Music in Christianity

Bel Air Presbyterian Church

-modern church
-Two levels of seating
-Big Stage with contemporary band
-complex sound system
-powerpoint presentation for lyrics
-no pulpit
-People are more casually dressed
-greetings
-pastor jokes a lot
-Band consists of modern instruments- guitar, bass, electric drums, piano, keys
-screen projects lyrics
-modern speaker system
-contemporary music makes it seem like you are at a concert

Church of the Good Shepherd

-Traditional exterior look
-Stained glass windows
-pews
-choir and organ
-pulpit
-greetings
-homily
-A lot more Traditional
-Choir accompanied by pipe organ only
-Communion- line up and receive bread from priest
-kneel down

Final Blog

American Jazz

Jazz is one of the most important music in the United States, because it is what Americans can truly call their own. It was developed from several different influences and is unique to this country.

History of Jazz

Before 1850- Folk music based on African forms; white dance and band music

Circa 1850- Plantation songs sung by slaves; Minstrelsy was white music meant to copy plantation songs

During the Civil War- Slave songs of the United States published

Post Civil War- Prison songs

Late 1800s- Blues develops and is complete by 1910

1890s- Ragtime develops and is the most popular music in America

Early 1900s- Marching band music, Ragtime and the Blues begin to fuse into early jazz roots.

1910-1920- Jazz is born in New Orleans via a combination of black and Creole music

1920’s- New Orleans Jazz is the thing. The Jazz Age is born

1930s- Swing is king and this is the only time that Jazz and popular are the same thing

1940s- Bebop is born. It is later called simply Bop

1950s- Hard Bop or Funk and Cool Jazz take over

1960s- Modal and Free Jazz find followers

1970s- Jazz fuses with one of its derivatives to form Jazz-Rock or Fusion

1980s- Contemporary Jazz age begins

1990s- Hip-Hop and other forms emerge. Hard Bop revival.

Source: www.allaboutjazz.com

Instruments

Rhythm section- these instruments keep the beat and form the backbone of the band

Drum set- idiophone and membranophone

Piano- chordophone

Guitar- chordophone

Bass- chordophone

Lead- These instruments improvise and play the melody of the song, and are all aerophones

Trombone

Trumpet

Clarinet

Saxophone (bar saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone)

Characteristics of Jazz

Improvisation- Musicians have a chord progression and have no notes written down to read, but instead make up melodies on the spot.

Blue Notes- transform regular scales into blues scales by flatting certain notes in a scale.

Swing- playing a pair of notes in a way which elongates the first and shortens the second.

Call and Response- one instrument will initiate a call, and another will respond

Polyrhythm- two rhythms played simultaneously

Syncopation- Rhythmic manipulation in which a musician will fail to sound a beat on the accent.

Famous Jazz Musicians

Louis Armstrong (1901-1971)

John Coltrane (1926-1967)

Miles Davis (1926-1991)

Duke Ellington (1899-1974)

Dizzy Gillespie (1917-1993)

Charlie Parker (1920-1955)

Listening Examples

Miles Davis- So What

Dave Brubeck- Take Five

Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong- Let’s Call the Whole Thing off

These are song of the most famous Jazz songs, and these artists are monumental in the Jazz genre. These songs encompass all the elements of jazz such as improvisation, syncopation, blue notes, and call and response.

Week 8

Three aesthetic qualities define John Mayer as an Artist, sound quality of his voice, bluesy guitar playing, and heartfelt lyrics. Anyone who has listened to John Mayer can immediately recognize his signature voice. It has a soothing quality with a subtle hint of raspiness. He coaxes his listeners into a lifted mood with his tranquil voice. His bluesy guitar riffs is also a factor that many fans attribute to him. Recognized as one of the best blues guitar players, John Mayer introduces bluesy guitar riffs and solos in between choruses and verses, that can catch a listener by surprise, or flow meticulously with the music. The lyrics in his songs are the most important though. Mayer writes and sings about all aspects of life. Such as love, trials, heartbreak, and worldly problems. He does this is a very effective way why making his lyrics catchy, but at the same time he can invoke many thoughts and higher interpretation by his listeners.
John Mayer very accurately reflects his personality off the stage and out of the studio. If one were to read his blog, it will be immediately apparent how intelligent and witty he is. He is very in tuned with current events, and at the same time has a sophisticated sense of humor that people like myself admire. Most of his music is very relaxing and "chill", which very accurately depicts his personality. He is not an effervescent or anxious person, but rather a very docile and calm individual. He takes his music very seriously, and through his music one can tune in a perceive a sense of the artist's true personality and identity.

