Last Blog- Hawaiian Music

Hawaii has a very special place in my heart. I have never been to Hawaii but it is a dream. It has a deep meaning in my life. I have a very important friend back home and Hawaii is the place that we always talk about. Whenever I am having a bad day I will joke about moving to Hawaii and just getting on a plane and flying there. A dream of mine is to go there with her and when I do it is going to be so unimaginable. When I am going through stressful periods of time she will send me scenery videos of Hawaii that have relaxing music to them. I will put it below just in case you need it during exam week, or any other time because it is really helpful. However, having this place that I can talk about with her when I am struggling and in need of some cheer is very important to me and it is just special to me. This might seem weird to people, and it is also hard to fully explain the significance of it. 

I also think that it is so cool that despite being a part of the United states it has such a unique culture. Yes, all the states have different things about them. Michigan is very different from South Carolina. However, Hawaii has a completely different way of life and I think that is so cool and I would love to learn more about it. I think a lot of people view Hawaii as a tourist destination but it is also people's home.

The Instruments: 

One of the first things that I wanted to learn about was the different instruments that they have, because typically when I think about Hawaiian music I just think of the ukulele. However, that instrument isn't even a traditional Hawaiian instrument. That came to the islands later on as people started to migrate to the islands. The country of origin of the ukulele is Portugal. Traditionally their music only had a drum and maybe a shaker The drums that they use are made of gourds. They are very simple instruments that are made from emptying out a gourd. They call this instrument Ipu. As the music started to evolve they started to get more instruments. One of which was also made out of the gourd, this instrument is called the 'uli'uli, this type of instrument is a shaker type of instrument. One thing that I found really cool about this instrument is that they cover it with feathers, but specifically red and yellow. I found that pretty neat, and I would love to know more about why they choose those colors. Personally I think my favorite instrument of all of them is the 'ili 'ili, I like how simple it is. The instrument is just 2 rocks that you hit together. I just think that it's so fun and basic. One thing that I also like about the instruments is they are made from what they have. This is something that you notice when learning about other cultures, but one thing about the Hawaiian instruments is they are so simple. The next instrument is an example of that. They use bamboo and they either hit them together (pu'ili) or they hit them on the ground (ka'eke'eke). The ka'eke'eke reminds me of an instrument that I used in music class growing up, the boomwhackers, so that is also interesting to see the overlap between the 2 very different cultures. 

About the music: 

I think one very important thing to note is that Hawaiian music has done a lot of evolving and changing over the years. They have a different word for music in their culture and that is Mele and Hula. This is because their music started off as a way to tell stories. They would also use it to connect with the Gods and the land that they live on. They used their music as a way to show their history and they did it in a performance. They would have dancers along with their music. Their music did start to change, this came from new people coming to the islands from different areas. This would bring new instruments and music traditions and they would adapt them into their music. Hawaiian culture very much values the land that they live on and it is shown in their music. I think that this is super cool, because land is taken for granted so much and it is awesome to see the value in their culture.

Music: 

This is one of my favorite songs. This is an example of modern Hawaiian music and you can hear the use of the ukulele in it. The song just makes me happy listening to it, and it makes me want to be on the beach, relaxing and taking in the beauty that the beach has to offer. I think that is also very motivating and it has a great meaning. Although it doesn't have the idea of passing down the history of the land. I think it does have the element of being grateful for the land that they live on. It talks about the beautiful world that he lives in and all the amazing things that come from it. Also in traditional Hawaiian music it has the drum in the background and that is the only instrument throughout the song, and that is similar to this song it just has a ukulele instead.

This song is an example of traditional Hawaiian music. It is in the chant form that their music is traditional in. It also has the ipu in the background, which is keeping the beat. I think that it is very interesting to hear, and although it is simple I do find the song nice to listen to and I would love to know the meeting of the song, but I can assume that they are talking about their history. 

Although Moana is technically about the Polynesians. The Polynesian were a group of people that lived in Hawaii. This song shows the idea about singing about the ancestors and their history. I also just really like Moana and I think the music is really good.

Although Moana is technically about the Polynesians. The Polynesian were a group of people that lived in Hawaii. This song shows the idea about singing about the ancestors and their history. I also just really like Moana and I think the music is really good. 

Dance: 

You can tell based on watching the music that they have very specific hand and foot movements. I also really like how precise the movements are and how clean it looks. I think the movements flow well with the music. You can also tell based on the dance that it connects to their land and is important to their culture, as they pair it with their songs even linking back to their traditional music. 

Milles, M Kaela. “The History of Hawaiian Music.” Hawaiian Culture Stories, https://www.hawaiian-culture-stories.com/hawaiian-music.html.

Folkways. “Na Leo Hawai'i.” Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, https://folkways.si.edu/na-leo-hawaii/music/article/smithsonian.

Del Amo, Thomas. “Pacific Sunrise at Lanikai Beach in Hawaii.” Dreams Time , 

https://www.dreamstime.com/stock-images-pacific-sunrise-lanikai-beach-hawaii-image11054574. Accessed 2 Dec. 2022.

Family and Music!

 For this assignment I interviewed my mom. It was nice hearing her opinions on music and seeing the similarities that we have when it comes to our music tastes. 

Me: What is your favorite type of music? 

Mom: That is a tough one, probably country. 

Me: Why? 

Mom: I like how it tells a story. 

Growing up my mom always had a different type of music playing, so it was interesting to see what her favorite music genre was. 

Me: What is your favorite era of music? 

Mom: Well, I like 80s pop but I also like 90s country. 

Me: What about those do you like? 

Mom: 80s pop is free spirited and upbeat, it also puts me in a good mood, and I feel like the country music from the 90s tells more of a story then other eras of country music. 

We then moved on to her own personal music history

Me: Have you ever played any instruments? 

Mom: The recorder, the piano, violin,Viola, xylophone 

Me: Which one was your favorite? 

Mom: Viola 

Me: what about that makes it your favorite? 

Mom: I like that it was an important part to the entire piece of music, but it wasn't the attention part. 

Me: Are there any instruments that you never got to play but you wish you would have been able to? 

Mom: The cello and the saxophone.

I also have always wanted to learn how to play the cello, that has always seemed like a fun instrument to play, so it was cool to learn that my mom also wanted to. 

Me: Nice! what about the saxophone was appealing to you? 

Mom: I want to play the saxophone because I wanted to be in the marching band. However, they had too many people signed up so they called my mom asking if I would play the viola. 

Me: You went to Taiwan when you were younger, what was the music like when you went there?

When my mom was 16 she went to Taiwan for the summer and stayed with a friend from school. She has always had some great stories from her time there. However, I had never asked her about the music there. 

Mom: I don't really know what the music was like, I didn't really encounter much of it. However, one thing I noticed was when you went into an American restaurant they would have the Beatles playing. I heard strawberry fields forever pretty much every time I went into a Mcdonalds. 

Me: What is your opinion on the way that we stream music? 

Mom: Umm I was a CD collector, and I really liked it. However, now that I have an Alexa I wouldn't want to go back. Now you don't have to go through a whole bunch of CDs to play one song, you can just ask it to play a song and it does. So I think I like the way it is now. 

Me: What are your opinions on Musical? 

Mom: I love them. I really like the classics. My favorite is The Sound of Music. I use to play the sound track on repeat. 

Growing up I watched this movie a lot because my mom loved it so much! My high school would do yearly musicals and she really wanted the school to do it so that one of her children could be in it. 

Me: Going back to the comment about CDs is there a favorite CD that you collected. 

Mom: The greatest hits by John McClain or Simon and Garfunkel The Concert in Central park. 

Me: Is there a genre of music that you don't like? 

Mom: Yes! I do not like Rap

Me: What about it do you not like? 

Mom: It's repetitive and it is too much stimulation. 

Me: What is your favorite memory around music. 

Mom: When I am in the kitchen with my daughter and we are cooking and listening to music and dancing. 

Me: what is your favorite song?

Mom: Vincent by John McClain 

Me: what about that makes it your favorite song 

Mom: is is about Vincent Vangogh and how he was misunderstood and I feel like I can relate to that, because I have felt misunderstood in life. 

I really enjoyed being able to learn about my mom's music taste and why she loves music! 

American Roots!

All things in life have some sort of origin. You start with one thing and then it will build into another. That is in fact the case when it comes to Appalachian Folk music. One of the main things that helped to form Appalachian Folk music were ballads, fiddle music, and hymns. The music traditions that this music derived from comes from England and Scotland. The first sighting of this music coming to be was in the 17th and 18th centuries when the Scottish and English came over to the Appalachian areas. They brought the ideas of ballads over, and that is one of the main things that this music came from.

Appalachian folk music was noted for being recorded until around 1920. Before the music was recorded, the traditional music was passed down orally. You passed it down through your family and generations. It was very traditional for folk music to take on themes of daily life and that this was the topic of the music. One thing that was very popular during the time of Appalachian folk music was coal mining. This was a very popular thing in this area, which then resulted in it having a heavy influence on the music and resulting in something that they all could relate to. One great thing about music is that it brings people together and it creates a sense of community, something that was really important during this time, because coal mining is a very dangerous job, yet something that was really important during this time.

Some of the primary instruments that are used in Appalachian folk music are the Banjo, American Fiddle, and then as the music started to evolve and grow, you would see the Guitar start to get added into the music. Going back to the idea that all things come from some sort of origin, these instruments also have some sort of origin. One of the primary ones is the banjo, you can see this having some sort of root from Africa and some of their traditional instruments there.

