HOME OF MUSIC M O N T H LY M E G A Z I N E 1st VERSION
•Classical Music •ROCK Muisc •Folk Music •Pop Music
November09/15
6 MUSIC ARTICLES
Rock Music Concert Performance in Clarian Hotel
R
ock is a genre of popular music that originated as “rock and roll” in the United States in the 1950s, and developed into a range of different styles in the 1960s and later, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States.[1][2] It has its roots in 1940s’ and 1950s’ rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by blues, rhythm and blues and country music. Rock music also drew strongly on a number of other genres such as electric blues and folk, and incorporated influences from jazz, classical and other musical sources. Rock music has originated as “rock and roll” in the United States in the 1950s, and developed into a range of
2 2
different styles in the 1960s and later, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States.[1][2] It has its roots in 1940s’ and 1950s’ rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by blues, rhythm and blues and country music. Rock music also drew strongly on a number of other genres such as electric blues and folk, and incorporated influences from jazz, classical and other musical sources. Musically, rock has centered on the electric guitar, usually as part of a rock group with electric bass guitar and drums. Typically, rock is song-based music usually with a 4/4 time signature using a verse-chorus form, but the genre has become extremely diverse. Like pop music, lyrics often stress romantic love but also address a wide variety of other themes that are frequently social or political in emphasis. The dominance of rock by white, male musicians has been seen as one of the key factors shaping the themes explored in rock music. Rock places a higher degree of emphasis on musicianship, live performance, and an ideology of authenticity than pop music. Rock music is a genre of popular music that originated as “rock and roll” in the United States in the 1950s, and developed into a range of different styles in the 1960s and later, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States.[1][2] It has its roots in 1940s’ and 1950s’ rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by blues, rhythm and blues and country
music. Rock music also drew strongly on a number of other genres such as electric blues and folk, and incorporated influences from jazz, classical and other musical sources. Rock music’s origins can be traced back to the late 1940s, when the popular styles of the day, country and blues, morphed into a new sound aided by electric guitars and a steady drum beat. Pioneering rock artists of the ‘50s, such as Chuck Berry, leaned heavily on classic blues structures while demonstrating a flair as natural-born entertainers. As opposed to the safe pop music of the era, rock’s aggressive attack suggested a sexual freedom that proved shocking during that conservative age. As the ‘80s began, mainstream rock music was losing commercial steam, its sound growing stale. In such a creatively stagnant environment, subgenres started to assert their dominance. Inspired by punk’s outsider status and industrial’s eclectic instrumentation, keyboard-driven English bands like Depeche Mode demonstrated a more introverted songwriting style, creating postpunk, which is also described as new wave.
3
riod, which includes the Baroque (1600–1750), Classical (1750–1820), and Romantic eras (1804–1910); and the 20th century (1901–2000) which includes the modern (1890–1930) that overlaps from the late lassical music is art music produced 19th-century, the high modern (mid 20th-century), or rooted in the traditions of Westand contemporary or postmodern (1975–present) eras. ern music, including both liturgical (religious) and secular music. While In 1749, King George II requested that Handel coma similar term is also used to refer to pose a suite to accompany a grand firework display the period from 1750-1820 (the Clasin London’s Green Park. The work was so highly ansical period), this article is about the broad span of ticipated that over 12,000 people tried to travel to time from roughly the 11th century to the present day, Vauxhall Gardens to watch a full rehearsal, bringing which includes the Classical period and various other the surrounding streets to a complete standstill for periods.[1] The central norms of this tradition became several hours. On the day of the firework display, codified between 1550 and 1900, which is known as the Handel’s music outshined the fireworks themselves – common practice period. The major time divisions of Atthe 2012 Proms Hervé Niquet and French Baroque classical music are as follows: the early music period, group, Le Concert Spirituel, performed thements. which includes the Medieval (500–1400) and the Renaissance (1400–1600) eras; the Common practice pe-
C 4
4
E uropean art music is largely distinguished from many other non-European and popular musical forms by its system of staff notation, in use since about the 16th century.[2] Western staff notation is used by composers to prescribe to the performer the pitches (e.g., melodies), tempo, meter, individual rhythms and exact execution of a piece of music. This leaves less room for practices such as improvisation and ad libitum ornamentation, which are frequently heard in non-European art music and in popular music [3][4] [5] styles such as jazz and blues. Another difference is that whereas most popular styles lend themselves to the song form, classical music has been noted for its development of highly sophisticated forms of instrumental music such as the concerto, symphony, sonata, and mixed vocal and instrumental styles such as opera
5
POP MUSIC
Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style).
Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style). Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music
Indeed, finding out that all the singers we listen to have been Auto-Tuned does feel like someone’s messing with us. As humans, we crave connection, not perfection. But we’re not the ones pulling the levers. What happens when an entire industry decides it’s safer to bet on the robot? Will we start to hate the sound of our own voices? Pop music is eclectic, and often borrows elements from other styles such as urban, dance, rock, Latin, and country; nonetheless, there are core elements that define pop music. Identifying factors include generally short to medium-length songs written in a basic formala.
6 6
Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style). Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style). Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style). Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style). Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style).
Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular (and can include any style). Pop music (a term that derives from “popular”) is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world during the 1950s and 1960s, deriving from rock and roll. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, The term “pop song” was first recorded as being used in 1926, in the sense of a piece of music “having popular appeal”.[5] Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music.[6] According to the website of The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, called Grove Music Online, the term “pop music” “originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as a description for rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced ...”.[7] The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pop’s “earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience ... since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical mus[ic], usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, ABBA, etc”.[8] Grove Music Online also states that “... in the early 1960s [the term] ‘pop music’ competed terminologically with Beat music [in England], while in the USA its coverage overlapped (as it still does) with that of ‘rock and roll’”. pop music is “professional music which draws upon both folk music and fine arts music”.[2] Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music. jazz, rock, and novelty song. 7
R
ock music is a genre of popular music that originated as “rock and roll” in the United States in the 1950s, and developed into a range of different styles in the 1960s and later, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States.[1][2] It has its roots in 1940s’ and 1950s’ rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by blues, rhythm and blues and country music. Rock music also drew strongly on a number of other genres such as electric blues and folk, and incorporated influences from jazz, classical and other musical sources. Musically, rock has centered on the electric guitar, usually as part of a rock group with electric bass guitar and drums. Typically, rock is song-based music usually with a 4/4 time signature using a verse-chorus form, but the genre has become extremely diverse. Like pop music, lyrics often stress romantic love but also address a wide variety of other themes that are frequently social or political in emphasis. Musically, rock has centered on the electric guitar, usually as part
of a rock group with electric bass guitar and drums. Typically, rock is song-based music usually with a 4/4 time signature using a verse-chorus form, but the genre has become extremely diverse. Like pop music, lyrics often stress romantic love but also address a wide variety of other themes that are frequently social or political in emphasis. The dominance of rock by white, male musicians has been seen as one of the key factors shaping the themes explored in rock music. Rock places a higher degree of emphasis on musicianship, live performance, and an ideology of authenticity than pop music. Rock music has also embodied and served as the vehicle for cultural and social movements, leading to major sub-cultures including mods and rockers in the UK and the hippie counterculture that spread out from San Francisco in the US in the 1960s. Similarly, 1970s punk culture spawned the visually distinctive goth and emo subcultures.
8 8
By the late 1960s, referred to as the “golden age”or “classic rock”[1] period, a number of distinct rock music subgenres had emerged, including hybrids like blues rock, folk rock, country rock, raga rock, and jazz-rock fusion, many of which contributed to the development of psychedelic rock, which was influenced by the countercultural psychedelic scene. New genres that emerged from this scene included progressive rock, which extended the artistic elements; glam rock, which highlighted showmanship and visual style; and the diverse and enduring subgenre of heavy metal, which emphasized volume, power, and speed. In the second half of the 1970s, punk rock reacted against the perceived overblown, inauthentic and overly mainstream aspects of these genres to produce a stripped-down, energetic form of music valuing raw expression and often lyrically characterised by social and political critiques. Punk was an influence into the 1980s on the subsequent development of other subgenres, By the 1960s, the scene that
had developed out of the American folk music revival had grown to a major movement, utilising traditional music and new compositions in a traditional style, usually on acoustic instruments. In America the genre was pioneered by figures such as Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger and often identified with progressive or labor politics.[100] In the early sixties figures such as Joan Baez and Bob Dylan had come to the fore in this movement as singer-songwriters.[101] Dylan had begun to reach a mainstream audience with hits including “Blowin’ in the Wind” (1963) and “Masters of War” (1963), which brought “protest songs” to a wider public,but, although beginning to influence each other, rock and folk music had remained largely separate genres, often with mutually exclusive audiences.
