Listening Blog #23 – “Party in the Rain” – Eve feat. Mashonda

Instrumentation: Vocals (Eve), beats (drum kit, trumpet, piano, and electric guitar riffs , and electronic beats – even “laser” sound effects)

Form: This song is presented in strophic form – Eve raps during the verse, while Mashonda sings a melodic refrain during the chorus. This is a definite departure from Bahamadi’s continuous rapping: so perhaps this shows rap’s evolution, through the incorporation of aspects of pop.

Rhythm: Once again, rhythm (and the way in which it is layered) is the primary aspect of the song. Interestingly, while the song’s beat is not that different from the previous song, the attitudes are completely different.

Lyrics: In comparison to the lyrics in “When I Shine”, these lyrics are much less cohesive. While there’s a clearer division between verses and choruses, there seems to be a weird disconnect between the two. For example, I don’t really understand why Eve is rapping typical bravado/challenge lyrics in the verses, and then about partying in the rain during the chorus. Overall, this seems to speak to the song’s nature as a “party song”, not a “message song”: it seems that this song is almost purely aesthetic, for a good groove beat and the ‘good time’ feeling it evokes.

Texture: Once again, the song’s texture seems very multifaceted, due to the many different beats. Overall, the song is very highly pitched – due to the women’s voices (especially Mashonda’s singing voice) and the trumpet, piano, and electric guitar riffs’ high ranges – which becomes grating after many listens. Eve’s vocal quality is more percussive and punchy, which comes across as sassier and happier (especially due to her added chuckles and “yeah”s). As for the chorus, Mashonda’s vocal quality I find very whiny, not always on pitch, and near unbearable to listen to.

Personal Response: While I don’t really enjoy this song that much either (although I’m not sure how much of that is due to my disinterest in rap as a genre or my extreme dislike for Mashonda’s whiny-sounding chorus), I find it to be much more accessible than Bahamadia’s song. Eve’s fiery delivery seems less detached than Bahamadia’s smooth but distanced delivery, and thus engages the listener and makes it something they’d listen to again. I also really think that the establishment of an actual chorus (as painful as it is) makes the song more accessible to listeners, as it creates a sort of ‘home’ that the song returns to that the listener can easily identify. However, I also think that lyrically this song leaves a lot to be desired. Overall, I think this song is an aesthetic song – something that people put on to simply enjoy, without necessarily having to totally engage in (and question). This is not necessarily a bad thing (aesthetics have their own unique merit) – but I think that the comparison between this and the last song demonstrate rap’s movement into mainstream music, and the changes (and even sacrifices) it made to get there. So I understand when people complain about the ‘dumbing down’ or ‘cheapening’ or rap music. I guess I also expected a little bit more out of Eve – as a woman in rap, she probably had to work pretty hard to gain respect and attention as a rap artist: but I don’t think this song really demonstrates that much talent or creativity. While she shouldn’t have to sacrifice aesthetics for seriousness, or respect for success, I think she had (or has) a ways to go in finding a successful intersection of the issues affecting women in rap.

Listening Blog # 22 – “When I Shine” – The Herbaliser feat. Bahamadia

Instrumentation: Voice (Bahamadia and Wherry/Teeba on background vocals), and an assortment of beats (distorted – probably sampled or created through recording technology). In this song, the percussive vocal line emphasizes rhythm over melody, and adds an additional layer upon the rhythmic beats created electronically.

Form: I’m not completely sure what the song’s musical form is – it seems to exhibit some strophic and through-composed characteristics. As a strophic piece, it establishes a melodic ‘line’ and sticks to it; the lyrics also show a semblance of verse/chorus organization (with her freestyle rap ‘verses’ and ‘when I shine’ chorus). However, one could also see the lyrical line as through-composed.

Rhythm: Rhythm is the song’s strongest, and primary, element. The strange instrumental interlude at the beginning creates interest – but as it fades out, the duple meter created by the sound of a (electronic) drum kit establishes itself, quickly adding multiple rhythmic textures to establish the song’s main ‘beat’. As Bahamadia begins rapping, the speaking quality of her voice emphasizes its percussive and rhythmic quality, and creates the last and ultimate beat.

Lyrics: While rhythm is a large aspect of rap, lyrics often provide just as much interest and meaning for the song. In reading the lyrics, Bahamadia’s words make little sense as prose; instead, they must be read as a form of art (like poetry). She seems to be saying advocating for herself and her music as significant work: this confirms the bravado aspect of rap’s roots, when MCs would battle each other for supremacy. However, her words also offer strong statements (“I can’t distort vision of those completely blind”) that at times explore social commentary.

Texture: Due to the complex layering of beats, the song has a varied, yet full, percussive texture. A rapper’s vocal texture is often one of their most distinguished characteristics – Bahamadia’s rap is fairly monotone, with a squished/distorted pronunciation of some words and a smooth speaking line.

Personal Response: I tend to gravitate to the melodic aspects of a song above all else, which I think might be one of the reasons that I don’t usually like rap all that much. I respect the genre, but stylistically I find it repetitive and boring. This song reminds me of more classic, throw-back rap – I think because of the way the beats sound (maybe they’re a little dated?) and Bahamadia’s delivery. I like the way that she’s able to smoothly deliver her lines in a way that seems seamless – but when I looked at the lyrics, I had a difficulty understanding what it was that she was trying to convey. Also, the DJ scratch effects kind of annoyed me and detracted from my listening. Overall, the song was interesting to listen to once, but it’s not something I would actively seek out for myself (now or previously).

Listening Blog #21 – “Back In Your Head” – Tegan and Sara

Instrumentation: Vocals (the Quin sisters), Piano, Percussion (drums, possibly tambourine), Electric Guitar, Electric Bass

Form: Like most modern non-art music, this song is strophic – alternating between verses and the chorus of “I just want back in your head.”

Origins: This is an original song written by Sara. Interestingly enough, I read somewhere that she originally wrote it as a slower song, but sped it up because she knew it would sound more appealing.

Melody: Melodically, this song seems very simple: most of the melody line runs stepwise (only a step away within the scale), and the rhythm is also fairly simple. Yet there’s also a certain beauty in the song’s simplicity that makes it catchy and memorable.

Lyrics: The lyrics seem to refer to the complicated romantic relationship dynamics between two people. The speaker feels a sorrowful sense of detachment from their lover (“I just want back in your head”), yet also fears the dangers of intimacy “(I’m not unfaithful but I’ll stray / When I get a little scared”). These lyrics have a universal appeal to listeners: despite age, race, sexual orientation, or any other factor, everyone can feel love or confusion over it.

Timbre: The Quin sisters possess a unique, distinctive vocal quality that I would say is the defining mark of all their music. I find their voices to be simultaneously charming and gratingly shrill. I do think that they have a somewhat childish tone to their voice, which meshes ironically with their mature, introspective lyrics.

