Author: vlkirk

What does music do for society? In my opinion, music is used as a universal language to help people emotionally in times of need. No matter what you are going through whether that be money or family problems, self love, depression and suicidal thoughts, religious struggles, loss of a loved one, etc., there is always someone going through the same struggles. You can find these types of songs in all possible genres like country, pop, hip-hop, rap, metal, rock, and gospel. There are so many genres that it is hard to name them all.

“Beautiful”, Artist: P.O.D, Album: Murdered Love, Released: 2012, Genre: Alternative Metal, Metal, Christian Rock

The first song I chose to talk about is “Beautiful” by P.O.D. I believe they are mainly a Christian Rock band, but fit into many genres. They released this song in 2012 as a part of their album “Murdered Love”. This song is in 4/4 and is 72 BPM, which is fairly slow paced. I don’t think it has a difficult vocal range and the majority of people can sing along with the lyrics and the beat is very easy to find. “Beautiful” starts out relatively quiet and thoughtful/sad, but as the song progresses it tends to get louder, especially during the chorus. Now if you compare the music video to the actual lyrics, they are expressing different scenarios or problems people face in life. The music video follows a boy that is being bullied and his parents make him fend for himself. He has no one so he makes an imaginary friend to help him not feel so lonely. The message I got from watching the video is that your attitude and viewpoint on life can change everything. As for the lyrics the band sings, they sing about a woman wanting to commit suicide because of relationship problems. Her partner is constantly lying to her and she knows it, but continues to look the other way because she doesn’t want to face reality. She is angry and hurting and doesn’t know what to do and feels all alone. The scenarios are different, but still very relatable to millions of people all over the world. When asked about the song Sonny Sandoval (frontman for P.O.D) had this to say, “The song ‘Beautiful’ is for anybody going through struggles. It’s a reminder of what God thinks of them-they are beautiful, and he loves them right where they are at.” 

“Dancing In The Sky”. Artists: Dani and Lizzy, Album: Work of Heart, Released: 2016, Genre: Pop

This last song I have chosen to use is “Dancing In The Sky” by Dani and Lizzy. They are twins that sing pop music and released this song in their 2016 album “Work of Heart”. From what I could find out about the song, it is in B Major. The tempo, on the other hand, is a lot harder to find. I found multiple websites that says the tempo is 73 BPM, but then others say it’s 208 BPM or somewhere in between. Either way, I think it’s a great song to listen to. The range of the song, in my opinion, I don’t think is that hard to follow and is in a normal range for someone that doesn’t sing for a living. Of course it may be a bit harder for men or lower voices to sing along to, but they could probably just sing in a lower key to make it easier if they need to. As with the first song I chose, it also has to do with God in a way. Didn’t mean for it to happen, but I think when people struggle in life, they tend to lean towards their beliefs for reassurance and peace of mind. This particular song was written after a friend of theirs had died. The lyrics talk about Heaven and how wonderful it must be up there since they passed because “Here on Earth everything’s different, There’s an emptiness.” They only wish that their loved one is happy and free from their troubles. Dani had mentioned that she and her sister want to connect with as many people as they can and I’m sure everyone can relate to this song in their own way whether it be a friend, family member or even pet that has passed and they are dealing with their grief. One of their listeners even said that their song “Dancing In The Sky” brought more peace to her than all the therapy she was doing. If that isn’t music being used to help society emotionally, I don’t know what is!

I personally love both of these songs. They have helped me calm down and reevaluate during similar times. I think it’s amazing what music can do for an individual. Thinking about my personal journey with music and what this course has done for me is actually a lot more than I thought it would. I have learned to appreciate other types of music and I realized that I actually enjoy taking apart songs to analyze. I still only like to play classical music with my instruments, but I have a higher tolerance for stepping outside my comfort zone to listen to different genres of music.

