarrassed myself in front of, and Tania Elizabeth of The Duhks.
The Duhks played a killer set on Thursday night. It was supposed to be a "seated" show. But Leonard Podolak, banjo player and preverbal glue for the band, managed to quickly get everyone on their feet. By the end of the night the audience had removed all the chairs in the front along with couches so they could stand and dance.
Afterwards I got to meet both Leonard and lead singer Sarah Dugas (she's french canadian...doo-gah). They were so sweet. I told them I would be there for the Friday night show too and that I was bringing family.

Friday night at The Neighborhood Theater the floor was already set for people to stand and dance. (someone learned) I stood stage left again so I could see Leonard and Sarah. I was able to get great pictures all night. I didn't have the space at The Grey Eagle.
At the end Leonard made a thanking, bowing gesture to me from the stage and mouthed "thank you for coming again." He almost walked off the stage where there were no steps. We had a little quiet giggle.
I introduced my dad and uncle, got to chat with all of the band and have them sign my t-shirt.

A few my photographs from the weekend that I am so proud of. View the rest on my Flickr

I also met The Lovell Sisters. Jessica gave me her email so that I could send her my pictures.

Interview with Nathan Angelo

2008-12-19T01:58:00.002-05:00

Back in November I wrote an interview with musicians that played for Wild Wednesday in hopes of getting to start a sort of regular thing promoting the Wild Wednesday events and give me a chance to do some paid and published writing. They had a very small edition of the paper that month, so my article didn't get published.
So here it is.
Interview with Wild Wednesday Artist, Nathan Angelo

I had the chance to spend a few minutes the most recent artists at SAC’s Wild Wednesday, Nathan Angelo and his drummer Matt Linton. In the midst of students playing air hockey and ping-pong after the show in Loafers, we were able to have conversation about music and Nathan’s experience.

Mb: What has been your funniest/favorite show moment, since you’ve been on the road?
Nathan and Matt: We played a costume show.
Mb: For Halloween? What were you?
Nathan: Yeah. I was old time jailbird, with the black and white stripes. He [Matt] played the drums the whole night with a full mask on, like an old man…like the guy in Kill Bill with the beard. Someone else was a clown. It was fun.

Mb: You’ve been compared, at least here in our publicity, to other performers and musicians like Billy Joel, with your piano skills, and of course, Gavin DeGraw with your voice. How do you feel about those?
Nathan: I think it’s fine when people don’t know who I am. “Oh, if you like this person, then you’ll like this… Saying, “Hey, if you like John Meyer, you’ll like this guy.” I wouldn’t mind because I like John Meyer. Some I like more than others, but I’m not really offended.

Mb: What’s your inspiration? Who do you consider your musical mentor of sorts?
Nathan: Ray Charles. I love his playing and the passion he brings.

Mb: Does the old stuff ever get old?
Nathan: Not really. I feel like every month I listen to another recording and get something new out of it.

Mb: You played several songs about change and “doing good” in the world. Can music save the world?
Nathan: No, I don’t think it can necessarily change the world. There’s a lot in what we say as musicians and in songs. No—I don’t think it can, but I think it can certainly impact it.

Mb: And one last thing, my friend wants me to get you for Christmas. How do you feel about that?
Nathan: What, about being someone’s present? Sure, I’d love to be someone’s Christmas present.

Post 10: FAQ

2008-12-10T00:12:00.004-05:00

This entry isn't so much about music as it is about The Rest is Noise, Alex Ross, and the class itself. So, consider it a sort of supplement to the course evaluation.
As I finished up The Rest is Noise I ran into Dr. Doug Jensen in Montgomery, oddly enough I've gotten to know him during my time at Converse, even though I haven't had a single science class. He was asking me about the book. I could tell him all the content but not really about Alex Ross and the book itself. On his blog I came upon his bio, the book FAQ, and the book summary and video. I found the video interesting, because it was of Ross just candidly speaking about his experiences. The book FAQ answers things that I remember us briefly touching on and dancing around in the early days of the class. Especially the issue of the book's audience. It appears designed to be as accessible as Ross wants to present 20th century music as, but also as rewarding to the trained ears and minds as the most challenging works of the century. I think he captures the essence, the essential oils if you will, of the 20th Century. We talked about why he didn't include certain composers in class. In the FAQ he explains what we seemed to reach a conclusion about, that being the need for it to be readable and to preserve the principle themes that Ross is conveying. One other interesting fact that is mentioned in both the video and the FAQ is the title.
Ross describes it eloquently saying,
"It's a reference to Hamlet's last words, "The rest is silence." I had in mind the widespread perception that classical composition devolved into noise as the twentieth century went on. What may sound like noise on first hearing may reveal hidden beauty if you give it a second chance."

