#comparemusic
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Transcript:
Hello and welcome to the special podcast installment of Know Your Meme. My name is Beth and today I'll be discussing the elements of musical memes and how they have evolved over the past 10 years. In the early 2000s musical memes were often three to four minute sketch comedy videos from creators life Shane Dawson and Liam Kyle Sullivan. In the early 2000 musical memes were also often older videos that had been converted and uploaded to the internet for the first time. For example a senior citizens choir singing hip hop very very badly. Then in the 2010s with the advent of Vine musical memes were completely changed especially in the ways that they were shared and created, this was partially because of the new shorter format on Vine allowing for videos to only be a max of six seconds. This allowed videos to be riffed off of more and drastically edited and remixed and reposted. And this also allowed for the creation for meta memes which meant that by the time a meme has reached its natural death it is often unrecognizable to anyone who is not a meme connoisseur and spends their entire life on the internet. But either way, throughout the 2000s and the 2010s there is an underlying of memes, and especially musical memes; and that’s that you either get it or you don’t. In other words, over the past 10-ish years the format of musical memes but not necessarily the content of musical memes.
This can be seen a lot more clearly through the examples of, from the 2000s Shoes by Liam Kyle Sullivan, and from the 2010s the Kazoo Kid - Trap Remix. Both of these videos, in my opinion, just completely epitomize musical memes for their respective decades. These videos also both have around 63 million views on YouTube, so they are in the same sort of realm of popularity. The videos are also just completely iconic to any millenial or gen-z or anyone that sort of falls in that era. If you haven’t heard these songs or seen these videos I am going to play short clips of them. So here is a short clip from Shoes. - Then this is a short clip from the Kazoo Kid - Trap Remix. Alright, I think we get the idea of what both of those are. These videos are also very similar because their humor is definitely strange, but it is not at all random. For example, in Shoes Liam Kyle Sullivan’s main character, Kelly, is a clear parody of the Paris HIlton type circa the early 2000s. And the Kazoo Kid - Trap Remix is not the first Kazoo Kid video of its kind, it’s a remix from the original video and the other memes that were created from that. So both of these videos took something, or someone, who is completely iconic in their own right and morphed and remixed and parodied it into something that was completely iconic on its own.
These are videos are definitely different though, especially in their length. Shoes is a four minute video while the Kazoo Kid - Trap Remix is only one minute long. This is definitely on the longer side for 2010 memes, but there are Kazoo Kid versions that are only six seconds. These videos are also different in their originality; which is not to say that the Kazoo Kid - Trap Remix is not an original idea, but it is the recreation of an already existing meme, whereas Shoes is the first of its kind. Which was sort of common throughout 2000s sketch comedy and musical memes themselves, whereas in the 2010s we do see much more of the remix genre.
So, overall there is one that really holds these two things together, you either understand the meme or you don’t. If someone asked me to explain why I think Shoes is funny I’d probably tell them to fuck off, because there is no explaining why I cried laughing over this video the first time I saw it. It’s just hilarious. And the same with the Kazoo Kid - Trap Remix, I cried laughing watching it the first time, and I think that that is common among millenials. Either way, those are the ways in which 2000s and 2010s musical memes are both similar drastically different and how they have evolved over the years. And I am excited to see how musical memes are going to keep evolving, especially as a meme connoisseur. So, for all my other meme connoisseurs out there this has been the Know Your Meme Podcast, thank you for listening.
-BH
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The video that got my [spam] YouTube Channel Almost Banned **not clickbait**
(Comparing 1970′s College Music Scenes- Disco and Rock)
But yeah, stealing an entire theme song (and turning a project in late trying to preserve the least relevant part of the video ahaha) is fun. In my opinion, it was worth it. This is in no way implying that it’s good, though, so watch at the risk of your own valued time.
-AC
Transcript Below:
[Intro music]
Voiceover:
Ah, college.
Just like Hollywood romanticized high school with Grease and Dazed and Confused, I feel like college was a little bit romanticized today. In movies, all you saw were people drinking and partying and listening to really cool music but it turns out today, college costs an arm, a leg, and a kidney to go to. And there’s a lot more stress…to put it lightly.
So, what would it be like to just chill out and listen to music in the 70’s?
Upon doing some research, I found out that 1970’s colleges were dominated by two different music scenes: rock and disco.
And in this vlog, I’ll try my best to describe each one and I’ll even include a couple of anecdotes from my 1970’s parents…if they cooperate, but stay tuned to find out if they do!
Disco:
Happy Thursday, everyone.
So, I didn’t get the memo that my professor canceled class today and I’m here so there’s nothing left to do besides take over his room and teach you guys about 70’s music. So, let’s get started.
So, first I’d like to start off with the properties of disco. So, these were played at clubs and it was really played at any type of party. There was an occasion to listen to Disco.
And, it was really influenced by genres that came before it so you kind of got the Funk elements that played into Disco as well as Jazz.
And many of the songs had dance moves. Also, I believe it was illegal for people of the same gender to dance together but that got outlawed with the Stone Wall Riots, I believe, I haven’t taken history in a while.
But, you had lots of sexual revolution—everything was very “do you”.
Most of the songs were wild and upbeat. Electronic elements were quintessential to the funkiness or grooviness [groove, whoops] of Disco music.
It kind of threw away the pre-conceived notions of what “good” music is. You’re not appraising Disco. It’s more of what’s there? And does it fit the setting? And that’s kind of where the occasion comes in again.
Rock:
So, let's start off with Rock.
Keep in mind that Rock certainly isn’t anything new. It was very popular in the 60’s. Like, the 70’s wasn’t the “decade” of Rock. There’s almost a subgenre of Rock that became really popular called Acid Rock and also Psychedelic Rock. And there are tons more that fall into this category, but I’m just generally going to refer to it as Rock.
As opposed to Disco that took elements of different genres to make a new genre, it was more so the continuation of a genre that was already thriving.
Also different from Disco, the way you heard Rock was mainly through the radio. So, in a way, it was reaching the same amount of people, just through a different medium.
Unlike disco, there’s not an occasion to listen to Rock unless you’re going to a concert or something.
70’s music really pushed people to think. It wouldn’t explicitly call out the social message. It was more to promote creativity and individualism within the listeners.
Also, you had tons of different instruments used. Plus, elements of music that made it seem like they were edited.
Even the softer side of rock had the same elements as heavier rock that came to fruition in the 70’s. It had this explosion. It was unpredictable and it was really creative.
I will get into that more. It’ll make more sense, so I look forward to that. In the meantime, I am going to get into the similarities.
Rock & Disco:
They all have undertones of inclusion. You can be your own person and not only will I accept it but it’s something I want to celebrate.
So, in that way, it was all very fluid. It was fluid musically bringing in electronic elements.
The 70’s did have people who were distrustful of the government just because of all the drama that went on in the 60’s, Watergate, and whatnot. You had the government and “The man” no longer relevant in music. It was its own degree of rejection.
Also, I can’t go without mentioning this—drugs! Those drugs prospectively being alcohol and cocaine for Disco and as we all can guess, Rock definitely did have a stronghold in stoner culture and acid trips, that’s something they took from the 60’s.
So, public consumption of alcohol and cocaine is still looked down upon. This was still very underground and it was not societally accepted but it did play into the music because the music is so fast and energetic and, you know, when have you seen that in other decades?
And you’re with people and you have the free love thing going on and you can do whatever you want. It encourages your own choices and these are some of the choices.
Last thing we have here is young people, which is why I did this topic. Who makes stuff cool? College kids.
I will bring in examples of my parents. Disclaimer, they aren’t cool anymore but back in the day my parents definitely vibed with these things.
Mom & Dad Profiles:
So, contrary to what my retro baby pictures and my superb teaching on this topic may lead you to believe, I was not nor have I ever been alive in the 70s.
So instead, I brought you the more credible Tammy and Craig who were alive in the 70s.
Although they were merely teenagers at the time, I think they can still give you the spark notes
of the spark notes of how the music of the liberated college student trickled down to them.
Mom Interview:
A: So, this is my mother, Tammy
T: Are you still there?
A: Oh my God, we’re off to a great start
Q: How do you remember the rise of Disco?
T: Yeah, it was really popular when the movie Saturday Night Fever came out
A: Is that what made the term Saturday Night Fever?
T: Yeah. Well, I don’t know. I didn’t write that movie.
A:…Okay.
T: I didn’t like it, though. I didn’t like Disco music. Although, I did like that Bee Gees album.
A: What Bee Gees album? Well, actually—no. I don’t care. Um—
Q: What turned you off from Disco?
T: [cackles in English] I like more laid back songs where you can sing to the words and understanding the song more than getting up and dancing and more than, you know, being happy and peppy.
A: And you do not consider yourself a peppy person?
T: No
Q: When would you listen to Rock music?
A: Out with friends, hangin’ out in the neighborhood.
Q: Were other people this polarized on what genres they liked?
T: No, I don’t think that they were necessarily at odds with each other but, I mean, they did kind of stay on separate sides, you know.
Q: Did your school band ever use Rock or Disco in their routines?
T: Um, the band would play like Rock n Roll Music
A: And that’s the school bands?
T: Yeah and we would dance to it or twirl to it
A: Okay, but not Disco?
T: No, not so much Disco.
Q: What’s your fondest memory of 70’s music?
T: I just remember sitting in my room a lot and just listening to album after album. I had like eighty albums.
Q: So rock was personal and interpersonal?
A: So with Rock it was more about like intimate connections with your friends and-
T: Yeah, and how the music related to your life. A lot of the music you could relate to your own life. And concerts were big too. As a teenager, I remember lots of concerts. That was the big thing.
A: Any other insights you have?
T: Nope
A: Would you like to be dismissed now?
T: Yeah [cackles]
Dad Interview:
Q: How did you hear different kinds of 70’s music?
C: That's what you listen to it on my college radio stations or nightclubs, it was when you had stadium concerts, which had like pyrotechnics. Um, kinda like Led Zeppelin.
Q: What made people like these genres?
C: So you had kinda the vanilla you can think of it as almost like squares music on the Top 40 and then he had kind of people that were looking for something different. Even the disco was people looking for something different. Disco was kind of like the nightclub music but it was all associated with beauty and glamour and, you know, high fashion
Q: So there was some narcissism among Disco listeners?
C: Well, there were definitely in the ideas the Disco and even in Glam Rock there was narcissism but I think there are some of the opposite—you had the disenfranchised, the people that didn't feel like they didn’t belong like every generation had. I think it's always driven by youth; they're looking for a new sound or they're, you know, what they're playing on the radio doesn't express their thoughts and stuff but I think there are some people that get left behind and that just widens the chasm between the haves and the have-nots.
Q: Is this how the peaceful attitudes of the 60’s dissolved?
C :I think maybe you still had some of the innocence after the psychedelic 60s and and the British Invasion. Remember, back in the day, the 70s Beatles was broken up. You know, that kind of disillusioned people with-you kind of got this groovy, you know, a sense of getting along Well, yeah there's that but you know that not everyone identified with that groovy, happy, you now—loving feeling.
Q: Was it like this for Rock and Disco?
C: Because it became splintered, the majority of mass American people, you know, would listen. But those into Disco would never want to be around anything with Punk music, you know, that was dirty, that was raw trash to them, you know.
Q: What cool things arose from 70’s Rock?
C: And you also had the idea the develop of concept albums, you know, that it wasn't a bunch of singles on an album.
A: Like Pink Floyd?
C: Pink Floyd! Exactly! Like, Led Zeppelin, you know, I remember it being a big thing with Stairway to Heaven because it was like 17 minutes long and it was finally played on the radio. You also had this blissful lack of technical skills or development in the Punk movement. You know, they couldn’t play any instrument and just wailed away in and yelled and made noise and, you know, that it became a music genre.
Q: How was Rock made popular?
C: You couldn’t just say “Let's do it!”—no! You know, you had to go out to a bar or a concert to listen to music and then you would get to know it. You'd buy it, you know, an album and you go to a house party or something slam-dancing at the house party and play the music until your speakers blew. And it’s the same way with Progressive Rock into New Wave. Now that was really ushered in by the technological development of the synthesizer. You know, they started having a band without a guitar, which was unheard of back then.
Q: How was Disco different and how was it similar?
C: There was a lot of sentiment about it, about Disco. Before then, you know, you couldn't you could hear but it really was pretty mindless music. It was just dance music.
Q: Was disco popular for non-club goers?
You also had, you know, people that weren't old enough to go out to clubs and stuff. They would start to listen to their older brothers or sisters’ albums, you know.
Q: How did the drug of choice for the listeners of each genre come to be?
C: So I think that's more symptomatic of the age and the partying and stuff, which drug in particular they did and how they did it or stuff like that, yeah. That might have been more based on the type of music it like ecstasy and rings go kind of go together. It wasn’t like they started doing raves because they were doing ecstasy was but it went along with the music and being out partying, you know, drugs and drinking are, you know, right or wrong, are gonna be a part of going to college or high school, you know.
Q: Why did the 70’s become known for these genres specifically?
C: Rock and Disco where desired have fun, the desire to party, the desire to share something with friends or, you know, significant other or trying to find a significant other…
[Music and Credits]
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Me and my roommate discuss our music taste throughout our lives, tinder bio judgement, how amazing Spotify is, and how neither of us know what Juice World is.
-ML
L: Like as far as opening Spotify and hmm I don’t know what to listen to today and like genres and moods I 100% gravitate like towards indie music, alternative, certain pop songs-
M: alright listen I’m going to be completely honest with you, like Nathan just came in and totally threw me off so I like completely stopped listening to you so-
L: (laughter)
M: -we're not going to stop this recording and we are not going to restart. We’re just gonna like restart from here and we're already recording were already talking… I feel like, let's pretend that was a false start. You’re great and doing amazing and I love you, but that just happened. So, alright Lauren… let’s talk about-
L and M in unison: (stupid laughter)
M: Alright Lauren, let’s talk about music
*intro jingle*
M: So, we are roommates and we probably have the most similar music tastes between the four of us that live in this apartment and we may or may not judge our other two roommates a little bit. I don’t know if you do, but I do. They’re not going to be listening to this.
L: Lovingly. Lovingly judge.
M: Exactly. With love and with care….. but…. Still a little judgement.
L: I say this because I care about you. Your music is bad. (not yours but our roommates)
M: Woah there I feel like you don’t completely agree with some of the music I listen to. Of course not in a “you’re horrible this is a reflection of who you are as a person and that person is a trash person”
L: yeah I like to- let’s borrow from a colloquial term that our generation is very familiar with; some of your music taste is just a little bit too emo for me.
M: Okay. And I can completely agree with that and respect your opinion. So how about we unpack what we don’t like about someone’s music taste? Also do you think that someone's music taste does say something about a person?
L: Something about them as a person? YES.
M: So like would you judge someone if they only listen to a certain genre that you didn't like? Or would it be..
L: I'm going to I'm going to admit something to you Melissa I have swiped what it what is it left? left on boys whose music taste was something that I did not like
M: Okay. And I can understand that and agree with that completely. Also it’s weird if you're broadcasting like I don't know why all I can think of right now is Coachella but like if you're broadcasting I love and only live for this one type of music and you don't like that one type of music it's definitely hard to find a way around that with some people
L: Yeah
M: Like i remember I had a friend from middle school who professed that if you liked Justin Bieber she would hate you and I remember not understand that completely. She was really really hard core like “I will hate you if you listen to Justin Bieber” and some people are very passionate about it
L: There is always like you don't want to be like close-minded about it like I'm just saying like you know I can be pretentious and that is one instance pretentious where it's like you do you and that’s okay
M: And is it sometimes like the specific what they're listening to or is it the fact that they only listen to that
L: well I mean off of a tinder bio there’s no way for me to tell that’s the only thing they listen to. But you see their picture, you see their bio, then you see Spotify artists and usually take like 5 and you just like this isn't going to work goodbye
M: So our of the top 5 artists that someone likes you can kind of get a range of like what their personality is like?
L: Well like yeah cause, name the top five artists that you love to listen to
M: I’ve been listening a lot to… You know like those Lo-Fi Hip Hop's? that's all I do- I do I just go on YouTube-
L: also your boy Keaton Henson!
M: Keaton Henson is my fave. I like have phases of my life that are so directly linked to different music tastes
L: Yeah because for me it’s like Alt-J,l Jay James Vincent McMorrow, Bon Iver, I'm literally just going for my Spotify artists.
M: definitely James.
L: And Dry The River, my favorite artist.
M: Dry the River changed my life as we know it. I also went through a stage in my life where I only listened to Third Eye Blind.
L: yes I know about that stage in your life
M: It was back in those times where you only had a CD player and you had like two albums from the same artist in your like how I love them and like they're amazing and wonderful and so is one of those times where that's just that was it that was my life it consumed my every day and it's also weird to think that there's some people who don't get that people who like
L: You like to go a day without like no listening without listening to music. (No double negatives) they blow my mind or like if you get in the car and you don't put on music
M: At the same time when was the last time you turned on your car and then went to the radio for music instead of your phone?
L: never I have literally probably since I got my car, what I was 17? I don't listen to my radio
M: And I really don't either and like it's kind of weird for me cause whenever I am in someone else's car and they turn on the radio I have no idea what song is even on
L: I feel like I forget the radio exist
M: And I don't like- it’s to the point where I don't really remember if it's AM or FM until I actually
L: STOP
M: I had a moment where I was like it’s AM right? That’s the one all the channels are on right?
L: At work my boss was like Hey I'm going to need your opinion on like what's popular to listen to nowadays and I was like good luck cuz I don't listen to the radio. Like I don't listen to top 40 so I have no idea. But that's the thing. That's how people know that I'm Different is because like a really popular top 40 song will come on and I'll be like I don't know this song and they're like how have you not heard the song? the only time I've heard the song is like maybe like while I'm walking through Target because they play like the radio
M: I love that like that like that’s how people know that you're different
L: because it's like It stands out when you don't like honestly like I can go like I'm on Spotify right now I can go to like brows and like top 40 songs I guarantee you I won't know them
M: yeah I mean I can definitely relate to that and I remember there was like that like time in Middle School where like I kind of had to listen to the radio because that's all my mom would put on so yeah
L: Yeah no totally there was like a switch
M: Yeah like did your parents listening to anything in the influence like you and your tastes now?
L: yeah yeah because my dad I mean my dad loves like old music still my mom does but she doesn't actively listen to it so like she's not as like nostalgic about it I don't feel like as my dad is where he's like I love the Beatles I love the Rolling Stones I Love Led Zeppelin. like I Love Led Zeppelin because it's like my dad. But yeah I'm literally I'm on United States top 50 right now I don't know a single song
M: And I just went to my like my daily mix and all of these are like James Young James Bay Bastille Bright Eyes Arcade Fire Avery James
L: I listen to every James that makes music.
M: Yeah if your name is James and you make noise I'm here for you
L: like the number one songs by an artist called juice world.
M: I don't know what that means.
L: What is Juice World?
M: All I know is that Chance the rapper has a song named juice and like I feel like I have like all like one artist from a weird specific genre and then like none of the other ones.
L: Okay so my daily mixes.. and I'm not even going to say the artist I’m going to say the genres they’re trying to box my music type into right, so the first one is Like Instrumental music Like Instrumental as in like acousticy piano stuff right then it's like Lo-Fi hip hop then it's Indie alternative stuff then it's Christian music um but like indie Christian music not like popular Christian music, then it’s videogame soundtracks.
M: You listening to video game soundtracks has totally bled into me listening to video game soundtracks.
L: For me to like sum everything up it's like there's always going to be like a certain song, album, genre, that you can go to to sum up how you're feeling. And it varies a lot for me whether it's classical music, video game soundtracks, or musicals there's always going to beTo and listen to and like fall in love with and express how I feel and that's like the best thing for me about having a music taste that varies.
M: And it can be weird like figuring out what you do and don't like but it just kind of lets you enjoy more of everything
L: And like, I don't actually like begrudge people for what they're intol you don't like it's what they're into and like everyone find something different he's like super cool
M: Yeah no totally. Well it's been great talking to you about music, friend.
L: Yes. It’s been Fantastic, Comrade
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-MH
Genres, Genres, Genres. There's so many different genres of music. What's your favorite genre? Today I will be talking about; You guessed it hip hop and R & B. More specifically I will be discussing the differences between old school rap and modern rap, and the differences between hip hop and R & B. just for your information, rap and hip hop is not the same thing. Rap is a form of hip hop and hip hop is actually a culture that comes from the black community.
Hip hop first originated as a "fad" and no one really thought it would last nor did anyone take it seriously. Hip hop presented a new voice for artists. Artists would speak about African American empowerment, unity, and peace. However, a group brought a voice to the hip hop world that was unfiltered and more "aggressive", and that group was known as N.W.A. The lyrics of N.W.A would express how they felt about things like oppression. For example, the song "F**k da Police" from the 1980's caused many problems and uproar not just from police but from parents who though it was negatively affecting their children. Lyrics of old school hip hop also had many positive messages. For example, in Tupac's song "Keep Ya' Head Up" (Tupac Shakur), he raps about the adversities of life in African American communities and encouraging them to stay strong. He talks about how he would "be there" for single mothers who are raising their kids in poverty, even "if no else cared". Old school hip hop was a platform for artists to express their feelings about oppression and uplift others with hope. There was also a more natural and authentic sound for voices in old school hip hop. However, for the instrumental, many artists used "sampling". This was a method that utilized older R & B songs to create new instrumentals.
Modern hip hop varies from old school in many ways. The topics of modern rap often centers around money, drugs, and sex. There is rarely any uplifting lyrics in modern rap. As far as sound, hooks on modern rap songs are often simple and repetitive and many artists use auto tone (a device that auto corrects out of tune vocals) to enhance the sound and quality of their voices. However, artists today are able to create original beats for instrumentals on their songs because of the technology that currently exists. Now back to the lyrics. As mentioned before, artists often rap about drugs, money, or sex. For example, the rap group MIGOS has a song called "Designer Drugs" where they rap about being an addict for things like percocets, molly, and xanaz.
Now I'm going to compare Hip Hop to R & B, also known as rhythm and blues. It is a style that is defined and originates from the 1980's disco and combines funk music, soul music, and pop. The instrumentals are often softer, slower, and more sensual. The lyrics are often explicit and talks about making love, being in love, or sex. Yes, there is a difference between songs about making love and songs about sex and I will briefly explain those differences. Songs that talk about making love are usually more passionate and romantic whereas songs about sex is more explicit and raunchy. This genre is also inspired by and utilizes hip hop beats. Artists will also usually sing instead of rapping their lyrics in this genre. Lyrics are sometimes used to express thoughts about love, being in love, or even being broken hearted. For example, Mary J Blige has a song called "I'm Not Gon' Cry" (Mary J. Blige) which is about getting over a broken heart and being strong as a woman. She says "I'm not gon' shed no tears cuz you're not worth my tears". Moreover, Trey Songs is an artist who is known for sexual lyrics. He has a song called "Invented Sex". I'm not going to get into details because the tile is pretty self-explanatory.
Overall, rap music is usually more upbeat with a faster tempo. The lyrics can be pretty aggressive and explicit. I usually listen to this type of music when I’m working out or cleaning. On the other hand, R & B is often slow and smooth. It can be considered more relaxing and therapeutic. I listen to this type of music when I'm studying, showering, or pathetically trying to get over a broken heart.
Works cited:
Barnes, Paul K. "Hip Hop: Then vs. Now". Odyssey. 18 April 2016. Web. Accessed June 17, 2018.
"Rhythm and Blues". New World Encyclopedia. Web. Accessed June 17, 2018.
Images and Sounds:
http://thoughtforyourpenny.com/culture/music/top-10-hip-hop-blogs-websites/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrcT9GxrE14
-MH
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Karina’s Musings about Music Transcript
Intro -
Speaker: Hey howdy hey and welcome to the podcast called “Karina’s Musings about Music”. It’s a rainy Saturday afternoon, nice thunderstorms, if you here some lightening in here well then, it’s authentic. But with that said along with this dreary weather, we’re going to talk about a topic that many times people just take as a joke. And what that is is about having music as your career. So, with this podcast we are going to be dwelling into the life of a college musician and what it means to them to be studying music while also trying to study a whole other field. So, what they are are double majors, and I myself am a double major and what we are trying to is still keep our love and passion for music alive while also trying to pursue a career that’s actually going to put bread on our table, so with that first point people say, “oh you’re studying music? Well what are you going to do with that? Good luck making money.” So that’s going to be our first main topic here. Are the funds that exist or do not exist in music. I am going to bring in a friend who I got to interview a couple of days ago and she is going to discuss her background in music and kind of her situation now with it. Let’s tune in and see what we had to say.
Interview with Kylie -
Speaker: So Kylie what got you started doing music?
Kylie: Well funny story, my aunt was getting rid of an old piano from the 50s and instead of throwing it to the curb my mom was like, “wait Kylie could piddle on it”, I’m 5 or 6 at this time. And she brought over some music books that taught you how to play. Like literally put your finger here, like that type of basic piano playing and I kind of just kept with it. My mom eventually was like, “do you want lessons?” And yeah.
Speaker: Ok so you started out as a kid, but what got you to your place now? Like what are you doing now with music?
Kylie: Well now I play piano for churches, for school choirs, for soloists, instrumentalists. I’m making up to 1,600 dollars a month.
Speaker: Wow that’s incredible. Well there you have it folks. Kylie over here is killing it on piano, and I’m going to show you a little bit of her piano playing later.
[Kylie Plays Bela Bartok’s Second Sonata]
Nick’s Interview:
Speaker: Hey everybody, so I have my friend Nick here at the School of Music. He plays trumpet and we are going to be asking him some pretty neat life questions. So Nick, is music for you a career like lets be serious thing, or are you doing it because you genuinely enjoy it?
Nick: Well I’m going to say both. So for me I am a dual major here at UF
Speaker: And what does that mean? Being a dual major?
Nick: Well, it means that I will be taking all the credits possible at UF in the matter of five years. It basically means I graduate with two degrees, one in mechanical engineering because I like cars, and the other in Trumpet performance. My game plan is to graduate and find a job in mechanical engineering, but I continue with trumpet and create a contact base where I can sustain myself financially, then I can either retire as a mechanical engineer or honestly just doing this (points at trumpet) I just love playing trumpet. So you know, we’ll see where life takes us.
[Nick played his own rendition of the Jazz classic There Will Never Be Another You]
Dereks Interview:
[Saxophone melody in the background]
Speaker: Wow ok well hi everybody! We are back in the school of music with my pal Derek who plays saxophone at UF. So Derek, why saxophone?
Derek: Well that was what my sixth-grade band director said I was going to play and I’ve been here ever since.
Speaker: And do you like it?
Derek: Yes, I do. I wanted to play oboe originally, which is hard to make people want to listen to it because it is somewhat less than desirable. I get a lot of comments about playing saxophone. People are like, “ooohh you must play a lot of jazz” or “wow that’s really sexy” and I’m like… no its not. Too many scales.
Speaker: So quick thing, how come you think some people say like, “oh oboe is not a desirable sound?”
Derek: I think that the oboe as an instrument is very rewarding if you can play it well. There’s a steep learning curve. The professor of Oboe at the University of Florida, Dr. Odom, said that she doesn’t expect a beginning Oboe player to make a good sound until about two years. But she sounds very good. So it’s a weird curve where you don’t sound good for a really long time and then you sound amazing and there’s no in between.
Speaker: So for saxophone then, how long did it take you to get this quality sound that you’ve been working on?
Derek: Well saxophone is weird because you sound more or so average the day you start, and then it takes a long time to get good. What I did to get this sound is that I had a bad saxophone that I was playing on and my professor told me to buy a new saxophone, so I did and this one sounds much better. So sometimes it’s practice sometimes it’s how much money you can throw at a piece of brass.
Speaker: So we are talking about money which is a great point because being a musician is expensive. How much was the saxophone?
Derek: This sax was 5,000 dollars, this mouth piece if you buy it separately is about 150 dollars, and the thing about the reed is that you can buy about ten of these for twenty dollars. Depending on the saxophone youre playing on like a Baritone Saxophone, that is about eight dollars per reed. So yeah eight dollars for a piece of wood.
Speaker: That is just a rip-off, but like even with trombone, I could pay well over a hundred dollars for a mouth piece which is just a hunk of metal that I blow on and it makes a sound. But you know I guess it does enhance your sound. Well ok let’s hear a little diddle. Play us something, anything you want.
[Derek plays something sad on the saxophone]
Speaker’s Monologue:
So once again this whole idea with the monetary issues that exist in music is brought up with Derek’s point about having to pay for entire new instrument and having to constantly replace a reed and mouthpiece which are expenses that obviously rack up and its just another thing that musicians have to deal with in order to sound great, you know on top of practicing as well. So this whole concept of sound, practice, time, and money is a great lead into the next person we interviewed.
Courtney’s Interview:
Speaker: Hey ya’ll! This is my pal Courtney and she plays oboe. So Courtney, tell us a little about yourself.
Courtney: Hello! I’m a third year Psychology Major and minor in Oboe. So I’ve been playing for about nine years now and I also march mellophone in the Gator Marching Band.
Speaker: So how are you doing all of this? Music and your other major and band all at the same time?
Courtney: Well it’s a balancing act. I see music as a fun time. I practice whenever I feel like it, I don’t put any pressure on it because it is just a minor and I just try to have fun with music and do it on my down time when I am not studying. Music is mainly just my outlet for stress.
Speaker: So where and how did you get started with the oboe?
Courtney: Well I actually started in seventh grade, I played clarinet in sixth grade because my middle school we had to pick either percussion, trumpet, or clarinet in sixth grade and then we could choose whatever instrument we wanted in seventh grade. So, then I choose the Oboe because no one in my class wanted to play the oboe and my band director was like, “yeah its one of the hardest instruments, but we need someone to play it”. So I was like, “I want to be the only oboe player instead of like in the sea of fifteen clarinets” so that’s how I got into oboe and it took me forever to learn it but here we are.
Speaker: Why do you think it’s the hardest instrument? What about it makes it so difficult?
Courtney: I think it’s the embouchure that is the hardest thing about it because all your tuning basically comes from your embouchure. In other instruments you can adjust parts to help you, and I guess on an oboe you can move the reed, but you’re not suppose to. And the fingerings, like there are a ton of alternate fingerings so the oboe is the woodwind instrument with the most metal on it. There are so many buttons for a limited range. Like we go from C to middle C to upper C and that’s it, like that’s not a wide range compared to other instruments.
Speaker: That was some cool background on oboe, but do you listen to anything else besides oboe music?
Courtney: I am really into pop music, like I like all kinds of music, except country music sorry.
Speaker: Who in particular do you like as an artist?
Courtney: Number one, Lady Gaga! [Screams of approval heard in the background] She is my all time favorite musician and has been since I was a kid. I just think she is a very versatile artist because she can sing literally any type of music, for example when she sang The Sound of Music on one of those award shows. She is a classically trained vocalist and most people think she was just a typical pop artist using autotune, but if you listen to her new music and the jazz album Cheek to Cheek that she is on with Tony Bennett it is so good. She can play piano and guitar as well, while also dancing around on stage.
[The speaker proceeds to try and act like Lady Gaga during a performance and bangs on the keys of a piano]
I also like how she uses her platform for good. You see so many famous people like the Kardashians not doing anything with their money, but Lady Gaga has the Born This Way Foundation and she is making change in the music industry. She has always been about equality and diversity and accepting yourself, and that was what originally drew me to her as an artist.
Speaker: That just shows you what music can do. It’s just so powerful it can create change, and that’s why it should be supported! Ok Courtney how about you play a little something?
[Courtney plays a piece]
Ending Monologue –
After hearing each musician talk about their personal backgrounds, and their current musings with music it has been made apparent to me that everything people are doing in terms of studying of playing music as a hobby or pursuing it as a career; it all goes to show just how versatile music can be and how individuals and artists such as Lady Gaga can just really have so much power and influence on society with their talents in music. Its just something you can always have in your life and its one of the unique art works and careers that are completely different from what’s out there now. I find that to be a compelling thing to bring up in this conversation and I am so glad we were able to bring up other topics about fame, power, industry, making positive change. Thanks for listening!
[Ending music is a recording of the Gainesville Pops, a community band which I play with]
-KT
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Compare and Contrast Vlog: Emo/Punk Music VS Disney Tunes SCRIPT So here’s the thing: I like some emo music and some Disney show tunes, and I’m just wondering, how are they both making me feel some kinda way, IN THE SAME WAY? They both vveither get me hyped or crying or empowered… but HOW? I’m going to explore this strange Emo-Disney correlation because, you know, I’m curious (and, I have to get to those 700 words, ya feel?) Fun fact about me, I went through that band-shirt wearing, “I liked them before they were famous” phase, like any other angsty, pubescent, middle school girl. Except for me it didn’t happen in middle school, it happened in high school… Like, senior year of high school! I know, how tragic. But don’t worry, it was mild (on the outside) so I wasn’t socially shunned or anything. But the music -- that sweet, sweet punk rock magic -- I could not leave behind. Disney, on the other hand, I’ve been into forever, and forever will be into. It’s just too good not to. Disney isn’t a phase, it’s a lifestyle… Punk is probably a phase that you let resurface when you’re on a solo road trip across the country… or to Publix, I’m not judging. Punk rock gets the people going… And then it makes you dance… And then it makes you cry. It’s amazing. Some of them you just have to belt out, like Secondhand Serenade’s “Fall For You” and others you just melt into, like Bright Eye’s “Lua.” And then there’s the ones that you have to belt but also cry to, like Mayday Parade’s “Terrible Things.” Oh man, that one gets me every time. And the reason people (or at least I) keep coming back to them is because they make you feel strong emotions. And then they become familiar, because you’re playing them all the time, so they become old friends. Sooner or later, you start listening closer to the lyrics, and discover even more about the song, which makes it even better, so you have to listen to it MORE and the cycle repeats! Disney tunes are the same way! You saw them in the movie – which was most likely amazing because, c’mon, it’s Disney, so you end up listening to the soundtrack so you can relive the movie without dedicating an hour and a half to it, and it becomes familiar, and soon, an old friend. Then, in those clever, fast Disney songs, you notice new things in the lyrics and it becomes even better! THE SAME CYCLE. If you listen to them side by side, though, Disney songs are nothing like punk songs. For one thing, Disney is censored! Also, it is known to be all whimsical and “prancy” (is that a word? Welp, now it is.) Punk is known to be all hardcore and angry at the world. But they can both be super empowering, like Moana’s “How Far I’ll Go” and Linkin Park’s “In The End.” They’re both telling you to go your own way and screw everything else! Plus, you know both these genera’s can get you crying; don’t lie. So, moral of the story: Disney and Emo Punk Rock are both amazing in different (and similar?) ways. They’re both on my same Spotify playlist; I feel like that speaks for itself!
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Not sure if you all can tell - I struggled greatly with the last video upload. This one should be the full video. Best.
Transcript:
Hi, my name is Jamie and this is my vlog for Advanced Exposition with Emily Brooks.
For as long as I have remembered, I have never been as connected to music as many people are. I attribute a large part of that to my own lack of musical ability, but I also have never been really into any genre of music. I have of course, been to concerts, but I have to say, I do not relate to music on the level that I know many people do. This is because I am a lyrical listener.
Today, I will compare and contrast the two types of listening, Lyrical and instrumental. Of course, when you listen to any song, you will hear both the lyrics and the music. But, part of the reason people hear the same songs so differently and develop different musical taste is due to our preference on what we can relate to in a song.
Lyrical listening has a lot to do with enjoying the vocals of a song, including both the voice of the vocalist as well as the content of the lyrics themselves.
Musical listening is more about finding pleasure in the sound of a song through the rhythm and tone of the vibrations.
Most people are some kind of combination of the two, and it is possible to form an emotional attachment to music through both types. However, I like to believe the benefit of the music is derived from your distinct purpose for listening. For example, when I go to the gym, I prefer music with strong and thought-provoking lyrics to distract me from the pain of working out. When I am studying, I prefer musical or instrumental music because it sets the tone of my workspace.
Yet both types of listening provide their own unique benefits.
Instrumental Listening
Musical listening, or instrumentals, are traditionally thought of as classical or artful pieces due to the instruments doing the compositional work of a song. It is easy for a singer to take over the song with their vocals alone, which is why there are so many vocalists out there who perform music without playing any instruments. In short, musical listeners appreciate the complexity of the instruments doing the work, and are often more knowledgeable and appreciative of the work of the musicians playing these instruments.
Growing up in a family of guitarists, I learned this right away. My dad and brothers would spend every car ride listening to rock music with excruciatingly long intros and guitar solos. I never understood how they liked it until I realized something quite simple: They understood the sounds on a level that I did not.For this reason, I do believe “musical” or instrumental listening requires some level of understanding and relationship with the composition of music and how difficult it can be to produce these specific sounds.
Lyrical Listening
Growing up, I was always a lyrical listener. I didn’t play an instrument and didn’t understand how they worked, so I preferred to listen to my Miley Cyrus CD knowing that the only thing the song is about is how Hannah Montana gets the best of both worlds. Lyrical listening allows you to connect with the speaker of the message, or the singer. If a song is relatable, it makes it somewhat easier to enjoy and stimulates your brain in a conversational way that music alone simply cannot do. Take for example, Taylor Swift. Taylor swift is primarily a lyrical artist. Many musicians often criticize her songs for her repetitive use of chords in her early career. Yet, Taylor still has a cult following because her songs are so relatable. Her fans, mostly teenage girls, can easily relate to her songs about love and break ups. One great example of lyrical listening as a genre is rap. In its original state, rap is so much like poetry because it depends on strong lyrics to deliver a meaningful message. This has developed some, but can definitely stand alone as a lyrical genre.
I challenge you to decide whether you are a lyrical or instrumental listener, or both. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that many of you who are musicians have both a strong passion and connection to music that relies on instrumental composition.
- JA
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Thank you to everyone today on helping me figure out how to make my file size smaller so I could upload.
Here is my transcript:
Compare and Contrast:
Film Soundtrack VS. Score
Traditionally, the movie making process has always been; write the screenplay, hire the crews and actors, shoot the movie, edit the movie, then bring in a composer to score the movie. Actual songs have been incorporated into films before, but in recent decades, filmmakers are becoming more experimental with their use of popular songs in their movies. A film score is the music scored for the movie by a composer in post-production that plays under the scenes. A film soundtrack is made up of songs used in the movie.
Film scores have been a part of the movie making process from the beginning. Before sound was capable in films, musicians and pianists would be in the theaters that silent films were playing at. They would basically score a film live in front of the audience. This evolved into scores being composed, recorded, and added to the movie itself. This music is composed during post production after the movie has already been edited together. They are used to help enhance the emotions of the scene, like adding suspense or sadness, and help provoke feelings in the audience. These scores also help situate the audience in the world of a film. The scores can also capture the essence of a film and it’s character, like the brassiness of the Star Wars music to represent Luke Skywalker’s courage and honor and the minor tones and strings of the Harry Potter music to create a magical essence.
Film scores became wildly popular with John Williams’ Star Wars compositions (his score to Star Wars: A New Hope is considered the greatest scoring of all time). His score for the 70s film reinvigorated the level of importance placed on film scores for films and today they have become a crucial part of creating memorable pop culture films.
Unlike film scores, the soundtrack is planned pre-production (which means it is planned before the movie is actually shot). In recent years, filmmakers have been experimenting heavily with the use of songs in their movies. One of the first movies to revolutionize the use of songs in films was Guardians of The Galaxy. James Gunn, the director, created Awesome Mix Tape Vol. 1, which was listened to throughout the film by the main character. Unlike film scores, the songs in this movie are integrated into the plot and character development. While a film score might capture the essence of a character, the use of the song “come and get your love” to introduce Peter in Guardians of the Galaxy helps develop his character. Even though he’s on a serious mission, he’s dancing to the song, developing his character as fun and dorky and also letting the audience know not to take the movie to seriously.
Both film scores and soundtracks help develop the overall feel of the film and are meant to create a better experience for movie goers. Some people like the songs used in movies better because they’re recognizable and they can sing and dance to it. It makes even the most far out there movie, like Guardians of the Galaxy, seem more realistic. Other people like film scores better because can add emotion to scenes without overpowering them, sometimes you get so lost in a film you don’t even notice the score in the background. Other times, when the film score is more noticeable, the film score creates an iconic theme for a movie, like Harry Potter, Star Wars, Star Trek, and more. Both however create a more enjoyable experience for audiences and help situate audiences in the world of the film. Many movies now start with a black screen but have music or sounds, pulling the audience into the storyworld, and then the image plays.
Some movies I would recommend for great film scores are Star Wars, Harry Potter, Spiderman Homecoming, Monsters Inc, American Beauty, Inception, Lord of the Rings. There are so many more, but those are some of my favorites. If you wanna listen to some of these compositions without watching the films you can follow my spotify playlist https://open.spotify.com/user/htab0312/playlist/3pxsgV3RzSZvjufWUGVlXf
My two favorite films for soundtracks are Guardians of the Galaxy and Baby Driver. Baby Driver does some really unique things with music and I definitely recommend it. (Suicide Squad copied Guardians but did it worse, but the songs are modern and cool).
- HT
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The Age Old Question: Should Dragon Ball Z be watched with Japanese Audio and English subtitles or with the English voice-over
Introduction: Hi, my name is Jerry Van and I am here today to compare the original Japanese dub of the anime, “Dragon Ball Z”, with it’s English dub counterpart. I will be comparing the music as it creates two distinct viewing experiences for the show.
Background:
Dragon Ball Z is the sequel to Dragon Ball, a manga that tells of the story of Son Goku as he scours the Earth for the mythical Dragon Balls and to learn martial arts. The creator, Akira Toriyama, drew inspiration from the Chinese tale Journey to the West, and modeled Son Goku after the character Sun Wukong.
Akira Toriyama’s direction for Dragon Ball was mainly focused on humor and gags rather than action but shifted more towards the latter at the end of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z. While this did make the show more attractive for Western audiences, Funimation, the studio responsible for localizing Dragon Ball Z for the United States, was faced with the challenge of attracting viewers to a Japanese cartoon that unlike any of the cartoons on air. Funimation’s solution was to hire Bruce Falconer, who created a soundtrack with heavy influences from the rock music of the late 80s and 90s. The Mighty Morphing Power Rangers, the Western adaptation of the Japanese Super Sentai, applied the same strategy as shown when comparing the openings of both shows.
Comparing the Openings of both shows:
The original Japanese opening of Dragon Ball Z, “Cha-La Head-Cha-La”, completely captures was the Saturday morning cartoon vibe with it’s visuals and lyrics. While I do not understand the lyrics without English subtitles, I do understand the kid-like feeling of being exposed to and exciting adventure in a world with no bounds. This is accentuated through the titular line “Cha-La Head-Cha-La” as we see Goku overcoming obstacles and running all across the word fighting the bad guys. The opening does a good job of telling viewers about Goku’s journey to train and defeat anybody who comes to destroy Earth.
The English opening, “Rock the Dragon”, gets the same message across about Goku and his journey but in a completely different way. Instead of focusing on the expansive universe the series takes in, the opening goes straight into the adrenaline-pumping action the series is known for. The singer constantly chants “Dragon, dragon, rock the dragon, Dragonball Z” followed by a guitar solo and several jump cuts of punches, kicks, and explosions accompanying it. While “Cha-La-Head-Cha-La” is the rallying cry for overcoming any and all obstacles, “Dragon, dragon, rock the dragon” captures the feeling of charging up and unleashing a deadly attack against all foes.
I do prefer the English opening having grown up with it and preferring the action, but I acknowledge the more whimsical original Japanese opening as more true to its roots.
Gohan’s Tranformation (Japanese vs. English)
The next clip I am comparing is personally one of my favorite scenes in all the series. This scene involves Gohan, a gentle soul who cannot channel his anger and power to defeat Cell, the major villain of the arc. What we then see is Cell provoking and triggering Gohan’s anger and potential, an experience which is drastically different in both versions. In the original Japanese version, Gohan’s theme is more somber and sad as somebody has just died. The song conveys the feeling that Gohan has no other option but to fight for the sake of Earth and his friends. Fighting for him does not mean that he is stooping down to Cell’s level of violence and bloodthirstiness.
` The English version capitalizes on Gohan’s anger. We are first greeted with a piano symbolic of Gohan’s gentle nature that is then disrupted with a eerie xylophone representative of Cell. The next phrase then brings back the piano accompanied by intense guitar and drums that show his anger and full power.
I am biased as I grew up the watching the English version. The anger and power are palpable with the theme and look of shock on Cell’s face really hits home how powerful Gohan is. I think the Bruce Falconer really made a grand slam with the English soundtrack of Dragonball Z. The action-packed soundtrack sprouted seeds for other Japanese cartoons to find success here in the United States. While the newest episodes of the series both in the U.S. and Japan utilize the same orchestral soundtrack, there is a different but pleasurable experience in watching the two different shows.
-JV
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Hello, everyone. My name is Melissa, and I’m doing a compare and contrast vlog about songs that spark sadness, versus songs that happiness for me, personally. I am also eating this Zero bar that my dad gave me and it is kind of chewy and I was excited that it had chocolate but then when I opened it, I saw that it was white chocolate so I don’t know whether to keep eating it or not. My jaw also kind of hurts.
Anyway, enough fun facts about me.
The song that I chose that sparks so much sadness and emotion in me is “Praying” by Kesha.
I’m going to jump around through some lyrics and kind of explain their significance to me, what lines bring out the most pain for me and why those lines are the ones that do so. Please bear with me as this story might get a little emotional even though I may laugh as I tell it.
The song starts
Well, you almost had me fooled
Told me that I was nothing without you
Oh, but after everything you've done
I can thank you for how strong I have become
In that first part there, it rings true to me because I spent a very significant amount of my life being fooled by some one that I trusted. He made me believe that I was nothing without him and he isolated me so I was truly and completely alone without him. There is a small light here, in a way, when she says “Oh, but after everything you’ve done, I can thank you for how strong I have become.” When I sing along to this line, I do remind myself of just how strong I really am, but it also hurts me because I had to become strong in an awful way.
The song continues:
'Cause you brought the flames and you put me through hell
I had to learn how to fight for myself
And we both know all the truth I could tell
I'll just say this is "I wish you farewell"
Those two years of my life were literally hell. I was very physically sick, I would vomit a lot, lost a lot of weight, I wouldn’t sleep for three consecutive days at a time, all because someone manipulated me into believing their sick version of love.
Skipping over the next part, she continues:
I'm proud of who I am
No more monsters, I can breathe again
And you said that I was done
Well, you were wrong and now the best is yet to come
'Cause I can make it on my own, oh
And I don't need you, I found a strength I've never known
I'll bring thunder, I'll bring rain, oh
When I'm finished, they won't even know your name
Don’t get me wrong, I am so proud of who I am. But even though there are no more physical monsters, there are still mental monsters. There are demons that I fight every day when I hear a phrase that this person said, or I see him in my nightmares. When I enter into a new relationship, I want to make sure that I do not suffer that way ever again and I think that relationship was the last time I even remember being so vulnerable in the way that you should be to the person that you love. Being burned the way that I was makes you never want to be vulnerable ever again.
The final part I want to discuss is where Kesha sings:
I hope you're somewhere prayin', prayin'
I hope your soul is changin', changin'
I hope you find your peace
Falling on your knees, prayin'
That’s something that I think about frequently. Is he changing? Has he realized what he has done to me? Does he feel remorse? I pray for him to understand and to wish it had gone differently. And I pray that he doesn’t feel indifferent toward the way I ended up after his abuse.
Now, after that depressing story.... There is a certain song that overwhelms me with happiness and that song is called Reckless Love by Cory Asbury.
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine
I couldn't earn it, and I don't deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God, yeah
I really want to focus on this part because the first line here is describing just how much God loves us all. He is saying that God’s love for us is so unconditional and so reckless and wild, and I think that is the type of love that we seek in man. It’s something that we may fight for or may hurt over. But there is this supreme entity giving it so freely and we can not lose it no matter what we say and no matter what we do and I think that is so special.
Oh, it chases me down, fights 'til I'm found, leaves the ninety-nine
I actually didn’t understand what the ninety- nine was at first, but when I went looking for that clarification, I found the answer actually on Cory’s Facebook page. He says “His love leaves the ninety-nine to find the one every time. To many practical adults, that’s a foolish concept. “But what if he loses the ninety-nine in search of the one?” What if? Finding that one lost sheep is, and will always be, supremely important.” So he is highlighting here the fact that, yes, God does and always will have his followers, but he wants ME specifically.
I couldn't earn it, and I don't deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Again, there is nothing that we can do that will make God leave us. We have him unconditionally and that is more than any man can promise.
I hope you have found this mini- vlog to be insightful, maybe. Please leave me some feedback if you feel so inclined.
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RAYMAN LEGENDS: AN ANALYSIS
Hello! My name is Elanna, and this is my vlog.
Today, I am going to be talking about the music used in Rayman Legends. For those of you who do not know, Rayman Legends is the fifth video game in the Rayman series, and it is created by Ubisoft. The game has different worlds that you can enter by jumping through the painting, like this.
Once you enter the world, there are different levels and side games for you to beat. It is really fun because levels are not unlocked one after another once you beat the one before; they are unlocked based on the number of Teensies you save (which you do within each level). So you are able to jump around in the levels and worlds a bit. So if one level is really getting to you and you just can not for the life of you figure out how to beat it, you get to move on for a bit instead of having to stop playing the game because you aree frustrated and ready to give up. You get to take a breather, rebuild your confidence on a different level, and then go back to that level, which I love.
Now, in the games, there is always music playing. It is in the background when you are picking a world, picking a level, or playing through a level. It is actually the music I have playing in the background of this video; that is the Rayman Legends soundtrack just going. I am no music expert, but I absolutely love the soundtrack to this game, and the music fits each level so well. But that is not what we are going to be looking at.
At the end of each world is a music level; before you even play one you can tell the level is special because the painting for it is shaped differently than the other level’s paintings.
So in these levels, they not only play a song over the level, but also, you have to play the game to the music. You have to punch, kick, and jump to the beat. They are so unbelievably fun, especially if you are playing with a friend who cannot keep a beat to save their life. While playing through the game, these were always my absolute favorite levels; they are super creative and just really enjoyable. They really incorporate each song into the level so that you almost can’t even play without the music turned up.
But this isn’t even all they do for music levels! The creators went real hard when they made this game, and so the final world is entirely made up of musical levels. And I don’t mean that they created new musical levels for funsies – they took the music levels from the end of every other world, and just totally screwed around with it, both the music and the animation.
Some of the music they turned into 8-bit, as for the animation, they did anything they could to make it nearly impossible to see. There’s “screen fuzz” for lack of a better term; they put up multiple screens at the same time, so much so that you can’t even see what’s happening; they use the fisheye effect; they pixelate the images; and they turn the screen upside down. Sometimes they do more than one effect at once. The music also becomes distorted since they turn it into 8-bit versions of itself; this both harkens back to the old video game style of 8-bit animation and music, thus adding a layer of nostalgia, while also adding to the sense of distortion. If a player isn’t super familiar with 8-bit music style, then the music is just “off”, just like the visuals are.
This is the first musical level, and I like that it starts silent and then the music begins because the player doesn’t know that this level is going to revolve around the music. It’s also unique because the characters are dancing and singing along which is a really cool way to incorporate the song into gameplay besides you having to move to the music.
I’m not going to show every single musical level, but I just particularly love the way your character moves to the beat of the music, especially with the drums and the strings.
Now for the fun part! I’m just going to show a little bit of the first level just so you can get a nice, exact comparison of these levels because the next one I’m going to show, I didn’t show the original version of.
So this level shows that sometimes when you kick, punch, jump, or something, the visuals change. This level makes you rely on the music a lot more than the other levels. It even gets to the point where you can’t even see what you’re doing, you just have to rely on the beat of the music to know when to perform an action.
Thank you for watching/listening to this comparison! Bye!
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CONWAY VERSUS KANYE
A COMPARE AND CONTRAST SCRIPT
BY LACIE ANASTASIO
Intro to Conway versus Kanye
Hello anybody who is actually watching this. For this video I will be comparing and contrasting Conway Twitty versus Kanye West. And what I intend to do with these two artists is to not only briefly compare them as people but most importantly to compare their musical genres which just happen to be two of my favorites. Country music and rap music. And believe me I know that they cannot be farther apart on the musical spectrum.
Conway Twitty Intro: Career and Fun Facts
So, Conway Twitty was a country music star whose career in country music started in the year 1965 and lasted up until the 1990s. He started off with a few singles that didn’t really make the cut as big hits until 1970 when his hit “Hello Darlin’” was released. His career snowballed after that and by the year 1990 he had a grand total of 55 number one hits.
Some fun facts about Twitty: Conway Twitty was just a stage name. His real name was Harold Lloyd Jenkins. He played baseball and got an offer from the Phillies before he was drafted into the United States Army. He also lived north of Nashville where he built a country music entertainment complex called Twitty City. He was married 4 times to only 3 different women. He died on June 4, 1993 from an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Oddly, unlike other country music artists he never was a member of the Grand Ole Opry but was inducted into the country music hall of fame.
Kanye West Intro: Career and Fun Facts
So, Kanye West is one of the most popular rappers in the world. He first was a producer in the mid-1990s. He first started out as a producer at Roc-A-Fella Records in the early 2000s and produced hit singles for Jay-Z, Ludacris and even Alicia Keys. His debut album was released in 2004 with the title The College Dropout which eventually would go triple platinum and give him 10 Grammy nominations. He founded Good Music records which houses artists like John Legend. He is known for his controversy and one of the highlights would be in 2009 during the MTV Video Music Awards he snatched the microphone away from Taylor Swift and insisted the Beyonce deserved the award.
Some fun facts about Kanye: His nickname is Yeezy and he has a fashion line named after it. and I’m sure everyone already knows this but he is married to reality star Kim Kardashian and they have 3 kids. Interestingly enough, he was actually engaged before kim to designer Alexis Phier. He actually lived in China for a year when he was 10 years old while his mother taught at a university for a exchange program. In October 2002, he had a near fatal accident that gave him a shattered jaw and inspired him to write “Through the Wire”. He received an honorary doctorate from the art institute of Chicago in 2015.
How are the Artists Similar?
SO how are these two artists similar? Well both are artists were extremely successful for their careers. Conway’s was more subtle than Kanye with having 55 number one singles and only 2 Grammy Awards and being inducted into the hall of fame. Kanye certainly was awarded much more with all of his album’s having hone platinum. He even won 21 grammy’s in 2017 alone. One way I will say they are very much alike is their expressive ways of talking about women, It is no secret that rappers are very lewd when it comes to their lyrics but to surprise everybody Conway Twitty seemed to be the same way towards women. He just didn’t use such vulgar language. For example, just listen to his song “I’d Love to Lay you Down.”
Country Music Versus Rap Music
Now aside from the two artists we are just going to focus on the music itself. We’ll be talking country music as a genre and rap music as a genre and what that all entails. I believe that more so now with pop country music it is easier to compare rap to country music. Back in the days I don’t think there were many similarities. For both genres, there is a very strong sense of pride within the lyrics. You have the country folk having a pride in where they came from as well as the city folk having a pride in where they came from. The music is literally about their own lives and how they live. Now I got these definitions off of google and Wikipedia. The definition of country music originates in the southern part of the united states and includes a mixture of ballads and dance tunes played on the fiddle, guitar, steel guitar, drums and keyboard. Rap music is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates “rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular” which is performed or chanted in a variety of ways usually over a backbeat or musical accompaniment.”
One thing that I think is a bit different is the musical instruments. For country music you have subgenres that can also be classified as country music such as bluegrass where they mainly use banjos, fiddles, and even hermonicas. I don’t believe those are mainly used in rap music, but rap music does use bass guitars, pianos or keyboards, drums, and strings, just like artists use in country music you hear on the radio today.
Thanks for Watching! End of Video.
SO that is my video for you today. I hope you enjoyed the video and I really encourage you to give country music a try because I know most of you are already rap music fans.
-LA
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Intro Tag: This podcast has been brought to you by ENC3310: Advanced Exposition at the University of Florida.
Intro Monologue: Hi! My name is Justin Matos. I am twenty years old. I am a Criminology major pursuing an English minor at the University of Florida. Emily Brooks is my instructor. Today, I will be comparing and contrasting listening to music versus composing and performing music.
Intro Music Jingle: [Playing in the background.]
Show Content/Topic: Listening to music compared to composing and performing music are two completely different experiences. Composing and performing music requires more involvement. It needs your time, energy, and devotion to be successful. I would like to share a personal anecdote from my life:
For instance, I, like most students I knew at the time, was placed in a middle school band class against my will. Our class had monthly tests and performances that demanded regular preparation throughout the week. Sometimes in-class practice sessions and performances took place in neighboring counties in auditoriums filled with hundreds of people. The flute was my instrument of choice partly because it was the lightest in weight and I thought it would be the easiest to play. I had absolutely no background in reading sheet music prior to joining Mr. T’s class, but I learned to do it while in band using pneumonic sayings. Each note had a differing finger placement and indicated how long to spend on that note before moving to the next one. I still know how to read music today. The five horizontal lines and four spaces between them are called a staff or stave. From the bottom to the top, the first horizontal line is E, the second is G, B, D, then F. The four spaces from bottom to top is F, then A, C, and E. The saying for the lines go “Every good boy does fine” and the spaces are just “FACE.” It sounds easy enough, right?
Don’t get me wrong. Listening to music is an experience in itself, especially when it’s time for new music to be released. Do you remember how you felt when your favorite artist put out a single or an album or a music video? You probably remember where you were and what you were doing at the time. I know I do. The excitement in your voice, the light in your eyes, the urgency in your movements. I’m experiencing these feelings as I’m saying this... If people know whose music you love, they’re all texting you about the new music. Normally when an artist I like releases a new album, I’ll listen to it all day, every day for weeks. I’m not joking. My friends would think I’m crazy, but if I’ve been waiting two or three years for new material, I’m bingeing on that album. Music can also tie into a certain memory. Everybody has that one song that takes them back to an earlier time where things were so much simpler than they are right now. What I like about music listening is you can take it with you anywhere you go in life. On the bus, a plane, when you’re driving to the beach with your friends, and on your way to your favorite band’s concert. Concert-going is a wonderful way to enjoy yourself amongst your friends while listening to the music you enjoy. You lose yourself in the hour or two you’re there. People sit, drink, talk, sing, dance, eat, bounce around, etc. I remember going to my first concert in 2014 with my older brother Christian. It was a Jay-Z and Beyoncé concert. When it was time for us to go, I remember looking back at the stage trying to get my last glimpse of the two people in music who I look up to the most. To this day, out of all the artists I’ve seen perform, that was the best show I have ever been to. Both listening and composing or performing music are different methods of indulging in music, but the joy you experience is one and the same.
Closing Remarks: Thank you to everyone who tuned in and listened to today’s podcast on the endless possibilities of music. I’ll catch you all on next week’s podcast here at 7PM. Have a great evening!
Closing Music Jingle: [Same as that of the beginning, fades out.]
- JM
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Hey, guys, I’m doing my podcast on comparing free and paid music. The music app I will be comparing is Spotify. Which is my favorite and most used music app. I currently pay for this service but I started out on the free vision so I have experience with both sides of the free and paid service. I use Spotify so much whether it’s going to class, hitting the gym, pre-gaming for going out or just trying to relax and listen to some tunes. Spotify, has it all.
Now I will give you some reasons on why you should subscribe to this app. It’s has a really big selection of music and a really good discovery platform you’ll find. Like I stated earlier you can test the app for free with for money down indefinitely. So, if you don’t have the money or want to try it out. Try Spotify for free. If you have the money its 10 dollars a month for Spotify.
Now I will explain to you who the app is directed towards. The app is directed at streaming newcomers, new music explorers and just about everyone in between.
How much does this app cost?
Free with Ads
10 dollars a mouth Ad free for single users
15 dollars a month Ad free for families’ users (Up to 6 people sharing)
5 dollars a month for Ad free for students
Here are some reasons as to why I picked Spotify:
It has millions of more subscribers than the next closest competitor. Spotify is the most popular music streaming app found on the market today. This is true for multiple reasons. The service is very users friendly on your computer and phone also works well on a number of third-party integrators. Spotify has a well-rounded list of playlists for whatever type of music you like. For example, Today's top hits, State of Jazz and Sunday Bests those are just to name a few but there are many more on the app.
The music streamer has long enticed newcomers with its free AD based desktop platform which makes it easy to use at home or at work. Streaming has taken a hold on the world today so many of the free users eventually become paid subscribers to the app. Paying allows you some real positives like getting away from the annoying Ads, being able to choose songs on demand, download songs to your playlist and be able to listen to them whenever even without internet connection. Spotify has over 30 million songs so if you can’t find it here you’ll have trouble finding it somewhere else. People trying to find their next favorite band or artists Spotify has a feature where it makes a playlist based off your music listening habits. Some of these playlists are called Monday's discovery weekly and New music Friday. The songs will surely match your listening taste.
Spotify also has an awesome feature with Facebook that allows you to connect and follow your friends see what they listen to and check out there created playlists.
I suggest that streaming newcomers get on the Spotify train be sure to check out my playlist at fdc2.
Here are some good and bad things about the App
The good
It’s easy to create playlists and sync them
Allows you to follow artists and be alerted when they post new music or are going on tour
Highly customizable playlists
Spotify connects to wireless speakers easily
The bad
Ads on the free service can be annoying
With the free service, you can only shuffle songs on the mobile app
You must create an account with Spotify to use it as free or paying user
This app is best for people who want a solid all-around service for streaming music. Also, good for people who enjoy making, browsing and sharing their playlists with others.
Thank you guys for listening to my podcast on comparing to free to paid music. This podcast was for a class I was taking at the University of Florida during the Summer A term. The course is the title is Advanced Exposition ENC3310. This project was a great experience for me along with the class. I hope I pursed some of you to give Spotify a try and some of you free users to upgrade to the paid version. I may be a little bias but that just me. See you guys.
Works cited
Hall, Parker. “Spotify Is the Best Streaming Service, but Competitors Aren't Far Behind.” Digital Trends, Digital Trends, 11 June 2018, www.digitaltrends.com/music/best-music-streaming-services/
Pendlebury, Ty. “Best Music Streaming App: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon and Google Play Compared.” CNET, CNET, 13 Apr. 2018, www.cnet.com/how-to/best-music-streaming-service/
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Hi All,
This is the VERY SOFT Release version of My Podcast premiering this August!
Hope you enjoy!
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Script:
(UF)
Hey everyone, its Justin! Today, I am going to talk to you about music. Music is absolutely everywhere. From turning your computer on, walking into a coffee shop, and even on an elevator, where ever you go, music is always surrounding you. You can't walk 10 feet around UF and not see someone with headphones in listening to music! However, the interesting thing to think about is what the purpose the music and how it is supposed to make us feel. Is it supposed to make you feel happy, be productive, informative, fun, or energetic?…these are just a few of the reasons songs are created! so join me as we compare and contrast the different ways music is used.
(inside)
Lets start at the beginning of the day. I turn my MacBook on, and there is the familiar start up sound. Sure, it is just a simple tone, but it is music that instantly reminds people of a Mac booting up. Apple has used a sound like that to make people think of their product and it acts as a type of advertising for them. Similarly advertising sometimes uses catchy songs to purposely get stuck in people’s heads to that they remember the product and maybe buy it later on. This tactic has been years not only on TV, but also on the radio way back to the 1930s.
(park)
Music can also be designed to be educational. When I was younger, I remember listening to this one tape cassette of a musician’s singing songs about the ABCs and other educational things. Because I listened to it so frequently, it helped me learn the alphabet. Children’s music is a fairly big market and you can find educational songs, and other things like nursery rhymes all over the place.
(outside)
Now, the types of music I have talked about have one thing in common, which is that they are pretty simple songs. They all have a clear message to get across and their goal is for the listener to remember what they are hearing. There are many other types of music, the type you would normally think of when you talk about music. This can become more interesting and often is developed to have more layers of meaning.
(outside)
Pretty much everyone has a different taste of music. Some people like pop, country, rock, just to name a few. It is impossible to really identify what makes someone like a certain type of music, but it can often have to do with their surrounding area. For lots of people, when they study they like to listen to classical music or something more relaxing. However, if they are exercising, they would switch to something more up-beat and faster paced. I do this often because when I study, I can not focus what I am looking at if I am hearing lyric-intensive music.
(park)
One interesting thing that music can do is make you feel nostalgic. This is very difficult quality to point out in the song itself, but instead can often be identified by what era the it was released in. For the most part, people can agree that the 70s and 80s have a distinct sound for people, especially if they grew up listening to those types of songs. Other songs try to build on that nostalgia by emulating a similar sound to make people feel like they have known the music for years, even if this is the first time hearing the song.
(inside)
For me, this is well done with the Stranger Things soundtrack. The show is heavily based on entertainment the 80s, and that is very prevalent through the music. It uses electronic sounding music, which is a sound reminiscent of the era, and uses simple Melodys that get stuck in your head. Now, there is no way for anyone who has already seem the show not to instantly recognize the theme song, and going back to what I was talking about , I recently saw a commercial for Netflix on Youtube and it used the Stranger things music to try to intice people to buy a subscription to Netflix.
(Outside)
Clearly, music can be made for many different purposes and can have different meanings, so next time you hear a song come on, think about what kind of message it is trying to send, and you will get a whole new appreciation of the song!
-JL
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