You can visit this link to watch the performance and hear a little bit about the piece, it’s context, and how the author’s circumstances might influence the way we perceive art.
Video Transcript:
This piece is called ‘Sicilian Blues’ and was composed by Hiromi Uehara, who is a Japanese jazz composer and pianist.
Why did you choose this piece? I chose to play this piece because I think it really exemplifies how understanding the cultural and social context behind a composer can really enrich a piece. Uehara, as a woman and in the world of jazz outside of America represents how the jazz movement has spread. The genre of jazz was born in the black community in New Orleans in the early 20th century, with roots in West African cultural and musical expression, and it rose up as a cultural force against oppression and racism. As a counterculture movement, it’s really powerful and beautiful, despite the complexity of jazz music theory.
More on the Jazz movement Ironically, though, the music theory world and the jazz world are pretty elitist. It’s hard to get in there, it can be quite cold and unforgiving. I think, though, that it’s a testament to the universality of music that a piece such as Sicilian Blues can be considered beautiful despite all this. And, of course, there are still people that discriminate and look down upon the Jazz movement for its history, no matter how wonderful the music is. I think that really goes to show how culture and social values really impact the way a piece is viewed.
Music Theory, and the Universality of Music I think it’s obvious to all of us that music is much more than notes on a page. People who understand music theory might see the artistic value, they’re able to do almost like an autopsy on a piece to figure out why it’s so beautiful, but you don’t need a deep understanding of music theory to appreciate a piece. That also relates to how you don’t need a social context to appreciate a piece either. This is why music is universal. However, music theory and social context can really enrich a piece in terms of experience, despite the fact that it’s not necessary to know. I think that this complex universality is a key part of all art and all life, and is what makes Music such a fulfilling art.
Through this activity, I tried to capture a more retro and bright interpretation of the timeless nursery rhyme, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. I used a large number of synths (as well as a trumpet) to achieve a more Western Style atmosphere, creating a thick texture with many layers. The main melody and harmony are doubled with different instruments, adding variety but also some volume. The beginning of this track also features a radio static sound effect to create that retro style. I also edited the piano slightly to give it a more faded, ‘retro’y timbre.
I also used a free retro drum sample off of the internet, which is linked here. I’m somewhat unfamiliar with drums as an instrument and decided that a drum set sample would probably be a great way to get an effective rhythm section going. I also find that the use of samples is an awesome aspect of music production in the modern age!
My original inspiration for the feel of this interpretation (the song that inspired me to do a more retro interpretation) is a song called ‘Lady’ by the group EXID. I wasn’t really sure what direction to take this activity, so I just hit shuffle on my Spotify playlist and decided to study and somewhat mimic the style of the first song that played. I found this was a really successful way to gain some inspiration as well as a good direction to take for this activity! Make sure to give ‘Lady’ a listen!
NYAA: Service Introductory Post and February Reflection
╚══════ ⋞⋅ ⚬♡⚬ ⋅⋟ ══════╝
So, the service aspect of the NYAA is finally starting up, and I’ve picked a local service to focus my efforts on this time. I’m really looking forward to working with them, so without further ado, here’s some information on why I picked my local service and my ambitions for the next year (perhaps even longer) in local service work!
My Local Service: This term, I’ve signed up for the activity titled ‘Music Buddies with the Cerebral Palsy Alliance (CPAS)’, and every Monday we travel to the CPAS School to get to know kids our age with Cerebral Palsy. I won’t go too in-depth into the specifics of the disease, but I know that I originally picked this local service because I already love music and I’ve worked a lot with lots of different kinds of people and I wanted to try something new.
However, nothing really went as planned and it turns out we’re helping out with ‘Life Skills’ class instead, but I think this type of action is a lot more meaningful and allows us to interact with the kids on a deeper level, helping them with aspects of their daily lives and really getting to know them as people.
