Wrap-Up

1. What is something you learned about another culture this term that surprised or intrigued you?

Learning about the Indonesian Gamelan was very interesting to me. Although I had seen pictures of some instruments used in a Gamelan before, I did not have an idea of what those instruments sounded like, before taking this class. The sound of the Gamelan really fascinated me and I found it very surprising that its sound could be considered aesthetically pleasing to the Indonesian culture. I found that out of all the music cultures we explored in class the music of Indonesia was the most intriguing. I also thought that the Indonesian male chorus and play we watched in class was very different to anything I had ever seen before. Most of the music had very percussive characteristics and focused more on rhythm than melody. Learning about the music of this culture was definitely an eye opener to me. It made me realize how differently music can be perceived by diverse cultures. I learned that I needed to be more open minded in order to appreciate, understand and respect the traditional music of this culture.

2. What is something that you realized about your own culture through our discussions

When we learned about Middle-Eastern music and the more we listened to it in class it suddenly dawned upon me that most of the music we listened to sounded very much like traditional Sinhalese music from home. I had never made a connection with Sri Lankan music and Middle-Eastern music before. I always thought that the music of India would be the closest influence to the music of Sri Lanka. It is fascinating how similar middle-eastern singing sounded to Sri Lankan vocal music. When I thought more about it, I realized that the connection between Sri Lanka and the Middle-East made a lot of sense. Because of how Sri Lanka is situated in the map, just below India in the middle of the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka was a port that many traders stopped at during their sea routes. The middle-eastern countries did a lot of trading with Sri Lanka. Due to geographical proximity, it is not surprising at all that the two cultures could have influenced each other’s music. I would have never made this realization by myself, however. I have also never come across it in books. I am glad that I came to this realization. Perhaps I may choose to explore this topic more and do a thesis on it in the future.

3. What is something that this course has inspired you to learn more about.

This course has made me realize that I had a deep interest in learning about music of other cultures. I had just not explored music of diverse cultures in this way before and I am glad that I was able to learn about so many different musical traditions. I would love to travel someday, visit and experience another culture and do an in-depth study of its music. Two places that I definitely want to visit are Ireland and Japan. I love Irish music and would love to spend some time in Ireland, experience its culture and perhaps lean some traditional Irish dancing. I would also like to spend some time in Japan and get to know more about traditional Japanese music. It is intriguing how sophisticated the anime film soundtracks are becoming. If I ever become a composer for screen, I would love to spend some time in Japan and perhaps write music for some sort of anime film there. I have been to Japan before and spent a short time there and enjoyed myself very much. I would love to go back and study its music.

Thank you so much Dr.Vaneman. This class took me on a wonderful musical adventure. This journey has really inspired me and came to me just at the right time. I will never forget some of the great experiences I had in this class. Thank you once again!

Still more COOL stuff!

This song “Asha” is one of my favourite songs of all time. It is always played in dance parties in Sri Lanka. Many DJ’s back home choose this song when they feel like the hype of the crowd is reducing. This definitely pumps up everyone’s energy and even those who have stopped dancing want to get back on the dance floor again. I tried looking for this song on youtube but had trouble finding it until one day I randomly came across it while searching for something else. It is interesting that it is an Arabic song because all that time I had thought it was an Indian (Bollywood) song. This song is an example of Arabic popular music. It has many similarities to Indian pop and Sri Lankan pop: a consistent beat, a lead singer with backup singers, an accompaniment.

Now for some comparing and contrasting! This next video is called “Rambari”, a Sri Lankan, Sinhalese pop song which was no.1 on the Sri Lankan charts for quite some time after it was released. I am always reminded of “Asha” when I hear this one. “Rambari” is quite a new song and “Asha” has been playing in Sri Lanka from the 90’s. It is clear that the influence of “Asha” can be heard in “Rambari”. When we listened to traditional Arabic music in class, I was reminded of traditional Sri Lankan music. It was evident that there was a strong influence between the two. This is not surprising since Sri Lanka traded with the Arabs. Talk about geographical proximity!

This song is in Sinhala, one of the main languages spoken in Sri Lanka.