To me, both phrases evoke thoughts of John Cage, silence and noise. Cage also happens to be who Ross thinks is the most pivotal of all during the 20th century, who epitomized the stretching of boundaries. An interesting connection.
The passion that I have found for the subject of this class, and really for the class as a whole, is probably as much just my love of the cerebral stuff, but also the thoughtfulness of both Ross, and my professor. I don't think I would have had the same experience if either had been absent. It's probably crazy sounding to say that I think I have found my calling in studying the music of the 20th Century, but it certainly would be a course I would like to teach one day. Something for my list of goals, or my bucket list.

Post 9: Rothko Chapel

2008-12-02T08:56:00.003-05:00

It's one of those pieces, like Ross says, is an event every time it is done. Like The Ring Cycle, or a Mahler symphony, it is always a big deal.
Listening to it in class was cool, following the score, figuring out what was going on. But really this is more than just a music event, but a spiritual one as well. Hearing the clip of Feldman speaking about his work is quite moving. He speaks of it with passion not only as a composer, but as a spiritual man.
I clicked on the link in the blog to WNYC's page about the Musica Sacra concert. I listened to the concert which also included Arvo Pärt's Stabat Mater. It's part of a great series called New Sounds Live. Both pieces are certainly more spiritual than sacred. Sacred tends to imply, for me at least, a worship usage. These "mystical" pieces, as they are described, push themselves off the grid of sacred or art music. Not only does Rothko Chapel stretch the gap between art, the sacred, and the mystical, but so does the Chapel for which it was written. I think it captures is entirely. I'd like to visit one day and know for sure.

Feldman was an Amazing individual and there are a fairly large amount of materials available to learn about his life. One interesting tid bit is a conversation between Feldman and Cage.

Post 8: The Arts and Public Policy

2008-11-13T18:36:00.006-05:00

I noticed Ross' recent entry about the resignation of New York City Opera's ambitious impresario due to funds that never materialized. He also mentioned one other company that has recently closed down, Opera Pacific.

I've been terribly concerned and disheartened lately over Prop 8 in California, so one of my main concerns in thinking about the President-Elect was researching his platform on gay marriage. Then it dawned on me when I saw Ross' entry that my livelihood is partially dependent on his platform on the arts. I quickly Googled "obama arts funding" and came across a PDF on his website. It calls Obama and his vice presidential pick, Joe Biden "champions of the arts." I wondered what qualified someone or a group to be champions of the arts. Is not Alex Ross a champion as well?

Luckily for my musical future, they claim to want to start and Artists Corps. Like the Peace Corps, except for artists. Woot!!! I'm excited to see that day. I'll be first in enlist. The platform also makes a point of including health care for artists as well. My demographic, starving young artists who are fresh out of the best arts programs in the world are the largest uninsured groups of Americans. Statistics show that 18-34 year olds have the greatest percentage of uninsured. Also, childless adults, usual the career oriented men and women who are more "free-lance," newspaper columnists and piano teachers.

Someone is coaching the Obama crew well. I hope that they can follow through.

Class Post 7: Copland will rock you

2008-11-13T12:31:00.003-05:00

Queen and Copland have a little in common it seems. Ross points out the melodic similarities between the chorus "we will rock you" and a portion of the melody from Fanfare for the Common Man, which is now included in his Audio Guide. (Scroll to the bottom.)
I decided to look for more similarities like this, and I remembered that The Beatles actually included parts of the Brandenburg Concertos in It's All Too Much. I went to dig that up, available here.
It was difficult to find other examples of classical tunes being used or being similar to rock n roll tunes. However there are a few examples like that of The Beatles, integrating them into the production of songs. I came across a blog entry in my Google search about the same idea. A review of classical musicians playing rock n roll. It works both ways I guess.
Similarly I was lead back to Ross' blog where I knew there were examples of classical composers writing jazz laden music, and once again found Copland. I guess that fundamentally, at some level, being an American composer made him closer to popular forms than others. Perhaps.

