ETHNO FINAL QUESTIONS
What linguistic elements are required to make a drum "talk"?
"Talking drum" is able to communicate by mimicking the tonal contour and speech rhythm of a language. African languages are tonal. Drums don't only play the rhythm, some have strings attached to the skins or the player presses down on the skin, which alters the pitch making it similar to African spoken languages.
To what extent do each of the musics in this chapter reflect pre-Columbian, European, or African musical traits?
-Indigenous peoples in rainforests and in rural areas of the Andes preserve musical traditions believed to predate the arrival of Columbus. -Peru's musical tradition is similar to pre-Columbian music traditions. A siku is used to create a repetitive short melody. -Tango has European influences: harmony, instruments, form -Samba has African influences: polyrhythm, instrumentation, choro music
Discuss the relationships and differences between the Cuban son and the North American salsa?
-Salsa is a mixture of European, African, and Amerindian cultures, while son is a mixture of European and African culture. -The Cuban son and North American salsa both use son clave, an organizational unit, so they have very similar sounds.
How does siku performance reflect community cohesion among Andean populations?
-Siku only plays certain notes on scale, so more siku must complement it and it is also a great use of two performers to produce melody. -Living and farming in these highland rural areas requires collective effort and social cooperation. -During a sikuri performance, any man from the village can participate, regardless of his musical ability or familiarity with the tune. -The emphasis of the performance is on social interaction rather than on a strict adherence to musical accuracy. -The interlocking parts of the siku express the Aymara ideal of "playing as one."
How does music from the British Isles underlie music surviving today in the United States and Canada?
-The British brought the ballad to North American music, which dates back to medieval times. In the 18th century, poets started to write ballads, such as Wolfgang von Goethe, that were later put to music. -With this came English folk-song and the influence is seen in Appalachian folk music and fiddling in both Canada and the United States. -Cecil Sharp visited the US, found, and collected folk songs from the Appalachian region and established the Cecil Sharp House in London for the preservation of folk song and dance. He also initiated the teaching of folk song and dance in English schools.
How have the powwow and the Native American flute shaped the outsider's view of Native American culture?
-The powwow is a pan-tribal event central to maintaining the cultural identity of Native Americans throughout America and it is open to the general public. -At powwows, each tribe displays its unique traditions through regalia and performance. The flute is the most widespread melodic instrument found in Native American culture, bringing people together.
How does blues music express the social conditions of African Americans in the United States?
-The roots of much African American music can be traced to the field hollers and work songs of slaves who labored under the broiling sun in the South. -became the basis for early blues, spirituals, and gospels songs. -The "troubled" life of the bluesman provided a major resource for the lyrical content of blues music. -uses a minor-sounding key, because they perceived to indicate sadness. -vocal timbre is often gritty, and the singing is declamatory and scattered with melismatic moans.
What is" American" music and what differentiates it from European or African music?
-True American music would be the music of the Native Americans that inhabited North America before Europeans and African immigrants influenced our music. -a music that could only result from the unique mixing here, creates a different set of dilemmas -American music usually tells a story differentiating it from European and African music. People began moving away from the "Old Way of Singing" and practiced towards "Regular Singing" by which they meant singing by note, in parts, and in meters instead of hymn arrangement, which were tuneless and meterless. (Shape notes) -the three-line form and use of an instrumental accompaniment as a "second voice" were African-American innovations. -Since African music consists of a huge variety of drums, it is concentrated on rhythm, tone, and timbre, meaning the beat can be danced to. American music is more focused on melody and harmony.
What defines a music as "classical" as opposed to "folk" in the European context? How has "classical" music influenced "folk" music style and performance and vice versa?
Classical refers to what is considered the highest class of music, meant for wealthy patrons, courts, and aristocrats. This music is judged by standards that privilege complexity, individuality, and "sophistication," and that usually rate a long composition for a large ensemble as a "greater" achievement than a short piece for a small ensemble. Folk music is an outgrowth of Romanticism, an aesthetic orientation that flourished in the latter part of the 18th-19th century. It is an "outside" perspective on classical music, mostly meant for the common people. Romanticism originated in the northern sectors of Europe and viewed as an antidote to the domination of "classical" French and Italian culture. Folk played classical music and folk music started to interest higher class people. They wanted to become part of a tradition. Classical music started using some folk themes.
How is polyrhythmic music created in sub-Saharan Africa?
Created when 2 or more locally independent are superimposed with handclaps, xylophones, rattles, and a variety of tuned and untuned drums. The African polyrhythm has noticeable steadiness in the resulting rhythmic pattern. Pitch polyphony exists in the form of parallel intervals of overlapping solo-choral response, and occasional simultaneous melodies.
Some "folk" instruments are designed to be easy to play but others require advance techniques. Discuss examples of European instruments that typify both ends of the spectrum.
Folk instruments that typify both ends of the spectrum are the Highland bagpipes and Uilleann bagpipes. These can be made or obtained in both urban and rural areas, but require a lot of lung power and concentration.
How is the history of European and Arabic cultural contact revealed through musical characteristics in places such as Spain and Bulgaria?
