The use of harmony in my song, “Jesus is Denied by Peter” by Poor Bishop Hooper is simple and at the same time very powerful. The song begins very isolated with just the lead vocalist and his guitar. The two voices blend very well and the harmony is introduced at a moment of growth in the song following the phrase “I screamed”. It gives a depth to the song that is much appreciated by the listener.

I thought it was very interesting that Mozart had a sister who was just as good if not a better musician than him for a time. It is too bad that the culture of the time did not encourage her to pursue her talent.

Here is a composition from Mozart that I found. I quite enjoyed listening to it.

Do you like either or both of these examples? (why or why not?)  Have you noticed the quality of vibrato in any of the music you listen to?  If you have noticed, what makes you aware of it? If you haven’t noticed the vibrato, why do you think you have not been aware of it?  You may want to take note of the use of vibrato as expression in your own chosen piece of music as well.

I like the first one only because I am impressed at the vocal skill of those singing. Being a singer myself I am able to understand the work and education required to get where they are at and I am baffled. In terms of vibrato the song from Rent seems to be lacking especially compared to the first piece. Musical theatre and opera while similar in many ways are not so musically similar in their use of vibrato. In my own piece of music there is next to no use of vibrato. The piece of music isn’t very intense even in its most grand sections. The vocalists maintain a straight tone often as if to maintain unity as much as possible. It is very much the story of once voice and in that way it makes more sense for it to be straight.

listen to your chosen piece of music and notice any changes in dynamics.  Describe what happens when your piece gets louder or softer and where in the piece that occurs.  Does it make the music more interesting to you? (why or why not?) Now, pay attention to the different timbres that are presented in your music:  this may or may not relate to the dynamic changes, but describe what happens when you notice any timbre changes and how it affects the listener. (is it a dramatic difference, or more of a subtle difference?)

The song starts off with the lead vocalist and his guitar on the opening verse. Is is very soft and intimate. Going into the second verse there is a harmony introduced which begins to slowly build their dynamic intensity. This is followed by another soft chorus with just the main vocalist and his guitar. Following this chorus there is an instrumental which introduces us to the upright bass, piano, and drums. We begin to really build the song. There is a significant build going into the second chorus on the phrase “I swear” where the song is stating from the apostle Peters perspective that he will never deny Jesus. Because we as the listener know the outcome, it build tension in our hearts and the song itself comes to one of the biggest moments in the song. This makes the song much more interesting to me because it gives depth to the message as well as complexity to the music itself. This complexity along with quality musicianship keeps me interested. The song continues to go to one of its lowest points where all of the instruments are in at once. Of course after this it builds to the final chorus where we feel the full force of the band.

As far as timbre is concerned there are some neat things going on. Of course we have the voices which are so wonderfully blended. Part of this is due to the fact that the two vocalists are husband and wife. On top of this we have a sort of cadence riff where piano lulls us into the instrumental portions of the song. During this time the rest of the band follows suit. I also love the tone and color that the upright bass brings to this song. It is combined well with the semi-hollow acoustic guitar being played in this piece. These two instruments are especially compatible due to the fact that they both use flat wound strings. All this combined makes for a wonderful combination of instruments while still giving each individual member a chance to be heard in their own role.

Listen to your chosen piece of music to discover any examples of how the music “paints” the meaning of the words. Describe what you hear or what happens in one or more parts of your recording.  If you cannot hear any text painting in your musical example, try finding another piece of music that does and write about what you discovered.

The song I chose is called “Jesus is Denied by Peter”. The narrative of the song comes from the biblical account of when Peter the apostle denies that he knows Jesus while Jesus is being accused of heinous crimes and being sentenced to crucifixion. There is a line in the song that says “I scream, even if I have to die, I’m never, never gonna deny you.” On the phrase “I scream” a few things in the music happen that build the tension of the narrative. There can be clearly heard from the guitar a 7 chord is played which is a little more flavorful that some of the other standard major and minor chords we hear in the song. Also at that time another vocalist joins in on the phrase “even if I have to die” adding a harmony on top to build the emotion of the promise that we know will not be fulfilled.

Do you enjoy listening to these 2 Renaissance examples?  Why or why not?  Does the word painting help you better understand the humor in the music?  Is the language a barrier? Were you able to better enjoy the music by watching the singers perform as opposed to just listening to the music? Why or why not? (75-100 words) (10 points)

I do really enjoy both of these pieces for their upbeat tempo and their use of polyphonic texture. I do see the humor in them although I would say that there is most definitely a language barrier in terms of me being able to laugh at it while watching or listening. Seeing a performance does aid that in some ways but the performance is more general entertainment than comedy to me. I enjoyed watching the singers more because it allowed for another dimension of the songs to shine through on the faces of the performers.

name your piece in this blog post and describe the main melody or melodies in the music you chose. discuss the texture of the piece you chose.  It might be one texture throughout your piece, OR it may change.

The piece I chose was “Jesus Is Helped By Simon of Cyrene” by the band Poor Bishop Hooper. The melody is very even keel. It stays in fairly the same range for most of the song. It is also echoed in both the voices and the instruments in the song. The texture is very homophonic because all the voices and instruments move together throughout the song. If they don’t move together they at least move adjacent to one another to fill the space.

Did you like the Eagle Dance example?  Why or why not?  What did you notice about the vocal quality?  Is this the kind of vocal sound we expect when we listen to any recorded piece of music for pleasure?  Does it help to view the dancers to experience this music as opposed to listening to the music by itself?  Why or why not?

I am kind of indifferent about the Eagle dance example. I wouldn’t necessarily listen to it on any given day although I do appreciate the culture it represents. The vocal quality seems a little musically lacking other than rhythm. It was more of a chant than actual singing which is of course what it’s meant to be. I think it helps a lot to see the dancers. It helps you understand what it is you’re hearing.

 Did you enjoy watching and listening to this video?  How are the vocables different from the Eagle Dance?  How does this music make you feel compared to the Eagle Dance? 

I really enjoyed listening to Bobby McFerrins improvisations. The vocables are different in that they are more separated. They are also producing actual notes and melodies as opposed to the Eagle Dance chants which were more rhythmic in nature. This improvisation of his makes me feel happier and I enjoy it more for its melodic quality.

Given all three examples of the Spangled Banner I liked the Gottschalk version the best. It felt like it stayed true to the original tune the most. The version by the South City Voices felt like it was a tad overwhelming. The harmonies impressed me but they didn’t feel necessary. It seemed more like they were showing off rather than singing the nation’s anthem in a way that draws attention for reverence for the country and what it stands for. I can see why some are offended by the Jimi Hendrix version as well. His version seemed to be aimed more toward entertainment rather than actually playing the national anthem. He seemed to want to show his guitar skills.

I did grow up in the United States and so I learned at a young age the Star Spangled banner. I think it was when I was in kindergarten. That was at least probably the first time I had heard it and recognized it. On top of this of course I heard it in sporting events as a kid. When I was growing up football often played on the TV because my dad used to play division one for CU. With the song being played around me constantly I must’ve picked it up pretty quick. It was also a common occurrence for my parents to sing to me as a kid so music was already a significant part of my family.