Wicked

For this week's blog entry I chose a clip from the Broadway show "Wicked." This musical depicts the lives of Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda (the Good Witch of the North) long before Dorothy ever came to Oz. From the time the girls first meet when they are assigned to be roommates in college, they struggle to become friends due to their extremely opposing personalities. Glinda is spoiled, rich, beautiful, and popular while Elphaba is smart, has strong liberal political views, and above all is extremely misunderstood. Both girls grow and change immensely throughout this musical. Glinda learns an important lesson about dignity and respect for others. She herself becomes a better person by learning to respect and admire her green friend's unique qualities. This musical has a powerful message about the fact that life goes on and gets better and anyone who has ever been teased or ostracized for something can definitely relate to Elphaba.

This is one of my favorite songs from the musical because it is a singing farewell between the two girls and they both admit the fact that regardless of the bad, they have become better people just by knowing one another.

Super Bass

This video is a performance of Super Bass (Nicki Minaj) by Sophia Grace, 8 and Rosie, 5 taken September, 2011 in the middle of their living room in Great Britain. Almost immediately after Sophia Grace's mother posted the video to Youtube the two girls became internet sensations. A month later The Ellen Show contacted the family and flew them to the US to have the girls perform for Ellen DeGeneres. Ellen surprised Sophia Grace and Rosie by having Nicki  Minaj there to sing with them. Sophia Grace is a charismatic, giggly little girl with a great deal of talent and a big future ahead of her.

Hang Playing Hedge Monkeys

This is a video of a performance by the Hang Playing Hedge Monkeys during a festival in Edinburgh, UK. The two men playing met in 2006 when their lives crossed paths at a festival in England. They immediately connected and through conversation learned they had each been invited to Switzerland to receive their Hangs from PanArt. The Hang is an instrument that developed in Switzerland about twelve years ago after extensive research on the steelpan. I find this video both entertaining and informational. The sound of the music being played if carefree and almost relaxing. At the end of the video the men inform the crowd on the instrument they are playing and where it originated. I thoroughly enjoy the unique sound of this innovative instrument.

Madness

For this week's blog, entry I chose the song Madness which is the first single from Muse's newest album The 2nd Law. This song was written by the lead singer during a fight with his girlfriend. This song depicts that fight and a rash decision for the couple to break up, later realizing they made the wrong decision. I think most people can relate to this song on some level because we all do and say things when we're upset that we often regret later on.

Hallelujah Chorus

I chose these two videos of non-traditional performances of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's Messiah because I enjoy the way they both take a brilliant, sophisticated piece of music and make it more approachable.

The first video is a Christmas Food Court Flash Mob that takes place during the holiday season, in a mall food court, in the middle of the afternoon. These one-hundred plus participants successfully take Handel's Messiah out of its common venue and bring it to a populated mall offering shoppers a break from their holiday shopping to enjoy a "Random Act of Culture."

I think this second video is a creative way of performing an extremely complicated piece of music as well as being extremely entertaining at the same time. Although the students do not actually sing or play instruments during this performance, it is well done and you can actually see the pitches change as the voices/boards are held higher and higher.  

Gregorian- With or Without You

Because we began the week exploring the art of Gregorian chant, I chose the band Gregorian for this week’s blog entry. Gregorian is a German band headed by German composer, producer, and musician Frank Peterson. They perform Gregorian chant-inspired versions of modern songs, usually pop and rock. Unlike traditional Gregorian chants, Gregorian combines vocal harmony with instrumental accompaniment. I think this is an interesting remake of an extremely well-known song.  I like the fact that the members of Gregorian blend the sound, clothing, and ambience (the majority of their performances take place in old churches) of traditional chanting monks, with a nontraditional spin on classic rock and pop songs.

Gifts and Curses

The song I chose this week is "Gift and Curses" by Yellowcard. This song is from the Spider Man 2 soundtrack and depicts the complicated relationship between Peter Parker and Mary Jane. "Gifts and Curses" perfectly captures the struggle Peter endures throughout the movie. His powers as Spider man become both his "Gifts and Curses" as he is forced to choose between the love of his life and using his powers to save the citizens of New York City. This song could be applied to many real life situations such as falling in love with your best friend who is in love with someone else- you'll always have your "gift" (your best friend), but you'll never have them the way you want and this is your "curse."