My First Semester

WHEW! I feel like it's all happened so quickly. Only one more week remains until I can proudly announce, "I have survived my first semester of college!" This is my first time being so far away from home and I can't lie...it's tough. I miss the comfort and protection of my home. It's true! You don't realize what you have until it's gone. I would've never appreciated my comfy bed or the size of my refrigerator or even how far the bathroom is from my room had I not left for college. However, I have learned a lot this first semester. Not just academics, but also more about myself. If I could re-do this whole experience, here is what I would tell myself:

1. Just because there is nothing due for the amazing amount of readings you have to do, doesn't mean you can put it aside. It WILL appear on exams.
2. Bring an extra blanket. Dorm rooms get freakishly cold and the radiator sounds like a dying whale...PREPARE YOURSELF.
3. Have food and snacks in your room. A human can only take Burge food for so long...
4. DON'T procrastinate. At least try not to...
5. Have FUN! It's not all about studying. Reward yourself for all the effort you've put in and go out to eat or watch a movie with friends.

I enjoyed this class and seeing everybody's interpretations of what we listened to. Good luck on finals!

Your Prescription: Music!

For my final project, I wrote about the powers of music to heal. Since this was handed in, I'd like to share parts of it with the class. In my opinion, I believe there's a part of us that realizes music has positive effects on our psyche but it's never outwardly acknowledged. I mean, how often have you had a tough day and all of sudden: BAM! Your favorite song comes on the radio and you smile like the cheesiest person ever and start singing along? ...Is it just me?

This subject was inspired by Modeste Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. As we have previously discussed, Mussorgsky dedicated his suite of piano pieces to a dear friend, Victor Hartman. In memory of a person special to him, Mussorgsky expressed his grief through music. What better medicine to treat such depression than music? Music is a “treatment” with only positive side effects and is actually enjoyable! When applied with intention, music has been shown to help organize the brain, elevate mood, increase socialization and appetite, and reduce agitation.

Music therapy can be defined as an interpersonal process where the therapist uses music and all of its features: physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and spiritual in order to help clients (note how they are not called “patients”) improve or maintain their health. Music therapy can be used on individuals of all ages and for a variety of conditions like psychiatric disorders, medical problems, physical handicaps, sensory impairments, developmental disabilities, substance abuse, communication disorders, interpersonal problems, and aging. It can also improve learning, build self-esteem, reduce stress, support physical exercise, as well as many other health-related activities.

Research shows that music increases the level of endorphins, the body’s natural pain relievers, released which results in a decrease of pain levels for those with physical challenges. Commonly used in therapy is the hand drum. Drum playing is beneficial for improving motor skills, which will result in better coordination and movement. Recent research also suggests that drumming accelerates physical healing, boosts the immune system, and lifts the spirits. Learning ability and memory can also be enhanced due to the need for concentration on creating sounds and rhythm

Clinical evidence shows that the left brain enjoys rhythmic structures, chord progressions, and the way lyrics fit nicely. The right brain enjoys melody and emotional responses produced by the infinite combinations of instruments and voices. Dr. Gottfried Schlaug found that when an area of the brain is disabled due to trauma or disease, music provides a unique passageway to reach that area, sometimes restoring impaired functions like movement, memory, and speech. Researchers have found that music can create a steady pace that helps patients with advanced Parkinson’s initiate walking. Music therapy is also used to temporarily open up areas of memory for those with Alzheimer’s. In one study, mood and function improved greatly in subjects with dementia who realized if they pushed a button, they would be rewarded with a familiar song. Stroke victims who developed speech impairments were taught to improve speech fluency by expressing themselves in a chant-like form of singing

Humans naturally embody this innate sense of music. Even the language we speak is music in itself. It is a means of self-expression and self-actualization. For those of us who aren't as verbally active (like myself) or for those who are suffering from a disease that prevents them from verbal expression, music is a pain-free solution.

To learn more, here are the sources where I found all of this information:
http://www.caregiver.com/articles/general/healing_power_of_music.htm
http://www.temple.edu/musictherapy/home/program/faq.htm
http://www.macalester.edu/academics/psychology/whathap/ubnrp/audition/site/history of music therapy.htm
http://www.webwire.com/ViewPressRel.asp?aId=132693
http://hsionline.com/2010/03/18/music-2/

Male Domination?!

Ever since Professor Manning mentioned that the large majority of symphony orchestras are male, I was intrigued as to why women are a minority in orchestras. Perhaps this is my intrigue in social inequality coming out, but anyway...on to the good stuff!

