"On Your Way" by Alabama Shakes

"On Your Way" by Alabama Shakes

On your way to God, did you think of me, imagine losing someone who is very close to you, or worse, imaging losing that person when it just as easily could have been you?  This song, “On Your Way” by the Alabama Shakes, literally puts me in a place that I have never been.  I have never asked “on your way to god, did you think of me, or thought, “on your way to heaven, did you say I’ll see you again.” I have never lost someone close, so close to the point of saying “it wasn’t me, why wasn’t it me?”    However, for some reason when I hear this song, it puts me in a place; a place where I feel deep loss, and regret for my life still here on earth.  Most of the time I sing out loud as if I have the voice of Brittney Howard and the feelings of the lyrics were mine. I can see myself standing there thinking, “On your way to the promised land, did you say--- oh, she was such a friend?”  I would wallow in my low existence on this earth thinking, “then they took you higher, and I don’t know if I can follow”.  I want to follow and be with you again, but I don’t think I have what it takes to get there.  With no hope in sight I question, “it wasn’t me, why wasn’t it me?”  You’re always on my mind, did you know “on your way, I said to the air, I don’t know if I am strong,” strong enough to survive all on my own?  “So I climbed to the mountain, and I don’t know what I did wrong? Cause it was just me, just little ole’ me.”

Young, Wild and Free

This is Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa - Young, Wild and Free ft. Bruno Mars. The video I chose to upload is Young, Wind, & Free by Wis Khalifa. I didn't choose this song for the reason all of you might think. I decided to pick this particular song because of what it reminds me. My name is James Stuart Noble and I am 19. I am a full time student with 15 credit hours as well as a full time employee working 40hrs a week. I work at Purlee Farms mowing,weed-whacking, and fixing farm equipment which is no easy job to say the least. I am an eagle scout, assistant scout master, and acting scout master for troop 4226 at the KC hall here in galesburg. I am a third degree knight in the Knights of Columbus as well as an armature musician. I am involved in all of these things and still have to try and find time for family and friends. I really enjoy this song because being in all these things can make you only think about the future and this song reminds me to live for the moment. In the song they say to live free and that’s all I have ever wanted to do but I always have to look to the future because my life is always booked. Every time I hear this song I just take a deep breath and relax for the 4:15 the song lasts and it always makes me feel completely better. This song of one of only a few that can actually de-stress me and make my day a little bit better.

Casey Veggies - Swag Worth a Mill

Swag Worth A Mill is a song by young rapper Casey Veggies. This isn’t my favorite rap song nor do I think it falls under the “best music” label but it does hold a special place in my brain and memories. I can listen to this song and think about the good times I had in Miami like when the Heat won the NBA championship and I was at the parade. It also reminds me of more emotional memories such as my senior year in high school, when my soccer team and I made it to State Finals and we didn’t come out with the victory. I can also recall memories with my family back home. This song also acts like a motivator for me, either for school or soccer. As soon as I put my earphones on and play this song, I can think of a variety of things and thoughts. It’s crazy how the brain can recognize the music and connect it with memories and feelings. The beat/rhythm and lyrics of this song is what really makes me like it a lot. Not so much the actual video, where the rapper is just showing what his lifestyle is like. The title of the song is also something I don’t relate to.

Queen-We Will Rock You

The song We Will Rock You by Queen is a song that really means a lot to me. All four years in high school, when I played basketball, we’d run out and then begin our warm up routine while that song played. It could really get everyone pumped up. Now whenever I listen to that song I not only remember standing there by the locker room with my teammates, looking out into the crowd,  waiting for that song to play that would signal us to begin running out, but I think of all the memories I had throughout the many years I had with basketball. Some great, some not so great. But the emotional affect that that song has on me is huge. It can make me sad and make me really miss those days and realize how fast they went by. But it can also make me happy, remembering all those amazing memories and relationships I’ve made through that sport. I feel like the there isn’t one genre that is necessarily the “best” music. However, I do think that for any music to be considered “the best” it has to have an effect on you. It could make you sad or happy, motivate you, or give you some hope, but somehow the song will have some effect. The song We Will Rock You has had all of those effects on me at some point or another, and I think it will stick with me forever, and remind me of those four years playing high school basketball.

Red- Pieces

This song always warms my heart. In life, how hard I work, no matter how hard I try, I am not perfect. When I hear this song, I always think about how I always try to please my bosses, my teachers, my friends, my family, my girlfriend, but know that I will fall short sometimes. When I gather my sadness, my frustrations, my confusion and worry and lay them before Jesus, he makes me whole again. When I gave my life to christ my eyes were open to a new kind of love that i had never known before, an unconditional love. I screw up, I sin, I fall short of a lot of things, but I do not fall short of Gods love. I love this song because it speaks to my soul. It reminds me that i have done some stupid things in life, split into pieces of myself. Then, it reminds me that I am loved anyway. The piano and acoustic add the feeling of hope and longing for change in my life. Overall, the emotion in the singers voice is always encouraging. I sing along, and cry tears of joy, for I am loved by my creator. The built up intensity of the strings always gives me a warm feeling. This is because of the chords that are being played sound hopeful and it reminds me of my growing love for Jesus Ch

My Kind of Crazy by Brantley Gilbert

This song really means a lot to me. I had never even heard of this song until a couple months ago. I started dating my boyfriend nearly four months prior to listening to this song. One day he and I were laying in his bed and he pulled me in close, raised his hand to meet my chin, and tilted my head upward until my eyes met his and he said, "Babe, I have a question to ask you." So I said, "Yeah?" That is when he said, "Have you ever heard My Kind of Crazy by Brantley Gilbert?" I had never heard it before so I just shook my head. He did not say a word; he sighed. I was beginning to wonder if it was a bad thing I had never heard of it before. Then he grabbed his phone, went to YouTube, searched it, and pressed the play button. As I watched the music video I could feel tears forming in my eyes. He said he dedicated this song to me because "I am his kind of crazy." It is a love song--I am a hopeless romantic--so being the sensitive girl that I am, I really took that to heart. I could hear this song a million times and never get sick of it. This song has such an emotional affect on me that if we were ever to break up and I heard this song, I would probably end up doing something stupid that would put me in harm's way. I love all the musical aspects that are put into this song. Yes, I love country and this is why it is the "best" type of music. I love the way Brantley Gilbert plays it on guitar. The beat of the drums in the background makes it just that much better. It is conjunct and peaceful. That is also why it is the best. I like music that can warm my heart. This is and always will be my favorite piece of music.

WEEK 2—CHANGED FROM SYLLABUS!

Go to You Tube and find a video of a piece of music you enjoy. Embed the video here and then write your 250 words about why you like it so much. In order to talk that much about it, you'll have to delve a little into how the music is put together, the emotional affect, and how and why it fits into your idea of the "best" music. Be as specific as possible. The video below shows you how to embed a You Tube video into your post. Please put the video at the top, with the explanation below.






If the video doesn't appear, use the link below to watch it.
2012-08-24_1113

Melody is the meaning

Rhythm is thought to be the heartbeat to music.  To us, our heartbeat is crucial to every function; however, in music, the melody is more vital.  The rhythm is a helper to the melody.  The melody is more important because it gives the feeling/ emotion the music wishes to evoke.  Life is a game of reading and reacting, and the melody is the facial expression to music.  One could say “I am happy to see you” with my eyebrows high, eyes bright, and mouth in a smile.  Obviously, it is evident that the emotion is happiness.  Just as easily, one could say “I am happy to see you” with eyebrows turned down, eyelids at half mast, and my mouth in a frown; hopefully anyone could identify this as negative. It is possible to sing any phrase of words, but the manner in which it is said or the music is delivered has all the difference in the interpretation.  This interpretation of the melody in music is, “Lorren’s version of lamens terms to define melody” from the section in our book Melody in the Western World: “Summertime” from Porgy and Bess.  Rhythm is said to be the heartbeat to music and is very important to the melody.  However, my opinion of rhythm has been tainted by music of “My Generation”.  Many times the listener can become caught up in a new song.  The general first impression is that this music or song is good.  Take another listen and one might find that they have been caught up in a really good rhythm.  Once the listener comes back to the music and takes it all in, especially lyrics of today music, they in general are incoherent with the rhythm and beat.  A good rhythm can overshadow and catch the listeners in a trance, because of poor thought into the melody.  Why do musicians compose music?  They compose to convey an emotion or bring to light a message.  The melody is more important because the melody is the meaning.    

Rhythm is Key

Rhythm and melody are both essential to music; however, rhythm almost always comes before the melody. Yes, in a sense the two complement each other, but when one depicts a song or a tune of some sort, the rhythm is the foundation of it all. If one was to take out the rhythm to a tune, all that would be left is the abundance of notes (the melody). When looking at a piece of music with only the notes, it is hard find the rhythm. What are the beat and the tempo of the arrangement without knowing the rhythm? How would one know where to start to place those notes? To turn the tables, what if the melody was taken out of a song and all that was left was the rhythm? Well, with the rhythm, at least there is a beat to work with and whichever notes are desired can fall into place because the rhythm is there to act as a guideline for the melody. For example, the James Bond theme song has a very repetitive beat to it. It has a musical pattern and is a very simple piece to place notes into it. One can form any type of musical piece as long as they provide a tempo and a beat (rhythm) to it first. The rhythm lets people know the emotion to the song before the melody comes into play. As an example, if the song is faster paced, it is probably a happier song; if it is at a slower pace, one can most likely guess it is a sadder song. An example of a song with a faster rhythm could be I Don't Want This Night to End by Luke Bryan and a slower paced rhythm song could be Teardrops on My Guitar by Taylor Swift. All in all, rhythm is more important than melody.

Rhythm over Melody

Rhythm and melody both play an imperative part in music. A musical composition depends on both these elements. I read an article recently on differencebetween.com that stated, “It is said that rhythm makes our feet to dance, whereas melody makes our heads to nod in appreciation. Both are considered to be the two eyes of music”, this is true in many genres of music. Melody is thought out to be more of a ‘tune’ and rhythm more of a ‘tempo’ or ‘beat’. In my opinion, rhythm is more important than melody. This is mostly because my preferred genre of music is hip-hop/rap, without rhythm most of the songs wouldn’t sound right. A rap beat can be compiled of a variety of tempos and still sound good if it flows with the artist’s voice and style of performance. The repetitive sound that is rhythm gives a song the sense of togetherness. Another thing about rhythm is that the timing of the song is dependant on it when set in composition. Rhythm is the nucleus of a song and it can be made with a huge amount of different things and almost anywhere. There are many artists around the world that use non-instrumental objects to make songs such as garbage cans, pots, pans, rubber bands, rulers, bubble wrap, etc..  A melody takes more time, instruments, and even programs or technology if needed. 

Rhythm: The Most Important Part Of Music

You can mix together any sounds you want, but if there is no rhythm to the sounds, there is no music. Which is why I believe rhythm is most important to music rather than melody. Although both have a big role in creating music, rhythm gives order to beats, accents, and duration.  Therefore, without rhythm a song may not flow as smoothly as it should. A melody cannot exist without rhythm, it must line up with the rhythmic feel or groove of the song. Therefore, rhythm is kind of like a base to any piece of music. Rhythm is also how many people identify a song and also what listeners tune into most when listening to it. Rhythm can also really connect to a person's emotions. For example, if someone is going to go workout, they may want an upbeat song with a fast rhythm. Rarely will there be a very popular song without a good rhythm to it. When at a concert and the band gets slightly out of tune or pitch for a moment, the audience, unless you're a trained musician yourself, isn't likely to notice. However, if something goes wrong with the rhythm, the audience is much more likely to notice. And usually, those audience members will be dancing along to the music, along to the rhythm. Rhythm is what drives the music, keeps it going, and keeps musicians playing together like musicians. Rhythm, in its simplest form, is not only necessary for melody, but harmony, and lyrics, and the entire song.

Rhythm

Rhythm is the most important part of music in many ways. It is a pattern or non-pattern of beats. Without it, there would be no music. Rhythm is a certain way you play an instrument or etc. There would be no theme songs to commercials and other advertisements. Rhythm helps music by selling the emotions to the beat. Rhythm brings the happiness or sadness to the music. Without it, you would be able to work out to music or dance. Rhythm is the way of life by showing types of eras. The styles of rhythm can be from the types of instruments they used. Mid-evil times have the rhythm of the harp and the trumpet. In these times, there are so many different types of music instruments to make rhythm.

Rhythm is more important than melody

Without rhythm, every instrument would not have the same point of change. For instance if their was not a rhythmic structure in a song, the guitar could play the song in the time signature of 3/4 and the drums and bass could play in 4/4 time. The two time signatures conflict because there are 3 beats per measure in 3/4 time and 4 beats per measure in 4/4. The timing would be off because the beats do not line up with each other, making it hard to follow where the bridge,chorus,prechorus, and verses would be in a song. Melody is important, but many bands have played songs out of tune and with random cords. For example, The Beatles wrote a song called "Helter skelter", where the bass and guitar were both out of tune and did not sound right to the ear. That was how they wrote the song though. Also, many chants and tribal songs consisted of only drums. So, drums, keeping the rhythm of the piece and the time signature, would not need to have a certain melody. Rhythm is also important for how slow or fast a song is. For very dramatic, sad songs, a slower rhythm can be used to show intensity and passion. Also, slower rhythms are often used in operas or ballads. This is useful for the singer to hold longer notes for longer periods of time. Faster rhythms can be used for types of music such as metal(favorite) alternative rock, techno, and other types of music that you can dance to. Although, slower rhythms can be used for slower dances such as walts or other proper dancing. Over all, if music did not have rhythm, we would not have the part of the song that can make the same chords and notes from one song, into an entirely new song.

Rhythm importance

Webster dictionary defines melody as a rhythmic succession of single tones organized as an aesthetic whole. Webster also defines an ordered recurrent alternation of strong and weak elements in the flow of sound and silence in speech. As my title to this blog plainly shows, I believe rhythm is more important than melody. For starters, all melody is rhythm but not all rhythm in melody. Without rhythm there would be nothing to make up the music we listen to let alone the melody of the song. Rhythm is the back bone and overall structure that supports the song. My second reasoning for why I believe rhythm is more important than melody is that rhythm is the simplest form as well as the starting point of a given piece of music. As I’m setting here writing this blog I am making up a rhythm by tapping my foot or clicking my pencil on the desk. But if I want to make a melody I would need to combine multiple rhythms as well as other musical elements to mold it in to a well sounding melody. For an example, when a musician sets down to write a song where do you this he or she starts. Do they start by writing the melody strait out? Of course not, they come up with a rhythm they like and go on from there. Also, rhythm defines how a song is going to sound. Changing a single beat in a rhythm can turn a rock sounding beat into a more African sounding style. Even thou some rhythms are not as complex as a melody may be, you couldn't have structured music without it.

WEEK 1

What do you think is more important to music, rhythm or melody? Defend your answer thoughtfully.