Sources:

Songfacts. “Beautiful by P.O.D.” Songfacts, https://www.songfacts.com/facts/pod/beautiful

“Why Are We Moved by Music?” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/science-choice/201807/why-are-we-moved-music

Ferreras, Jesse. “Vancouver Twins’ Song Touches The Internet.” HuffPost Canada, HuffPost Canada, 25 Sept. 2013, https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/09/25/dancing-in-the-sky_n_3989745.html

“Your 10 Most Pressing Life Problems (Case Study with 1,287 Readers).” Myrko Thum, 5 Mar. 2015, https://www.myrkothum.com/life-problems/

“You can’t edit a blank page.”— Nora RobertsYour Bibliography     EDITSave your workDownload to WordCopy & Paste AllDelete Switch FormatAdd another citation to your bibliography Save your work and create an account“Beautiful Guitar Tab by P.O.D.” Beautiful Sheet Music | P.O.D. | Guitar Tab, https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/se/ID_No/151318/Product.aspx

For this blog assignment, I have decided to go back to “Music and the Fictive Dream” because it was one of my favorite assignments. This time around I have chosen “I Won’t Say I’m In Love” from the Disney movie Hercules, which was released in 1997. This song has always been one of my favorites because of the Muses. I love whenever they are involved in a song because they provide so much sass. 

Hercules was based on the hero Heracles in Greek Mythology. In the movie, Hercules was stolen from his parents (Gods Hera and Zesus) by Hades’ henchmen and forced to live on earth as a human. They gave him a potion that made him human, but since he didn’t drink the whole bottle, he still retained godlike strength. He was an outcast in his village because of his strength and overall personality. He was labeled a freak. When he was old enough, his adoptive parents told him where he really came from. He met his father Zesus through a statue at the temple and found out that he could rejoin his family on Mt. Olympus, but first he must prove that he is a true hero. Thinking that a hero just means roughing up the bad guys, Hercules sets off with his pet/friend Pegasus to find the trainer named Phil to help him reach his goal. After Phil trains him, all three of them head to Thebes to see what Hercules is made of. Along the way, Hercules meets Megara, who later becomes his love interest. To sum up the rest of the movie, Hercules becomes famous by beating up all the bad monsters, but still hasn’t been seen as a “true hero” and thus, cannot return to Mt. Olympus. He is confused and frustrated because everyone sees him as a hero and he believes he met the requirements and definition of a hero. Not only has he not reached his goal, he also learns that the woman he loves is working with Hades and has been lying to him. Hercules eventually was tricked into an agreement to give up his strength for a certain amount of time so that Meg could be free and unharmed. In that time, Hades releases the Titans to wreak havoc on the city and take down Zesus. At some point Meg sacrifices herself to save Hercules which undoes the agreement and his strength returns. Hercules then sacrifices his life to bring Meg back to life, but instead of dying, he becomes a god and is finally seen as a true hero.

“I Won’t Say I’m In Love”, Hercules, Composer: Alan Menken, Lyricist: David Zippel, Disney 1997 

The song is sung by the character Megara. She is a very strong, independent woman. She has made past mistakes and is afraid and hesitant to open her heart again. She doesn’t want to look like a fool again and get herself in a bigger mess. In this song, she is refusing to acknowledge her feelings for Hercules and the Muses are encouraging her accept her feelings and stop lying to herself.

This song was written in C Major, 4/4 time and tempo 100 bpm. The vocals range a total of two octaves covered by Meg and the Muses. Although it has five different vocalists, the song was written in a three part harmony. As I did some research, I read that this particular song was inspired by 1950s groups like the Supremes and was made to have a R&B feel to it with the Muses singing similar to Gospel music. I really like the sound of Meg’s seductive or alluring tone. It is a very upbeat song that is very easy to dance to. The song is a bit sad, but does contains a powerful message. It is great that she is wanting to be a strong female character, but it also shows how vulnerable and heart broken she is. When she sings “If there’s a prize for rotten judgement, I guess I’ve already won that” it shows that in the past, she was a very open and willing person, but someone used her and she thinks that shutting down her emotions will protect her from being foolish or brainless. The Muses, on the other hand, tell her to stop ignoring her feelings. She needs to learn to open up again because not everyone is out to use her. She needs to stop being afraid and come to terms with her emotions. She needs to be honest and being strong doesn’t always mean doing things by yourself. She won’t find happiness by choosing to be alone.

