Exam #3 Listening GuideIreland“Planxty Colonel Irwin”: a harp piece composed by TURLOUGH O’CAROLAN, the last of the great Irish harpers. A PLANXTY is a tune composed in honor of a respected person. O’Carolan composed some 200 pieces still in common repertoire.“Londonderry Air”: the original tune for “Oh Danny Boy” a NOSTALGIC song that represents the loss experienced by families fractured by emigration. This version is performed by the violinist Fritz Kreisler, accompanied by piano. The PIANO is also representative of the immigration experience. “Danny Boy”: A sung version, by the Irish punk singer Shane McGowan. His band, the Pogues, combined traditional Irish sounds with punk. The hybrid is sometimes called CELTIC ROCK.“Paddy Ryan’s Dream”: Michael Coleman was the great virtuoso fiddler of the early20th century. He made 80 records in the 1920s and established the SLIGO STYLE among Irish American fiddlers. “Five Reels” by the New York Ceili Band. This is the BIG BAND IRISH SOUND of the 1940s. Irish musicians had to compete with big swing bands, so they combined drums, bass, accordions, flutes and other instruments to make large powerful stage bands. They often played in Irish Social Clubs in the Irish cities of NY, Boston, and Chicago.“How Are Things in Glockamorra?” A song from the 1950s Hollywood film “Finian’s Rainbow.” In the 1940s and 50s Hollywood filmmakers created MOVIE STEREOTYPES of the Irish: leprechauns, four-leaf clovers, rainbows, and pots of goldbecame America’s images of Ireland. This song was reputed to be a favorite of America’s first Irish-Catholic president, John Kennedy.“The Ronan Boys medley”: a medly of tunes played by the great CHICAGO IRISH fiddler Liz Carroll, accompanied by Johnny Doyle, an extraordinary left-handed guitarist. Liz is a former winner of THE ALL-IRELAND FIDDLE CHAMPIONSHIP.“Reel Around The Sun” (Riverdance): Riverdance is a PRESENTATIONAL display ofIrish music and dance. Professional dancing choreography, costumes, and music put together into a spectacular staged event by the Chicago Irish dancer Michael Flatley. Riverdance won the Eurovision talent contest in the 1990s and became a worldwidesensation. Unlike traditional Irish music this is not PARTICIPATORY.“Tessie”: Celtic rock song and theme song of the Boston Red Sox, played by the celebratedCuba“Habanera” from Carmen: Carmen is an opera composed by the FRENCH composer Georges Bizet in 1875. It tells the story of a Spanish Gypsy woman, but the music employs Cuban rhythms. In the late 19th century Cuba was an extremely wealthy colony and Cuban culture captured the imagination of Europeans.“Las Alturas de Simpson”: this is a famous DANZON, a Euro-Cuban dance music stylepopular in Cuban high society at the end of the 19th C. The instrumentation was European(strings, brass, woodwinds) but the underlying rhythm has influences of Afro-Cuban music of the era. Cuban music and culture is a complex syncretic blend of European (mainly Spanish) and West African (mainly Yoruba) influences.Batá drumming: this recording is from Nigeria, where the batá DRUM TRIO is still an important everyday ensemble. In Cuba, the batá are primarily SACRED DRUMS used in SANTERÍA ceremonies. The rhythms and sounds of the batá drums dictate the dancers' movements, and different batá drums correspond to different areas of the body. Rhythms communicated through the large and medium drums relate to the shoulders and chest, while rhythms communicated by the smallest drum signal dancers to move their waist, hips, and feet.“Guantanamera”: Guajira is an early 20th century Cuban country music style. It emerged in the southeastern Oriénte region among Hispanic farmers in the late 19th century. Features the tres and percussion, as well as very poetic language sung in couplets. There are competitions among “guajiros” (musicians who play the style) to outdo each other in improvising rhymes. “Guantanamera” (“Girl from Guantanamo”) isperhaps the most internationally-famous Cuban song. It was originally composed by JoséDiaz, in 1929, but is usually sung with lyrics by the Cuban nationalist hero and poet José Martí:Yo soy un hombre sinceroDe donde crece la palma,Y antes de morime quieroEchar mis versos del almaMi verso es de una verde claroY de un carmín encendido;Mi verso es un ciervo heridoQue busca en el monte amparoQultivo la rosa blancaEn junio como en eneroPara el amigo sinceroQue me da su mano francaCon los pobres de la tierraQuiero yo mi suerte echarCon los pobres de la tierraQuiero yo mi suerte echarEl arroyo de la sierraMe complace mas que el marI am a sincere manFrom where the palm tree growsAnd before dying I wantTo let out the verses of my soulMy verse is light greenAnd it is flaming redMy verse is a wounded stagWho seeks refuge on the mountainI grow a white roseIn July just as in JanuaryFor the honest friendWho gives me his open handWith the poor people of the earthI want to cast my lotThe brook of the mountainsGives me more pleasure than the sea•••“Rumba”: A performance by the touring group “Los Muñakitos De Matanzas.” Rumba is an Afro-Cuban street dance style that emerged in Havana around 1900, it is performed with VOCALS AND PERCUSSION, including three congas and a pair of clavés. Rumbais the grandparent of modern Cuban dance music. Listen for the characteristic rhythm of the clavé, and the shift between the canto (sung in Spanish) and the intensified call-and response montuno section. 3-part form: “Diana,” “canto,” and most important, “montuno.” “Qué Bonito Es”: Ignacio Piñeiro and His Septeto Nacional. In the late 1920s and early 30s the SEPTETO became the standard six-piece Cuban popular son band. Sextetos had included bongos, clavé, tres, bass, guitar, and maracas. Under the influence of jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong, the SEPTETOS added TRUMPET. Listen for the repeating three-note bass line intersecting with the clave beat. Listen to the trumpet.“Para Bailar El Montuno”: Arsenio Rodriguez and his conjunto (group.) In the 1940s a blind tres player from Havana revolutionized Cuban son by 1) doubling the trumpets 2) adding piano 3) emphasizing CONGA drums 4) emphasizing the MONTUNO 5) electrifying the guitar.“El Congo”: Celia Cruz. The 1950s were a golden age for Cuban music. Cuban was controlled by a corrupt government that catered to the wealthy, and money, drugs,
View Full Document
Unlocking...