My Observations from the Past Month:
I feel like they process everything happening around them, but find it difficult to respond, and I find that really sad. I’ve been trying to interact with them, and it’s been really fulfilling because one girl, Rain, will reach out her hand for me to hold or clasp and the fact she’s making the effort to reach out to me really touches me because it gives me a sense of hope that maybe one day she can be more accepted in society, and hope that she’ll be able to build meaningful connections with others just like any human would.
I’m still nervous about visiting the kids, but I sincerely hope that we have a positive impact on the kids’ lives. I want to work on observing them as much as I can, to learn more about them. I talked to one of the teacher facilitators as well, and he talked about how he was helping to ‘enable’ the kids, and how he was comfortable with them, which makes me realise that it actually is very difficult to get to know them at first, but I think that over time I should really be able to build a connection with them.
My Goal: Everything I’ve said so far is tying into my goal, which is “to make the cerebral palsy group feel more accepted by society through volunteering for them, communicating with them and building a relationship with them.” I chose this goal because I really want to focus on the idea of human connection here. I’d also like to continue thinking and working on the idea of Human Connection because I feel like the intricacies it contains may help me discover things about the inner workings of the human brain and also help me form better relationships not only with other people, but with myself as well.
So, those were my hopes and first perceptions of CPAS, and I’m genuinely looking forward to exploring this topic more and doing more work for CPAS. Thanks for reading!
My Healthy Living Goal: To reduce and find better ways to deal with my stress through Music.
Why have I chosen this goal? I personally am very invested in Music and it is the one creative art I take solace in. Playing the piano and listening to a lot of music are things that I do regularly, and I want to bring this into the award as it is something that I am very passionate about.
How I have been achieving this goal: This month, I’ve had another performance, and I’ve also done some really beneficial work in Piano Masterclass. As I’ve said before, performances really help me learn about my stress, even though they are a cause of a lot of it, and performing a lot helps me build confidence and find things that make me more comfortable performing in front of others. This month, I participated in a recital held by the ITP department.
The ITP department holds regular recitals, and I used to take part in them regularly. However, for the past two years, I haven’t attended any because of performance anxiety, so starting to take part in them again is a big step for me. I also got to see how this familiar environment affected my playing, and I think that surprisingly it had a big effect. I felt a little more comfortable in this situation because of how much I’ve been exposed to it in childhood. I think that I’ve definitely discovered a viable and safe place for me to practice my performance skills.
I’ve also learned that other people’s playing doesn’t affect mine. Even if someone playing Chopin’s Fantasie Impromptu plays before me, I won’t be bothered. This means that my stress isn’t caused by comparison to others. This discovery has helped me narrow my strategies to deal with a performance down to mainly calming myself.
Another thing that I’ve been learning is the difference between practice and performance, but also the similarities. Often, when we practice, we are familiar with our surroundings, and that makes us more comfortable. This means we can make mistakes and refine our pieces without qualms. However, in a performance, there are people listening to you and watching you, and your surroundings are completely different. This can be another cause of performance anxiety.
However, to deal with this performance anxiety, we can make our practice space a little different every time, to resemble a performance. We can also invite friends or family to listen to our practice sessions and provide feedback at the end. This addition of a friendly audience can really help lessen stress and feelings of nervousness.
What have been some setbacks? So far, I haven’t had many setbacks, however, I’ve recently received the news that I won’t be taking my G6 exam in February, rather, I’d have to take it in July. Since I’m practically prepared already, I feel that it would be a waste of time waiting until July, so I’m progressing onto grade 7. In all honesty, I feel that this might be a missed opportunity, since preparing for exams is a really good way to learn about your habits, but I think that Grade 7 piano poses an adequate challenge, and I look forward to playing more challenging pieces. This may also benefit me because I will most definitely perform those pieces sometime, so it’ll definitely help me build confidence.
What am I looking forward to? I’m looking forward to starting Grade 7, and starting to branch out and build my Piano repertoire. So far, I’ve practically only been playing exam pieces, so I look forward to exploring other genres and developing my skills. I have another performance in March for International Women’s Day, and in Piano Masterclass we’ll be looking at ways to deal with difficult parts in pieces, which I think will definitely help me with my performance anxiety.