Week 7

The Roma people's music are heavily centered upon the violin. In both scenes, the violin is a prominent instrument in their musical celebration. In the village, several men were playing the violin, and in unison, they played the same melody, over the accompaniment of the accordion, upright bass, an instrument that resembled their version of the hammer dulcimer, and their localized version of the day. Together, the villagers would collaborate together to produce a very joyous and momentous occasion coupled with delightful music where all the members of their village to dance to and celebrate. Their musical texture was that of homophony. There would be the rhythm, provided by the bass and miscellaneous percussion, the chord progression, provided by the accordion, and then the lead melody, provided by the violins and aerophone. Occasionally, individuals, or a pair consisting of a violin and flute, would break off from the group and perform via solo or duet. Improvisation, similar to the maqam or dastgah of Middle Eastern music can be traced.
In the scene at the train station, the musical makeup of this group was different than the villagers'. The violin, was also an important instrument though, which provided the key and backup for the vocals. However, there was only one violin, and the percussion consisted of two spoons played together by one individual of that group. There not as many instruments in the group, and singing was more prominent in this scene. It was interesting to see the little boy offer three coins to the man with the violin for him to play music. It displays the light in which the Roma people were often cast upon. Their society believed that in certain occasions, it was only okay for the "unclean" group of people to perform music. They were views as people you payed to for your entertainment. The group at the train station incorporated music into welcoming their distant relatives to their village after a long train ride.

Week 6

In the movie Latcho Drom, it traces the migration of a nomadic people from South Asia into the Middle East. The instruments of each area can be traced with similarity of the instruments of the other regions, and also regions that we studied in the previous weeks. In the Takht performance in Istanbul, there was an instrument called the 'Ud, which was a plucked lute. In the scene where the nomads are performing under the moon, there was a similar instrument. It was sort of sitar that was strummed with one hand and fingered with another. In all three musical scenes in the movie, instruments resembling the modern day violin can be seen. In Istanbul, the ensemble had a violin playing, in Egypt, the couple was dancing to the music of a rababah, and the small boy was listening to the music and trying to imitate the melody with his own rababah. In the nomadic scene under the moon, there was an instrument that was played with a bow, that was significantly larger than the rababah. The man was tuning it during the day time. The rababah can be seen as a close relative to the Erhu of China. They are both played using bows, and have a hollow head at the bottom, with a couple thin strings stretching from the top to the bottom. The pipa also closely resembles the Ud, with their strumming and plucking style, with many strings, similar to the guitar.

The director shows how the group of "gypsies" absorb each new music they encounter by documenting the events through the eyes of children. Children, having brains like sponges, soak up new information and music very fast. Seeing these children amazed with the new music and dancing that they witness and how they try to imitate the new music serves as a parallel to the "gypsy" people. It was also very interesting to see the different location in which the movie takes place in, from the desert and nomadic dwellings, to a small town in Egypt, to a modern city of Istanbul. You can also see the features of the different people involved with the different areas change. A more Indian looking descent of people were seen in the opening scenes, and a more middle eastern and Turkish looking descent of people were seen in Istanbul.

Week 5

Real life has affected underground hip hop, and in turn the underground hip hop has spawned many underground cultures all over the nation and influenced music as a whole. Alternative/hip hop artists are attempting to bring back what they think is the original message of hip hop. They are emphasizing messages of community unity, verbal skill, and activism, instead of materialism, drugs, gang violence, and gender degradation. They are tired of the "gangsta rap" movement where flashy rappers flaunt exuberant materialism and irregard for the improvement of their community. Artists such as Jurassic 5, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli sought to bring back a sense of community, brothers helping out one another to better their living condition and promote peace. They also address many issues that are faced today such as racism and poverty. With their catchy hooks, intricate rhetoric, and electronic beats, they send a message to their listeners all across the nation and the world.

In turn, having been affected by real life and their situations to produce an underground movement, the movement has affected real life as well. These artists have spread their message all across different areas, transcending different ethnic and socioeconomic boundaries. White kids in the suburbs and urban city dwellers have been affected by the music and the message of these underground preachers, and have in turn created a greater sense of community. Many artists of this subgenre have had their political statements transmitted through sound waves and affected populations. Alternative hip hop artists from Africa have spoken out against genocide that is widespread and prevalent in their countries.

Week 4

The audience only have commercialized productions of "Chinese folk music" in hotels and bigger cities to compare the "Ancient Naxi music" to. They can only compare a flashy production with westernized and electric instruments in a concert hall to a Naxi ensemble in a courtyard. Their perception is skewed by the commercialized and flashy music presented by big city hotels. The Communist also censored ethnic art and music during the 1950s. Many of the traditional ensembles were disbanded and music might have been lost. The current traditional ensembles borrow from the ritual model, but only four out of twenty of the pre 1949 musicians were in ritual groups.

Western scholars accused the modern Chinese orchestra as not being authentic enough because the program performed by the orchestra consisted of classical, modern, and folk music, and the program says that hearing the performance will give the audience a general understanding of Chinese traditional music. The professor claims that the choice of pieces cannot give the audience an understanding of Chinese traditional music because there are pieces which are classical and modern. He also adds that by adding a bit and a bit of westernization, the overall feel of Chinese music will be tainted. The professor urges that the East should remain East. I do not agree with the professor. Chinese music has always borrowed from cultures and instruments have been acquired through many years of contacts with other countries. The Pipa can trace its roots from the Middle East, for example. The fusion of different music with each other is authentic. Take hip-hop for example. Current artists sample and fuse different sounds together and develop new sounds. It is had to determine where to draw the line as "authentic" goes. There is a lot of gray area. Music is ever changing and it is impossible to put a finger down and deem certain musics authentic or not. Can you label a biracial child unauthentic? All musics are authentic to its own style.