Madeline's Musical Mission

 My Mother: the Musician! Ever since my Mother was a little girl, she has been very passionate for performing and listening to music. She grew up in a house that was always filled with music, whether it was from a record player, from a movie, or simply from hearing family members sing. From a very young age, she quickly decided that music would be a significant part of her life. At the age of 8, she sang "Rockin' Robin" in her school talent show and won! This inspired her to start making music a serious part of her life. She ended up taking voice lessons and being in choir throughout her years of middle and high school. As a child/young teen, she loved listening to "New Kids on the Block", "Phantom of the opera", "Michael Jackson", "Whitney Houston", and "Dolly Parton". Here is a video of "New Kids on the Block": Throughout her life, she has seen music evolve. She has seen that some genres have become more explic...

Indian and Arabic music! 1.  If you take a look at history and different places around the world, you will notice that music is ALWAYS a humungous part of any culture. This is no exception for the cultures found throughout the subcontinent of India. Something that is particularly interesting is the modern interpretation of ancient Indian music. There are many syncretic styles and blends of Indian music with other modern genres of music. An example of this is the first Hindi rap album: "Thanda Thanda Pani"by Harjeet Singh Sehgal. This album is a remake of "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice. This is really intriguing because the style of "Vanilla Ice" is very different from traditional Hindi music. Sehgal is actually an engineer by profession, but chose to be a performer on the side. His music video "Dil Dhadke" was the first ever Indian music video to be shown on MTV Asia. He has also given music for a movie called "Bhoot Uncle" and for ...

 Music from Sub-Saharan Africa: 1. Like the Native American culture, Sub-Saharan Africans highly valued the drum. In their culture, drumming is important in religious ceremonies, communal dancing, communication, and for pleasure, praise, militancy, and work. The traditional African percussion instruments are not just limited to drums, but there are also instruments made of metal, wood, plants, and other materials. These other idiophones, like the "Amandinda" and "Balafon", produce definite pitches. There are other percussion instruments like shakers, rattles, hand claps, are un-pitched. Many of the percussion instruments have an extensive history in Afro-Cuban religions and in dance music. In America, drumming was banned, and percussion instruments were not introduced until the 20th century when the drum became a standard component in music for social dancing and jazz.  Here is a video of the Balafon being played: 2. Something that makes traditional Sub-Saharan Afri...

Rock 'N' Roll For decades, Rock and Roll has been one of the most admirable and praiseworthy types of music in the world. Overtime, it has changed and evolved with generations of artists. In many ways, it has been inspirational to people of all ages, races, and social standings. Like all types of music, Rock and Roll has its own origin story. The music industry was first really disrupted by a man named Sam Phillips. Phillips was born, in 1923, in a small place in Alabama called Lovelace Community, and he never planned on starting a record company. His father was a flagman on a railroad bridge over the Tennessee River. So you can see that there is not a history of involvement with the music industry in this family. Even with that being said, Phillips got his start in radio, working in Decatur and Nashville, and he finally made it to Memphis in 1945. Making it to Memphis was a very exciting goal for Phillips by this time. By the time of January, 1950, Phillips opened the Memphis ...

Human beings have always stuck to traditions and customs. Through religion, our musical tastes continue to be shaped and influenced. When I go to church, I always expect at least two things: the sermon and music. Christian music has always been a prevalent part of how we worship Jesus Christ. With our belief in God, we are able to understand and create music as a defining feature of humanity. Of course the world is ever-evolving in many ways, especially in the music industry. Even though religion is not always accredited for its influence on modern music, the impact is still present. For example, in the song “Blessings” by Chance the Rapper, there is a church choir in the song, as well as liturgical instruments that are traditionally played in a church. Traditional liturgical music mainly uses organs and harmony. Harmony can be found in a large majority of popular music today. Organs and harmony are often featured in many contemporary gospel, pop, jazz, hip-hop, and classical music. No...

 Here are a few of the amazing "cool" aspects of music in the Americas: 1. Native Americans use music in virtually every aspect of their lives. They use it for ceremonies, work songs, game songs, courtship, storytelling, hunting, agriculture, war, social songs, and dances. Most of the Native American songs and performances have one thing in common: there is a drum being played. Drums are the oldest instruments on earth, and they are portrayed as the "heartbeat" of music. Specifically in Native American music, they are known as the "spirit of life". The drums are so important, that the people playing them are referred to as singers, not drummers. This displays that Native American culture represents drumming as the midpoint of music rather than vocals. Many Native American tribes also construct their drums in a specific way with various materials. The process of stretching a finely tanned buck or elk skin across a wooden frame combines both animal and plant...