9
TRADITIONAL FOLK MUSIC PERFORMA
F
olk music includes both traditional music and the genre that evolved from it during the 20th century folk revival. The term originated in the 19th century but is often applied to music that is older than that. Some types of folk music are also called world music.
of folk music also includes fusion genres such as folk rock, folk metal, electric folk, and others. By the 1960s, the scene that had developed out of the American folk music revival had grown to a major movement, utilising traditional music and new compositions in a traditional style, usually on acoustic instruments.[100] In America the genre was pioneered by figures such as Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger and often identified with progressive or labor politics.
Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted orally, or as music with unknown composers. It has been contrasted with commercial and classical styles. One meaning often given is that of old songs, with no known comEarly sixties figures such as Joan Baez and Bob posers; another is music that has been transmitted Dylan had come to the fore in this movement as and evolved by a process of oral transmission or singer-songwriters.[101] Dylan had begun to reach performed by custom over a long period of time. a mainstream audience with hits including “Blowin’ in the Wind” (1963) and “Masters of War” (1963), Starting in the mid-20th century a new form of pop- which brought “protest songs” to a wider public ular from traditional folk music. This process and but, although beginning to influence each other, period is called the (second) folk revival and reached rock and folk music had remained largely separate a zenith in the 1960s. This form of music is some- genres, often with mutually exclusive audiences. times called contemporary folk music or folk reviv- Interest in folk music and other buried aspects of naal music to distinguish it from earlier folk forms. tional culture tends to be reawakened at moments when [1] Smaller similar revivals have occurred else- there’s a perceived danger of things being lost for ever. where in the world at other times, but the term folk music has typically not been applied to the new music created during those revivals. This type
10 10
RMANCE
Tr a d i t i o n a l f o l k m u s i c o f t e n i n cludes sung words, although folk instrumental music occurs commonly in dance music traditions. Narrative verse looms large in the traditional folk music of many c u l t u r e s . T h i s e n compasses such forms as traditional epic poetry, much of which was meant originally for oral performance, sometimes accompanied by instruments. Many epic poems of various cultures were pieced together from shorter pieces of traditional narrative verse, which explains their episodic structure, repetitive elements, and their frequent in medias res plot developments. Other forms of traditional narrative verse relate the outcomes of battles or describe tragedies or natural disasters. Sometimes, as in the triumphant Song of Deborah found in the Biblical Book of Judges, these songs celebrate victory. Laments for lost battles and wars, and the lives lost in them, are equally prominent in many traditions; these laments keep alive the cause for which the battle was fought. The narratives of traditional songs often also remember folk heroes such as John Henry to Robin Hood. Some traditional song narratives recall supernatural events or mysterious deaths. Hymns and other forms of religious music are often of traditional and unknown origin. Western musical notation was originally created to preserve the lines of Gregorian chant, which before its invention was taught as an oral tradition in monastic communities. Traditional songs such as Green grow the rushes, O present religious lore in a mnemonic form,
A consistent definition of traditional folk music is elusive. The terms folk music, folk song, and folk dance are comparatively recent expressions. They are extensions of the term folklore, which was coined in 1846 by the English antiquarian William Thoms to describe “the traditions, customs, and superstitions of the uncultured classes.”[2] The term is further derived from the German includes most indigenous music.s do Western Christmas carols and similar traditional songs.Work songs frequently feature call and response structures and are designed to enable the laborers who sing them to coordinate their efforts in accordance with the rhythms of the songs.
as do Western Christmas carols and similar traditional songs.Work songs frequently feature call and response structures and are designed to enable the laborers who sing them to coordinate their efforts in accordance with the rhythms of the songs. They are frequently, but not invariably, composed. In the American armed forces, a lively oral tradition preserves jody calls (“Duckworth chants”) which are sung while soldiers are on the march. Professional sailors made similar use of a large body of sea shanties. Love poetry, often of a tragic. n our own time, though, the word “folk” no longer refers solely to particular songs and melodies attached to the ancient lore of the land, nor to techniques of singing, instrumentality and delivery, nor to the idea of particular music belonging to small, often rural communities, or even a nation. Folk still includes these preserved traditions, but it is also applied to areas of contemporary music, to composers of personal songs such as Nick Drake, Sandy Denny or John Martyn, or more recently Fionn Regan, Alasdair Roberts or Eliza Carthy. Folk has achieved the rare distinction of occupying fashionable and unfashionable status simultaneously. Just as the effusive floral prints of the radical William Morris now cover genteel sofas, so the revolutionary intentions of many folk historians and revivalists have led to music that is commonly regarded as parochial and conservative. And yet – as newspaper columns periodically rejoice – folk is hip again, influencing artists, clothing and furniture designers, celebrated at music festivals, awards ceremonies and on TV, reissued on countless record labels. 11
Folk – the ‘music of the people’ – is now hip again Often dismissed as parochial, this music is celebrated at festivals, awards ceremonies and on TV. But where does it come from, asks Rob Young Rob Young Saturday 31 July 2010 00.06 BST Last modified on Tuesday 3 June 2014 12.01 BST Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn “The unconscious music of the folk has all the marks of fine art: that it is wholly free from the taint of manufacture, the canker of artificiality; that it is transparently pure and truthful, simple and direct in its utterance.” So wrote Cecil Sharp in English FolkSong: Some Conclusions, published in 1907. This powerful, often passionate tract was the first systematic attempt to anatomise the nature of folk music and song in the British Isles, and marks the moment when “folk” began to detach itself from the unmediated flow of oral culture and permeate British cultural life in subtly invasive ways. “Free of the taint of manufacture” – that phrase, in particular, is heavily loaded with the ideology of what the Victorian socialist William Morris called the “anti-scrape”, or an anti-capitalist conservationism (not conservatism) that solaced itself with the vision of a pre-industrial golden age. In Britain, folk may often appear a cosy, fossilised form, but when you look more closely, the idea of folk – who has the right to sing it, dance it, invoke it, collect it, belong to it or appropriate it for political or cultural ends – has always been contested territory. the links in the chain of tradition since the mid-Victorian era have been forged by those who have considered themselves revolutionaries. Interest in folk music and other buried aspects of national culture tends to be reawakened at moments when there’s a perceived danger of things being lost for ever. Successive folk revivals of the 20th century drew their impetus equally from the two historical landmarks that most permeate the British collective unconscious: the industrial revolution and the first world war. In the late 1960s and early 70s, fear of annihilation, technological progress and a vision of alternative societies filtered through popular and
underground culture, conspiring to promote the ideal of “getting back to the garden”. Folk is only one of many ingredients in the mix during these charged moments: psychedelics, environmentalism and the political and energy crises of the early 70s all played their part too. In our own time, though, the word “folk” no longer refers solely to particular songs and melodies attached to the ancient lore of the land, nor to techniques of singing, instrumentality and delivery, nor to the idea of particular music belonging to small, often rural communities, or even a nation. Folk still includes these preserved traditions, but it is also applied to areas of contemporary music, to composers of personal songs such as Nick Drake, Sandy Denny or John Martyn, or more recently Fionn Regan, Alasdair Roberts or Eliza Carthy. Nowadays it’s become as much a signifier of texture and aesthetics as an indicator of authenticity – as in such descriptive terms as “acid folk”, “free folk folk”, “anti-folk” and even the ungainly “folktronica”. Research in folklore generally, and folk music specifically, has frequently developed in idiosyncratic local ways, often involving local hobbyists and enthusiasts for its initial impetus. Sometimes this has resulted in academic recognition, bringing together the disparate elements. Sometimes it has not. The nineteen essays here summarize the experiences and interests of Australian folklore researchers. Research in folklore generally, and folk music specifically, has frequently developed in idiosyncratic local ways, often involving local hobbyists and enthusiasts for its initial impetus. Sometimes this has resulted in academic recognition, bringing together the disparate elements. Sometimes it has not. The nineteen essays here summarize the experiences and interests of Australian folklore researchers. An introductory chapter by the editors summarizes how much of the exciting and interesting research
12 12
Folk has achieved the rare distinction of occupying fashionable and unfashionable status simultaneously. Just as the effusive floral prints of the radical William Morris now cover genteel sofas, so the revolutionary intentions of many folk historians and revivalists have led to music that is commonly regarded as parochial and conservative. And yet – as newspaper columns periodically rejoice – folk is hip again, influencing artists, clothing and furniture designers, celebrated at music festivals, awards ceremonies and on TV, reissued on countless record labels. Folk is a sonic “shabby chic”, containing elements of the uncanny and eerie, as well as an antique veneer, a whiff of Britain’s heathen dark ages. The very obscurity and anonymity of folk music’s origins open up space for rampant imaginative fancies. At certain times, many of its champions have selectively cherry-picked from the entire folk canon: Ralph Vaughan Williams collecting ballads from the hamlets of Wessex and East Anglia; Ewan MacColl prioritising workers’ and industrial songs; the Watersons setting pagan, seasonal music in astonishing modal harmonies; Shirley Collins and Ashley Hutchings focusing on agricultural and pastoral material from southern England; Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span applying electric jolts to the ballad form.
