MUHI102 001 FL-Ms. Louise Anna Vranesevic (VNQP)

After reading through Kerouac poems in "Book of Blues," I can't really imagine anyone with an imparticularly different or soothing voice reading them in my head.  I suppose it would be more like a cool, every day, "living on the streets" voice.  The way the that there are rarely to no puncuation markings makes me think that it isn't a very proper poem, like Emily Dickinson.  Because of this, maybe it could be considered a "jazz poem."  But originally reading through the poem, though, it doesn't lead me to think it is one.  It may be possible to call it a "jazz poem" because the stanzas are labeled as choruses and the margin of the poems are wavy and staggered, not all in a line.  This can let the reader be more free with the poem, possibly improvise like jazz musicians.

The recording of Kerouac and Zoot Simms really puts the whole "jazz poem" into perspective.  The way that Kerouac reads the poem is obviously the way it is supposed to be read, which makes sense with the way it is written.  Kerouac takes his time is some places and speeds up in others when there is not puncuation to do so.  This is like he is improvising.  He even edits parts of the poem as he is going along.  The saxophone makes it even more like a "jazz poem."  Although, at times, the saxophone can seem like too much to listen to when the poem is being read and too busy, I think it adds the feel of the smooth, cool jazz to the poem and the city setting that Kerouac is trying to portray in the poem.  There are even times when the saxophone trys to mimic what the poem is representing, which really gives a cool mood to the poem.  The poem with the jazz saxophone in the background definately makes a boring poem into a "jazz poem."

If you are a jazz lover or not, the styles between the "jazz" of Louis Armstrong and Charlie "Bird" Parker are completely different.  Most noticeably, Louis' charts are slower, giving off the relaxed-easy going blues stlye where as Bird's charts are up-beat, bebop, and very notey.  Two classic charts to compare would be Louis' "West End Blues" and Bird's "Bloomdido."  In West End Blues, Louis starts out with a very fast, upbeat introduction that is somewhat in the style of Bird's bebop, but suddenly he slows down to a layed-back feel.  In Bird's "Bloomdido,"  the piece is an up-beat bebop throughout.  The trumpet and saxophone also both play the melody with only the piano's chords as harmonies in the background in "Bloomdido" whereas in "West End Blues," the trumpet is the only one playing the melodic line with instruments such as the clarinet and saxophone playing harmonies behind it. "West End Blues" also had scatt singing in as a soloist other that in "Bloomdido" where the only soloist were instruments like the saxophone, trumpet and piano.  In the solo sections, the solos performed in "West End Blues" were more simple and had lots of space between ideas.  In "Bloomdido," the solos were, for the most part, continuous without much space inbetween ideas and had more complex, notey ideas, too. 

Although these two different styles are obviously different, they also have a handful of similarities.  For example, it was very easy to follow the form of both styles.  The piano did a fantastic job of laying down the changes and the soloists, no matter if the solos were simple or complex, did a great job incorporating the changes into their solos to let the listener know the place of the form.  In the solo sections, both styles still did a trading of solos between the instruments of the ensemble.  No matter what type of jazz is being played, there are still similarities, in addition to differences, between the styles. 

How to write a Blues:

In order to write Blues lyrics, you must use many common writing and poetry techniques that you already know.  Some common conventions and characteristics that are used in a Blues are rhyming stanzas and repitition of lines (AABA form).  The writer of a Blues usually incorporates lyrics that describe their emotions.  Unfortunately, though, the lyrics most commonly convey an unhappy or unfortunate theme/mood.  Since the Blues is written about yourself and your feeling/emotions, it's good to start the stanzas with "I...." and to use language that is most common to your culture and what you typically use.  Essentially, the diction used should be almost "slang" and common....nothing too fancy.  It's easy to write a Blues.  It's just like "venting" to a friend about an unfortunate event that happened to you, but you're singing it. 