Finally, here is a video from one of my favourite Bollywood films, “Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Gam” (literal translation – “sometimes happiness, sometimes sadness”). This type of Indian film music is more on to the side of Indian pop music culture than of the traditional music culture although it has a definite influence of traditional Indian music. It is interesting to see how all these three different styles (Sri Lanka, Arabic and Indian pop) have many similarities.

This is what's happening on this scene : The girl in the yellow outfit is Anjali. It is her sister's wedding. Rahul, a guy belonging to a rich family, attends the wedding. (Anjali's mother works as a house maid for Rahul's family). Rahul is interested in Anjali and turns up for the wedding in traditional Indian attire that is worn by the lower class population. They sing to each other. I found one with English sub-titles! Enjoy. :)

Interview with Ammi (My Mum)

Me: What kind of music did you listen to as a child?

Mum: The Beatles, Elvis Presley, The Rolling Stones and some rock n’ roll music

Me: What about as a teenager?

Mum: George Benson, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson…

Me: How about the singers you have seen in concert?

Mum: I have seen about 10 artists live, including George Benson, Lionel Richie with the Commodores (he was in a group during that time), Freddy Fender, Cliff Richards, Rod Stewart...

Me: Since you lived in New Zealand for 8 years of your life, were you exposed to any traditional “kiwi” music?

Mum: Yes when I was living there I was exposed to some native Maori music.

Me: Could you describe to me what it is like? Does the music involve singing and dancing? Any percussion instruments used?

Mum: It mainly consists of singing and dancing. I don’t think they used a lot drums. The Maori music that I heard also had harmony in it. The singers harmonized with each other. One of the dances they do is called the “Poi”. This dance is done while they sing and they hold balls connected to strings which they spin around using their hands. The usually both sing and dance together.

Me: Have you ever seen them just singing, or dancing to some kind of instrumental music?

Mum: I have mostly seen them just singing and dancing together.

Me: Ok. What about the role that women play in Maori music? Do the men and women dance together or have you seeing them doing things that are different to each other?

Mum: I have mostly seen the women sing and dance. The men do the traditional welcoming of an important guest or guests at an event. This is called the “Haka”. After performing the “Haka” to welcome a guest they rub their noses together. That is how you greet somebody. Like when Prince Charles visited New Zealand he was greeted with a “Haka”.

Me: It would be really bad if someone had a cold or a runny nose

Mum: *laughs* yes!

Me: Do you think you could describe what kind of tone they have when they sing? Do they have a nasal tone or does it sound more rounded?

Mum: I would say they have a nice rounded tone. Some of them sound like choir members of a western choir.

Me: That’s interesting. Going back to music in general, when you listened to music, what technology did you use?

Mum: Mostly LP records, I had a walkman (a portable cassette player), the radio

Me: Did you see in any music videos on TV?

Mum: They didn’t have so many music videos on TV back then. I also saw two musicals in New Zealand. Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ipi Tombi which is musical based on traditional South African music.

Me: Wow. That’s really neat. We just learned about South African music in class. I need to check that musical out.

Mum: Yeah, it was amazing. There was a man who did a dance with his stomach! It was incredible.

Me: What sort of environment did you listen to music in?

Mum: At home, in concert halls, Rod Stewart had his concert in the rugby grounds

Me: What about church music?

Mum: Not much of church music

Me: How did your parents feel about the music of your choice?

Mum: They were both flexible. Your grandfather took me to some of the concerts I mentioned even though he is really a fan of classical music.

Me: Did you play any instruments or sing?

Mum: Well, I would sing for fun and I did play the piano.

Me: How was that for you?

Mum: I enjoyed playing the Piano very much. I had an amazing teacher in New Zealand who would arrange any pop songs I would like to learn on the spot. He would write the notes down for me and I would learn something new at every lesson. He was fantastic.

Me: Why do you listen to music?

Mum: I enjoy it very much. It is a form of meditation and relaxation. It definitely keeps me company sometimes. It is a form of therapy.

Me: You were exposed to a lot of music from the western tradition and some traditional music from New Zealand. How about music of your country, Sri Lanka?

Mum: Definitely. I think we are all exposed to more traditional Sri Lankan music than we realize back at home.

Me: Were there any situations that caused you to turn to certain kinds of music?