So when was the concept of “folk” born? Surprisingly recently. Until the mid-19th century there was no word for folk at all. Victorian class hierarchies meant the songs and dances of the people – often learnt from cheaply produced broadsides – didn’t count as culture at all, and were referred to as “popular antiquities”, “peasant literature” or even, strangely, “popular music”. Then, on 22 August 1846, the magazine The Athenaeum carried a letter signed by Ambrose Merton, who was in reality William J Thoms, an antiquary and editor of old tales. In parenthesis, Thoms coined a word that has since become common currency around the world. The term "folk music" itself did not appear in English dictionaries until 1889, when the Century Dictionary defined it as "A song of the people; a song based on a legendary or historical event, or some incident of common life, the words and generally the music of which have originated among the common people, and are extensively used by them." But it's significant that the term "folklore" was coined by a collector of cultural antiques, as his solicitations ushered in an ensuing half-century of amateur (in the original sense) collectors, many of whom were instrumental in founding the Folk-Song Society in 1898. 13
has been. (and continues to be) conducted by individuals. Veteran performer and researcher Warren
GRAET NIGHT WITH FLAMING PIANO
P
iano burning is the act of setting on fire an acoustic piano, most commonly an upright, as either a ceremony or a form of performance art. Although piano burning is now a tradition in both the Royal Air Force and the United States Air Force, there is little or no evidence to suggest that descriptions of its origin have any historical authenticity. According to one version of its origin, pianos were set alight by RAF pilots to avoid piano lessons aimed at improving their dexterity and general level of culture. Another version is that piano burning began in World War II in remembrance of fallen RAF pilots. Both versions are based upon myth and decades of story telling.
14 14
Pianos have entertained thousands over the last century or 2. When we think about this grand instrument, composers like Mozart and Beethoven come to mind. The piano’s got their boost in the hundred years between 1790 and 1890. Yes, during the industrial revolution. This is when stronger steel and iron was manufactured. Helping in building strong Iron frames and Steel piano wire for good instruments. The first company in Britain that manufactured pianos was the Broadwood. They made big and excellent sounding instruments. By 1820 however, the piano had moved to Paris through the Erard. Erard also invented the double action where the piano could be played even the key was fully up allowing for rapid playing. All manufacturers used this technique as time went on. The first piano’s had 5 octaves but by 1810 they had become 6 and by 1890 7. In the 19th century, it was to the piano’s were tougher to operate. They required muscle power to depress the keys to
produce good quality sounds. However, as time went on, softer strings were made that reduced this tension. Today, Electronic keyboards are simple to operate and give you the option of a piano with out its bulk and weight.
versions: the grand piano and the upright piano. In the grand piano, the strings go away from the keys making them large. For these piano’s, big and spacious rooms with high roofs are required. Only then can they be enjoyed to the full. Today, piano’s come in 2
The upright pianos are more compact and sleek. The strings extend up and down allowing for space conservation. The companyYamaha produces some of the best products in this line. 15
The weekend Music Show
A piano Consert at Orebro UNIVERRSITY 16 16