Class Post 6: Batter My Heart

2008-10-21T09:34:00.004-04:00

John Donne

74. "Batter my heart, three person'd God; for, you"

BATTER my heart, three person'd God; for, you
As yet but knocke, breathe, shine, and seeke to mend;
That I may rise, and stand, o'erthrow mee,'and bend
Your force, to breake, blowe, burn and make me new.
I, like an usurpt towne, to'another due, 5
Labour to'admit you, but Oh, to no end,
Reason your viceroy in mee, mee should defend,
But is captiv'd, and proves weake or untrue.
Yet dearely'I love you,'and would be loved faine,
But am betroth'd unto your enemie: 10
Divorce mee,'untie, or breake that knot againe;
Take mee to you, imprison mee, for I
Except you'enthrall mee, never shall be free,
Nor ever chast, except you ravish mee.

John Donne certainly had a way of verbalizing the intense relationship that Christians often have with their God. It is very much the style in which Song of Solomon is written, if it is interpreted as pertaining to the relationship between God and His people. It is vivid and moving, with references to sex and marriage in a more explicit sense than that of the parables in the New Testament.

It was interesting for me to find the link from Ross's blog to the snippet of audio on The New Yorker website. The link to Batter My Heart is the link to a piece from Doctor Atomic by John Adams based on the words of John Donne. Ross's latest article for The New Yorker focuses on the opera's recent arrival at the Met.

On my recital are three pieces by Dorian Le Gallienne that are settings of three Divine Poems of John Donne. One of these is "Batter My Heart". It is set remarkably similar to the aria in Doctor Atomic, most likely because the poetry so strongly implies certain accents and rhythms. Naxos Music Library has a good recording of the Gallienne pieces. I went back and listened to it, just to get a sense of how similar they are.

Class Post: Fun with words

2008-10-16T09:27:00.003-04:00

I had fun playing with the new online Glossary with audio.
It was more than just a Glossary with audio clips, Ross when above and beyond to not only explain a little about where the clips came from, but in some cases went on give a little more background and other interesting related information.
I went through all twenty-six letters of the alphabet. I was originally going to choose just M and B to look at.
It's great sometimes because he has clips of several different aspects of terms. For example the added-6 chord has 3 different examples, some abstract, and others in context. I had not noticed that the repetitive motif in Mack the Knife was structured around an added-6 chord, but after hearing it, it made perfect sense.

Other fun parts are in the links that you would necessarily pay attention to in the glossary, the ones that include the record label, and catalog number. I clicked on a few of those.
Certain other links in the glossary correspond directly to the book's companion audio samples online. Ross's blog for his book has certainly become more than just a blog. It's like having a CD-ROM or something for a text book. His passion for the book and the topic are evident in the amount of time he seems to spend. He almost creates his own little The Rest is Noise world.

Class Post (9-30-08): Ludwig Van

2008-09-30T08:06:00.002-04:00

Ross' Stockhausen in Berlin Photojournal lead me to a film called Ludwig Van, by composer Mauricio Kagel, who died just this month. I scrolled down to the film, and watched the incomplete version online. To me, the film was curiously interesting, but made very little sense to me. I had never heard of Kagel, so I did a little research. Ross mentioned this article from The Guardian. It gave a good basic understanding of Kagel and his work.
Kagel was serious about music in a humorous, tongue-in-cheek way. His music was a commentary on music. It is obvious from his films that he knew the power of music, but he didn't forget that it is possible to not let music take itself so seriously. Reading the description of his works, one of which was a performance piece for 111 bicyclists,
I was reminded that P.D.Q. Bach did much the same thing, only in a more "popular" way. Peter Schickele, the man behind PDQ, has the same ability to consider ideas from the Baroque and Classical eras objectively, and then humorously apply them to composition.
The author of the article in The Guardian, Tom Service, went so far as to say that Kagel "should be essential listening for anybody interested in new music." It appears to me that he might be worthy of a listen, or a watch in the case of his films, for anybody interested in music history at all. Kagel was a musicologist. He was able to extract ideas about music history, digest them, and present them from an original point of view. He makes an interesting study into the way people think and understand music and it's history.
It's not surprising that he studied philosophy and literature in Buenos Aires, and that one of his lecturers was writer,Luis Borges himself. The fact that he was schooled and raised on the geographical periphery of classical music is definitely a reason for his ability to simultaneously remove himself from and be present in music.

Class Post (9-23-08): Top 10 Classical Summer Hits

2008-09-23T09:36:00.002-04:00

Scrolling down the home page of Ross' blog, I came across links to Top 10 lists. There's one for each year beginning in 2004, and continuing to 2007. When I clicked on the link that said summer hits, I chuckled inside, because the title of the entry is Top 10 Classical Party Hits. It made me think of how my "Party Shuffle" feature in iTunes likes to put all my classical music in there along with Norah Jones and System of a Down.
I suppose the casual implication of the word "party" is evident in Ross' intentions for the list. He says that it is a casual list of things he recommends, not a serious end all be all list of the greatest recordings of all time. He goes on to point out that he was recommending the cheaper discs. Therefore he seems to suggests as well, that the recordings themselves are not as important in the music. This supports what he mentions earlier in the paragraph about how he feels the cultural decline of music occurred simultaneously with the gaining popularity of recording.
In addition to the list, which features mostly famous "hits" of well known composers, he mentions that while not complete, there is a complete book on recommended recordings. So I googled that, the New York Times Essential Library: Classical Music to see what it had to say.
As an student in a post post-modern world, I get hung up on what is popular being labeled as "great." It seems that often we are encouraged to question, and form our own ideas of what is great, based on what we have learned about history and aspects of quality. I remember how many of the visual art students in high school professed to despise Andy Warhol, when many, and especially pop culture in general, hail him as a great modern artist.
In reading the description of the book I was reminded of Ross' casualness. The description appears to focus almost equally on the recording and the performer as it does on the work and composer. This is especially true at the mention of Bach's Goldberg variations recorded by Glenn Gould. What is interesting is that Gould's eccentricities make the recording unique, in addition to the caliber of his playing.

Class Post: Why So Serious?

2008-09-07T20:14:00.004-04:00

This in a way, and by pure serendipity, comes on the tuxedo coat tails of my previous non-class post.
The Joker's voice speaks the question in my mind, "Why So Serious?" The title of Ross's most recent article in The New Yorker Such a good question! Reading this I was like, "We should totally rock out during piano recitals!" Then reality got ahold of me and I was like, "I'm never going to get away with that."

Then tonight, also somewhat serendipitously, during the faculty concert, I was both ripped from reality and hurled back again as if in a dream and then awakened suddenly. There were moments in which I forgot that we were supposed to be at a classical concert. It was a rather celebratory concert, fraught with rowdy calls of enthusiastic students and even clapping during, *gasp* a jazz number! As I looked around myself, quite self-consciously I took in the various reactions not only to the music, but the reactions audience members had about each other. I would say that it was divided, although the many unconventional moments were, for the most part, warmly received. It was amusing when a trio of blue-haired ladies in front of me stuck their noses up and looked around disapprovingly when an over zealous student would make an echoing whoop in the hall.

Then it hit me.

It would be great if our generation of academic musical types could somehow learn to outwardly express our enthusiasm for the performers and the music in a way that was both respectful, but sympathetic to the music being performed. That we would not be afraid in other circumstances to allow our love of the music to evoke sounds and gestures from our bodies that have, for our entire musical careers remained statuesque in our seats.

I don't think that it is surprising that Ross, who wrote an accessible book on 20th Century classical music, also wrote an article about the reverence and seriousness with which classical concerts have come to demand. I was thrilled to see his mentioning of it being a 20th century phenomenon. Interesting isn't it, how during a time period of much irreverence, and every growing diversity in music, could render a canon of "concert etiquette" that has nearly brought classical music to a point of near social irrelevance, at least in my humble opinion.

Ross points out that some either find the conventions for a classical performance "reassuringly dependable" or "drearily predictable." It might be easy to judge which way I find it. But I can say, to each his own.
Most interesting to me though is how the culprit for the change in the early days was the middle class, and these days the sustainers of the arts, the ones that keep the concerts formal, are the rich. I liked his description of concerts being a "dance of decorum" for the bourgeois, rather than the "playground" like it was for the aristocracy. This indicates to me, that even though there was a shift in the treatment of concerts, it in a way was still not about the music. Before, there was a concern over being too interested, and afterwards there was a concern over appearance rather than with the music. Music students can attest to the fact that regimented reverence during concerts does not make the music anymore important, and can in fact, cause severe boredom, ending in the doing of homework and/or nap taking.

