Post #11 - The Gullah People

The Gullah people have astonishingly been able to preserve their culture and way of life for as long as they have. Their music culture has obvious roots in African traditions. The time and space of their music can vary from inside their church to open spaces inside or out.Percussion instruments especially the drums are very prevalent, creating very rhythmic and pulsatile beats. "Rhythm- everything's about rhythm," says Queen Quet. Dancing among other activities is a significant part of this culture. Often seen with many performers dancing in sync to the tempo and beat. Regarding the material culture, performers seem to often wear traditional dress while dancing. Sometimes both the dancing and the instrument playing are incorporated into the actual performance as seen when the young people are hitting and striking the sticks in their dance (first video). The Gullah people also us stilts in their performances. There are also some hints of shimmers among the cries and trills of the women. Also, there seems to be a bit of the call and response quality in the music. Music is incorporated into their religious life, taking form in the gospels that they sing in church. The music often blends English with African languages, notable Mende, resulting in this unique Gullah music culture. With a rich culture such as of the Gullah people, music is also prevalent in ceremonies as seen with the example of the Mende funeral song.

Performance Report

Shakespeare in Song
Performance Report

Introduction
On Friday evening, March 26, 2010 the University of Texas at Dallas Chamber Singers performed a concert entitled Shakespeare in Song at the Jonsson Performance Hall. Pulling songs from several Shakespearean plays, the Chamber Singers entertain complete with dialogue and costumes from the historical era.

Music
The performance repertoire consisted of Shakespearean songs that either came from William Shakespeare’s plays themselves, British composer Roger Quilter, or Juilliard graduate Mathew Harris (Evans). Also the performers were split into four different ranges: soprano, alto, tenor and baritone/bass. As such, normally the males sang in a lower octave than the females, establishing a harmony and a quasipulsatile sound. Accompanied by the piano, a chordophone, the music’s tempo varied from song to song.
The first half of the performance seemingly consisted of songs with more morose or melancholy moods, while the second half had merrier or at the least more lively songs. There were several soloists that took the stage. In Cymbeline’s Fear no more the heat of the sun, Guiderius’s vocal timbre is deep, with a rich vibrato, while Hamlet’s Ophelia had a much higher and lighter timbre. The songs included many repetitions and sometimes the repetitions were repeated at different pitches by another section. Unexpectedly, there were even gender-specific songs. Othello’s The Willow Song was sung by only the females, and the Twelfth Night’s Oh mistress mine was song by only the males. The resulting textures were drastically different than if sung with a mixed choir. However in context of the play, it would make sense why the songs were sung exclusively by females or males.
There was a very rich texture as the music was arranged into multiple parts. For example, in the last song from Twelfth Night, When that I was and a little tiny boy, the arrangement “ends in a quadruple-four-part round (16 separate parts)!” (Evans).

Performers
The performers costumed in Shakespearean attire gave a sense of immersing the audience in a different time and place. Even the pianist and director were in costume. There was also some use of props as seen in The Tempest where Stephano, the “drunken butler,” has a flask of alcohol (Evans).
This performance unexpectedly included some dialogue from the actual plays “’surround[ing]’ these compositions... to set them in context” (Evans). At times, the dialogue actually interrupted the singing as with The Tempest. While Ariel is singing, Ferdinand is musing about where the music is coming from. Also in The Willow Song from Othello, Desdemona exclaims “nay” several times as Emilia would respond to her. Character interaction is present a lot almost in between every one or two songs. In Twelfth Night, Feste, the clown, can be seen trying to crack jokes and bring in a jovial attitude.

Audience
This performance was open to outsiders of the music culture; as a free event, anyone may attend. Someone who may be quite familiar with the works of Shakespeare or just someone who actively follows the Chamber Singers could be considered an insider. The audience actually consisted of many college students and older adults who were most likely family members or friends of the performers. Generally there were not any younger children. Also a majority of the college students probably attended as a requirement for their arts class. The audience applauded whenever the director turned around and gave the cue by slightly bowing and gesturing to the singers. There were not any noticeable interactions between the performers and the audience outside of this.

