Performance Report #2: Side Show

The event I attended was Side Show: The Musical on Thursday April 15^th at 8 pm in the University Theatre. This music culture consists of musical numbers put together to create a story, all while singing the words with little dialogue. The story of this particular musical is about true story events of two conjoined twins born in England that moved to San Antonio, Texas to take their talents of singing and dancing to a new level. The twins were abused by their manager and left the side shows to create a show of their own. Both twins end up getting married and divorced because the marriages were probably just a publicity stunt.

The performance repertoire included songs about self-acceptance, love, and musical numbers from the twin’s performances along their journey. The cast’s first number was an introduction to most of the characters in the freak show. All their conversations between each other were sung and there were no transitions or breaks between musical numbers within each act. I observed that numbers with three or less characters were usually a conversation while those numbers including the entire cast were sung towards the audience. Throughout the entire show, I was surprised the band played music the entire time, whether it was accompanying the characters or background music for transitions in between each number. The rhythm and timbre of each number went along with the mood of the lyrics of that song. For example, a song about the devil had a very dark timbre, or the songs about love were long and drawn out. Each song also showed the range of each character depending on who the main cast member was during that musical number.

The performers in this musical included the cast and the pit band. The cast always had expressions or reactions on their face whether they were the center of attention or not. There was only one performer/audience interaction I observed in one of the cast members nearly jumping into the audience. The many costume changes contributed to the visual elements of the performance while creating the setting of the musical. If the cast were not singing, they would be dancing either together or by themselves. They also used lots of body language to get their message across and make their lines more effective. The pit band was positioned on stage but was covered up most of the time.

The audience had a certain buzz to them before the show started. The audience members were made up of half students and most likely half parents. The audience clapped after every number where there was a noticeable stop in the performance. There was a very positive reaction during the intermission and the audience showed an even bigger reaction when they gave a standing ovation during the curtain call.

The space of the theater was set up to where the audience was positioned very close to the stage. I think the day had an effect on the amount of people that showed up because Thursdays were free admission and it was also the opening show of that week.

The elements of music performance were very clear and well brought out. The music itself is there to tell a story all while singing, dancing, and acting. There is a much bigger emphasis on the singing aspect overall. The performers always have an expression on their face when singing or dancing. They also display their emotion on stage using their body language to display their feelings more effectively to the audience. The audience played a factor in how the spirits were on stage by their reaction to the performance. The time and space also made for a packed house and a very successful show.

Works Cited

Side Show. By Bill Russell and Henry Krieger. Dir. Kathryn Evans. Perf. UTD Cast. Con. Winston Stone. University Theatre, Richardson. April 15 2010.

Classic Rock

I consider Classic Rock as one of the most popular subgenres of rock music today. Some unique features, aside from the common features of rock in general are the higher sounding male vocals from bands of this classic rock era and guitar solos throughout many of the songs. If you listen to any major classic rock artists such as the Eagles, the Beatles, AC/DC, or Boston, you find vocals sung by a male in a higher range than a man would sing today. Many of these famous bands have a lead guitarist who will get their time to shine for an interval, short or long. An aspect of music performance for this era was playing concerts on tour in very big venues. The Beatles, being from the UK, came over to the U.S. and sang in front of thousands at Shea Stadium, home of the baseball team, the New York Mets.

A great example song that shows all these features of classic rock is “Hitch A Ride” by Boston. Starting from the very beginning, we hear the prominent use of the electric guitar. At 8 seconds into the song, we get our first sounds of the high male vocals that are found in many popular songs in this era. The strong beats within a four-beat cycle begin at the 25-second mark. The 1 minute and 30 second mark starts the ever-popular guitar soloist. I’m not sure if it is true or not, but I believe most of the solos are improvised. We also hear the use of creative technology and the synthesizing of the electric guitar during the solo to make it stand out. At the 2 minute and 30 second mark, the start of a longer guitar solo begins with some harmony thrown in until the end of the song.

The Gullah Culture

The Gullah people have a very unique culture. Their ideas about music are very rhythmic while they sing songs through their own dialect – a cross between the native Gullah language and English. Throughout these songs, they try to rid the thought of slavery. The Gullah people do not take for granted that their ancestors went through slavery when they first came to the island. The activities around their music include how they pray to God, their dances, and burial customs. According to Queen Quet, their dance movements consists of however the music makes them feel and move. The Gullah people believe highly that the spirits must be laid to rest the right way. Their repertoire of music includes chant songs from the days when their ancestors were slaves or about the freedom they enjoy now. The material culture of the Gullah really focuses on their drums and percussion. In most videos, it looks like they rely on the conga drum.

The aspects of their music performance have a very free nature to it. The rhythms included in their music have repetitive patterns but change throughout the song. Their use of other percussion can include other instruments like bells or a type of shaker. The performers are nearly anyone who plays the drums or dances throughout the music. In most cases, the audience becomes the performers.