The solution for the predicament isn't currently clear to me. But it is something I'd like to explore further. I know that when a performer can show interest in a piece, especially when they talk to the audience, a la, Charles Wadsworth and friends, then the audience is more likely to take an active interest in what is happening in the piece. It gives it more relevance than a performer simply placing a Mozart fantasie on a program and going through the motions. No one will really care or remember unless the performer is of exceptional ability or if they, in some way, make the piece their own.

I think that the difference in the faculty recital and any regular recital is that the students knew, undoubtedly, that their teachers cared about the music they were playing. And they knew that they would not be scolded if they cheered for them.
Perhaps it is something to consider when a performer is programming a recital. And especially when students go through the motions of planning their recitals. For me, I chose to give my recital cohesion and relevance to myself be programming an all-sacred recital. It not only gives the recital a character on its own, but also a meaning to the performer as well. I think that will make all the difference for me, and the audience.

Non Class Post: Grey Matter

2008-09-06T18:09:00.006-04:00

There might be a place in the universe, one that I would very much like to visit, where pop and classical music meet. Not in a superficial way where classical instruments play pop music, or vice versa, but where the intersection runs deeper, in the function and tonality float through both pop and classical idioms with freedom and often unimaginable beauty.
If that place does in some dimension, exist, the wormhole might exist here, with Gabriel Kahane. In an interview with WNYC, New York public radio's show, Soundcheck, Kahane discusses his true collaborations with both classical musicians and indie rockers.

Some times in his pop songs, the presence of classical influences are subtle and even sublime. In the song Durrants a gently floating 3 against 5 rhythm pervades the forlorn melody and words. The strings take on a role not as melodic content or even accompaniment, but somehow they become like scenery, the setting for the telling of a play, a sad one.
In it's complexity, lies the beautiful simplicity of the story. Therefore not abandoning it's pop roots, by revealing it's emotion with the same rawness that pop music has perfected throughout the 20th century. The interesting thing is that much of the 20th century was spent, especially by Arnold Schoenberg, being concerned with emotional directness. Schoenberg and members of the New Vienne School sought to "express" raw emotion, the emotion from Freud's "id." Pop music kind of put this highly organized and calculated set of ideas out its mind. But somehow learned to do the same thing.

He audibly welds what I would like to socially weld. Where not only would classical and pop music exist harmoniously, both in the literal and idiomatic sense of the word.

For me this is the music for, not just of, but for the people of the 21st century, who have lived through a 100 years of popular musical development. For people who lived through The Beatles, for people who survived the music of the 80s, and witnessed the dismal fall of pop stars like Brittany Spears in the 90s. If I had to place my bet on the characterization of music of the 21st Century it would be a synthesis of two often dueling idioms of music.
Young classical musicians are being raised in a time period inundated with popular music and culture, but are learning the fine art of classical music, it's composition, theory and performance. It is inevitable to me, now, that these two towers of ideas will no longer remain separate.

Many other young composers/singer-songwriters are extending their classical training into their interests in popular music.
Another dweller in the gray is composer, who is mentioned in the interview with Soundcheck is composer Niko Muhly.
Muhly is a composer, in the classical sense of the word, however to look at his album of chamber music, one would assume, without listening to it that it is a pop album. It is packaged with great modern design, and each piece is titled as if it were a pop song. The discography page on the website features not only his albums, but those of Bjork and soundtracks by Phillip Glass on which he collaborated. In addition he has also collaborated with pop musicians like Sam Amidon who plays his own brand of singer-songwriter music.
I recommend going here, and listening to the segment of the piece, "Pillaging Music." To the trained ear, there is a definite influence from pop music. Also listen to the first track, "Clear Music", because it feels quite classical. An interesting contrast.
And another pop musician who is reaching his duel roots across the void between classical music and pop music is so-called "indie rocker" Sufjan Stevens. I hesitate to call him an "indie rocker" because that could imply many other things.
So far there are some highly talented bodies roaming about in the grey matter, but there are yet to be any true "movers and shakers" on the level that Schoenberg was in the turn of the century.
I'll be excited to see, as a musician and someone with an interest in music's social implications, who becomes the next Schoenberg, or the next Beatles.

Non-class post: Music and Feminism

2008-09-05T20:54:00.003-04:00

I came across an article on NPR.org today about the "bra burning myth" and later a forwarded email from my grandmother about women and voting. It made me start thinking about my paper on feminism's role in knitting, or rather knitting's role in feminism.
It made me wonder about the connections between music and feminism.

In 1968, a group of women protested the Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City.
While no actual bras were burned that day, somehow the myth stuck. I got to thinking about other myths about feminism. And finally wondered if music had anything to do with what these women in history were trying to accomplish.
Nothing in classical music came to me that would have struck me as material for feminists to use. However, it is notable to point out the gross lack of famous female classical composers.

It was, and is, a man's world. Women in the early days of opera were forbidden from singing in public, as a result many men lost valuable body parts. However, there were some gems in music history that certainly stand out, and up with their male contemporaries. The earliest was Hildegard von Bingen. A nun from the Renaissance.

It is often discussed in history books that she was, in modern terms, crazy. She saw things, heard things, and was rather cavalier about it all. But her craziness is why I like her. There is a line from the movie Iron Jawed Angels, an HBO film about suffragist Alice Paul, in which one of the characters comments that, "Courage is often mistaken for insanity." This for me is the epitome of von Bingen. Her bravery, her insanity, was most likely what propelled her into the history books. Her talent was equal to her famous male contemporaries, but she wouldn't have been noticed however if she wasn't "different." By that I mean not only was did she see visions, but she promoted herself in a way. She was a go-getter.

Hundreds of years go by and a two other notable women step onto the stage, both of which were intimately connected to famous male composers of their day. First was Fanny Mendelssohn, precocious elder sister of Felix. Fanny wrote piano, instrument and vocal music. Making a life of performing and composing was discouraged by her parents. Luckily had Felix for a brother and she married a man who supported her endeavors. However if it had not been for these men in her life, she most likely would never have entered into the canon of musical historical figures.

The same was the case for Clara Schumann, wife of Robert, and intimate friend of Johannes Brahms. An equally capable composer and performer herself, her "career" in music was also suppressed by society, and again her music and story may never have entered into our lives had it not been for the men in her life.

Even throughout the popular music history of the 20th century, women, as far as influence goes, were still out played by men.
Part of that is not that people gravitate towards music made by men more than women, but women just weren't encouraged to pursue that route. The role of women changed drastically throughout the century and only in very recent times have the roles and other issues begun to balance out.
Today, obviously, things have changed. I would venture to say that in the current vain of popular music, women rock as hard as men. And if it were up to me, I would say they ruled the scene at the moment.

Class Post:Beijing

2008-09-02T08:18:00.002-04:00

In light of recent global events, specifically the Olympics, Ross's photojournal of the games caught my eye. Curiously I had a dream about the Olympics last night, but I suppose that if you watch the same thing every night for 2 weeks straight then somehow remnants of it could find their way into your subconscious.
What caught my eye was not the National Spirit Achievers Award party featuring Chen Qigang, composer of featured music during the ceremony, but a picture just below the one of Chen Qigang. Its a photo of a crowd watching a band, a very western picture. Out of context one might confuse it for a typical indie band at a underground venue somewhere like Portland or New York.
But this is D-22, "Beijing's leading alternative rock-club."

I spent some time clicking around on the links that Ross provided, most of which lead to pages for artists including not only Chinese musicians, a Japanese girl-power duo called 10, but most interesting is a Canadian teenager, Simon Frank, and Chinese guitarist,Zhang Shouwang (aka Jeff Zhang) who play there own brand of "alternative rock" in the various venues around Beijing.
What caught me eye was this, a YouTube venue that features the band playing very "20th Century" music. That is to say that they are not simply playing atonal, but using the instruments themselves in new ways, like bowing the electric guitar and simultaneously electronically altering the sound of the guitar itself, to produce timbres and even tonalities that exist outside of the usual realm of rock and roll.
The video is being recorded at SugarJarCN, an art venue as part of "an independent music/sound art exchange project.
Also of note culturally is the band's name, here, operating under the name Speak Chinese or Die. The Canadian/Chinese duo also play in their own bands.

This isn't you pappy's rock n roll anymore.

These young people from wide ranging walks of life and musical background have just entered into a world with composers like Schoenberg, Philip Glass, and John Adams. Making music outside the box.
When I thought of China prior to the Olympics, I was aware of the fact that it had become quite modern and Western. But the details are what escaped me. The things, like experimental music, that have nestled themselves into the elaborate filigree of culture in the West. I'm always caught off guard when they crop up elsewhere, thinking how one earth did that end up where it is. But the Olympics made me do my homework, since China made such a gracious host to the world, I was sparked to reach back, and learn a little bit myself.