The Middle East: Band Analysis

A Bedouin is a nomad and a nomad a wanderer. Nathaniel Mackey seems to wander far and away in his Bedouin Hornbook, a series of fictional letters addressed to an “Angel of Dust” and signed by the ambiguous “N.” N. interprets passages of improvisation, analyzing others’ musical expression in surprising detail to the point that his unquestioning sincerity and self-assurance are almost laughable. That N. can glean meaning from music in such a direct and certain manner is problematic because his tone implies that there is only one correct interpretation of music. In addressing the issue of how music conveys meaning, Mackey seems to wander in two disparate directions. After asserting each seemingly

Throughout the many years of time, music has been associated with the lives of humans. Ranging from the oldest recorded music in 1888, The Lost Chord, to Motherese, or the way that mothers “sing” to their babies to communicate to them, to our modern music of radio stations blaring our favourite song while we drive from place to place. Music has found its place within human lives, intertwining its existence with ours. Incredibly enough, humans have found a way to harness music with our very hands and create elegant melodies from tools. Beginning with instruments that look like a guitar, instruments that look like a flute and instruments that look like a drum, we began making controlled music with rhythms and harmonies. As years passed and civilization began to grow, musicians came to be. These ancient musicians played music for others on the instruments that they would make and performed for many.

Music is an aspect of every culture that is used to connect its people and bring the group together. Essentially, every culture has their own unique genre of music. The question of “what is good music,” is an intriguing one because the answer to this question varies from culture to culture. Even within a culture, the musical preferences change based on the individual. For this “What is good music” project, I chose the song “Sour Patch Kids,” by Bryce Vine, because this song exemplifies a few things that I look for when determining good music.

"[while it is true that] music cannot continue to exist in a vacuum of sameness and predictability, it is also true that music cannot yield to anarchy. Some people may consider it 'fun' to hear a typewriter amplified to ear-splitting proportions over a P. A. system, but, really, it is all so cynical. What is so sad is that a number of listeners are willing to endure the torture, finding this a fresh experience.”

Music: This aspect of the Bedouin’s means for entertainment has grabbed my attention. Being an Arab myself, I am already familiar with the type of music were used in the old times. To

For as long as mankind has walked on this earth, music has been an important part of our culture and lifestyles. Each walk of life beats to a different drum. Different cultures use music for many aspects of their lives; for religious purposes, for celebrations, for comfort, for sorrow, for relaxation, for sports, for dances, for energy, for learning, for sleeping, and for sexual experiences. Everyone uses music for something. Music connects with people and reaches them in ways that words simply cannot. Music is a representation of what feelings sound like. It expresses emotion and brings that characteristic out from within us; it tells us a story. Every generation has its’ own sound and different music styles have emerged and become

To understand why music is a product of human intention and perception, we start by defining or understanding the nature of music. Music is defined as the sounds or combination of vocals and instruments in a way that it produces a form of beauty, expression, or harmony of emotions. Arguably, people compose or make music through many ways (Resnicow, Joel E., 20-29). While some people might compose music without incorporating instruments, others use instruments to produce beats that match with their sounds. However, to argue that the

These instruments are important to the culture as they used this instrumental music to accompany a dance to express spiritual and cultural of their everyday lives. (12) The music clip that I have chosen features these two instruments for a feel of the climate and area of the country. The emotion and inner visualization which in communication terms is known as self-talk, gives me the feeling and imagery of being in the Sahara watching the wildlife run across the desert or plains while watching the tribe go about their daily routine.

A young American man walks down a busy city street whistling “Loch Loman,” while a Japanese woman on the other side of the globe is humming to Enya’s “Caribbean Blue” (). Irish music has made a far-reaching impact in the world of today. It reaches people all over the globe from those locally born to those of no Irish ancestry whatsoever. It has bespoken of culture and the proud heritage of the Irish. Song in and of itself is a force to be reckoned with, but the Irish music has instilled a sense of connection to a country and a people few may otherwise identify themselves with. Irish music is the national photobook of its people, touching a deep chord with so many of its listeners.

For centuries, music has been an important and influential part of people’s lives. Music can evoke so many emotions, ranging all the way from fear to surprise (Mohana). As a style, Celtic music seems to be the most well-known music “genre” worldwide. Between the instruments used, the different styles, and the most famous musicians Celtic, music is an iconic art-form that is used and heard around the world, but in many different styles and instrumentations.

“Bahdeni Nami”, the title track and lead single off of this one, is as good of a starting point as ever. You get the full dabke experience in this one - Souleyman sings or chants lyrics in Arabic over an incessant beat. As soon as he’s done, the stomping bass percussion joins in the fun, and mind-melting synthesizer solos take over. It’s simple and repetitive fun - no wonder the genre has experienced something of a renaissance in recent times. Punctuated with claps and jubilant yells, the 8-minute “Bahdeni Nami” doesn’t carry you so much as it lets you sink into its never-ending tapestry of

Never before has music touched me in so many different ways that David Hufflepuff did in this collection of provocative and inspiring moments of self-made musical history. Germans, French, Swahili, and Libyan rebels alike will rejoice with hit classics such as “Flying on the Wings of Tenderness”, “Je T’aime Means I Love You”, “Wir Zwei Allein”, and “Freedom for the World”. But no matter what kind of background you come from or identify with, this record is for anyone. It’s a multicultural masterpiece.

Sound supplements the role of vision in constructing identity in Turbulent. Neshat uses the song choice of the man and woman in the video to elucidate the identities which Muslim

The Afghani-based Taliban use arguments such as “fanatic,” “fundamentalist,” “Islamist,” and “legalist” to close theaters, destroy musical artifacts, or persecute musicians. A wealth of musical genre and style exist, but this happens mostly at the call to prayer, which is chanted rather than spoken. Although the Call to prayer is musical, it is not considered music. Today, news report that the Middle East are effectively situated in a Land, that is very unfamiliar to many of us with sounds such as the Call to prayer or celebrative folk songs and drumming, this happens because images and works of visual art, sounds, and music can serve as a representation of people and places. Arab music today is thriving both as modern popular phenomenon as well as living a traditional practice.

Talal’s journey started early in the 20th century in Saudi Arabia when his friend in school owned an oud but due to the religious restrictions that controlled the Arabic peninsula back then, his friend would keep the oud in Talal’s place where no eyes can see it. This was the start of Talal’s musical career when he started admiring the feeling he would get holding and playing the oud. He would spend hours every day hoping to be a player one day. Determination and practice indeed gave him what he was seeking for. A few years later, Talal’s talent appeared to close friends and the town he was living in to the extent that he would be paid to perform in musical festivals rather paying for than other local players at that time. The special relationship he made with oud made his fans from around all the Middle East agree that he would speak to the oud and the oud would speak back to him making his playing on the oud special like no other. Years later, he went to a musical school to get even closer to what he loved and also taking it to the next level when he started composing his own songs and also be one of the greatest teachers of the instruments. The legend continues as Talal saw the potential and the musical spirit in a student named Abadi Aljawhar who followed Talal’s steps that led him to be a famous musician, composer and