In Spain, flamenco is a Spanish music tradition heavily influenced by the Arabic culture. Flamenco featured the voice alone, in a song form known as cante. This traditional Spanish style of singing incorporates the strained timbre and heavy use of melisma typical of Arabic vocal traditions. Arabic influence is also reflected in the style's generally vibrant rhythmic activity. The guitar became the standard accompanying instrument, a choice reflecting both the Arabic emphasis on intricate melodic passages and the European taste for harmony. Bulgaria absorbed instruments and stylistic influences from Turks and the Romani (gypsies). The harmonies of its vocal music showed their European influence. Their music is very colorful and lively, showing their Arabic influence. Ruled under communism, in Eastern Europe, music became an expression and sign of unity. It represented the nation's culture both to the internal population and world at large.
How does mariachi affirm or challenge American stereotypes of Mexican culture?
It affirms the stereotypes as it was the featured music in a number of Hollywood films set in Mexico, as well as films from Mexico itself. The decorated charro suits and sombreros presented in these films have become the standard dress for mariachi musicians through the country. It is also typically played in weddings, restaurants, and festive occasions. It challenges the stereotypes by making the style of music more of a culture and traditional aspect of the Mexican traditions.
How did differences in colonial rule affect the course of musical development in the Caribbean?
Jamaica had more of an African influence, whereas Trinidad and Tobago had more of a Spanish influence on its music, since it was held by Spain for a very long time. Cuba also had a lot of Spanish musical traditions mixed with African derived percussion singing. (Spaniards had African slaves in Cuba, hence the mixture)
Is language a reliable demarcation of musical style in Europe? Why or why not?
No I do not think language is a reliable separation of musical style in Europe because even if people from different countries speak the same languages, they might have different types of styles. For example, Ireland and Scotland are grouped together, but their music are a bit different. They both play bagpipes, but the Irish pipes sound mellower and much fuller with a warmer tone quality.
How have Protestant Christian values influenced music in the United States?
Protestant themes can be seen very clearly in shape note singing and gospel singing, where lyrics are often overtly referring to God having an impact in a person's life or relationship, or the desire to give thanks to God for events that have happened in one's life.
Which Caribbean musics best exemplify the idea that music can express discontent and challenge authority? How are the examples chosen different in content and attitude?
Reggae challenges social commentary with politically and socially conscious lyrics to promote people into action against political and social unjust. Reggae artists regularly regard their position on stage as an opportunity to educate their audience about these issues or other important associations with their music and culture. Some examples are humorous and lighthearted while others are filled with intense emotions.
Where do "African survivals" appear in music of the Caribbean? What makes them African?
The majority of Jamaica's population is African; in many regions, they were able to reestablish an African way of life. The Jamaican Rasta fuses Rastafarian concepts, like Zion, which wants all black people to return to their home, which in this case is Ethiopia. The green, yellow, and red are used in the Rasta flag since it's Ethiopia's colors. Trinidad and Tobago holds a great importance on dance and drums. Steel band has emphasis on group move and drumming. Cuba son has instruments such as the marimbula and bongos.
How are music and musical instruments used to express national identity in Europe?
The music and musical instruments are used to express national identity in Europe with the use of the styles that they used and create in a way of representing their culture and their identity in means of showing their identity throughout the world. Romanticism help people assert their cultural independence. One example, is Russia went from a totalitarian regime to a democratic free market society and their nationalism inspired much artistic development such as music.
How can you account for the fact that the most prominent music types in the Caribbean are popular in nature?
The music became popular to the Americans probably because there are so many American influences. The diversity of languages spoken in the Caribbean reflects the region's complex and colorful music. For example, Reggae's roots are complex and tangled, as it draws on many contradictory styles, including American rock and rhythm & blues, evangelistic hymns and choruses, and African drumming and singing. Another example, Cuban music is tied to dance, and its music reflected European harmonic and melodic traditions almost exclusively, but over time Cuban musicians made it their own, especially by infusing African-derived rhythms.
What role does music play in maintaining oral histories and legitimizing royalty?
The praise songs are drawn from a pool of generic poetic verses. Mostly for royal lineages. Unique vocal traditions, many of them polyphonic, are common, and both story telling and recounting the histories and genealogies of many ethnic groups from generations to generation via oral traditions.
How do the principal musical manifestation found in sub-Saharan Africa reflect the collective community and encourage group participation?
The principal manifestations: communal dance, call & response, and polyrhythm. The chorus repeats a fixed refrain in alteration with a lead singer, who then has more freedom to improvise. This makes the music conversational and encourages groups to participate.
In what ways has music in South Africa reflected the particular history of the country?
There was so much discrimination between the blacks and whites. Many musical traditions came from townships (labor camps) For example, in South Africa, migrant workers began holding evening singing competitions as a form of entertainment after long days of hard labor. By the 1930s, nighttime mbube singing competitions had emerged and became characteristics of the Zulu encampments and hostels. Mbube helped preserve historical facts, memories etc. about what happened during the early 1900s.
How is the survival of indigenous music and culture related to the challenges of modernization and environmental degradation?
These two are interrelated because modernization, environmental degradation, and globalization all negatively affect the chances of indigenous music surviving in the long run. Because of these processes indigenous people feel less and less in line with their original tribal group and also know less and less about the traditions of their own people.
How does tango music reflect the essence of tango dance?
Variations of dynamics, tempo and phonic structure, which represent the indecisive seduction of female. The moves of the dancers are manifested by the music.