Music-Culture VI

Japanese Noh is a form of theater that is very popular and traditional in Japan. It is so embedded into the Japanese culture that it seems to have become a significant ritual that is both a source of spirituality and entertainment.

From the videos of Japanese Noh I have seen on YouTube, I can make out a few elements of this seemingly strange yet very relaxing form of theater involving both traditional Japanese dance and music. The music of Japanese Noh theatre is very distinct and interesting. There are three different drums, all with different timbres. There is also some sort of wooden aerophone. Finally, there are vocalist men, some of which sing a song while others add to the melody of the instruments by yelling sounds that one would usually hear in martial arts. The music made by this group is mostly quasipulsatile but sometimes seems to be nonpulsatile.

The dance, which is perhaps the most important element of Japanese Noh theatre, has elements of its own. The clothing, especially unique to this art form, is composed of a big, ostentatious garment and many accessories, of which the mask is perhaps the most important. Every character in Japanese Noh has his/her own special mask which often depicts a monster-like creature that looks evil with fangs, horns, or demon eyes. The dance itself is sometimes slow and mesmerizing, but, at other times, fast and exciting. Overall, Japanese Noh is a very mysterious form of theater.

A sample of this traditional Japanese art can be found here.

Music-Culture V

When I typed in “North Indian Classical Music” on YouTube, I found all sorts of videos. I was not sure which one actually fit the description. So, I searched Ravi Shankar and watched some of his videos. This way, I had a better understanding of what North Indian Classical Music was supposed to sound like. I saw that the sitar was a key instrument in this music-culture. So, I searched for a classical sitar song. I came upon a video titled “Indian Classical Music w/ Sitar by Morshed Khan”.

The song was instrumental, without any words. It starts out with a very slow beat of the drums and the mesmerizing sound of the sitar. The obviously skilled sitar player in the video uses the different pitches of this chordophone’s strings to make different melodies. The drums in the background change the tempo according to the sitar. At times, they are played slowly. At other times, they are played much faster.

The sitar is played very fast throughout most of the song. However, the most distinguishable characteristic of the sitar is the numerous ornaments that occur throughout the song. There are almost no cadences as the song goes on nonstop. The harmony created by the sitar and the drums continues throughout the song. The speed of the music makes it very catchy while the mellow sounds of the sitar evoke emotions of solace and relax the listener.

Music-Culture IV

I chose Googoosh’s song “Do Panjareh”; at first because it was the first song that popped up on YouTube. After listening to it, I almost fell in love with Googoosh’s beautiful voice and could not stop myself from listening to “Do Panjareh” over and over.

The song starts with a soft guitar intro. Then enters the violin; creating a melody which continues throughout the song. Then the drums and piano enter a few seconds before the predominant voice of Googoosh takes over. The drums and violin make up most of the beat in the background in this polyphonic song. There are numerous cadences throughout the song which are obviously helpful to Googoosh because she uses a lot of her breath when singing as loud as she does. There is also a refrain which she sings a few times throughout the song.

The softness of the background melody and the sincerity and passion in Googoosh’s voice suggest that this is a love song. The instruments and singing style used in this song do not seem to be traditionally Iranian. However, it is not expected for this song to be traditional because Googoosh sings Iranian pop music. Because of the use of the piano, guitar, and violin, I would assume this song to be influenced by classical music. You can find this beautiful piece here.

Music-Culture III

The 40th Anniversary Faculty Concert (“A Night of Latin Music”) was an amazing event. It promoted Latin classical music which made the night almost magical. The selection of instruments was perfect. They could all be distinguished separately while coming together in perfect harmony. The music itself was beautiful. The final song, Tango di Tango, really captured my attention and stood out among all the beautiful songs played that night. Among the instruments used in that song, the accordion was the most effective because it was the only song in which this instrument was used. It gave the song a very unique, almost eerie feel. It evoked a sense of fright and anxiety while the low-pitch piano notes gave a mysterious and dark effect. The performers were just as great as the music. They were all feeling the music as they played it. Each gave their best to produce the highest quality music and became more motivated with the applause of the audience. The audience could not take their eyes off the musicians or their ears off the wonderful music being played. There were a few people in the audience who were disturbing the performance but they were quickly shushed by others who actually appreciated the art of music. Some members of the audience fell asleep by the lulling soft music; others were so thrilled that they did not even want to blink because they would miss a small piece of the music. The time of the performance was as great as everything else. The pieces were timed perfectly with regards to arrangement and length. The space was just as well. The auditorium served its purpose by delivering the music to every listener’s ear.