Personal Response: Tegan and Sara are one of my favorite groups, and “Back In Your Head” is probably their most accessible song to date (it’s definitely one of my favorites). I completely respect their talent as singer-songwriters: actually, they come to my mind as one of the (seemingly few) examples of good women role-models today in the music industry. I actually didn’t know until 6 months ago that they were both lesbians, although they are open about it. They have even written a few songs about it, such as “I Was Married”, which talks about the world’s perception of gays, and how it affects the way one sees oneself. In the interview I was reading, they expressed their disappointment with how people continue to perceive LGBTQs, especially in the media: apparently a man once asked them if they made out with each other, just because “they’re lesbians and all.” That comment made me feel pretty disgusted: but I continue to view Tegan and Sara Quin as strong, honest, and powerful women in the music industry that have inspired (and continue to inspire) many women and others alike.

Listening Blog #20 – “Hallelujah” – k.d. lang (2004)

Instrumentation: Vocals (lang), Guitar (Electric), Piano, Strings (violins, violas, cellos?), and occasional soft percussion (brushes).

Form: Strophic – the song shifts between verses and the chorus, which consists of repeated “Hallelujah”s.

Origin: This song was originally written by singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, and has since been covered and interpreted by a wide range of artists, from Jeff Buckley to Bon Jovi, and Brandi Carlisle to Allison Crow. Here, lang provides her own cover, which she has performed at various events such as the Canadian Juno Awards and her induction into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Lyrics: On one level, the song seems very much rooted in religion, as the lyrics provide specific references to biblical passages about King David, Samson, and the Holy Dove. Yet on another level, the lyrics seem to use these references to illuminate a turbulent relationship between two people. The song’s exact meaning is extremely ambiguous, which makes the song inscrutable on some level. Yet I also think the lyrical complexity is what has allowed each performer to sing exactly the same song, yet present it in a completely new light.

Timbre: lang has a very rich, textured, almost sultry quality to her voice, which makes it very pleasant and easy to listen to. Stylistically, she likes to “scoop”, or start from a lower pitch and slide to the right note: while this can create an interesting sound quality when used occasionally, in this song lang uses it excessively, creating a weirdly undulating melody line that takes away from the song’s simplicity and emotion.

Personal Response: I have known (and loved) this song for a long time – that said, lang’s version simply does not do it for me. While I think she sounds good on the song, the question I ask for each cover of this song is, “what new aspect, emotion, or interpretation do they bring to the song?” For lang’s version, I didn’t feel much of anything. In my opinion, in comparison to the Jeff Buckley version, this version was somewhat bland. In addition, her habit of ‘scooping’ the sound constantly really annoyed me. I did listen to a few samples of lang’s original songs, and I do appreciate her talent both as a singer and a songwriter, but just not in regards to this song.

Listening Blog #19 – “When You Were Mine” – Cyndi Lauper (1985)

Instrumentation: Vocals (Lauper), Synthesized instrumentation – drumbeats, “piano”, guitar/s, bass

Form: Strophic – as a popular song, the verses repeat both musically (the same melodic line) and lyrically (the verses beginning with “When you were mine”, and the chorus beginning with “I know”).

Origin: This song was originally recorded by Prince, and was covered by Cyndi Lauper in 1985. The lyrics were originally written from the point of view of a man talking about his female lover cheating on him with another man. However, Lauper decided not to change the song’s lyrics in her version, creating the suggestion of the song being from a woman’s perspective of being in love with another woman. The two songs actually sound surprisingly similar: Prince’s falsetto creates a more delicate sound, while Lauper’s ‘girlish’ sound lies within the same range.

Lyrics: Even though Lauper does not change Prince’s original pronouns, she nevertheless makes a strong statement with them, much like Midler’s cover of “Beast of Burden.” By shifting the song’s focus from a heterosexual man-woman relationship to a homo/bisexual woman-woman-man relationship, Lauper challenges her listener’s conceptions of sexuality and sexual identity, especially as it relates to women. Lauper possesses close ties to the gay community: Lauper’s sister, whom she considered to be her role model, ‘came out’ as a lesbian in the 1990s, and Lauper has performed at many gay-pride events around the world. This close connection to the LGBTQ community undoubtedly influenced Lauper’s views and her approach to this song.

Timbre: As discussed earlier, Lauper sings in her trademark unique, distinctly ‘girlish’ tone: this adds a sense of hyper-femininity to her music. On the one hand, one could argue that this ‘girly’ sound acts as a cop-out marketing device, by portraying Lauper as a “harmless” girl instead of a woman, and therefore stereotyping and minimalizing her as a person and musician. Yet at the same time, one could also read her ‘girlishness’ as a celebration of girlhood, and a chance to provide a positive role model to adolescent girls, facilitating the difficult transition from girlhood to womanhood.

Personal Response: Lauper’s music has always straddled the border of ‘fun’ and ‘annoying’ in my book – I think because of her propensity to squeak and sound slightly whiny. I found this song slightly enjoyable musically, if not exceptional, but I found her loyalty to the original lyrics to be really interesting. I’m amazed at how, by staying true to the original lyrics, Lauper is able to communicate more than if she had changed them to include the typical pronouns.

Listening Blog #18 – “Beast of Burden” – Bette Midler (1983)

Instrumentation: Vocals (Midler), Electric Guitar, Electric Bass, Drums - typical ‘rock’ instrumentation

Form: Strophic form – established chorus and verses, with the repetition of ‘Beast of Burden’.

Origin: The song was originally written and recorded by The Rolling Stones, and was covered by Midler in 1983. Midler makes a few fairly significant changes (changing the lyrics to be from the female perspective instead of the male), but overall remains surprisingly faithful to the original. Ironically, by remaining faithful to the original, Midler changes the perspective of the song from the typical ‘male rock star’ to an empowered female comfortable enough with her sexuality to sing about it, which was somewhat shocking for the time (and to an extent remains so today).

Melody: The song’s melody is fairly simple: as a contemporary rock song, it is easily singable and repetitive, making it accessible to the audience so that they can identify. Midler adds a little bit of vocal improvisation to the recording, which lends a spontaneous and vivacious feeling to the song.

Timbre: In comparison to Mick Jagger’s original version, Midler’s voice brings a richer and more expressive tone to the song. Whether she is belting out low notes, wailing on the held high notes, growling, or squeaking, she never seems strained, but always presents an attitude of confidence. In fact, Midler’s version of the song suggests that her confidence as a woman is more ‘sexy’ than any other contrived version.

Lyrics: The lyrics undoubtedly originally meant something quite different to The Rolling Stones, who wrote this song from a man’s perspective, singing to a woman. Yet Midler’s rendition changes this meaning considerably. Midler constantly returns to the refrain “I’ll never be your beast of burden / All I want is for you to make love to me.” According to Wikipedia, “A beast of burden is a semi-domesticated animal that labors for the benefit of man.” While the Stones probably meant this in terms of the general phrase, here it seems to invoke Midler singing to her man that she won’t ‘carry his burden’, or accept his dominance over her, any longer. In addition, Midler deliberately changed the masculine lyric “Pretty, pretty, girls” to “my little sister is a pretty, pretty girl”, and then goes on to sing about how this girl is constantly being used as a disposable object for sex by men. It seems here that Midler is disparaging the horrific way in which young girls let themselves be objectified and used by men just to feel admired and fake confidence. By constantly repeating the phrase “What’s the matter with me / Ain’t I hot/rich/rought enough”, and following it with “I’m not too blind to see”, Midler challenges the unrealistic expectations of beauty and behavior that men have developed for women. Perhaps Midler didn’t necessarily take on this song with these feminist stances, but at the very least she must have realized and embraced the controversy of a female singer covering a ‘masculine’ rock song written by a male rock group.

