When it comes to the presentation of Music and Grieving. The connection between the topic and the two music entries is discussed in the presentation because she goes on to mention how “Grieving is a process that people all over the world experience but it is a different experience for everyone”. The songs chosen have been used in many funerals as well as used to remember those who lost their lives. It is also related because in this context music is used in different occasions, specifically funerals, and how the different songs take on the different stages of one’s grief process. For instance, in reference to the lyrics, “Ave Maria ” which was originally played in Catholic churches although it wasn’t intended to be used for prayer at first. Within the song a musically interesting moment is when you are able to hear both “complex cords’ ‘ and “Written in B Major”. Additionally, the next song “I’ll See You Again” by Westlife which is known to be under the soul and R&B genre goes on to encourage individuals to feel a sense of hope through the song. Musical characteristics include “High range in pitches toward middle and end of song” as well as 136 BPM for the tempo”. 

If I had chosen this topic as my own the two songs I would use would be “See You Again” and “Gone to Soon”. In the song  “See You Again” by rapper Wiz Khalifa and American Singer Charlie Puth. This song was created in memory of Paul Walker who had died in a car accident back in November of 2016. Although when taking a deeper look Charlie Puth’s song had inspiration from his own personal life when he lost his close friend in a motorcycling accident which helped fuel the making of this song. Though this song went on to help millions of individuals to mourn. A musically interesting moment would be at 0:54 to 1:14. During this part it changes from singing to Wiz Khalifa somewhat talking right into his rap. Here is where the tempo gets faster compared to the regular singing part since it is at a slower pace. This song connects to the topic because it goes on to remember a fellow friend who had lost his life. In the song, we are able to see how they talk about the day they will be able to see him again as well as reminisce about all the good memories they had. As for the other song, “Gone to Soon” by Michael Jackson. This song connects to the topic because the singer wrote it in memory of his late friend, Ryan White who died of AIDS at only 18 years old. The lyrics help paint a picture of what it’s like to lose someone so close to you, as he uses similes of natural pairs that are missing its other half. A musically interesting moment would be from 2:24 to 2:53. This is because during this part the tempo begins to pick up compared to the beginning and middle of the song where he is singing at a slow pace. You are able to hear the crescendo of the instruments along with the increasing passion in Jackson’s voice as he extends his ability to hit more extreme notes. However, the best part is when things settle down again at the end of the line, and his voice cracks as a result of his emotional pain. Overall, this relates back to the topic of grief because he is remembering the young kid who has passed on. 

A piece of “good” music that im familiar with and that hasn’t been discussed in class would be Man in the Mirror by Micheal Jackson. Micheal Jackson was known to be an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and so much more. This song goes on to highlight the injustices that occur within the world especially during the release time of this song. During the time Micheal Jackson was giving concerts in Yokohama and Osaka, he had dedicated this song in memory to the five year old young boy Yoshiaki Ogiwara from Japan who had been kidnapped for ransom and later murdered. The creation for this song was originally written by Siedah Garrett and Glen Ballard which would be the first outside song in two years he had accepted to sing. The song displays that inorder to make a change within the world it first has to start with yourself. When it comes to the start of the song the tone that is presented shows how his voice starts off slow and at a low sound and gradually gets a more projected higer tone as the chorus follows him throughout the song. While as for the tempo it does start off slow in the beginning as well as toward the middle of the song although his voice gets higer as we move to the mid- end around the sound his voice picks up along with the beat and the chorus that is supporting his voice but continues like this till the the end. A unit that could feature my piece of music as a listening example would be Unit 5:US Popular Music. I think it would fit in this unit because it was and still is an influential work of music today that many individuals are able to connect back to.

A religion that I chose to focus on is Roman Catholicism which is another branch connected to Christianity. Within this religion, music is widely used and praised in all Catholic churches. Some ways in which music is used within this religious practice is during mass when praying to God as well as in different important events. In the article “Catholics and Cultures” goes on to state, “Funerals and weddings almost always include it, in styles particular to each occasion”. While looking at religion many individuals are also prompted into singing within the choir, therefore, learning many of the hymns sung. A piece of music associated with this religion that isn’t featured in the assigned reading would be “Christ Be Our Light by Bernadette Farrell”. This song this piece of music describes as well as expresses religious beliefs and/or serves a religious purpose. This is because it goes on to depict how there are followers within a dark place that are asking christ to take them out of their despair and darkness, to shine a light on them, in their hearts, and within the church. The music that is being heard in this video would be considered homophony due to the one melodic line being accompanied by chords. The timbre is very soothing as the guitar as well as the voice that is singing the song is not high pitch but is being played at a medium-low pitch. As for the rhythm, it has a medium beat when being played not to face but not very slow as well. 

https://www.catholicsandcultures.org/practices-values/music

When it comes to concerts I had only attended one concert when I was younger and that was a Demi Lovato and Nick Jonas concert. They performed together with one another at their “Future Now” tour which was held indoors. The genre of music they performed during that performance was pop. This concert took place back in 2016 in Brooklyn New York at the Barclays Center. The reason behind attending this concert was because it was a surprise gift for my sister, cousins and me. My aunt, uncle, and parents had purchased these tickets and told us the day of when we hurriedly headed over to see the concert. During the whole show, it consisted of just Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas, a few backup singers, and musicians towards the back of the stage.  For the attire Demi had black outfits but also changed during the concert to a pantsuit, Nick was wearing a green plaid jacket with a black shirt, jeans, and a pair of black shoes. Their backup singers and musicians wore the opposite of them which was white attire. 

When it comes to how they were performing the audience was screaming their names as they were beginning to start the show and when the moment came when Nick Jonas also came out on stage to sing along beside Demi and later on by himself. They moved around the whole stage as well as down the middle to be in the center. They would pause and let the audience sing the lyrics along with them. The audience was very lively as they sang along, were recording, and cheered/screamed. Everything did match my expectations because it was a very fun show where I was able to have fun and sing along with the artists.

While compared to the “First movement of symphony No. 5, composed by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performed by the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Barenboim”, The performers are dressed in all black professionally and are shown to be focused on their instruments and their song sheets. The conductor is also very focused and dressed accordingly. As we can see from behind them is a quiet audience who is focusing on the show happening in front of them. There are no sudden or crazy movements from the audience. Additionally, from the comparison, one is more intense but calm as the audience sits there watching and listening. While the other concert I attended could be described as more freely as people are screaming, dancing around, and singing along. 

In the article, “100 years ago today, ‘The Rite of Spring’ incited a riot in a Paris theater”; written by Amar Toor, goes on to illustrate how The Rite of Spring would be known as a memorable, crucial but brutal ballet performance. This performance not only opened individuals’ eyes to its modernism but it would shed away from the traditional works of orchestral ballet that others were fond of. Though this would go on to leave an incredible impression on that of “jazz, minimalism, and other contemporary movements”. When trying to clarify what really took place on the date of May 29, 1913  it is still an ongoing debate till today but one thing is for sure when it comes to the Stravinsky opening it did indeed end in madness. An uproar of laughter led from the audience as the ballets would begin to play with the high pitches of the bassoon. As the instrument would gradually get louder so would the tension of other individuals within the Theater. As the dancers came in dressed within their “whimsical costumes” the performers went on to dance odd and harsh movements. Due to the excessive shouts and calls to the stage it led to the commands being too low for the performers to hear their ques as a result it would lead to Nijinsky having to shout them backstage for all. However, within the crowd a disagreement had broken out between two parties within the audience, thus  leading to having vegetables and various things being thrown at the stage. Due to how disturbing the dance has been categorized as many feel as though this was all part of a public stunt. As stated many feel as though these stories containing the “neat riot” have become overly exaggerated to what had really occurred that day. 