I found a great site promoting Women's History Month and orchestra concerts. All of my information can be found here.

Many U.S. ensembles are making progress. For example, about 40% of the San Diego Symphony are women in comparison with Russia's Mariinsky Orchestra's 25% women players. The Vienna Philharmonic promoted Albena Danailova to concertmaster, making her the first woman to hold the key post of top violinist in the orchestra's 168 year history!

Unfortunately, despite these advances, leadership positions like conductor, executive director, and concertmaster are usually held by men.The women’s movement in the 1960s helped change perceptions. However, the break-through came in the 1970s and 1980s, when orchestras began using screens in preliminary audition rounds so that the judges couldn't tell if the applicant was male or female. A study by a Princeton economist showed that screens played a significant role in increasing the number of women who landed orchestra jobs.

What does this mean? Well, to me, I feel there must be some sort of hesitation about having women in charge. In any case, progress is being made, regardless of how slow this shift is. Maybe someday there will even be a full female symphony orchestra! Until then...

Conductors: Do We Need Them?

I don't know about you, but every time we watched videos of orchestra performances in class, I would notice how animated the conductor's actions were and all the funny faces they made. This led me to think about why they are so important. After all, the musicians are the ones creating the music. What's so special about this one person standing in front of 100 or so people flailing their arms? Anybody can do it...right?

WRONG. As a former music student myself, I was taught that to sound good, you needed to sound as one. Whether an orchestra consists of 13 people or 1,000 people, the key to perfection is sounding like one fine-tuned instrument. While sitting there and playing, it's not always easy to take notice of everybody else or hear them from across the room. On top of that, you need to concentrate on the notes in front of you. How do you stay on beat? The person flailing their arms at the front of the room is the key. As long as you keep that person in your sight, you can stay on beat and catch all the cues.

I did a little research and found this: Are conductors really necessary?

This article gives a lot of insight from the conductor's point of view. Many people think conducting is easy and that anybody can do it. Vladimir Ashkenazy of the Sydney Symphony says this, "No performance is the same as another one. Sometimes you are inspired to do phrasing this and that way, and the orchestra reacts. I've seen great orchestras playing without a conductor the pieces they knew. They played it well, but there was no particular direction. Somehow it was mechanical — without substance, without an interpretation."




Like a director gives life to a movie script, a conductor breathes life into the notes on the page. Any musician can play beautifully with enough practice, but to really reach the hearts of the audience, it requires somebody passionate about music standing on 'the outside' to draw the notes out.

Fugue in D Minor

Fugue In D Minor

Bach a composer of the Baroque created a piece called Fugue in D Minor. This piece is one of my favorites. It is starts with a very famous introduction that creates an image of a sort of haunted house in the middle of the night. The rest of the piece can take you through a story of what is going on in the house. I Imagine an intruder coming into the house and running into many supernatural happenings such as ghosts and trapped doors. In the end of the song a feeling of doom is created as if he is now a part of the creepy house.

Kids These Days

KTD-Intro (Mental)

Program Music is essentially music with no words that is mean to to create a narrative in ones imagination. The majority of the population though does not listen to this sort of music anymore. Many extremely successful and famous artist don't create this music either. But many artists are inspired by these past creations of the many successful artist who created program Music. Kids These Days is a band that connects modern day Rap with some classic jazz and some old rock at times. Many of the members who attended music school have listen to many composers of different eras and have been inspired by them. In their intro with no lyrics they create a narrative and a set up of the rest of the album. I imagine Vic the lead Vocalist of the band walking down a bad neighborhood in Chicago deep in thought preparing to tell the story of his struggles and life which he goes on to to do in the rest of the album Traphouse Rock.

Disney and Program Music

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxBJYSU3RJ8

Disney and program music go hand in hand and it is no wonder why. Pieces similar to the Nutcracker Suite consist of great sounds that create many different types of images in ones head. The many runs and the quick switches in melodies and high to low notes is basic in creating images in someones head. When we listen to the music we can imagine many different types of things. What is most interesting about this is that the music is mostly created before the films. This means that many times Disney will create an animation to move in unison with the music instead of the reverse. So it is very interesting to think that the music is controlling the characters instead of the characters influencing what music will be playing.

So I was looking up random music facts and I came across something interesting. A lot of modern pop songs have been critizied or labled as simplistic and regurgitated, but I didn't understand fully why they were given such titles until I watched this video. Apparently several pop songs that have done very well use the same set of chords in the key of D. After watching the video maybe some of you will have that lightbulb moment as I did, and listen for it in future mainstream pop songs to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOlDewpCfZQ