Music and Civilization

La Boheme by Italian composer Puccini is a four part opera that has stood the test of time and has been performed all over the world. The world performance of the opera was in 1896. The opera is based of a novel that depicts how life was for bohemian refugees living in Paris. The opera has a wide range of emotions, from the calm, slightly sad start in the first act, all the way into the fast tempo and dissonant anger that the composer has about the treatment of the refugees. One of my favorite songs is La Boheme by French Singer Charles Aznavour. He sings about the refugees from the french perspective while puccini takes an outsider perspective on the subject matter. If i ever do attend an opera i would love to attend La Boheme.

Clair de Lune is without a doubt my favorite of Debussy’s compositions. The piece was written to reflect the emotions one experiences while experiencing the moonlight. It is written in A B A form for piano. The A part begins the piece, soft and light, the B part fills in all the empty spaces with flurries of notes and increases the dynamics. The B melody provided a contrast to the A part, using a wide range of movement and intensity while A maintains its soft and light elements.  At the end of A, the piano plays chords in way that imitates the sounds of a harp, giving the listener a true depiction of what the moonlight evokes.

I have known what song i was going to play at my wedding before i turned 14. The Trogg’s song, “With a Girl Like You” makes the listener feel happy and optimistic. My mom used to play this song in our kitchen just so i would dance around like a maniac, smiling like i had just gotten married to the girl of my dreams. The song goes “ And so, before this dance has reached the end, to you across the floor, my love i’ll send. I just hope and pray that i can find the way to say “can i dance with you?”  The song just gets me every time and i can’t wait to one day have my first dance with my wife to this amazing tune. As to what song i would want played at my funeral.... This is something i had never thought about until this assignment. I personally believe that the true sadness regarding a loved ones passing is the people they leave behind are left to deal with the sorrows of loss, while the deceased have hopefully moved onto a better place. I would want something that reminds the people attending my funeral of me and how i wouldn’t want tears and sadness but a happy celebration of life. So i suppose i would want something with a simple happy melody that would make people feel peaceful. 

Sounds of the South has become a Milledgeville tradition for my friends and I. The annual music festival started back in 2012 as a night to promote local Atlanta/Milledgeville bands at the different bars downtown. This year several of my favorite bands performed during the two night takeover of Milledgeville. The cost this year was a meager $10 for a wristband for the two day event and featured several up and coming bands like New Madrid, Culture Culture, and my favorite performer of the weekend: Good Thoughts (pictured above :)) The main genre of music was definitely alternative rock which in my personal opinion is one of the greatest contributions our generation has made to musical history in the last 20 years. I definitely would recommend that students taking this course in the Spring take advantage of this awesome weekend we have provided for us by the many sponsors (primarily the downtown bars) that put on this amazing weekend in Milledgeville. For students who take this course in the fall, Deep Roots is another great musical event hosted in Milledgeville. 

Guillaume de Machuat’s “Quant En Moi” tells the tale of a broken love and a man’s search for an end to his suffering. Machuat was a french composer and poet, he has been referred to as the last great poet who was also a composer. Born in 1300 there is not a significant amount of information on his life, we do know that he composed the Messe de Nostre Dame, the earliest known complete setting of the Ordinary of the Mass. The piece sounds heavily influenced by Gregorian style chanting and incorporates Latin and French throughout the lyrics to the song. If i am being completely honest at first listen i did not like the piece. At the second listen i still was not a huge fan of the music style. It has a dissonant tone throughout the song and makes the listener feel removed from their surroundings and captured by the trippy elements of the chanting and sudden tempo changes. The best way i know to describe this song now is a beautiful piece of musical insanity. Having made a music video for this particular song for the class, i will always remember this class having introduced me to this whole new world of musical genres and definitely associate Quant En Moi with the memories. 

The concerto of Aranjuez has some of the most beautiful guitar i have ever heard! The piece contains several  guitar solos that accent the melody in a way that just soothes you and makes you feel like you are in Mexico. The texture was consonant throughout and easy to follow. The piece is by far Rodrigo’s most famous work. It was composed in 1939 at the Royal Palace of Aranjuez, which i looked up and is absolutely magnificent. This work painted a picture in my mind that made me feel content and pensive. 

The 40th Symphony was completed on 25 July 1788. During which time he also completed the 39th and 41st symphonies. It is thought that these three symphonies were meant to be a unified work. The tone was not relaxing but almost made me feel anxious while listening. I personally am not a fan of Mozart’s 40th sympathy. And according to my research Mozart never even heard his 40th performed, and never intended for it to be performed but rather just as a composed work to last eternity. The texture was dissonant, and the mood was rather somber in my opinion.  It felt like the piece dragged out towards the end and didn’t really paint a picture like some of the other songs.

Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring, Section VII lead to him receiving the Pulitzer prize for music in 1945. The piece starts off very slowly and contains a calm and flowing tone throughout the song. The flute carries you away on a peaceful journey. The tone is definitely soothing, the melody is consonant, the texture is polyphonic and really emphasizes the flute. I loved how different the style was from Hoe Down even though it was composed within two years of Hoe Down.

This year Georgia College had one of my all time favorite performers playing for their homecoming concert. His name is Dave Burd, a.k.a. Lil Dicky. Lil dicky is a rapper who draws heavily from his upper middle class, Jewish, suburbs upbringing. His music style incorporates a flow method with a progressive beat that goes from rapping very fast to almost talking over the music to tell whatever story he wants. He closed out his set by singing the national anthem. He was technically the opening act for Rich Homie Quan, an Atlanta rapper famous for hitting the quan. I did not enjoy Rich Homie’s performance nearly as much as Lil Dicky’s show. As far as the effect the music had on the crowd it was amazing to see how this show brought together all the students of gcsu and created an atmosphere where everyone was happy to celebrating together and singing along to the songs. 

Hoe Down from the ballet “Rodeo” by Aaron Copland is one of the five sections of music in the ballet. The piece is from 1942 and the ballet company that choreographed it moved to the U.S. from Monte Carlo due World War 2. The song Hoe Down definitely took much inspiration from folk music and really sounds like it is intended to inspire movement, which after researching the song makes sense since it is performed during the ballet. It is the final part of the five section ballet, and makes great use of strings and horns throughout the song. I personally do not find enjoyment in this kind of folk/country music so the piece was definitely one of my least favorite from the listening section but i can appreciate the way the Copland had the song incorporate the Irish theme of Gilderoy through the oboe and clarinet. 

My name is Liam Devlin. I am a sophomore studying spanish and economics. My favorite genre of music is definitely alternative rock. I think its because of the many alt-rock concerts I've seen that makes me love the genre. I have never attended a classical concert, but i look forward to experiencing my first one this semester. Recently i have been listening to the Neighbourhood’s new album, Wiped Out. I experience an overwhelming sensation of calmness when it is playing. Music has always played a huge role in my life, as a coping method during hard times too helping me celebrate the best of times. I hope this class furthers my love and appreciation for good music.