Blog Summary

I was supposed to write this blog summary last week but someone already had wrote one for that week so I thought I would wait and see what people had to say about Jamboree.

The Little Rabbit talked about enjoying Jamboree because of the imperialism (potato) group. The Little Rabbit enjoyed Jamboree which wasn't expected. Mary Beth talked about having to get up so early to work at the booth for Jamboree. She also talked about how the Charleston really drew some people in. Mary Beth also thought it went better than expected. Greenstar also thought Jamboree went well compared to what she expected it to be. She talked about how we had quite a few people come down and join the swing dancing. Similar to Mary Beth, Greenstar liked the Charleston and thought it made people feel more comfortable to join in. Dano talked about seeing the other set ups at Jamboree. Dano talked about how swing dancing was fun but wishes more people would have shown up. Ashley had a good time swing dancing but she thought the overall participation at Jamboree was low. She also talked about how it's hard to dance continually for the whole class period when we only know a few steps.

Not a whole lot of people posted about Jamboree so that's all I got.

Gospel Playlist 2

This playlist, like the last one, was very passionate and interesting to listen to.

I really didn't like "You'd Better Mind" by the Pace Jubilee Singers. They were passionate about what they were singing but I didn't like the main woman's voice. This song was really repetitive and not fun to listen to. I thought it was pretty dull.

In "Black Diamond Express To Hell," Rev. A. W. Nix preaches almost in the form of a poem and randomly breaks out into song. He was passionate about what he was talking about. One question that I have: Is his passion for what he is talking about real or does he just want to appeal to the people he is speaking to, to keep them listening. I want to know what he looks like when he is preaching. I bet it would be very entertaining. Throughout this sermon, the Reverend would repeat certain words or phrases such as "NEXT STATION!" This stood out very clearly and made me laugh everytime he said it. He would yell this when he came to that part of his speech.

"Your Enemy Cannot Harm You (But Watch Your Close Friend)" by Edward W. Clayborn was very bluesy, similar sounding to what we have been listening to in class. It didn't seem as much like the other gospel songs on these playlists. Throughout this song, Clayborn wasn't just singing random lyrics because they would sound good or rhyme, he was instead just speaking his mind and that made it more meaningful. I thought that his voice was decent but not amazing.

I enjoyed listening to these gospel songs. I really like the way they sound and how passionate all the performers are.

Gospel Playlist 1

I actually enjoyed some of the music on this playlist. All of the singers performing these songs were very passionate about what they were singing about.

One song that stood out to me was "Move On Up A Little Higher." The woman singing had a very deep voice and was very passionate about her music. While studying and listening to blues music, it was sometimes hard to understand what was being said but this song was easy to understand and a listener could make out all of the words. I really like the piano in the background, it really added to the song. The steady pace kept the song moving along well. I like this song but the tune was somewhat repetitive. The end of the song was memorable because it just slowly winded down.

I listened to one of the sermons called "You Must Be Born Again" by Rev. Benny Campbell. This was very different from what I am used to hearing in a church. This sermon, just like the music I listened to, is very passionate. The Reverend would repeat certain words to make an imprint on people, to make them remember his message. He also breaks out into song randomly.

Another song that was memorable was "Prayer for the Doomed" by the Chosen Gospel Singers. This was an all men choir, and their low voices were very nice to listen to. I really liked their sound and the harmonizing. The main singer was very passionate. Because this song was so slow, it really makes the listener think about what is being said and what message it is sending.

One last song that was memorable was "Blind Barnabus" by the Golden Gate Quartet. They all had very good voices and have nice harmonization. This song was very upbeat and happy. It makes you want to bounce around or at least bob your head a little. The fact that the song was so upbeat made it fun to listen to. Once again, this song was very passionate like the others.

Episode 5

This episode continued talking about Harry Smith and the Anthology of American Folk Music. In 1952, Harry Smith approached Mo Asch because he was in need of money. He had a large collection of folk music records that he wanted to sell. At that time folk music was referred to by some as hillbilly music or race records.

Mo Asch suggested putting his old records together in a new way. Harry Smith had a little over 80 recordings and he put them together in an organized fashion.

Harry and Mo had a strong relationship. They each had a lot of respect for each other even though Harry was asking Mo for money quite often.

The director of the Harry Smith archives said,

"Harry did not select the songs based on which were his favorites."

Harry Smith said,

"I was looking for exotic records."

I believe that both of these quotes are important because it explains why the Anthology of American Folk Music was such a big deal. The variety and culture present was appealing to people because everyone could find something they liked. Good music reflects the culture and the time period as stated on an earlier episode. Harry Smith understood that and applied it to his work.

yay i'm done

Well I did my performance today. I think it went well. I said everything that I was planning on saying. I really hope I didn't bore all of you too bad. I tried to keep it interesting because I know that nobody likes to listen to something if it puts them to sleep. So sorry to anyone who was dozing off, I tried. I was interested in the topic but I know that doesn't mean that everyone else will be. Thanks for listening. :)

Episode 4 - The anthology of american folk music part 1

In this episode, Harry Smith, born in 1923, was mentioned a bit. He won the major achievement award for anthology of american folk music. It's been 40 years since his films came out. He said,

"My dreams came true. I saw America change through music."

I think that this quote is important because it is really true. Just look around you and its clear that music is a huge part of our society today and in the past. This quote is also important to our class because that is what it is based on. Music. Without it, we wouldn't have a class at all.

Something else that was also mentioned was another type of music; straight forward music but obscure lyrics. The song that was played was "I wish I were a mole in the ground." I thought that this was pretty comical. It was ridiculous and made me and laura laugh.

So once again I lost interest pretty quickly with this episode.

Episode 3 - Folkways: An American Canon

In this episode, Moses Asch was mentioned quite a bit at the beginning. One of his quotes that I found to be meaningful was one that was said while he was talking about true music.

He said, "If it's true of the time, people will need this as a reference book."

I think this is a very important quote. It tells us that if a song is truly good that means that it will directly reflect the time period. It has to be meaningful to last through the times. That also relates directly to our class. We wouldn't have a roots music class if it wasn't for this exact type of music; meaningful and reflective of the times.

This episode mentioned the fact that you should be open to music but at the same time know what you want. Moses Asch would play music and if it was "unworthy" would turn it off within 30 seconds.

In this episode, there was a poem that was read that was written by Moses Asch's favorite poet. The poem was called "The Women Gather." One of the lines in this poem read,

"Most of us love because we have a need to love not because we find someone deserving."

I thought this was ridiculous and I don't think I need to explain myself. I think that everyone can figure out why.

Well overall I was pretty bored with this episode. Sorry

Discussion Summary

Recently in class there hasn't been too much time for discussion because of all the presentations that have been going on. So I will talk about those a bit.

So far I have been extremely impressed with the presentations. Ashley, Jesh, and Kelsey all cooked for the class and it was all amazing. I am a fairly picky eater but everything that they cooked was absolutely delicious. Not only did they all cook for us, but they also had powerpoint presentations to go along with it. They explained what they cooked and its significance to roots music. It was clear that they put a lot of time into their presentations.

Another presentation was based on the hard lives of hobos. Machelle sang a very creative song to go along with her fascinating presentation. Her presentation was incredibly interesting. I didn't know a lot of the information that was presented. It was also really cool how she read from her grandpa's memoirs.

The other presentation was by Cassandra. She performed sign language to go along with a song associated with roots music. That was amazing to watch. She definately kept my attention throughout her whole presentation. After the song she discussed different deaf musicians that are performing around the world today. It was really interesting and a very creative choice.

So far each performance choice has been very unique and well thought out. I have been so impressed with each performance. Everyone who has gone has definately raised the bar for the rest of us. Great job!

Song Project continued...

I chose to do my project on that song because it has an interesting sound to it. I have been reading about Skip James for my performance for class and he sounds really interesting and unique. This song was mentioned quite a bit and I would like to learn more about it.

Song Project

I have decided to do my song project on "Devil Got My Woman" by Skip James

Possible Performance Ideas

So I have been thinking hard about this performance and am not sure yet quite what I plan on doing. I have some time to think about it which is a very good thing at this point.

Originally I thought about playing my clarinet but as I considered it more and more the final answer is NO

I was thinking of maybe making some kind of collage. I haven't thought about a lot of the details yet but I would have to make it meaningful in some way. Not sure yet how to accomplish that but I am working on it.

That's all I got. The creative juices aren't flowing.

Pandora Playlist

This was an interesting playlist. Some of it was absolutely fantastic and I would listen to it on a daily basis but on the other hand some of it made me want to vomit. I listened to a few songs by Skip James. I think he was phenomenal. His voice was incredible and the style of his singing was very original. I also truly enjoyed Mahalia Jackson and Blind Willie Johnson. Both of these artists had amazing vocal skills and were easy and enjoyable to listen to. A couple of the vomit-worthy artists that I listened to were Bill Monroe and Roy Acuff. They were definately not my style and it made me wish that I was deaf. I do understand however that some people like that style but it just wasn't for me.

Prologue and Chapter 1 of "Deep Blues"

After reading both the prologue and chapter one of "Deep Blues" I think I have a deeper understanding of where blues actually originated from. The pages assigned to us for reading were very informative. It was interesting to read about but because there was so much information included, it was hard to absorb it all. It helps to read a little bit at a time to try and understand all the information presented. I really liked how the prologue is split up with a personal story and historical background of the time period. It really helps the reader stay interested and focused.
I was surprised to find out that most all music is attributed to Delta Blues in some way. I didn't ever realize that so much of what we hear today has some characteristics of early blues music. I was also somewhat amazed to find out that although blues is made up of very basic rhythms and music, many people are unable to master it. Delta Blues focuses on the lyrics of the music rather than the rhythm. It is impossible to define Blues in a specific way; it has a tendency toward 12 bar, AAA or AAB verse forms.
Blues music is derived from early African music. For example the Wolof people are most likely the creators of the banjo which is a very popular American musical instrument. Black performing style was very distinctive with grainy vocal textures, and rhythmic momentum. Black American music has always contained impure sounds. You can hear the rasp in some folk, blues and jazz music.
One thing I had trouble understanding was a sound described on pg. 45:
"...pressing a knife against the strings to get a slurred, moaining, voicelike sound that closely followed his singing."
I have trouble imagining what that would sound like. I think it would be interesting to hear it sometime.
I thought it was ironic that the term "primitive music" was used on page 46 considering the fact that we discussed the use of this word describing music for about 20 minutes during one of our classtimes.

Governor Blanco

Going to Governor Blanco's speech was eye-opening and interesting. I was very interested in hearing her experience with Katrina. She really was there and saw everything first-hand. Unlike the unreliable news reporters (which she mentioned), Gov. Blanco was able to share with us some of the truth surrounding this terrible catastrophe. I also really liked hearing her story about how she became governor. She beat all odds and was able to acheive that title. It is amazing because of the fact that she is a woman and because of her political standing. She seems like a very amazing person and I am extremely happy that I was able to hear her speak about her experiences.

Initial Blog Assignment

Why did you sign up for a roots music FYS section?

While I was looking through the options for the First Year Seminars, this music roots class stood out to me. It sounded very interesting and I thought I would enjoy learning more about different types of music.

If you could take 5 pieces of music with you to a desert isle, what would they be?

• "45" by Shinedown
• "Everything Changes" by Staind
• "Here We Are" by Breaking Benjamin
• "I Miss You" by Incubus
• "Boston" by Augustana

What's a piece of music you associate with a parent, grandparent, or someone you know well that's at least a generation older than you.

I've never heard any of the music that my grandparent's listen to. I honestly don't think they listen to a whole lot. My dad enjoys listening Led Zeppelin. My mom listens to a lot of modern Christian music.

If we all decided to replace the national anthem with a new song, and everyone agreed that you got to choose, what would you recommend?

It would be tough to choose a new song to be the national anthem. Obviously the national anthem should be patriotic. That is an important element. I know that modern isn't always better but maybe something that isn't so traditional. There is no way I could choose a song without input from other people. I think it is fine the way it is.

What kinds of music related performance stuff (if any) do you do?

Throughout high school I was pretty involved in band. I'm not in band anymore but I did enjoy it while I was. I participated in contests through our school and I did two summers of marching band. Over the summer, I traveled to Europe with a band and we played concerts in seven different countries. We traveled for two and a half weeks.

Given the readings and what (little) you know about Governor Blanco, if you had a chance to ask her one question, what would it be?

I guess I would ask her what it was like dealing with hurricane Katrina. I haven't been through a terrible natural disaster like that so I would like to know what it was like having to work to rebuild everything from pretty much nothing.