Performance Report #1: Richardson Community Band - Spring Showcase

Overall, each section of instruments created one unison sound as if it were one instrument playing rather than making it sound like 10 flutes were trying to play in unison. The Star Spangled Banner had a faster tempo than what you would normally hear played at a sporting event. The harmony parts created by the brass instruments really stood out. The Duke of Cambridge March had a unique percussion timbre as the snare drum gave off this feeling that you were in the middle of battle marching towards combat. The Pavane for a Dead Princess was originally written as a “parlor piece”. Naturally, the music had a somber feeling to it. Most sections were very gentle and legato and took the form of a soundscape. In the Overture a la Russe, there was a change in pace from the last piece as it was very energetic from the very first note. This piece did have an ABA form where the B section had a slower feeling to it. The one characteristic that made this piece unique was the simple, yet unnatural percussion sounds used such as the slapping of sticks together. The Federal March had a carnival sound to it with rhythmic note sequences. The Symphonic Suite was sounds from the film score of the television series Band of Brothers. The brass and wind instruments were very prominent in this medley. Choreography was written to show the energy in the ideas of theatrical choreography. The music was very swift moving with variable speeds throughout the piece. Steadfast Leadership included small elements like bugle calls and parts of songs from the U.S. Army since this was written for the 1956 graduating class of West Point. The wind instruments really stood out throughout the piece. The “war horse” of all band music is said to be the Overture of 1812. This song tells the story of the War of 1812. There were lots of scales and many repetitive phrases or pattern of notes. To authenticate this story of the War of 1812, the director decides to use computer-produced cannon shots. The Directorate March was light and joyful; a great way to wrap up the concert.

The performers included the band director and the band members. Each band member walked on stage individually from backstage and either talked to one another or warmed up non-formally 5 minutes before the concert began. They were dressed in black dresses for the women and a suit and tie for the men. The band members made sure their instruments were in tune together before the director came out on stage. The director was there to keep the band on tempo. If the piece being performed consisted of a faster tempo, he would use a baton, or directing stick, to ensure everyone was able to see the fast tempo. Once the band started to perform, I noticed two major observations. The first observation was the band members focus on their sheet music while keeping the director in their peripheral vision. My second observation was watching some band members tap their foot in order to keep the beat along with the director. In Choreography, while some members weren’t playing, they would be swaying along with the music. In between pieces, the director gave background information of the next piece to give us an overview of what to expect.

The most notable observation about the audience is that they consisted of mostly elderly people, with the exception of a pair of children who were there to watch their mom or dad. The audience was very respectful and knew when to clap like when the director came out at the beginning of the concert and intermission and after he stepped off the podium after each piece the band performed. The audience naturally stood up for the Star Spangled Banner, while some even sang softly to themselves. During the first half of the show, everyone was very concentrated on the performers and the performance itself. About halfway through the performance, it seemed that the audience was loosing up as some were clapping along with the rhythmic pieces or nodding their heads along with parts they were familiar with. After intermission, the audience seemed to become very animated as they laughed with the director at some of his background information jokes or directed along with the most common part of Overture of 1812. The audience gave standing ovations after the final two pieces of the concert.

This concert was performed on a Sunday afternoon, which attracted the type of audience it did. The concert was performed at the Eisemann Center, one of the main performance centers in Richardson. It was a very large performance hall where the stage was big enough for the entire band to fit in a semi-circle shape with the director standing in the middle of it. It seemed like there was way too many seats for a community-based concert. It could have easily been a different turnout for the concert on Saturday night.

Works Cited:

Spring Showcase. Perf. Richardson Community Band. Cond. George W. Jones. Eisemann Center Hill Performance Hall, Richardson. March 28, 2010. (Spring Showcase)

Lasciami, non t'ascolto

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This duet, Montserrat Caballe and Marilyn Horne, sing "Lasciami, non t'ascolto" from Rossini's opera, Tancredi. The song title translate to "Lasciami, I do not listen to you". Not knowing anything about this particular opera, the music sounds like it is telling a sorrowful story from these two women's prospective. The music itself shows a wide range of intervals. The performers help with the ornamentation of some of the notes. The contour of the song is very complex but consists of mostly conjunct motion. Some of the disjunct motion could be due to the singer's vibrato. When there is that much vibrato present, it tends to be hard to dictate the constants. Although its hard to tell what they are saying, there is a beautiful section of harmony executed when they sing together. The singers show more of their skills as a duet when they show their execution of the dissonance around minute 7:00. The performers themselves interact with each other to give that feeling that both women are going through the same thing. The first perofrmer interacts with the audience to tell her story, then the second singer interacts with the other singer, then the audience together. The whole piece is basically a polyphony, whether it is between the first singer and the orchestra or between both singers.

Avatar's Film Score and Na'vi Culture

The film score in Avatar has an emotional timbre to it. The sounds are connected to a certain character's emotion during the movie, or if you were to close your eyes during a scene, the film score would paint the picture around you of what might be happening. This goes for nearly any film score; it relates the sounds to the emotions or space around it to make you feel like you are really apart of the movie.

After listening to the soundtrack during the Na'vi ceremonies like Jake becoming one of "The People", their culture is very similar to that of Native Americans. I found an article that gives several references between the Na'vi being a cultural tribe. Their connection or relationship with Earth is very similair to those Native American tribes that practiced Earth-based religions. There was also a reference of the Native Americans were considered the outsiders. The outsider groups would usually refer to themselves as a different name typically translating to "The People". The Na'vi group was considered "The People" by the humans trying to explore their world. Another similarity to the Native American tribes was the simple weaponary the Na'vis carried around as they also lived a hunt/killing ritual and sacrificing the animals they hunted.

The separation between film score and the music of the Na'vi is very easy to pick out. The film score usually has the sound of an orchestra with no words. The music of the Na'vi has several tribal sounds to it. There is either the unique drumming patterns or the big give away would be the foreign language being sung either by a group of the tribe or a soloist.

Article on Na'vi Similarity to Native Americans

Texas Country Musical Ethnography

The Dallas music culture that I decided to research is Texas Country music. This particular culture symbolizes the hard working cowboy that has a laid back personality. The activities of Texas Country music consists of dancing in dancehalls with live concerts most of the time. Repertoires for live concerts include songs about Texas, its landscape, and anything that means something to the writer and singer of the songs. We see material things in this culture such as acoustic guitars, cowboy hats and boots, and denim jeans. The preservation of this type of this type of music is to try and become a mix of small town Texas Country to “Top 40” Nashville Popular Country.

My research data was done a few ways. A lot of information was taken from observation during the Pat Green concert I attended. I felt it helped see the music culture in action. Other information was taken from different country music artist’s official website. Biographies of these artists helped answer questions about the general idea of the Texas Country music culture. I conducted my interviews by asking three questions that I think fill the gap to two of my friends who I believe know more about the Texas Country music culture than I do. The Pat Green concert I attended was held at Billy Bob’s Texas: The World’s Largest Honky Tonk located in Fort Worth, Texas. In 1910, it was originally built to house cattle for the Fort Worth Stock Show. It is the center of country music in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

The culture defines music with its lyrics and its distinct characteristics in its music. My friend Larry Bolding, who knows well about the Texas Country music culture, says the songs that are recorded and played at concerts are focused around the acoustic guitar or a fiddle. The lyrics to most of these songs have several themes: cowboys, being a Texan, drinking, romance, or just having a good time. The cowboy songs are probably the most stereotyped songs by those listeners that are not around the culture very much. Nearly every artist has a song about growing up a Texan or lyrics that state Texas is the best place to be. Alcohol is another big theme that occurs in many of the songs. This theme appears in songs along with just about all the other themes in the same songs. Texas Country artists also write at least one song about love usually inspired by one they have fallen in or out of love with. The beliefs of this culture is having fun and enjoying life to the fullest while remembering the ups and downs. Basically any life experiences will be sung about. The aesthetic qualities in this culture are not required but are seen as proper attire when going dancing at a dancehall or attending a concert. The “proper attire” consists of a cowboy hat (more for the guys), cowboy boots and denim jeans. The cowboy is the image that Texas Country music originated from. The cowboy came onto the scene when the term Texas outlaws were a big hit in theaters.

Activities involving this music culture contribute to the overall image of Texas Country music. Two-stepping is a big part in bringing people together and dancing to Texas Country music. Larry Bolding notes that he can always tell the difference between a “Top 40” country song and a Texas country song because Texas country songs are easier to dance to. The typical dance you might see in a place like the Gruene Dancehall is called a Texas two-step. The great thing about the artists in this music culture is that even if they play professionally, they know they got their start somewhere just playing as a hobby. Bolding says Texas country music artists usually start out by playing their guitar or singing with their buddies until someone starts to like the way their music sounds. The young artist then begins to either try and write their own songs or play other famous artists songs at local bars and clubs wherever they may be able to get a gig. Pat Green stated at his concert “it’s great to play music for a living”. So even though he still plays professionally now, he loves what he does and could do it, as a hobby if touring did not require money. Another great thing about the Texas country music culture is that anyone at anytime can work their way up the ranks to become a great Texas country artists; the culture welcomes most everyone.

The genre this music culture fits into would be the overall genre of country music. The music nearly always has lyrics that are very significant. The words usually tell a story and relates to the listener’s life experiences. The composer of these lyrics is typically the lead singer of the band but all band members can have input into any of the songs. The act of composition in the current day is very important in order to keep every artist unique. The actual repertoire of a Texas country music artists’ concert usually starts out by playing one of their more popular song, then playing some of their other songs that have not made the top charts of a Texas country radio station. Depending on if the band or artist is playing in front of a large crowd, the audience may request on encore if they have not heard the band or artist’s top hit.

The material culture of this music is just about the same as the aesthetic qualities of the culture. In order to really participate in the culture a hundred percent, you must have a cowboy hat, boots and jeans to play the part. These clothes can be bought from any country western store around town at places like Cavendar’s Boot City and much other small country wear shops.

My last question I had for Larry Bolding was “what artists of bands best embody the Texas country music culture?” I agreed when he gave me a list of Randy Rogers Band, Josh Abbot Band, Kyle Park, and Casey Donahough. These people or bands exemplify the local country boy who likes to have fun and is really laid back. The Texas country music culture is on the up rise and gaining popularity fast.

Sources:

Billy Bob's Texas History

Texas Country History