Being from the North, the authors Allen, Ware and Garrison seem to respect the "creative power" from which the slave songs have developed.  The authors really seem to respect all that the African Americans have created and established.  They even go as far to suggest that they "will convey but a faint shadow of the original (287)," meaning they can't truly represent the Negros spirituals but they are so original and different from the white American's culture.  They seem to be very interested in the Negro culture, especially their behavior in church ("sperichils" and "shouts").  From writing this introduction, I think that the authors want to try to tell the readers of their day that the Negros are not barbarians.  They are a unique type of American who has their own culture and way of life.  Although they are not exactly like the whites, they should be treated like normal and their different culture should be accepted and respected. By doing this, the authors are trying to not only improve the image of the Negros on the Southerners, but also keep the image alive and interesting in the North.

In "The Awakening," Edna is experiencing a huge personal transformation in addition to a significant societal transformation.  In the beginning of the twentieth century, the woman's role in the household was the "mother-woman," which was expected from all woman at the time.  Throughout the course of the story, Edna decides to change that stereotype.  Her husband even begins to notice her "habitual neglect of the children (175)."  At one point in the novel, Mr. Pontelier seemed to have more concern for the children than Edna did, until Edna finally gave in and checked on her son.  The way that Edna decides to forgo the traditional stereotype of women at that time period shows her strong will and determination to find herself. 

As Edna is trying to discover who she really is, the author, Kate Chopin, includes many music and art references.  Edna often times referred to sketching. When Edna was sketching, "she felt in it a satisfaction of a kind which no other employment afforded her (178)."  Edna seemed to use art as a way to escape from the life she didn't want.  Another character in the novel, Mademoiselle Reisz, played the piano very well and Edna seemed to seek enjoyment and pleasure from Reisz's talent.  When Mademoiselle played, " the piano sent a keen tremor down Mrs. Pontellier's spinal column(187)."  She even mentions that her favorite song is titled "Solitude" (although this is not the real title, Edna just gives the piano piece this name).  It seems as though Edna can relate her feelings and life through music.  This is really personal for Edna and helps her realize what she wants in her life and how she can achieve the transformation she wants and needs.

My favorite part of the Blood Wedding ballet video is the "Wedding Rumba" scene.  This scene really caught my interest because it seems like the most fun.  Everyone is out on the dance floor dancing, singing and having a good time.  I also think that it gives off the biggest "spanish vibe," as in, if there was no sound, I would be able to tell that they were dancing in the spanish, or flamenco style.

The dancing in this scene definately reflected the characteristics of the flamenco style. The backround dancers incorporated alot of hand-clapping and foot-stopping in their dancing on the majority of  the beats.  They also used their hands and arms alot compared to doing less intricate foot work.  The bride and groom especially do a really good job of reflecting the flamenco characteristics.  The groom has a very strong and powerful posture (like a bullfighter) and the bride does the most moves with her arms and hands.  By doing this, the bride and groom bring attention to themselves, showing that they they are the most important characters of the dance.

 Compared to the song "Awaken, Bride, Awaken," which is sung in an earlier scene, the song sung for the "Spanish Rumba" is much more upbeat and typical of most spnish music.  The members of the band are even on the dance floor playing their guitars and dancing at the same time.  The singers, the majority of them seeming to be males, sing very high.  The guitar part for this scene also seems to be more of a strumming of chords instead of individual guitar notes to make a melody. This is especially apparent when this scene is compared to "the pasodoble for the bride and Leonardo." In that scene, the guitar is mellow and plays a more intricate melody to express the emotion in that particular scene.  Throughout the whole play, the guitar plays a very important role in setting up the emotion of the scene (ie: happy, sad, worried, sensual).  

"You would have gone, too. I was a woman burning with desire, full of sores inside and out, and your son was little bit of water from which I hoped for children, land, health; but the other one was a dark river, choked with brush, that brought near me the undertone of its rushes and its whispered song.  And I went along with your son who was like a little boy of cold water-and the other sent against me hundreds of birds who got in my way and left white frost on my wounds....Your son was my destiny and I have not betrayed him, but the other one's arm dragged me along like the pull of the sea, like the head toss of a mule, and he would have dragged me always..." (Blood Wedding, pg 96)

 

This quote, from Act 3, Scene 2, was said by the Bride to the bridegroom's mother, following the deaths of the bridgegroom and Leonardo. I think that this quote contains elements from the first thread in it. These elements are violence, desire, and unconscious.