This song is by Fiddlin' John Carson; he was one of the artists that rose to the top during this period. You can hear the use of the fiddle in this music, which is where I assume his name came from. There is also one voice in this song, and it seems to stay at a pretty steady pitch. It doesn't get too high but it also doesn't get too low. The fiddle pretty much plays the same notes throughout the whole song, there isn't much change to the rhythm. It is unlike the blues in the fact that it doesn't repeat the line and then go into a line that rhymes.

This song is by another famous artist during this time named, G.B. Grayson. He also uses the fiddle in his music. There are a lot of similarities between his and Carson's music which makes sense for the fact that they are performing the same type of music. However, I do like his song better because it is faster and the beat is a lot more fun, and you are able to dance to it a lot better. One thing that I did notice from this music is that there are a lot longer periods of the songs with no words then in the song by Carson and I think it allows for another entertaining version of Appalachian Folk Music

The next one is called "Little Brown Jug" by Henry Whitter, who is also one of the big artists of this era. I think that this song has the catchiest beats so far. I really like the background music that accompanies the words. I could totally see myself dancing to this song and having a good time with my friends while this song plays. One thing that can be noted from this song is that there is more than just the fiddle going in this song. It has the fiddle, the guitar, and a banjo and I think there might even be a harmonica. This is slightly different from the other one's because the song by Grayson just uses the fiddle. I think that it adds a different element and that it makes the song more fun, because there are more things going one. Like the others the vocals are pretty steady and there isn't much changing between the notes. It doesn't get too high and on the flip side it doesn't get too low. 

This song is called "A Mole in the Ground" by Bascom Lamar Lunsford. I personally like this one the best simply for the name. I think that it is a really good name, and if I were to write music this reminds me how my music would be. This song plays into the fact that there was a heavy presence of coal mining during this time and this song plays a role in that. One thing that makes this song different then the other ones, is it doesn't have a fiddle and the only instrument that is in this song is a banjo. I really like the sound of the banjo in this song. I think that it really pulls the whole song together and it allows you to really get into the feels of the song. Like the other songs the vocals are steady throughout the whole song. 

Overall all the songs are very similar with slight changes among all of them. However you would get that with any genre that you would listen too. After the rise of this genre you will then see it mold into other genres that go on to be popular in their own ways, some of those genres are the following. Country which makes a lot of sense, because there are a lot of similarities between the two genres, they use similar instruments and the same idea when it comes to vocals. This is also the same case when it comes to Bluegrass. Those three genres all have very similarities. you could create a venn diagram and they would have a lot of overlapping elements. However, one genre that is influenced by Appalachian folk music is Rock n' Roll and learning about this really surprised me. 

Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, August 1). Appalachian music. Wikipedia. Retrieved October 29, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appalachian_music

Music and Gender

 Gender plays a big role in many things, one of those things is music. I have seen it throughout my life and through my musical experiences, and I can also see it through the music that I listen to. 

Growing up I was in choir and I was in musicals. Within those activities each person has their roles and it was often that your role was determined by your gender. There were multiple songs that my class would sing that would have different parts. For example there would be both an alto and soprano part to the song and that would be the job of the women's choir, but the song would also have a bass and tenor part of the song and that would come from the Men's choir. It wouldn't be the women's job to sing that part, because that isn't their role in the song.  One memory that really comes to mind is when I was in Elf jr. when I was in middle school. My character had a solo with the person who played my son in the musical. We each had our own roles in the song, because each part had different requirements and that was partly to do with our genders. I was his mother and he was my son. 

Also when you have different genders singing within the same genre you get a different vibe and a different message. For example, typically in country music when a male sings a song it’s stereotypically about beer, women, and their tractors, but that isn’t the case when a female sings a country song. Their songs typically have a deeper meaning and have a different message. As a disclaimer, I am not claiming this to be true about all country songs and artists. I am a big country fan. However, you can see a difference between gender and the messages that their songs deliver. Country isn’t the only genre that this is the case. There are some genres that are more heavily dominated in one gender over the other as well. There is just a different feeling in music when it is preformed by a different person and has a different sound to it. One of the things that cause music to have a different sound to it, is if it a male or female singing it.

Another aspect of music that I have witnessed the role of gender is the different genres. There are some genres that come to mind that have one gender more popular. There are also biases when it comes to gender in music. Some people have a preferred gender that they like to listen to, simply because they like the way that it sounds. 

Music and Ritual

Music is something that is so important to people's lives and it has such an impact. Music forms a community and it brings people together in times of need. Whether you are celebrating something/someone or you are grieving, music helps make things better. 

One of the biggest celebrations that I have had in my life so far, was my high school graduation. I graduated during covid and my graduation was one of the few things that actually felt normal that year. Every year the graduating class gets to vote for the song that they think should be their song. I think that the song that we voted for was something that was very fitting for everything that everyone was going going through. The song that we voted for as our graduation song, really encompassed the lesson that covid taught us. Our graduation song was "I Lived" Covid taught us that you shouldn't take a moment for granted and that you should live your life to the fullest potential. Also this song encompassed our graduating class. We had all gone to school together for the last 12 years and we truly made so many different memories. We were all such important parts of each other's lives for 12 years, and at the day we didn't want to look back and have regrets about the time that we spent in High School. This tradition of picking our graduation song is something that is very important to the seniors because it allows for us to make our graduation of own and it makes something for us to remember.

A tradition that my school has is that the leadership class puts on the assemblies.  One of the big things that we do is we put together a dance to different types of songs. We do this when we are having different celebrations and we are trying to hype people up. The year I was in leadership, we put together a dance for our senior assembly. The senior assembly occurred to celebrate the seniors and all the accomplishments that they made throughout their time in high school. This dance was one thing to hype everyone up and bring people together.  It was also a great bonding event that occurred for my class, it brought us all together as we tried to learn and perfect this dance. We had a lot of laughs, and a few struggles because not all of us were the best dancers. Some people (mainly talking about myself) lacked coordination. However, it was something that brought us all together and it helped create amazing memories as we celebrated each other. 

Although I haven't gotten married yet, I have some ideas of how I want it to happen and the type of music that I want to play at it. I want the first song that my husband and I dance to, to be a country song. Country music is something that is really important to me and my family and we always have it at our family gatherings, so it is something that I want to have at my wedding. The specific country song that I want is "Nobody" by Dylan Scott. I just really like this song and it means a lot to me. Also the artist has special meaning to me. I really enjoy songs that have a lot of meaning, and this is one of those songs. It really makes me think about love and the love that you share with someone. 

I actually really enjoy the olympics and the music that gets played at it. Growing up I had this huge dream of being an olympic runner. It was one of my biggest dreams and I would talk about it all the time. When I was younger I would make myself fake medals and where them around the house. This was something that I really wanted to accomplish. I wanted to be under the shining lights, and I wanted to be listening to that music as the medal got put around my neck. However, I chose a different route and chose to continue my field hockey career instead. This is a decision that I am beyond grateful for choosing and I wouldn't change my decision for a moment. However, I would love to still attend the olympics and attend the opening ceremonies, because that is still a dream that I would love to still live. 

Music and ME!

 Hey!! My name is Emily Whitlow, I am from the wonderful state of Michigan! I love where I am from and will always talk about how incredible Michigan is! I am on the Field Hockey team here at Converse. I enjoy spending time outdoors, as well as exploring the world. A big dream of mine is to go to Hawaii, to surf and swim with the sharks. I love being active and enjoy playing any sport, I am very competitive. I really enjoy listening to music. Whenever I am doing something I like to have music going, because it keeps me motivated and it makes me do things faster. My favorite genre of music is country!!! 

I do have a tiny bit of a music background, when I was younger I was in a handful of musicals. Although I have left my musical days behind me, I do really enjoy attending musicals. The talent that the cast and crew have are incredible and I find it fascinating to watch! I applaud them for all the hard work that goes into each and every performance and practices. 

1. The band that I am really into right now is Zac Brown Band. Their music just puts me into a fun and happy mood. The music reminds me of summer, and fills me with all the happy memories that come with summer. A lot of music that they preform has to do with the beach, which is also something that I really like about it, because I love the beach. The beach is one of my happy places and it is where I feel the most peaceful. Their music helps with that, because I am not always near the beach so it helps put me into that mindset. 

Their music also helps me feel like I am at home, because I am from Michigan I don't go home very often during the school year, so listening to country music helps me with that. My family really likes country music so it helps me feel a little at home. 

 

 

2. Currently, there is one song that is really standing out to me, that has a lot of meaning. I am really about living a life of meaning, and spending time with those that I love and the song 'Til You Can't by Cody Johnson is a song that delivers the message. You can always say that you could do something in the future rather than in the moment, but there will eventually be a time where you won't be able to, and you will have missed out on all of these chances. I want to live a life with no regret and I want to use the time that I have to make memories. Time flies so don't wait. If there is something you want to do, do it now. I think that this song really delivers that message and when I listen to it, it puts me back into that mindset. There was one time this summer, I was working out getting ready for the season. I went for a run and I just didn't perform the way that I wanted to. I was disappointed in my time and the distances that I was able to go, but then I sat outside and I listened to this song, and it motivated me to think differently and do better the next time.

3. Finally, there is one type of music that I really don't like and that is Jazz. It is a type of music that is suppose to calm people down, and I understand why people like it. However, for some reason Jazz stresses me out and makes me feel more anxious and doesn't help relax me. I am in full support of people liking it, but it would not be on my Spotify playlist. I also really like music that I feel like I can dance to, and Jazz just doesn't give me that feeling.