Overall, there were a few lessons to take away from the song and movie that I could find. The ones I found were: Happiness is the most important, always be true to yourself and follow your heart, believe in yourself and appreciate the little things. Most all of these lessons can be found in the song. I never really thought about the lessons you can learn from the song, but now that I looked deeper into it, the more in love with the song I am.

Sources:

“Petty & Dishonest: My Obsession with Megara from Hercules.” ENTROPY, https://entropymag.org/petty-dishonest-my-obsession-with-megara-from-hercules/

“Morals and Values.” Hercules, https://herakles.weebly.com/morals-and-values.html

“I Won’t Say (I’m in Love).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 June 2019, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Won’t_Say_(I’m_in_Love)

“10 Essential Life Lessons Disney’s Hercules Taught Us.” Her Campus, http://www.hercampus.com/school/new-paltz/10-essential-life-lessons-disneys-hercules-taught-us

My son, who is 1.5 years old, absolutely loves to dance. He will even dance when he hears his dad whistling in the next room. One of the songs that he loves to dance to is called “You’re Welcome”. “You’re Welcome” is from the Disney movie Moana that came out in 2016. Moana is about a Polynesian girl, daughter of a chief, that sets out to sea to return “the heart” or stone to the goddess that watches over the land. Of course she needs to find Maui, who is the demigod that took the stone in the first place, so he can help her give back the stolen stone.The writers of the movie based it off of actual Polynesian mythology and if you look into it, Maui is included but is considered more of an exaggerated hero rather than a demigod. 

“You’re Welcome” released in 2016 by Disney, composed by Lin-Manuel Miranda

This particular song was sung by the character Maui. Maui is played by the actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and the person that sung the song for the movie. During this song, Moana just met Maui and he gets her to thank him for everything he has done even though she doesn’t know him. He is singing about what an amazing demigod he is and all the good he has done and how he has made the peoples lives better. He does have a very big ego, but his main objective during the song is to distract Moana long enough to take her boat from her and leave her stranded on the island that he was stuck on.

When looking at the sheet music for “You’re Welcome,” I noticed that it is in 4/4 and the tempo is 135 bpm. I don’t know how it is for other people, but I find that it is a very catchy song and I have trouble getting out of my head. It is very upbeat and I always find myself dancing to it or at least drumming along with the rhythm. The lyrics are relatively easy to sing along with as well as very entertaining to listen to. My son always breaks into a fit of giggles when I sing the lyrics “I killed an eel, I buried its guts, Sprouted a tree, now you got coconuts, What’s the lesson, What is the take-away, Don’t mess with Maui when he’s on the break-away” (Moana 2016). Overall, the song is just very outgoing and doesn’t seem to have a difficult or crazy vocal range and the dynamics of the song mainly seem to be on one level.

Sources:

“Māui (Mythology).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 17 July 2019, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Māui_(mythology)

“You’re Welcome.” Disney Wiki, https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/You’re_Welcome

“Moana (2016 Film).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 21 July 2019, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moana_(2016_film)

Frank Sinatra is one of the most iconic singers in history. My husband is very much obsessed with him and loves to listen to his music while driving. Growing up with my grandparents made me aware of Frank Sinatra’s name and knew a lot of his songs were in the movies we watched, but I never realized how much of an impact he had on music. I only started to become aware when my husband would listen to his songs and I would say, “Hey! I know this song, but so-and-so sings it.” Of course he would reply, “Ugh, Sinatra is way better and he sung it before they were even born!”

Biography

Sinatra had been interested in singing from a young age. At the age of 16, he completely dropped out of school to pursue music. He wasn’t having any luck finding a gig until his mother helped him out, but it didn’t last long because Sinatra had a problem of getting into fights. At 17 he started collecting arrangements and when bands wanted to use them, they had take Sinatra too. Once he started that, he began to develop his own unique singing sound instead of trying to copy other famous people like Bing Crosby. For the next few years, he focused on doing small gigs here and there for a buck or two. He didn’t get a break until 1935. He teamed up with a group for a radio show. Once he joined them, they called themselves the Hoboken Four. They were a hit, but unfortunately the fame didn’t last long. His next break wouldn’t be until 1939 when Harry James heard him sing. He told him to audition for his band as a lead singer and Frank got the job. It was probably one of the best decisions he could have made. With the Harry James band, he started to become popular, but decided jump to another group in 1940 because they were more famous and he would be making more money even though the contract was not in Sinatra’s favor. That group was the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. He traveled all over with the band and by 1942, Sinatra was one of the most well known singers in the country. Of course, Sinatra realized he was the main attraction and decided to begin a solo career. It was a bit more difficult separating from the band because of his contract. He had to agree to continue giving them a third of his earnings. He made his solo debut in December 1942 and lucky for him, the manager of Paramount Theatre was watching him perform. Because of his appearances at the Paramount, he became the most requested signer. Unfortunately, by 1947 he popularity took a hit because he was having a public affair with another woman. He was also being attacked by the media because he was very much against segregation and they created a bunch of slander. Because of all the drinking and smoking he did, his voice gave out in 1949 and he lost contracts and his radio show and his sales. After a few years, he was seen as a has been. In the early 1950s, Sinatra decided to get his career back by acting in a movie. He won an Oscar and signed a contract with Capitol Records. By the end of the 50’s, Sinatra’s career had reached a new level. He was at the top of the charts for a straight 71 weeks. In 1970, he finally announced his retirement, but it didn’t last long. He got back into performing and television. His very last performance was in 1995 and died shortly after in 1998.

Impact on music

So, what kind of impact did Sinatra have on music? Well, he took old songs and spiced them up a bit and made them memorable and timeless. He also made sure that the lyricist and composers of his songs were known and appreciated as well as giving new talent a chance at success. As I stated above, he was known for supporting equal rights and he used his platform to make sure performers of color were treated with respect and paid fairly. He also inspired singers of today such as Michael Buble and even Jay-Z. There is so much more he did even outside of music, but it’s about time I wrapped this up. Here are a couple of his songs I enjoy listening to.

Sources:

Gardner, Elysa. “10 Ways That Frank Sinatra Changed the World.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 16 Dec. 2015, http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2015/12/08/10-ways-frank-sinatra-changed-world/76381754/

Kabc. “5 Reasons Frank Sinatra Is Timeless.” ABC7 Los Angeles, 14 May 2018, https://abc7.com/entertainment/5-reasons-frank-sinatra-is-timeless/1119116/

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Frank Sinatra.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 10 May 2019, http://www.britannica.com/biography/Frank-Sinatra/The-actor

“Frank Sinatra.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 14 July 2019, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Sinatra

For my musical trip, I have decided to stay as close to home as possible and write about Inupiaq dance and music. It is obviously very important to my husband and I since Inupiat believe that music and dance make up a part of who we are and become as people. You can’t truly understand yourself and where you come from without knowing your culture, which includes music, dance  and language. Everything goes hand in hand and you can’t have one without the other.

It’s a bit funny because in the first video I chose to use, the video was taken in my husbands home village of Noatak and he is actually the young man on right singing and dancing. It was recorded two months before we met face to face in college. As a weird side note, I watched my husband perform two years before we actually met and we didn’t realize it until a few years into our relationship. 

As you can see in the video, there are two drummers and two dancers. It is just practice and not actually performing for anything. The song being sung is “Little Old Man” and the entire song wasn’t recorded for the video. There is a steady beat throughout the video and got louder at the end. The lyrics are in Inupiaq and the male dancers are stomping with the beat.

In this next video, it is an actual performance. The group performing is the Naapaqtugmiut (Nah-pock-tug-mute) Dancers or Noatak Dancers. All of the people involved are from the same village as my husband. Noatak is so small that almost everyone there is related to my husband.

This is a lengthier video that includes many songs and dances. The songs/lyrics and dances may change, but for the most part, the beat is steady and the same or very similar in every song. It will speed up in some parts or get louder, but there are no crazy rhythms involved.

So what makes Inupiaq song and dance so unique? Well, it depends on where you are from. There are many variations within the Inupiat which would be considered “traditional” and I have chosen to focus on Northwestern Inupiat. 