It's hard to pick out the violence in this quote exactly, but this speech is given by the Bride right after her "two lovers" get into a huge knife fight.  Throughout the whole play references to the dangers of knives always seem to arise, therefore knives and violence have a big role in this play.  Alot of the similies that Lorca uses in this quote refer to violent/harsh things. For example, "choked with brush," "white frost on my wounds," and "one's arm dragged me along." By using these harsh words, the reader really gets a sense of how the Bride really feels.  Sometimes using violence doesn't necessarily mean that guns and knives are being used, sometimes all it takes is using violent-type words to make you wonder about what the Bride really means.

As far as desire is concerned, the bride shows her desires alot in this specific quote.  She states her love and future hopes for her and the bridegroom, then again she is saying how Leonardo is so irresistable.  It seems like the bride doesn't know what she wants at all. At one point in the quote she says to the mother, "your son was my destiny," but continues to, once again, use strong similies to describe the relationship that she and Leonardo had. This is kind of where her desire turns into unconsciousness. The bride states that "the other one's arm dragged me along like the pull of the sea, like the head toss of a mule." These two images ( the sea and mule) are both natural occurances.  The sea naturally has a pull or tide and a mule just toss's its head naturally.  By referring to these two images, the bride is impling that the love she and Leonardo share is natural. Therefore, she is unconsciously trying to be with him, no matter what she does to try and stop it because it is natural.

I think that it is very important to listen to all types of music that our world has to offer, especially since we have easy access to it through the internet.  Some of the pros of listening to foreign music are getting to know more about different cultures.  Just by listening to a specific culture's music recordings, one can determine what kind of dancing they do, popular instruments they use and they types of songs they sing.  Listening to foreign music helps one open up their "music bubble" and shows that there is so much more variety in music out there beyond rap and classic rock.  I especially think it's important that music majors step outside their "musical comfort zone" to experience all types of music that is out there.  For example, a classically trained person should listen to some Lil' Wayne every once in a while and a hip-hop music lover should listen to easy jazz every other night of the week.  Although it is not necessary to explore different types of music, I think it helps to become a more rounded and cultural person by listening to music from all over the world and all different genres, too.  Although focusing on one narrow swath of music would make one an extrodinare in that genre, I think it would be more beneficial to know a little about each genre of music rather than spending all knowledge on one specific category.  Share the wealth!

The Corrido of Georgio Cortez is just like a folk song because it has been past down over decades from person to person, each singer interpreting it in their own way.  By the time a specific audience listens to the corrido, it can be totally different than how it was originally performed.  This can definately affect in the audience in either a positive or negative way.  Most likely the corrido is shorter, not as detailed as the original, therefore losing some of it's significance.  It then makes the interpreter's job harder because they must imagine parts of the story that have been left out over the years (which may not always be fitting).  It is totally understandable, though, that the early performers of these  corridos edited their own versions.  They were not written down, so it would be hard to memorize exactly what the person prior said verbatim.  I probablly would have shortened the corrido up myself if I had the option.  Since the stories are shorter, they are even easier to be passed down.  If these are not passed down from generation to generation, the stories could be lost forever.  It is highly important that today we are still singing these corridos, or folk songs, to our children and grandchildren for future generations to learn.

The way a reader delivers a poem completely effects the way it is received by the listener.  A poem, or any piece of literature for that matter, is not a work of art if it is not treated like one by using emotion.  The words are just on the page, but the poem comes to life by how it is conveyed.  Most pieces of literature are written in a different language, then translated into English or even other languages.  It is very important that the translation still conveys the emotion that the original language gives off, but sometimes this does not happen.  All languages speak differently by their word order and how they say things, for example, in French, "David's wife" would be said "the wife of David."  This can certainly throw off the flow of the stanza of the poem.

In the poem Quan lo rossinhol el follos, I think the translation does a beautiful job of giving off the "romantic" emotion.  In the first stanza, the "E" is repeated in the beginning of lines 3-5, which gives the poem balance and consistancy.  The "j" sound is also repeated several times (alliteration).  The "en" ending in lines 2, 4 and 5 also help make the stanza flow.  Overall, this poem and its translation both do a nice job of conveying emotion and romance.