In the article, “Did Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring incite a riot at its premiere?”; written by  Linda Shaver-Gleason, Depicts what really took place of the day of May 29, 1913 at héâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris.As expected this ballet was suppose to depict the “ ritual sacrifice in prehistoric Russia”. What was supposed to be considered a cultural event due to the talented individuals taking place within this event. Unfortunately, nothing was what the audience expected from this ballet as the “ the costumes were ugly, the choreography heavy, and the music harsh”. When it came to the fact of supporting this ballet there were many who were shocked but for a plausible reason and others who just booed this performance. Although this didn’t stop others from trying to defend their involvement in ballet. This led to many insults being yelled as it soon led to the performers being unable to hear the music. Due to the continuation of this argument it would have led to a fight that broke out. However, in reality the riot never actually happened. The event that occurred during the premiere of The Rite was the harsh sounds from the ballet did take place but Stavinsky Felt as though the location of the audience really affected each of them differently especially when it came to those on the balcony that gave it an over all exaggerated effect. Beside the “verbal assaults” that did take place none happened where it was physical. After the premiere many individuals were intrigued but mainly confused by how unusual the music sounded. As one does they did receive backlash where they had to go respond back in interviews explaining the great amount of hard work that went into this production. The Myth had originated from the 1915 quote, “eyewitness Carl van Vechten, who claimed that a man sitting behind him “beat rhythmically on the top of my head with his fists.” Many believe the myth persists because it no longer gives classical music a perspective that it is boring but people actually started a riot over this type of particular music. 

When it came to watching this ballet for the first time I can say I was greatly intrigued but shocked at the exact time as it was not what I expected to see from the sight of what they were wearing. But nonetheless I found it very interesting on how the performers moved along with the harsh music.  If I was in the audience in 1913, I feel I would be modified in the beginning if it was something I never saw before. I feel as though with both the music and dancing  it would draw my attention to which I would not want to look away. I would mainly try to figure out what is happening.

The song I decided to choose to do a comparison between was Favorite Mistake by Giveon and cover by Lloyiso. Giveon Dezmann Evans was born on February 21,1995, in los Angeles County, CA. Giveon is known to be an American R&B songwriter and singer. Has put out various songs of his own but has also collabed with popular artist on multiple different songs. While when it comes to Lloyiso Gojana, he was born March 8,1999 in South Africa. Lloyiso is known to be an singer, songwriter, musician and producer where he focus is more towards soul pop. Lloyiso goes on to not only put out his own music but he also records and post covers of various artist music on both Tiktok and Youtube. 

The song Favorite Mistake goes on to illustrate the feelings of two individuals in a secret love and ongoing affair where one feels that the relationship is not going to last long. Therefore, he feels the need to cut ties off between each another, although it is not something he fully regrets with what happened. When listening to both versions of the same song for Giveon although he is singing it sounds more like a conversation he is having. When it comes to the tempo of this song it shows to be 170 BPM when sung. The texture within the song would be described as homophony since it would only be Giveon singing and this one melodic line being accompanied by chords. In his version you can hear the piano playing at medium pace, with what sounds like a water drouplets and claps following along towards the end. Although a sudden heavy beat is being played at the end of the song. As for Lloyiso his would be described as homophony since once again the one melodic line is being accompanied by chords. Compared to the original is sounds as it is being sung with more emotion and not as a conversation like in the original. The beat could be seen as much slower with a deepen pitch at some points but goes gradually higher during certain points within the song. A similarity within both performances would be at time stamp 2:09 for Lloyiso and 1:41 Giveon, where there is a similar pace in the specific take off for the lyrics “our secret’s safe”. Additionaly, two differences would be the with the original sung by Giveon he performs this song at a much faster and higher pitch starting from the very begining, while for Lloyiso he performs this at a slower and deep pitch but adds high pitches on 1:26, and  2:23. Over all the different musical settings affect the story and/or emotions of the lyric because when it came to Giveons verison it did give off a sad setting but it sound more as if he was just having a conversation. While as for Lloyiso cover you are able to feel a deeper emotion to the events taking place within the song. 

Favorite Mistake- Lloyiso (cover)

Favorite Mistake -Giveon 

A piece of music technology specifically a streaming platform that I had chose was YouTube. The purpose of this streaming platform was to be able to share various types of videos, and be able to do all of the following in one place. For instance, many individuals are able to view, like, share, comment, stream, post stories and download these videos on all different devices. It works to achieve this purpose because it is an app everyone has access to use. With this app they are able to watch countless of different videos on whatever they please which includes songs and music videos. I do not think there are any people that uses this technology in a way that it was not designed for. However, in the past you were only able to upload videos and different clips now Yutube has added many new features that everyone can try. I do have experience with this technology I used to use it almost everyday but now I use it everyonce in a while. With this technology you are a to see a variety of different songs  but a piece of music that I chose was “Dependent” by Keenan Te. This song was released and soon made its way to Youtube within this song it is accompanied by one voice which is in the range of alto and a piano. This song timbre could be described as smooth, and sad like. This technology influence the music it helped to  produce because it was able to be listen to by millions of people.

 https://youtu.be/H0USk7DX7ZM

The song I picked was No One by Alicia Keys.  Alicia Keys whose birth name is Alicia Augello Cook was born January 25,1981 in the state of New York. Alicia Keys was known as an “American singer-songwritter, pianist, and actress, who achieved enormous success in the early 2000s with her blend of R&B and soul music”(Britannica.com).  From the age of four she began her transition into performing which would later lead her to learning how to play the piano at the age if seven years old. Years later she would go on to be signed to Arista Records in 1998 after catching the eye of Clive Davis. This also included being the first to join J records in the 2000s, Davis new Label (Britannica.com). She would later on go on to produce a variety of music throughout the years, including performing by herself and collabing with many other successful performers. My relationship when it comes to this type of music specifical this song would be I would alway hear this song when I was younger with either my siblings, cousins and even my friends when we are listening to different music genres. There would always be a moment where we would play this song and others similar to it due to how fond we were of it. A musically interesting moment when referring to the Rhythm within the song would be how it is oraginze. This is because in the song we are able to hear from the beginning to end how the beat is being played at a slow medium tempo. This is since it is not going increasingly fast nor to slow it stays consistant.  As for another musically interesting moment would be the texture within her song. When listening to the song although there is only one accompanied voice it has two different melodic lines being played therefore would be polyphony.

One of the many historical periods of western art music that is widely recognized by various individuals throughout the span of time would be European Art music: Classical, which was also known as the Enlightenment Period. During this time, it consisted of “classicists” who wanted to achieve being able to express and share a vast amount of universal beauty ideas, as well as through the use of their idealized forms in their artwork with others. The 18th century was known as the age of reason solely due to a variety of individuals such as Voltaire, Diderot, and Lessing who went on to write about “the ideals of reason, objectivity, and scientific knowledge” which they would go on to spread throughout both “european society and culture”. This includes other well-known individuals such as Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Ben Franklin who agreed on the topic of natural rights for individuals rather than that of state rights. Thus this led up to the American Revolution and French Revolution taking place, and so forth.  Furthermore, during this classical period it resulted in composers discarding what they once knew and moving toward learning “compositional techniques such as fugal imitation, and grandeur in favor of transparent textures, a single melody supported by a subordinate accompaniment, and somewhat superficial sentiments.” It had become an important time when performers began to expand their orchestra from about “thirty or forty players”. This led to the orchestra receiving positive feedback from the public after each concert. 

When it comes to the classical historical period, what I find most interesting is that when the orchestra decided to increase the number of performers they would used to strengthen their sound. I find this interesting because compared to the smaller orchestra they possibly had before it’s compelling to see how they wanted to expand the number of instruments used and the increased amount of support they had gotten from the public. Even before having the ability to read the information within the article I was not really knowledgeable about this time period regarding the classical music era. The textbook describes the classical music from this period as switching to a new way of doing music and different styles compared to earlier classical music and mature classical music. For example, the article, states “composers of the early classical period discarded complex textures, learned compositional techniques such as fugal imitation, and grandeur in favor of transparent textures, a single melody supported by a subordinate accompaniment, and somewhat superficial sentiment”.  While “In the mature classical style of Haydn, Mozart, and early Beethoven, counterpoint, processes of rigorous development, and depth of expression reappear, but in the context of classical ideals of clarity, proportion, and refined taste.” The music did sound like what I had expected from the textbook and to my own knowledge. It sounded like a soft melody for many of them but would lead up to a more intense tune and back to a soothing sound for the three different songs. For example, Surprise by Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Piano Concerto, and Beethoven- Moonlight Sonata.