Time and Space
The Friday performance was the first performance of this presentation, and thus probably had the best attendance. Attendance is not the best possibly because it is held on a Friday evening, when many college students have started their weekend plans. The University of Texas at Dallas also has a large commuter student population, and with the venue being on campus, sadly most students do not bother to drive out to see the performance unless they are really interested in the arts, music, Shakespeare, the Chamber Singers, or are required to attend.

Conclusion
Combining music and literature is a great way to generate interest and awareness to both parties. Not only through song, the UT Dallas Chamber Singers brought life to these Shakespearean art songs also through other modes such as dialogue, costumes and props. Hopefully their second performance was just as or even more so successful.

Bibliography

Evans, Kathryn. Program notes. Shakespeare in Song. 26 March 2010. Richardson: UTD Jonsson Performance Hall.

Shakespeare in Song. Dir. Kathyrn Evans. UTD Jonsson Performance Hall, Richardson. 26 March 2010.

Post #10 - Opera

Rossini's The Barber of Seville
"Una Voce Poco Fa"

The above is a clip of a song from Rossini's opera "The Barber of Seville" called "Una Voce Poco Fa" sung by Beverly Sills. In this song, the character Rosina, is singing about defying her guardian (who wants to marry her himself) and running off to marry Lindoro, whose "voice [she] just heard." She claims that she is a gentle and obedient woman who will take orders, but if anything gets in her way for love, she will be a viper and "play a hundred tricks to get [her] way." The orchestral music here at this part accordingly follows her lead. At first the music plays relatively intermittently during her pauses, as an accompaniment, or as a homophony relationship. Then as she sings about how kind and gentle she is, it is in the style of cantabile, which follows the melody, until she reveals her underlying stealthy nature, where she breaks into a buffo style, which is faster in tempo or speed and continually jumps around the tonal center, in a sort of haughty manner.
Sills is also very animated and portrays her character very well. The opera's story line still continues even as she sings, seen by how she takes several moments to write her letter.
Throughout the whole song, there is a great deal of vibrato and trills utilized and the orchestral ornamentation and embellishments are also obvious.

Post #9 - Avatar

Honestly, I have not gotten a chance to go see Avatar, but I did listen to the soundtrack. The film score, or the soundscape of the film, either tries to imitate the sounds of nature in Pandora or build the suspense and tension correlating with the plot, while the music of the Na'vi people had a substantial amount of chanting or singing in their native language. There is ample use of aerophones and some drumming and other percussion to portray the "otherworldly sounds." For more dramatic turning points in the movie, the film score is prominent in trying to carry the mood of the moment with a sound more similar to the Western music that the audience is accustomed to. Many of the songs remind me of tribal elements and sounds originating possibly from Africa or South America.


For example, the song called "The Bioluminescence of the Night" is part of what I consider the film score. There is a lot of percussion used and the many crescendos, decrescendos and its overall nonuniform nature makes me identify it as soundscape music.


On the other hand, this is what I consider an example of the Na'vi people's music. It has a lot of vocal harmonization in its alien language that definitely gives it an ethereal feel.

Musical Ethnography of a Dallas Music-Culture

INTRODUCTION

The music-culture of the Vietnamese-American community in the Dallas area is arguably the most lively and festive during the Tet or Lunar New Year celebrations. Music plays an integral role in these festivities from events and functions like the lion dances to the temple monks’ chanting mantras. Throughout the years, this unique music-culture has grown and expanded from its traditional roots and Chinese influences to even assimilating aspects of American culture in all its components of ideas, activities, repertoire, and material culture.

METHODOLOGY

Information about this music-culture was obtained in addition to prior knowledge and initial research from observation of three separate events and two interviews. On Lunar New Year’s eve, I visited a nearby Vietnamese Buddhist temple to pay my respects. Unfortunately, I was not able to stay for very long, but I believe it was a very good primary source of information that encompasses the roots of its tradition. The next afternoon, I attended a lion dance celebration hosted by a local Vietnamese supermarket, and later that week, I dropped by the Vietnamese Student Association’s (VSA) New Year celebration held on campus. Since I spent a significantly longer time at these two events, I was able to retain the most information from them. Additionally, I interviewed two friends who I know to have had close contact with this music-culture. Christopher Tran, a loyal temple member and volunteer, and Fred Nguyen, a former lion dance performer and active temple leader, offered me their insights on the Tet music-culture.

ASPECTS OF THIS MUSIC-CULTURE

Ideas about Music
Because Tet only comes around once a year, the culture that accompanies it is very special. Tet is often considered the biggest and most important holiday in Vietnam. “Tet is always happy” (Tran.) The music of Tet is normally about the coming spring, good luck, prosperity, family, and sometimes love. Upbeat and positive, this music essentially sets the mood for the new year. As tradition goes, everything has to be prepared and auspicious for the new year. By starting it off with happy music, the upcoming long year is sure to be a good and prosperous one. Originating from Vietnam and heavily impacted by Chinese traditions, this music culture still focuses on tradition but is also very open to adaptations.

Activities Involving Music
At the Vietnamese Buddhist temple, the outside was hustling and bustling as people came and went, full of loud chatter and sounds of children playing. However, upon entering the main chamber with the golden Buddha, the soundscape drastically changed. The Buddhist monks’ serious and focused chanting resonated throughout the room. It was very comforting and soothing. In this location and specific situation of the music culture, it is hard for a person of a different race, ethnicity or religion to participate. However, I did encounter several Caucasian visitors (Buddhist Chanting).


After my encounter at the temple, the next day I went to a see a lion dance. Every year around Tet, all the local Asian super markets around always throw a celebration showcasing a lion or dragon dance. The super market I went to had booked a group from the Chinese Cultural Center. The performers were mostly younger student-age kids, but there were also some older adults. To my surprise, it was actually a very diverse group that was not just limited to Chinese or Asian members. There were several Caucasian men and an African-American teenager. Rather than professional players, they all seemed to be performers as a hobby. The ages ranged from a child of about seven years to older middle-aged men. They continuously switched off beating the drum to relieve the current player (Lion Dance). Nguyen, a former lion dancer, points out that these productions are largely led by the young performers themselves.


The Vietnamese Student Association’s “Lunar New Year Bash” was a startling contrast from the temple’s atmosphere. The music played was a mix of current popular mainstream American songs, and everything was more comfortably conducted in English. It goes to show how far this community have gone to assimilate into Western culture. The performers were students who had a passion to sing, dance or entertain others. A girl sang “Killing Me Softly” by The Fugees, a guy performed a song on his acoustic guitar, and there was a finale performance by a b-boy group. The music making was just done by everyday students, and the organization welcomed everyone and anyone to come (Lunar New Year Bash).

Repertoires of Music
There are actually many types of music in this music-culture. There is the Buddhist chanting that may fall into folk music or religious music specifically. The chanting of Buddhist sutras, or ancient scriptures, is very significant to the Buddhism faith. Passed down in written scripture as well as verbally through chant, this music is transmitted as long as the religion survives (Buddhist Chanting).
Meanwhile, the music of the lion dances is largely percussion. “All you hear are the drums and the gongs” (Tran). The distinct music of the lion dances always helps build excitement. The lion dance movements accompany this music as the lions lead the way to find the lucky money. Along with the lion dances, there were also several martial arts displays featuring the familiar Chinese theme song Wong Fei Hung. It seems that wherever martial arts are involved, this song will inevitably crop up (Lion Dances).
As far as the repertoire of VSA’s music goes, it stayed mostly in the category of American mainstream music. Songs by Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, and Timberland could be heard playing from the radio at the event (Lunar New Year Bash).

Material Culture of Music
The main material objects associated with the temple music are the temple itself, the Buddhist statues, and the bell to ring in the new year (Buddhist Chanting). Drums, gongs, or percussion instruments overall are required for lion dancing along with the intricately decorated lion costumes (Lion Dancing). “You can’t have lion dancing without three things: the lion head, the lion tail and the drummer” (Nguyen).
Meanwhile, VSA also offered a paper lantern decorating contest, since lanterns are also often seen during Lunar New Year (Lunar New Year Bash). Lunar New Year is also characteristically associated with the red color for luck. It is the time of year where adults present their children with red money packets called li xi. Commonly there are also dried and candied fruits and coconut shreds or traditional rice cakes. Tet essentially is a major celebration, and food is always a major part of that celebration culture.

CONCLUSION

With the growing number of Vietnamese-American citizens in Dallas, they have developed a distinctly special music-culture of their own, most prominently during Tet, assimilating traditional values along with new Western flairs. The variety of their music ranges widely from Buddhist monks’ chanting to percussion performance music and even popular American music, reflecting the versatility of this culture. With such diversity, this culture allows for Tet to be a joyous and endeared holiday for all, both young and old.

WORKS CITED

• Buddhist Chanting. Dir. Thich Gia Duc. Chua Tu Quang, Garland. 14 Feb 2010. Performance.
• Lion Dance. Perf. Chinese Cultural Center. Carrollton Plaza, Carrollton. 14 Feb 2010. Performance
• Lunar New Year Bash. By Vietnamese Student Association. Galaxy Room @ UTD, Richardson. 18 Feb 2010. Performance.
• Nguyen, Fred. Telephone interview. 09 Mar 2010.
• Tran, Christopher. Personal interview. 09 Mar 2010.

Post #8 - Difficulties

Some of the difficulties I encountered so far include the language barrier. Although Vietnamese is my first language, I have forgotten a lot of it, and unfortunately, I cannot read it fluently. I feel that research may be a bit more easier if I could tap into resources that aren't just in English and if I could better comprehend the language, especially the song lyrics. Also, because Tet only comes once a year, I had to make sure I planned to set aside time to catch the events.

Another problem I had was that Tet is heavily influenced by Chinese traditions, thus blurring the lines a bit so far as the boundaries of my topic goes. I may expand my topic to encompass the Lunar New Year culture in Dallas's Asian-American community in general (not just Vietnamese). Also, with a large percentage of assimilated Vietnamese-Americans, notably the younger generation, the music I've heard also included current mainstream American music.

My interview is conducted with a friend who is very involved with his temple, and is not unfamiliar to these festivities. He has been very cooperative.

I was lucky to catch 3 different events for my research. I visited a Buddhist temple, a local supermarket that hosted a lion dance, and a local Vietnamese student organization's celebration.

Post #7 - Music Culture Overview

Tet, or the Lunar New Year, is one of the biggest celebrated and beloved holidays in Vietnam. During the festivities and celebrations, music plays an integral part. Some of the more well known are the familiar beats of lion dancing. In the Dallas area, during Tet, many of the major Asian super markets would host a celebration that nearly always includes a lion dance. There are sounds of fire crackers, laughing and talking along with the loud percussion beats of the drum and gongs. The lion dances are not limited to lions but also dragons, and it includes a person dressed in a fat suit equipped with a fan wearing a jolly mask. The purpose of this man is to lure the lion to the specified destinations, or where the lucky red envelopes lie. The purpose of these dances are to ward off bad luck for the upcoming year, as well as gaining a contribution for the dancers who perform in these music cultures. Also during this time, many flock to the local Buddhist temples where the monks' chanting, or pray mantras, fill the air. There are often also other musical performances, martial arts displays that often feature the Chinese Wong Fei Hung theme song, A Man of Determination, karaoke, and even popular American songs can be heard with the large showing of the younger generation. There is a lot of cultural food that is served to celebrate traditions to bring in a luck and prosperity for the upcoming year.