If you go to UAF, I’m sure you have seen many performances on campus, but they aren’t “pure” meaning they are usually mixed with Yupik. Since they are so similar, people just assume it’s how a song is traditionally sung and danced. It is definitely not the case. In traditional Inupiaq songs, drumming is always from the bottom and they are male drummers. The drums are made from seal skin and a wooden stick is used to drum a repetitive beat. Songs are often repeated many times and are sped up each time around and everyone sings the same words. Fans and masks are never used. Women wear cotton gloves, atikluk and mukluks and the men wear seal skin vests or Qatignin and mukluks. The men and women always stand while dancing (no one sits on the floor), but they have different movements. Women bob up and down with the beat while their arms and heads are making specific movements to the song. Men do not bob like the women. They usually stomp to the beat while making more exaggerated moves. It doesn’t matter how many drummers or dancers there are. The purpose of the songs nowadays are to entertain everyone and tell stories. They are there to make people laugh and enjoy the moment. Needless to say, the songs are performed in Inupiaq, but customarily every song you learn is passed down through the family and you always need permission to perform them in public.

Since dance and music are such a huge part of Inupiaq culture, you are taught it from a very early age. My son was first learning the dance moves when he was only two months old, but his father has sung to him since he was born. Of course there are other types of Inupiaq music as well. Throat singing is another whole topic by itself so I never got to it, but if you have the time to check it out, you should. It’s amazing. 

As I finish writing this blog, I realized I never actually used any sources except for my husband and my personal experience growing up. I will, however, include a few sources that are very similar to what I have stated, but they give a more general picture of Inupiaq song and dance.

Sources:

Cummins, Melissa. “Inupiat Eskimos Melissa Cummins.” LinkedIn SlideShare, 5 Nov. 2009, http://www.slideshare.net/macnca/inupiat-eskimos-melissa-cummins

“Inupiaq.” Festival of Native Arts, https://fna.community.uaf.edu/alaska-native-cultures/inupiaq/

“Inupiat Ritual and Identity.” Cultural Survival, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/inupiat-ritual-and-identity

So, for my Innovations and Evolutions blog, I have chosen to talk about the clarinet. The clarinet was one of the first instruments I learned to play as a child and little did I know how big of an impact it would make on my life. I have played the clarinet for 17 years now. I originally chose to play it because my older sister decided to try it out (she ended up sticking with the french horn) and not because I actually liked it. Over the years, my appreciation for the clarinet grew and grew and I am so happy I chose to stick with such an amazing instrument. While researching the history of the clarinet, I found some pretty in depth information, but I will try my best to keep it as simple as possible. So, without further delay, let’s get into the history.

 Every article that I read said that the clarinet did not actually evolve from an original instrument but rather was inspired by other instruments during that time. I, however, believe that the instrument that could count as its beginning would be the chalumeau. The chalumeau was an improvement of the recorder but had a mouthpiece and reed. Although it looked a lot more similar to the recorder, I have included it in the history because, in my opinion, its timbre is very similar to that of the clarinet. Just hearing it being played, it makes me wish I could play one myself.

Here is a video sample of the chalumeau

Here is a sample if you would like to hear it used in a song:

Around 1690, the official inventor of the clarinet was named Johann Christoph Denner. His inspiration for the clarinet was the chalumeau, but he made such huge changes that it didn’t count as an evolution of the chalumeau, but rather a whole other instrument all together. He and his son added 2 keys which increased the range of the instrument by more than two octaves and they also changed the mouthpiece and bell shape of the instrument. 

The early clarinets had a reed on top which were a lot smaller than todays reeds and the opening was the entire length of the reed, not half like it is today. The mouthpiece used to be attached to the instrument, but because it was wooden, they wouldn’t last very long so the mouthpiece became a separate piece by 1770. That was a huge step for the clarinet. It allowed performers to keep their individual barrels and it allowed instrument makers an easier time shaping and cutting as well as giving them the option to experiment with other sturdier materials. Because of all the innovations, the instrument was used mainly outside because of its loud sound and by then it was called a baroque clarinet. An example of a baroque clarinet is given in the first video. I personally do not care for the sound of the baroque clarinet. Its screeching loud pitch reminds me of the trumpet, which I don’t like. 