Personal Response: I’d never heard the original Rolling stones version of this song, so Midler’s version was the first contact I’d had with the song. That being said, I was completely surprised by this song – by Midler’s attitude and ability to rock out vocally, by the over-the-top sexuality of the lyrics, and the Midler’s nerve in taking on this song (I assume there was probably some dissension from the Stones fans). I definitely enjoy Midler’s version better: the background instrumentation sounds much more processed (maybe due to having been a product of the 80s?), but I really like the fact that Midler was able to take this ‘masculine’ song written by a ‘masculine’ band, and make it her own.

In addition, I found this Youtube video of the music video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4R9FiKE0Tk) - it’s pretty cheesy, but I enjoyed the way they portrayed Midler and Jagger’s characters, and found it interesting to see how she dominates him performance-wise in the video. This song seems to be largely forgotten in Midler’s career, however: her top-selling song, “Wind Beneath My Wings”, is a delicate (if not sappy) love song about how her (presumedly male lover’s) love allows her to do anything. I have to wonder what happened with Midler’s music, and why she allowed this to happen.

EXTRA CREDIT LISTENING BLOG #2 – “Bi Furu” – Oumou Sangaré (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXmA_MasLMk)

Instrumentation: Voice (Sangaré and chorus), percussion (shakers and a hand-clapping interlude, a guitar (or a similar instrument), and a high-pitched stringed instrument (maybe a violin?)

Rhythm: Rhythm is an essential aspect of this song: although each instrumental part differs slightly in rhythm from the other (the guitar part acts as the base that ties all the instruments, especially the vocal line, together), they all interact to form a nice textured layering of rhythm.

Timbre: The timbre of the song largely revolved around Sangaré’s voice and her chorus of women. Their singing was pitched much higher, and had an unusual-sounding (to me, as a listener of Western music) timbre to it. It sounded slightly throaty and plaintive, which gave it a somewhat conversational feel; it seemed as if Sangaré was trying to speak to the listener personally, making them sit up and pay attention to what she has to say.

Range: In general, I found this song to be pitched a higher range than I am used to hearing: this was noticeable not only in Sangaré, but also the women chorus and male voice that she interacts with.

Vocal-Instrumental Interaction: The song frequently includes musical interludes, allowing the guitar and violin instruments to take control of the song. The emphatic and powerful, masterful sound they produce acts as an echo of Sangaré’s powerfully independent statements. This interaction represents repetition in a unique way, by presenting the same idea in several mediums.

Solo-Chorus Dialogue: An interesting conversation exists between the two distinct entities: the chorus begins the song by presenting the main musical statement of the song, after which Sangaré begins to sing. As the song continues, they provide the same refrain, providing the main melody of the song, while Sangaré expands, providing interesting riffs and ornamentations.

Rhythmic Gestures (hand claps): During the middle instrumental interlude, Sangaré contributes to the musical conversation by percussive hand-claps. This seems to be an invitation for the audience to join in, creating an intimacy and interaction between Sangaré and the listener. I thought that Sangaré depicted the handclaps interestingly in the video, by juxtaposing the sound with images of women rhythmically doing household work. In her lyrics, Sangaré displays a sort of disaparagement of women being forced into domesticity, especially by a cruel, demanding husband and his family. However, the video presents another aspect of women’s work by presenting it as a rhythm vital to the “song” of life.

Lyrics: Sangaré is Malian and sings in a foreign language (Bambara?): however, through a brief description of the lyrics, we can derive the bare essentials of her words. Sangaré sings about how, in the act of bartering and negotiation (especially financial) involved in the marriage process, a woman is treated without dignity or respect. She also warns wives of the dangers a harsh husband and his family can hold; she might be forced to work to the bone for them. At the time, these were incredibly progressive (and dangerous) things for a woman to be singing about to other women, especially in criticizing men and marriage.

Interpretation: In the video, Sangaré plays a clear dissenter forced to watch the wedding preparations for a young girl. She portrays her opposition to the marriage by holding her head, shaking her finger while looking at the camera, and generally looking frustrated and disappointed. At one point, she even holds an argument with a man, who seems to be have authority in the community. Throughout this main storyline, Sangaré intersperses shots of everyday Mali life, especially women’s lives and their daily chores.

Personal Response: Although I’m still not sure how much I “like” listening to it, I think this song holds a lot of value. It has complex, involved instrumentation (I was really surprised to hear the similarity between their instruments and Western instruments), and a powerful, empowering message that pushed the boundaries of Malian convention.

Listening #17 – “Los Laureles” – Linda Ronstadt (1987)

Instrumentation: Vocals (Ronstadt and background) and typical mariachi band instrumentation – strings (violin), vijuela, horns (trumpet), guitar, and guitarron.

Form: Strophic, as seen in Ronstadt’s simple, multiple verses.

Origin/Genre: This song is in the Mexican ranchera singing/mariachi instrumental tradition. The context of this song is probably one of its most interesting aspects: although Ronstadt’s claim to fame was originally as ‘The Queen of Rock’ in the ‘70s, this song shows her dramatic departure from the music that made her famous, and a return the music of her roots.

Melody: In comparison to the first song, “When Will I Be Loved”, Ronstadt’s melody here is much more intricate and complex. It demonstrates many dips, ornamentations, and unusual interval leaps, as is typical of the ranchera songs we have listened to previously. While a much more distinct melody, and perhaps less accessible to some of Ronstadt’s audience, I personally find this song’s melody to be more compelling and interesting – and, in my opinion based off of Ronstadt’s delivery, so does she.

Texture: On first listen, this song seemed to me to be a prototypical ranchera song. The song and Ronstadt’s voice possess all the basic, necessary elements of a ranchera song. However, after multiple listen, I would say that the missing aspect of the song that would give it the full weight of a true ranchera song would be experience. After having listened to Beltrán and other great ranchera singers, Ronstadt sounds somewhat inexperienced and lacking the full mastery of vocal expression that the older women have.

Lyrics: As is typical of mariachi songs, Los Laureles revolves around love: here, the singer discusses the beauty and characteristics of the laurel trees, all the while inserting sly references to her lover. Ronstadt draws special significance from these lyrics, as her father sang them, along with others, to her in childhood. This undoubtedly helped her in expressing to the listener the song’s significance and value to her.

Personal Response: I find this song to be so much more compelling than “When Will I Be Loved”. This is not because I prefer mariachi music to pop/rock music - actually, the opposite is often the case. Rather it is because I feel that on this album, Ronstadt made music with the distinct aim of pleasing herself, rather than pleasing the critics, or even her fans, which I think is a difficult but ultimately necessary decision for musicians as artists.

Listening Blog #16 – “When Will I Be Loved” – Linda Ronstadt (1975)

Instrumentation: Vocals (Ronstadt and backup), electric guitar, electric bass, drums

Form: Strophic, as is often the case with popular music. Ronstadt concludes each verse by restating “When will I be loved” in order to drive home the songs main point.

Origin/Genre: This song was originally recorded by The Everly Brothers, who played country-influenced rock-and-roll. Their original version is much more laid-back, with more of an obvious country sound. In comparison, Ronstadt’s version, although it has a certain country ‘twang’ to it, sounds much more like rock, especially with the strong electric guitar presence. As the ‘Queen of Rock’, her own distinct style is clearly present in this song. Certainly, this song is the first ‘rock’ piece we’ve discussed so far.

Melody: The melody of this song is fairly simple, which makes it easily accessible to its audience: the song seems to me to invoke a certain ‘feel-good’ mood, in which the listener listens to the music without criticism, and purely for aesthetics – to enjoy.

Texture: As I have mentioned previously, the song’s texture is slightly ‘twangy’, due to its country influences. However, there is also a strong rock presence: the electric guitar definitely makes its presence known, especially during the interlude solo, with the electric bass and drums constantly keeping the rhythm of the song. Altogether, the song has a fairly layered texture: the electric instruments especially make a lot of ‘big’ noise. I find Ronstadt’s individual vocal texture to be of special interest: as a rock performer, her voice has a special quality of grit and toughness to it; yet while she ‘rocks out’, Ronstadt also manages to maintain an element of softness to her delivery that is inherently womanly.

Lyrics: The lyrics to the song are incredibly simple: Ronstadt sings about how she’s been ‘cheated, mistreated, pushed down, pushed round, been made blue, and lied to,’ and plaintively asks when ‘she will be loved.’ While vague, the lyrics also probably had a certain element of universality to it: heartbreak is something almost everyone can relate to. It is strange to notice Ronstadt’s juxtaposition of sad lyrics with an upbeat melody and song, a characteristic of many of her songs. Perhaps she meant to convey an underlying sense of hope through her songs: although things may seem dreary, she encourages her listener to keep hoping and working to improve their situation.

Personal Response: While I enjoy the quality of Ronstadt’s voice as a ‘70s pop/rock performer, I don’t know that I can say the same about the song. I find it a serviceable song, and slightly enjoyable; but I also feel that, try as she might, Ronstadt has difficulty conveying any sort of deeper emotional feeling given the material she has to work with. Especially in comparison to Los Laureles, Ronstadt here seems to be much less engaged, less true to herself, and thus less interesting.

Listening #15 – “Selena Medley” – Mariachi Divas de Cindy Shea (2009)

Instrumentation: Vocals (Lead and backup), Trumpets, Violins, Flutes, Guitars, Vihuelas (Mexican guitar), and Guitarrones (Mexican large acoustic bass) – a typical mariachi band set-up.

Form: The song pulls from four of the popular Mexican singer Selena’s most popular hits: as a medley, it doesn’t really have a musical structure of it’s own: instead, it establishes the melody of each different song (usually with the original song’s first verse and chorus) and then transitions to the next song.

Origin/Genre: Although Selena was known as the “queen of Tejano music”, the Tejano genre itself (Mexican-Texan music) is derived from the more traditional Mexican music forms such as mariachi. This blending of the two genres by the group demonstrates the musical sharing of ideas that goes on within different genres, and the relations between a Tejano singer from the ‘90s and a modern-day all-women’s mariachi band.

Melody: The four songs all demonstrate different melodies: “Como la flor”, “Baile Esta Cumbia”, and “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” (the first, third, and fourth songs) demonstrate a peppy, upbeat melody, while “No Me Queda Mas” (the second song) is more of a ballad, which is a slower and has a more soulful melody.

Texture: Since the group is first and foremost a mariachi band, it makes sense that they have more aspects of mariachi instrumentation present than in Selena’s original songs. The lead singer still takes precedence, but the full and complex texture of the mariachi instruments are definitely present in this rendition.

Lyrics: Three of the four songs’ lyrics relate to love: in “Como la flor”, the singer relates her love to that of a wilted flower; in “No Me Queda Mas”, she says that nothing is left for her, since her lover now loves another; in “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom”, the song’s title refers to the sound her heart makes when it sees the one she loves and becomes excited. This is similar to ranchera/mariachi music, in which love is also an incredibly important topic.

Personal Response: While at first I was confused as to why a mariachi band was covering a Tejano pop singer’s songs, after listening and researching, I understand the relation of Tejano music to its mariachi origins. And in addition, I appreciate the gesture by an all-women mariachi group to honor another successful Mexican woman performer. I actually enjoy their renditions more than the original Selena songs, perhaps due to the ‘background’ instruments and their more forceful presence in the mariachi group’s version. I really enjoyed being able to hear the clarity of the trumpet and violin swells during the instrumental interludes.

Listening Blog # 14 – “Cucurrucu Paloma” – Lola Beltrán (1964)

Instrumentation: Voice (Beltrán and background), Strings (violin), Guitar, Horns (trumpet)

Form: Strophic – Bertrán’s verses have a more conversational feel, as she relates the story through them. She returns after the verses to the chorus “Cucurrucucu Paloma”.

Origin/Genre: This song exemplifies the ranchera genre related to mariachi music. This is foremost evident in Beltrán’s ranchera style of singing, which is quite distinctive, and the typical mariachi instrumentation present in the background. The song is also about (tragic) love, a typical subject for ranchera music.

Melody: The melody of the song seems fairly complex: the melody is characterized by unusual interval leaps and rhythmic syncopation, which seems to give it a feeling of spontaneity and improvisation. It seems likely that this melody, which would be hard to compose on paper or transcribe, would be passed down in the oral tradition.

Texture: The texture of the song varies only slightly: the majority consists of Beltran singing and band accompaniment. However, after Beltrán’s first chorus, the instrumental interlude shows the full texture of the mariachi band, demonstrating an interplay between the strings and horns. As for Beltrán, her thick voice texture is distinctive enough to carry the song. Her style of singing varies between subdued and slightly whispered during the verses, to loud and almost forced during the chorus. The pushed element of her singing creates an atmosphere of tension, urgency, and passion.

Lyrics: The lyrics revolve around a man’s endless passion for his ill-fated lover, even after his death. ‘Cuccurucu’ refers to the cooing sound a dove, or ‘Paloma’ makes, which is the shape the man’s spirit takes after death, singing still in the hopes that his love will return. As such, the song is an incredibly tragic one of lost love, which is in keeping with typical ranchera songs. They often involved love, or other subjects that would invoke passion, such as patriotism. Beltrán does a good job of conveying the immortal passion that this man has for this woman.

Personal Response: As a vocalist trained in the ‘classical’ (European) method, I find the ranchera style of singing to be incredibly different, yet fascinating. Beltrán’s technique seems incredibly forced, which I’ve always been taught is bad technique, but at the same time, it conveys a tension and passion, as well as a vocal weight, that I’ve often felt is missing from the precision and lightness of classical training. Overall, I must say that I am not sure how much I ‘like’ the song, or Beltrán’s voice, which at times sounds, in my opinion, overly heavy, to the point where it is not so much singing as it is yelling. However, I do think that she is a very good fit for the song, and that ranchera style as a whole is an incredibly expressive and passionate musical style.

Listening Blog #13 – “Woodstock” – Joni Mitchell (1969)

Instrumentation: Voice (Mitchell and background), and some sort of synth/electric piano

Texture: The texture is that of melody (Mitchell) and accompaniment (the electric piano). The song begins with an electric piano solo, which immediately gives the song an unusual and hauntingly mysterious tone. When Mitchell joins the song, her voice has a similarly haunting, eerie quality to it. Together, the two instruments create a very bare but captivating sound.

Range: The electric piano remains in a stable “home” range, but throughout the song Mitchell sings very high. She also demonstrates a wide musical range, as she frequently jumps from a low register to a much higher register.

Tempo: While the beginning solo shows some artistic phrasing which makes it hard to initially determine the tempo, the piano sets the song’s tempo a couple of bars before Mitchell begins singing. One Mitchell begins singing, there is not very much variation in the tempo – the focus is mostly on her lyrics and melodic interpretation.

Meter: The song demonstrates duple beat, which is enforced by subdivision of the beat by the left hand of the electric piano accompaniment.

Volume: While at some points Mitchell sings more delicately at some points, and more recklessly at others, she does not actually vary that much in volume: she has good control over both her low and high registers, and as her voice has a sort of strident quality to it, it doesn’t need too much volume.

Form: The song clearly demonstrates strophic form, as evidenced by Mitchell’s verses and return to the chorus of “We are stardust / We are golden / And we’ve got to get ourselves / Back to the garden.”

Lyrics: Mitchell apparently wrote the lyrics to the song as she was sitting in a hotel watching broadcasts of the Woodstock Music Festival, as she had been advised to perform on TV instead of attending the festival. In her lyrics, Mitchell seems to blend religion and anti-war protest as she paints Woodstock as a gathering of those looking to “lose the smog” and gain redemption (she starts the song with “I came upon a child of God”, and returns to the ending chorus phrase “We’ve got to get ourselves back to the garden”, referencing Eden). In the last verse she says that she “dreamed [she] saw the bombers / Riding shotgun in the sky / And they were turning into butterflies”, showing her dream for peace and the end of military aggression. To Mitchell, Woodstock was much more than just a festival.

Personal Response: I noticed that Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young had recorded another version of the song. I felt that it was a huge departure from Mitchell’s version stylistically, but also lost a lot of the significance that Mitchell put into her song. Their version was much more upbeat, and so lost the serious tone and message that Mitchell conveyed in her song. In addition, I also wanted to address Mitchell’s vocal improv section after the last chorus: I found it extremely interesting to hear how she intentionally made her voice break in order to make it sound like a completely different instrument.

Listening Blog #12 - "We Shall Overcome" - Joan Baez (1963)

Instrumentation: Baez singing and playing guitar – typical of the ‘60s folk singer/songwriter.

Texture: The song involves a main melody with guitar accompaniment of main chords. While Baez’s voice is not very full, she sings out very strongly and with conviction, which creates a somewhat strident yet noticeable sound.

Melody: Since the melody is a spiritual, the melody is once again fairly simple. Baez adds her own ornamentations and improvisations after establishing the core melody, which helps to add interest.

Form: Once again, the verses and chorus to make one core melody with slightly changing verses. Therefore, I feel like it is a modified version of strophic form.

Origins: Like Odetta’s ‘Glory Glory’, this song is a ‘60s version of an old African-American spiritual. This contributes to the song’s simple melody, repetitive nature, and hopeful lyrics.

Lyrics: The main lyrics of the song are “We shall overcome / We shall overcome some day / Oh, deep in my heart, I do believe / We shall overcome some day.” In these lyrics, the indomitable hope of the African slaves is obvious: however, Baez used this song as a message of hope against oppression of quite a different nature: the Vietnam War. During the ‘60s, Baez, along with many other folk artists, used African-American spirituals to express anti-war sentiments.

Range: While the song’s core melody varies very little in range, during the verses Baez harmonizes quite high, often holding out the ‘day’ in ‘today’ on a high note for an extended time. In doing so, Baez adds interest to the song’s melody, as her high voice holds a somewhat haunting quality to it. In addition, I found it interesting to compare her speaking voice, which is low and somewhat monotone, with her singing voice, which is very melodic and somewhat ethereal.

Personal Response: I learned this as a sing-along during my elementary years, and studied it in the context of slavery in middle school – so while I was well-acquainted with the song’s context in slavery, I was surprised to realize that folk-singers evoked it in their anti-war movement in the ‘60s. I was drawn to Baez’s words in the beginning, when she said, “It’s an old song and it’s a trite song, but in a new context it’s a beautiful song.” However, I’m not totally sure I agree with her, both in her assessment of the song, and her (and other folk singers’) decision to utilize spirituals for their war protesting. In my opinion, ‘overcoming’ the extreme prejudice of slavery was a much bigger obstacle. While pioneering free speech is a noble cause, I have to wonder at the integrity of their actions.

Listening Blog # 11 – “Glory Glory" - Odetta (1956)

Instrumentation: Solo voice – while this creates a very bare sound, at the same time it puts sole emphasis on the simple yet powerful lyrics, and Odetta’s interpretation of these lyrics.

Texture: Since there’s only one instrument, the musical texture is very bare: however, the texture of Odetta’s voice as an instrument extremely rich and incredibly soulful.

Form: I’m not totally sure what the structure of the song is: it seems here that the verses and the chorus have merged, so that Odetta sings slightly modified verses repeatedly.

Origin: This song is traditionally an American spiritual song – its relation to and historical context within can easily be seen in all aspects of the song: from melody to lyrics and meter.

Melody: The melody is fairly simple, which makes sense, considering it was meant to be easily learned and sung. Spirituals were an essential form of communication (as well as commiseration) between slaves.

Meter: Although Odetta fully utilizes pauses and silences to add dramatic tension to her song, the song still keeps an underlying duple beat. Although its importance is not immediately apparent, the constant meter is an essential driving force behind the song. The song’s meter may have origins in historical context, as slaves would often sing spirituals as a form of solace when forced to work in the fields. Perhaps the “march” beat mirrors the rhythm of their drudge work in the fields.

Lyrics: The lyrics to the spiritual are essentially: “Glory glory, Hallelujah / When I lay my burden down”. Historically, this would have referred to the end of slavery, and when slaves could break free from their chains, both physically and socially. However, even though Odetta recorded this in 1956, it was still just as applicable: at the time, Jim Crow laws still prevented African-Americans many of the privileges that white Americans possessed. The ‘burden’ may have changed to segregation and discrimination, but it was still in existence.

Personal Response: Overall, I find this song to be pretty powerful. I enjoy the little ornamentations that Odetta employs on the melody. Her vocal tone does get a little swallowed as she gets higher, which bothers me from a classically trained point of view – but it’s also important to remember that vocal accuracy is not the point of the song. Odetta does repeat the verse/chorus four times in the song, which I find to be a bit overly repetitive: but again, that’s the point: the repetition allowed others to join in.

Listening Blog #10 – “Please Mr. Postman” – The Marvelettes

Instrumentation: Vocals (lead singer and backup vocals), Piano, Drums, Bass

Texture: The song has a relatively thick texture: each instrument sounds very full and builds layer upon layer to create a thickly textured song. This may be due to “wall of sound” producing, which was a type of producing commonly used on girl group songs that created a dense, echo-y sound through constructing and reconstructing the song. The lead singer also has a very thick, raspy quality to her voice, which also contributes to the song’s thick texture. Overall, I would say that the texture provides the song’s main interest.

Range: The song’s range stays in a fairly confined area: while the vocalist’s vocal soloing pushes both the high and low limits of the song’s range, and the backup singers sing fairly high, overall range is not the primary focus of the song.

Tempo: The song stays at the same tempo throughout the entirety of the song: overall, it has a driven yet laid-back tempo.

Meter: The meter is duple, which is established by the underlying bass line keeping rhythm with simple plucked notes, paired with the drum’s subdivisions played complementary to the bass notes.

Volume: The volume of the song remains at the same level throughout the song: this is definitely evidence of the song’s manipulation during production. While it provides a certain appealing stylistic attitude, it also takes away some of the excitement of dynamics in the song.

Form: Strophic

Lyrics: The lyrics revolve around the female protagonist begging the postman to give her some news of her boyfriend. This is typical of the girl-group lyrics, which often revolved around girl-boy relationships. These types of songs were crucial in opening up discussion amongst teenage girls of the 60s about important issues such as female freedom.

Listening Blog #9 – “Deep River” – Marian Anderson

Instrumentation: Voice (Anderson) and piano accompaniment

Texture: The song’s texture is fairly sparse as there are only two instruments, and the piano is usually playing softly in the background so as not to interfere with Anderson’s singing. The texture of Anderson’s voice is very full and rich.

Range: Anderson mainly stays in a low vocal range (in fact, impressively low). However, her voice jumps an octave on the words ‘over Jordan’: this puts musical emphasis on the most important word of text in the line. She also maintains a higher vocal melody during the song’s bridge, with one sustained high note. However, the song’s ‘home’ is in the low vocal range.

Tempo: The song’s tempo is very slow and dragging. This adds an element of drama and soulfulness. As the piece progresses, some subdivision occurs in the piano part and vocal part to add interest – but in the song’s final verse, it reverts to the original tempo.

Meter: Overall, the song is set in duple meter: however, there is some delaying of the beat in some places.

Volume: An unusual aspect of this song is Anderson’s ability to maintain fairly loud volume even in her lower range: in fact, her ability to project and resonate at low pitch is one of her assets as a singer. While Anderson gets louder as she gets higher, the recording shows her talent in both ranges.

Form: Strophic

Lyrics: ‘Deep River’ is an African-American spiritual: in it, the narrator speaks of the deep river, which separates them from their home, Jordan. However, the narrator has faith that their Lord will soon deliver them. Within the lyrics lies the hope of African slaves that they would soon be delivered from the evil and oppression of slavery. Anderson’s singing of this song is particularly poignant. The listener can sense the emotion and soulfulness that she brings to the piece. Through this piece, Anderson reminded her audience that the vestiges of slavery were still not erased (through the Jim Crow laws and other acts of discrimination), and encouraged them to continue the fight for equality.

Research Proposal

The topic that I intend to explore and discuss in my research paper is the girl-group music movement of the 1960s: more specifically, the relationships between female girl groups and their (often) male producers, as well as the relationships between the girl group performers and their audiences. I plan to proceed by gathering a variety of resources: first and foremost, I expect most of my sources to be critical books, articles, or essays on the subject. Secondly, I hope to obtain a video (or more, if more can be found) containing live footage of girl groups performing, which I believe will be of great importance in writing authentically and passionately about the subject. Finally, I hope to gain information through interviews, either from filmed footage or possibly conducting an interview with Jacqueline Warwick, one of the most prominent scholars of the girl group movement.

My tentative thesis is that members of girl groups rarely had free reign to exercise agency, and were often manipulated, if not completely controlled by the producer, to do his willing. My working definition of agency is a human’s capacity to act willingly in making choices and expressing them in the world as a rational, thought-out process. However, as detrimental as this was to the individual female performers, the music, lyrics, and marketization of the girl groups nevertheless transformed the perspectives of their female teenage audience, helping foster new discussion of gender, sexuality, and freedom that helped the teenage girls improve their senses of agency. In furthering the argument made in my thesis, I plan to discuss the treatment of and attitude towards “girl” groups, the power of the producers (in particular, Phil Spector and Berry Gordy Jr., two of the most famous producers of their time) and their manipulations of the groups, meanings within “trite” girl group lyrics, techniques used to market the groups (appearance and public image), and finally, the atmosphere of female teenagers before, during, and after the girl-group era.

Listening Blog #8 - "C'est si bon" - Eartha Kitt

Instrumentation: Voice (Kitt and background male vocals), Drums, Bass, Horn Section (Trumpet), Saxophones, Clarinet

Texture: The song has a fairly varied texture, given the variety of musical lines going on at one time. In general, the song consists of Kitt’s solo line and backup accompaniment. Kitt’s voice has an unusual texture: it’s slightly raspy, but memorable in its delivery: and at the higher vocal range, her voice shows a completely different texture, approaching a belted, Broadway-style sound.

Range: The instruments generally stay in safe middle ranges, since they are background. The horns sometimes play higher at the end of verse phrases, and they have a short feature at the song’s introduction. Kitt herself sings mostly in a low range, in order sound coquettish and alluring, except for near the end, when she belts at the high vocal range to signify the song’s finale.

Tempo: The tempo is constant throughout the song, with the bass playing a steady plucked rhythm underneath the song to keep the tempo.

Meter: The song is in duple meter: again, the bass’ presence enforces this metric structure.

Volume: Throughout most of the song, Kitt sing-speaks pretty softly, sometimes in almost a purr or whisper: this creates an intimate and flirtacious aspect to the song. However, at the song’s finale she belts out the higher notes loudly: while part of this is related is simply because singers naturally sing louder as they get higher, Kitt creates additional volume to make the finale more dramatic.

Form: The song starts off strophic, with typical verses and chorus, and then transforms to Kitt speaking over the repeating background of “c’est bon, c’est bon”, then ends with a dramatic return to the strophic form with a sung final “c’est tellment bon”.

Lyrics: The lyrics are largely French, with a few American phrases thrown in (“Cadillac car, “yacht”, and “mink coats”). Translated to English, the song details a girl talking about how life is good and carefree walking with her lover. She then talks about how she’s looking for a millionaire who can give her all these riches, but at the song’s end she seems to dismiss these dreams, saying it doesn’t matter when this occurs: it seems that she is willing to simply enjoy the present.

Mood: The song has elements of jazz in it, but the focus is on Kitt’s sultry delivery of the words. Like Billie Holiday, the emphasis is not so much on what she says or the quality of her singing, but in the power of her delivery. Kitt’s voice seems pretty sexually suggestive, which is a big departure from what we’ve heard previously.

Listening Blog #7 - "God Bless The Child" - Billie Holiday

Instrumentation: Vocals (Holiday), piano, clarinet, saxophones (intro), trumpet (typical Jazz ensemble instrumentation)

Texture: The word I would use is ‘restrained’. Although there are a lot of instruments, they are used sparingly, and played with a refined, professional sense. Holiday’s voice I personally find a little thin and grating at times.

Range: The vocal melody goes pretty deep at the repetition of “that’s got his own”, while there are bits of higher held-out notes at the bridge (“Money, you’ve got lots of friends), as well as the end. In general, though, the piece sits in a fairly casual voice register. The background instruments too have little range, so as to not draw too much attention away from Holiday’s vocals.

Tempo: Slow, laid-back: like a ballad.

Meter: Duple (slow shuffle)

Volume: Soft and subdued.

Form: Strophic (chorus starts with “Mama may have …”), with verses and bridge

(12-bar blues???)

Lyrics: The lyrics are very religious, saying that those with religion “have” more than those who don’t. Riches fade, but religion endures. I find this a surprising song for Holiday to sing, as I never really thought of her as particularly religious, especially given her life circumstances (worked as a prostitute at some point). It’s also a significant departure from the majority of her works, which are about love or other non-religious subjects.

Other: I own a different version of this song, so it was really interesting to hear another recording: even though it was still Billie Holiday, the songs have really different attitudes to them – instrumentation, key, phrasing, etc. Even though I personally don’t like Billie Holiday (the quality of her voice just doesn’t sit well with me), I’ve always liked this song, and found it to be incredibly soulful (in addition to the spiritual lyrics).

Listening Blog #6 - "Prove It On Me" - Ma Rainey`

Instrumentation: Vocals (Rainey), piano… at times, what sound like a kazoo, clarinet and a man on vocal percussion make appearances

Timbre: Very thick, mostly due to Ma Rainey’s rich voice. I’m not quite sure if this piece is homophonic or polyphonic: it sounds like the kazoo provides (some) counterpoint underneath her vocals, but it may just be accompaniment. The piano definitely provides accompahiment. Overall, there is a wealth of sound textures layered in this piece which creates a thick texture. In addition, the lower quality of the sound recording (due to the recording devices of the time), there seems to be a layer of fuzz that further thickens the texture, to the point of being almost muddy-sounding.

Range: Fairly low: Rainey has a lower, huskier-sounding voice. The background instruments stay in fairly medium ranges as well, with not too much variation.

Tempo: Laid-back, perhaps as a representation of the blues genre coming from the South.

Meter: Duple meter (slow march quality to the music)

Volume: Loud throughout the entire piece, with little variation. Rainey belts out the vocals at a consistently loud tempo,

Form: Strophic – Rainey returns to the “prove it on me” strain several times.

(12-bar blues???)

Lyrics: The lyrics of the song revolve around a woman singing about her rowdy tendencies, and how she prefers women to men. The ambiguity of her words leave plenty of room to suspect lesbianism in the lyrics. Rainey talks about how she wears collar and tie, wants to follow one girl (her crush?) everywhere she goes, dislikes men, and how folks says she’s crooked: yet she taunts them to “prove it on me”. The claim that the song represents Rainey herself was surprising to me: O’Brien mentions that she was married to ‘Pa’ Rainey, and makes no mention of potential bisexuality or homosexuality. Yet some people believe that Rainey was, at the very least, bisexual (http://outhistory.org/wiki/Ma_Rainey's_%22Prove_It_On_Me_Blues,%22_1928). While this article’s “evidence” seems a little insubstantial to prove anything, it certainly adds a new aspect of viewing Rainey – as an individual, and as an artist.

Listening Blog #5 – “The Thriller! Rag” – May Frances Aufderheide

Instrumentation: Piano

Texture: The texture of the song is homophonic: a solitary melodic line with accompanying chords moving simultaneously. For a song with only one instrument, the texture is very thick: this is due to the interplay between the left and right hand parts –maybe they are playing complementary parts of the same chord? I’m not exactly sure. The bass part/left hand is also played quite heavily, giving it a fuller feel and texture.

Range: The range is fairly standard for this piece: although there is a lot more jumping around in the bass part than the treble part. Also, one of the chord progressions near the end goes pretty low.

Tempo: The tempo is quite fast and upbeat. It stays pretty constant throughout the song. The treble part shows some subdivision, (2 notes for every beat of the bass part).

Meter: The meter is duple beat, as the song displays a fast constant “march” beat.

Volume: Fairly loud. I noticed that the performer grows in volume when they are approaching the opening chords of the left hand that signifies either a repetition of a previous section or a new section. Overall, it seems that the bass part is playing louder than the treble part which, from my knowledge of piano, is somewhat unusual: in classical piano, the treble part is always supposed to take precedence. Here, I would say the two parts share in equal volume, if not louder volume in the bass part.

Other: The timbre of the song is joyful/happy/exuberant – probably because it stays largely in major key. The full chords that occur near the end of the piece are very dramatic, providing a contrast to the “quaint” (and quiet) final ending chords. This song is very much in the “ragtime” piano tradition: I think it must be the combination of the chord progressions and the jauntiness of the moving bass line.

EXTRA LISTENING TRACK - "Venise" - Teresa Carreño

Instrumentation: Piano

Texture: I would say the texture of the song is sparse, since there is only a melody (treble line) and accompaniment (bass line chords). However, the texture of the piano itself is very rich.

Range: While the range never goes very low and tends to sit in the middle range, it does take some leaps to higher notes, which the performer does with care and delicacy to make them seem fragile, not grating.

Tempo: The music has a fairly slow tempo, which remains pretty much constant throughout the entirety of the piece.

Meter: The rhythmic beat is triple beat: it has a very clear waltz quality to it – however, the pianist often delays the placing of the beat.

Volume: The volume is mostly soft: the volume diminishes for dramatic effect when the pianist is playing the higher keys, in order to maintain a delicate sound.

Other: I didn’t originally plan to write a listening journal on this song: however, as I was working on the last piece (Amy Beach’s “Scherzo”), this began to play as the next track on the CD. I was surprised to find how much I enjoy it: I typically don’t like songs that consist only of piano, but this one seemed exceedingly elegant and beautiful in a simple way to me. I find it interesting to contrast the sound of Beach’s piece with Carreño’s piece, due to the reading on Beach’s childhood, which told of the two’s extremely different upbringings (Carreño as a young prodigy and virtuoso, Beach as a woman restrained from touring), and Carreño’s apparent role-model influence on Beach. Their differing experiences no doubt influenced the sound of their compositions: yet I find it interesting that Carreño, the one with more freedom, has composed the more typical traditional “feminine” piece, while Beach has composed a much more ambitious and “manly” sounding (according to the Bowers/Tick chapter) piece.

Listening Blog #4 - "Scherzo" - Amy Beach

Instrumentation:

-Piano, strings section (violin, viola, cello?), Oboe

Texture: Polyphonic (multiple lines moving different directions)

However, this aspect of the music actually stuck out to me the most. As complex as the music was, it sounded noticeably thinner and sparser than I would have expected it to. I don’t know if it was missing certain orchestral instrumentation I expected or what (a horn section, perhaps? And there seemed to be minimal bass), but I thought the song as a whole had a bare aspect to it that was a little disappointing to me.

Range: None of the instruments really pushed the boundaries of their ranges in this song: I wouldn’t say that it was a focal point of the piece.

Tempo: Overall, the tempo of the piece was very fast-paced. The piano arpeggiation helped to create a feeling of rapidity and break-neck speed (as the piano player’s hands have got to be moving extremely fast to play that).

Meter: I think the meter was duple beat, as one could imagine a march (although it would have to be very fast!) to the music.

Volume: Throughout the piece, Beach uses swells in the dynamics for emphasis, creating an ebb and flow feeling of the song. It also puts emphasis on the quieter parts as well, as they stand out.

Orchestration: I liked the violin tremolo at the beginning along with the oboe: I thought it created a nice tension and sense of anticipation for the piece.

The piano remained a constant focus of the piece, and arpeggios were a very characteristic quality of the piece, giving it a sense of whimsicality and precision. The descending solo run at around 3:11 was also quite impressive: the fact that no other instrument was playing drew all the more attention to it.

The ending piano chords also work towards the same effect, signaling the end in a very common chord ending.

The timbre varied: at times it seemed quaint and simpler, while sometimes it seemed lush and sweeping and romantic, at others more dark and forboding.

Overall, I did like this song: however, I have to say that after reading the praise of Beach in the Bower/Tick text, I had a much different expectation of what her music would sound like. I expected something much more loud and forceful, with a lot more weight and full orchestral sound.

Listening Blog #3 – “Variations on a Theme by Robert Schumann” – Clara Wieck Schumann

Instrumentation: Piano

Texture: Homophony – the treble and bass clef piano parts combine in harmony

Range: Mostly centered in the typical piano range, between the ranges of bass and treble clefs. During the piano’s runs and arpeggios during one of the middle sections, a couple of higher notes (and a few low) are hit at the end of the ascending/descending runs.

Tempo: Ranges from slow and stately, to fast and light, to energetic and pounding

Throughout the song, however, Schumann does take artistic license as she sees fit, slowing certain phrases for dramatic effect.

Rhythmic pulse: There wasn’t a definable beat in this piece as far as I could find – therefore, it has a fluid meter.

Volume: The volume of the piece begins fairly low: the opening section is soft and bare in nature, and the volume reflects that. As the piece progresses to different sections, it gradually grows in volume: in particular, the fast-paced and energetic section in the middle is much louder, due to the pounding quality on the keys of the section. After this section, Schumann returns to the delicate first section, providing a stark contrast in volumes.

Other:

One might think that the timbre of the piece is fairly homogeneous, seeing as there is only one instrument: however, each section does a good job of highlighting the piano’s different sounds capabilities. In the first section, the piano sounds very precise and delicate: the bareness of the composition at this point brings out the inherent sound of the piano. During the middle sections, the timbre changes: the runs and arpeggios create a pure, complicated intricate sound. During the chord-heavy, energetic pounding middle section, the timbre is much heavier, yet also sprightly.

I found the form of the song to be a very interesting aspect: Schumann distinctly sets each section of her song apart by the pregnant silences between them. Additionally, each section possesses a different attitude that sets the tone of that section. I enjoyed the building upon and deviations from the first section that gradually morphed into completely independent sections, and the final return to the original section.

I found the minor key to play a heavily influential in this piece: it set the tone to a more somber, serious side, sounding mournful at times, and eerie at others. However, I found the piece in general to be beautiful: alternatingly delicate, elegant, complicated, harsh, and stately, all depending on the section.

Listening Blog #2: “Hor che appollo” – Barbara Strozzi

Instrumentation: Voice (soprano woman soloist), Harpsichord, strings (violins?)

Texture: medium: Homophonic: the voice provides the primary melody, with the harpsichord playing accompaniment (Voice with Harpsichord accompaniment, Harpsichord and strings interludes?)

Range: The vocalist demonstrates a wide vocal flexibility, but remains fairly high in the vocal register for most of the song.

Tempo: The song moves fairly slowly during the vocal/harpsichord interludes, and picks up during the harpsichord/strings interludes for a brief change of pace. There is one exaggerated change ¾ of the way through the song.

Meter: For the most part, the song remains in triple beat: there is one section where the meter changes to a rapid duple beat, and some runs the singer takes artistic license with and so are in fluid meter.

Volume: The volume of the piece stays mostly moderate: this is because the focus is not on dynamics, but on the intricacy of the melody and its interplay with the accompaniment.

Other:

Timbre: The timbre of the song generally seems to be sad: the voice seems especially sorrowful, while the harpsichord and violin interludes sound elegant and refined. In contrast, the one short interlude is very joyous and energetic, with frivolous runs in the singer’s line and excited twanging from the harpsichord.

The song seems to me to sound distinctly Baroque: maybe it’s the presence of the harpsichord, or the trills/appogiaturas the singer does.

It did seem to get pretty repetitive after a while (12 minutes?), and it seemed maybe a little more bare than baroque music I am used to hearing (string-heavy) – maybe because of the audience it was intended for (private or smaller audiences) …?

Listening Blog #1 "O rubor sanguinis" - Hildegard von Bingen

-Instrumentation: The instrumentation of this piece is a women’s choir (composed of soprano voices) singing a cappella.

-Texture: Although monophonic (one melodic line), the singers blend almost seamlessly together to create a strong, unified voice and thick texture to the piece.

-Range: The vocal range required in this piece was fairly large: while the piece was solidly within the range of a soprano voice, it did include a large leap into the higher vocal register of the singers.

-Tempo: the tempo of the music was very slow throughout the piece: it seemed almost ceremonial, perhaps used formally in a church as sacred music?

-Meter/Rhythmic Speed: Additionally, the meter of the piece was highly varied and unpredictable: as fluid meter, it didn’t seem to follow a set pattern.

-Volume: The piece showed a good use of dynamics: Whenever beginning a phrase the singers would start off with a soft volume, crescendo into a strong volume at the climax of the phrase, and then decrescendo into soft volume at the end of the phrase. This created a powerful rising/falling dynamic in the piece.

-Timbre: The timbre of the voices was very straight and still with no vibrato, which is a common sound for choirs. It created a very pure, angelic sound.

Other notes: I thought the piece was powerful in its simplicity: the bare quality of the singer’s voices made it seem very intimate and mysterious and emphasized the rise and fall of their voices. There was definitely a strong religious undertone present, in the reverent quality of the sound and the religious lyrics.

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9/1/09 @ 11:36 PM: Posted?