Mum: Hmm… sometimes maybe. But it’s mostly for enjoyment and relaxation.

Me: Which music culture would you say you feel connected to the most?

Mum: Both Sri Lankan music and music of the Western tradition. South American music too; such as countries like Puerto Rico. I think some of those rhythms are similar to ours.

Me: Ok. It is very interested that you were exposed to western music from such an early age. I would have thought the Sri Lankan music would have come first. It was also neat to learn more about traditional music of New Zealand and the Maoris. Thanks for the interview, Ammi!

Mum: Sure, that was fun!

Cool Stuff #2 - Blues

Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man" - this piece is based on a sixteen bar blues form in Jazz. I find it interesting that Herbie Hancock switches back and forth from Piano to Keyboards for creative effect. The distorting of pitches that you can see him do on the electronic keyboards can also be found in Asian music. He is clearly a pro at improvisation! Other versions of this piece have been produced by many different musicians, increasing its popularity.

You got to love Fantasia (Disney, of course!) and you got to love Gershwin. His Rhapsody in Blue is one of my favorite pieces of all time. A great combination of classical music and Jazz, most of the main themes in this work rely on the blues scale. (A lot of lowered sevenths with a mixture of major and minor thirds). This is only part 1 of the piece.

"Ain't no grave can hold my body down" is an example of a Spiritual of the African-American tradition. We sang this piece in Converse Chorale last year and it was one of the most enjoyable pieces I have ever sung with the Chorale. We had to work hard to understand the difference in style compared to classical singing and I remember Dr. Jones asked us to emphasize the "blue notes" (flattened thirds or sevenths) that were in the piece. The influence of blues is seen in a lot of African-American gospel music.

The blues form can also be seen in Rock n' Roll. Here, it is more about the chord progressions that are used rather than the flattened thirds and sevenths. Rock it, Jerry Lee Lewis!

Music and Gender

The first time I remember working with a musician from the opposite sex was when my private piano teacher asked me to play a piano duet (four hands) with a male student in her studio when I was fourteen years old. She felt that he and I were at about the same level of musicianship and therefore thought that we would make a good duo. My first reaction to this was “Please don’t make me play with a BOY! I would have to sit next to him”. I eventually agreed as my teacher insisted we perform together at a recital. This first experience made me feel more comfortable about working with male musicians in general and it helped me to bridge the gap I had felt before, between female and male musicians. He ended up becoming my boyfriend and one of the best friends I have ever had. It was one of those special moments in my life where I realized how music can truly bring people together.

As we studied music of the Native American and South African traditions, I found myself comparing and contrasting them with my own music culture. It was interesting to note how women never played drums in the Native American tribes and in music from South Africa. When the Sinhalese/Tamil New Year is celebrated in Sri Lanka, the “Bench Rabana” (a large drum generally played by a group of people seated around it) is always played by a group of women. This drum is very similar to the drums used by Native Americans in the pow-wow. The main differences are that the pow-wow drum is played by men and the men use sticks to beat it while the Sri Lankan women use their hands.

Women also play an important role in the singing of traditional Sinhalese music. “Jayamangala Gatha”, which is an ancient chant of victory and blessing, is “a set of eight benedictory stanzas extolling the virtues of the Buddha, and is usually sung on important occasions or when inaugurating any venture of significance.” (quote from the “Messengers of Dharma”). This chant is sung in Sri Lanka for special occasions and it is almost always sung by female children. The fact that this chant is habitually sung by girls even though change in voice timbre ( i.e. differentiation between Soprano and Tenor) would not be a problem between male and female child-singers, is fascinating.

There is much debate about how female musicians are seen in the world today and there are speculations that women musicians are still sometimes seen as inferior to male musicians. As a composer (who happens to be female), my opinion can be summed up by one of my favourite Joan Tower quotes. “I think some people are not aware that there are no women composers on their concerts. So for that reason, I do like to be reminded this is a woman composer…Other than that, the music is the music and the fact that I'm a woman doesn't make the difference to the music.”

Cool Stuff!

When I started thinking about all the different types of cultural music I was exposed to as a child and how I was exposed to them, I realized that most of it was introduced to me through cartoons. The soundtracks of the good old Disney classics Pocahontas and The Lion King have Native American and South African influences respectively. When we talked about the Pow wow in class, my mind went back to a cartoon TV series I had watched as a child called "Pow-wow the Indian Boy". This was one of my favorite cartoons. I remember that the theme song had a lot of "Hey, hoo, ha" in its lyrics - vocables! Who would have thought I would be theoretically analyzing the music in a cartoon I had seen as a child, 16 years ago. (Wow, I feel old.)

Here is the opening song in Pocahontas, "Steady as the beating drum".( Music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Stephen Schwatrz.) This song talks about how the Native American people lead lives as "steady as the beating drum". The lyrics portray their way of life. Concepts we talked about in class such as balance in life, spirituality and life working in cycles can be seen here. To quote from the song : "Oh great spirit hear our song, help us keep the ancient ways, keep the sacred fire strong, walk in balance all our days. Seasons go and seasons come, steady as the beating drum...".
The drumming and the use of the vocables "Hega hega yam-pi-ye-hega...etc." add an authentic native american flavor to the music. Enjoy.

The song "The Spirit of the Hawk" by the Swedish band Rednex includes part of a speech given by "Chief Joseph", the chief of a Native American tribe known as "Nez Perce", which is a tribe which lives in the Pacific North West region of USA. (According to wikipedia). The video of this song has a lot of imagery from the Native American culture. The song's title and video both show the close connection between the Native American people, nature and their spirituality. It is a fusion music influenced by native american sounds and modern techno music.

Africa:

I once learnt a traditional South African song at a music camp which I attend in Sri Lanka when I was fourteen years old. This song is in the call and response style. I learned that it is about migrant workers travelling by train to work at gold and minefields. Here is a video of primary school children singing the song. It's really a fun song to sing with a large group of people.

Here's a video of the African Children's choir just because they are definitely worth checking out.

I would also like to share the video of the performance of "Waka Waka" by Shakira featuring the South African band "Freshlyground". This song was one of the official songs for the 2010 FIFA world cup. Here is a great example of a wonderful multicultural, musical celebration.

Finally, simply because Lady Smith Black Mambazo has an amazing sound:

Music and Religion

Music has always played an important role in my spiritual life. I was born and raised a Catholic and the Holy Mass I attended every Sunday included a lot of singing and chanting of hymns and prayers in both English and Latin. When I was a teenager, attending Holy Mass became all about the music. I felt that I connected with God the most, when I sang hymns. This was what motivated me to attend church every Sunday. After having spent many years as a Church musician, playing Organ, Piano and Flute for Masses and services, singing in the choir and being the Cantor that leads the singing of the Psalm, I have come to experience the beauty of music in religion and how much music enhances church services. In the Catholic Church, music is as an agent that helps unites the congregation. People feel more of a spiritual connection when singing a prayer than just saying one. Only specific instruments are used. The electronic Organ, the Piano, the Violin, the Flute, the acoustic Guitar are some of the popular ones in use. Sometimes the use of music depends on the type of service at church and depends on the decisions made by the priest who is celebrating Mass on that day. For eg: no instruments were allowed during a service on Good Friday, as a sign of respect and mourning. The style of music and instrumentation used always has a sense of solemnity and reverence. Hymns and chanting are meant to be sung with sensitivity, and instruments that can produce a lot of “noise” such as drums, brass instruments and electric guitars are generally discouraged.
Being in Sri Lanka I have also grown up hearing Buddhist chants that are used in Buddhist rituals and ceremonies. These sounds that I have heard while growing up have certainly had an impact on me and how I decide what is aesthetically please to the ear. Since I have heard and seen the way music has been used in the Catholic Church and how it is being used in Buddhism, the music has become familiar to my ear and therefore aesthetically pleasing. By growing up hearing these sounds, I have been able to appreciate and acknowledge the importance of music in religion. Just like how Native Americans see a strong connection between music and the divine, I believe that music can be used like no other form of art, to call out to God.
As a composer, I have had many personal experiences where I have felt inspired by God to write music. I have had many instances in my life where I have prayed, asking God for inspiration. I believe that God has filled me with ideas and has never left those prayers unanswered. It is in these instances that I have composed some of the best music I have ever written. I am happy to have had such experiences with the divine.