After 1770, two more keys were added, which made the instrument a total of five keys. The chalumeau and clarinet had separate parts written for them in music pieces due to their different ranges, but around the time the clarinet had five keys and popular composers were fond of the clarinet, they started to replace the chalumeau with the clarinet. An extra key was then added again to the clarinet during this time to eliminate difficulties for clarinetists playing in the chalumeaus register. Here is an example of the clarinet in a piece by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

It is interesting to know that during this time, clarinetists usually had many clarinets in different keys so that they could play in whatever key the composer wanted. This was the start of the standard clarinet.

Eighteenth century clarinets brought multiple keys being added, but created sealing problems. A man named Iwan Muller fixed the problem by adding a stuffed pad on the keys as well as inventing the metal part that held the reed on the mouthpiece. He also introduced a new clarinet that would replace the need for multiple clarinets in 1812. It was rejected, but to make a long story short, multiple composers and clarinetists were involved that ended with a man named Carl Baermann upgrading Muller’s system to make it more practical. The reed was switched to the bottom, rather than the top, to make for a better sound. It was known as the Muller-Baermann clarinet. It was so beautiful sounding that Johannes Brahms left retirement to compose two last sonatas before the end of his life.

After that, the evolution of the clarinet was very rapid. The key positions were changed many times to make it more efficient and of course new keys were added by numerous people over the years. If not for the composers, clarinetists and instrument makers love for the clarinet, I definitely believe we would not have the modern clarinet used today. The part that I love so much about the clarinet is that, nowadays, it’s not just used for concert music or marching bands. People are incorporating it into modern music too. Here is an instance where people are using the clarinet in a creative fun way. 

Sources:

Bellis, Mary. “Johann Christoph Denner, Inventor of the Clarinet.” ThoughtCo, ThoughtCo, 25 May 2019, http://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-the-clarinet-1991464

“The History of the Clarinet.” The Clarinet, Weebly, https://clarinetassignment.weebly.com/history.html

This time around I have chosen a song that comes from the time I lived with my mom and very much outside my comfort zone. I lived with her off and on until I was around six. It brings up very embarrassing and shameful feelings for me because she would dance in public to this song. What child wouldn’t be embarrassed? Looking back at it now, I have to give her slack because she was, after all, in her early twenties. The song I have chosen to analyze is “Pony” by Ginuwine, released in 1996. I remember I used to sing along to this song with her, although being around 4-5 years old, I obviously didn’t know what I was saying and had no idea why she was always laughing, but I liked making her laugh. I am now mortified by my memories, but what can I do besides laugh?

When looking up the sheet music for the song, I noticed it was in common time and the tempo was 76 bpm, which isn’t that fast. I was actually surprised I found sheet music for this song in the first place because I believe it wasn’t produced with actual instruments. Now to get into the melody of the song. It is smooth, steady and slow-moving but fast enough to dance to without being put into the awkward music category of “Am I supposed to slow dance or what?”, if that makes any sense. It is a very catchy song that gets stuck in my head very easily. I don’t think I’ve met anyone that hasn’t listened to this song, especially anyone in my age group. 

The song is definitely known for being a “sexy” song. The obvious reason being, the lyrics. They are very straightforward and don’t have any double meaning to them, at least, not to me. I’m the type of person that absolutely hates trying to read between the lines just to understand a song or poem or book. You are welcome to share your thoughts if you find a double meaning to this song, but I’m 100% sure that when he sings, “If you’re horny lets do it, ride it, my pony” he isn’t talking about a horse. Without going into too much detail, he is basically saying, “Hey girl, If you’re feeling excited, let’s have coitus.” It is funny to think about when worded that way, but it was the only way I could think of explaining it without being lewd.

The part that I really liked as a child would have to be the accompaniment. I believe that the accompaniment was produced electronically rather than with real instruments. That being said, the song has a very repetitive drum sound the entire song, as well as, the frog-sounding voice in the background continuously saying yeah. I don’t think any of those two would be counted as a drone, but it is very easy to overlook or tune out the repetitive voice in favor of the melody. When it comes to the vocal range, the overall song does not have a very wide range, even for a vocalist, which makes it possible for just about anyone to sing along with. It is probably the reason why it was at the top of the charts when it was released.

Sources: 

“Ginuwine – Pony Lyrics.” SongMeanings, songmeanings.com/songs/view/120411/

“Pony – Ginuwine.” Jaredhevmusic, http://www.jaredhevmusic.com/product-page/pony-ginuwine

When my husband and I first met, we connected mostly because of the love we have for our Inupiaq culture and for the appreciation for the same type of music. Although he and I have a different musical background from one another, we both agreed that it was important to play as well as listen to music. One of the first songs that we decided to learn to play together was “Patience” By Guns N’ Roses, which was released in 1989. This song is not only pleasing to my ears, but is also very close to my heart because of the bond my husband and I created while learning to play this song together.

Melody and Accompaniment

The first time I listen to a song, I never pay attention to the message the singer or band is trying to convey to the audience. Sometimes I would have to listen to a song a hundred times before I even think to look up the lyrics to understand it better. The majority of the time, my focus is on the melody or the emotions that the song creates for me. 

“Patience” starts out with the accompaniment of a guitar and the lead vocalist whistling. The vocalist then starts singing. His voice is smooth and the melody is very relaxing and calm, but not so slow that it would make me feel impatient or agitated. The vocalist sings the first verse then chorus, second verse, chorus again, then it slides into a guitar solo, finally finishing with the outro. It is a very repetitive and straightforward song that many people can follow along with.

Lyrics

I could not find a lot of information or articles on this particular song. However, I did read that this song was somewhat of a trailblazer for men to get in touch with their emotions while not looking weak or womanlike. Another one that seemed to be popping up a lot was that this song was about troubled relationships that never ended up working out. In my opinion, I simply do not agree. I’m not sure if it is because of my personal experience with this song or not, but I only see this as a love song. My interpretation is that a couple is going through a difficult time, but succeeding in the end because of the love they have for one another.

Chords

As far as the chords of the song are concerned, I believe them to be very simple like the melody of the song. It’s easy for me to say something is simple to learn when I’ve had years of experience with reading music and playing instruments, but I believe this song is actually very effortless. Not to go off on a tangent, but I stated earlier my husband and I have very different musical backgrounds. His school did not offer music (and still doesn’t), so he never learned how to read music or learn how to play instruments at school. Instead, he taught himself how to play guitar (as well as other instruments). For him, learning the chords and rhythm was very easy and he got the hang of it within a few minutes. Of course I believe that someone would have to be invested in learning how to play this song and it isn’t completely painless for anyone that doesn’t even know where to begin.

This song will always bring me fond memories whether or not it’s about heartbreak. I still don’t pay attention to a lot of the lyrics because, for me, music is not about the words. The most important part are the emotions that arise while listening. For me, this song is a de-stressor.

Sources

Potsiadlo, David. “How to Play ‘Patience’ by Guns N’ Roses – Chords, Lyrics, and Guitar Tabs from Songnotes.” How to Play ‘Patience’ by Guns N’ Roses – Chords, Lyrics, and Guitar Tabs From, David Potsiadlo, http://www.songnotes.cc/songs/95-guns-n-roses-patience.

“Guns and Roses – Patience – Lyrics Meaning.” Guns and Roses – Patience – Lyrics Meaning – Song Descriptions, Song Meanings, Music Videos, http://www.musicbanter.com/lyrics/Guns-and-roses-patience.html

Hello Everyone!

My name is Vanessa Kirk. I grew up in Three Rivers, CA on a 199 acre ranch. In the fall of 2011 I moved to Alaska to attend college and to return to where my mother grew up. On the first day of classes at UAF, I met my husband. We have been together for almost 8 years now. We had a son in the fall of 2017 and are awaiting the arrival of our daughter this summer. We recently moved to Anchorage where he was hired to work for an engineering firm. I am currently a stay at home mom and student. I have switched my major about six different times, but now have finally decided on Mathematics.

As far as music is concerned, I have played the clarinet, piano and jew’s harp for 17 years. I have dabbled with other instruments as well, such as guitar and marimba and a few others, but definitely not as proficient. Music has always been an extremely huge part of my life. I enjoy listening to it and sometimes going to concerts, but I am not a fan of large groups (I’m very reserved) so I don’t go to concerts unless my husband forces me along. Most of the music that I listen to would be in the (heavy)metal/ hard rock/ alternative genre. It’s either that or classical. 

Here are a few examples of my favorite songs: