Jazz Presentation

Some of the Basic Rudiments of Drumming:
Single Paradiddle
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dst0AdVB21Q

Double Ratamacue
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkDD5-K7840

Flam
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4VOCdVJwQE

Double Stroke Roll
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18MCVaBd4Vc

There are over 26 officially recognized rudiments according to many jazz greats but the list is growing. Some unofficial collections recognize up to 40.

Some Examples of Latin Jazz:
Carlos Jazz Jam
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDqXFdKPnug

Arguably the most popular peice to emerge from the latin jazz movement is Blue Bossa. This "song" or melody as it were has been reproduced countless times and thrown to thousands of open interpretations and variations engineered by American, European, and Latin jazz artists alike.

The general trend has been not so much that Mexico has produced it's own forms of Latin jazz but rather that it has produced many stunningly talented jazz musicians such as Carlos Santana, Adrian Terrazas-Gonzales, and Antonio Sanchez.
The Latin influences are somewhat drowned out and therefore extremely subtle in most jazz improvisations. I would venture to argue however, that this subtlety is the core reason for the widespread appeal of this music. It has been said that Jazz is inherently American because of its origins, but the thruth of the matter is that Jazz is a worldwide collaboration and part of an ongoing project to find new sound that is pleasant and technically masterful.

Week 5

One example of musical portrayal in the mass media that doesn't do it justice is the stereotypical presentation of rock and roll as noise pollution. This point of view has long since been forgotten by most, but some people still feel very strongly about rock music and work hard to produce films, and television that paint a negative picture. The fact of the matter is that rock and roll, regardless of form, is without question music and deserves respect in that light. I remember watching a TV-movie in which rock and roll music lead to the unfortunate fall from grace of the protagonist. The movie wasn't all that wonderful, but the clear message with regards to the music was clear, and therefore stuck with me. Admittedly the problem of "new" music that stirs up digust no longer falls upon rock music but rather rap and hip hop. I personally feel more connected to the rock genre but I completely understand the frustration felt by hip hop fans who are forced on many occasions to listen to their music trashed and insulted.

Weeks 1-3 Back-logged

These posts are back-logged:

Week 1
Hello, my name is Colin Cronin. I am an active student, participant, teacher, promoter, and concumer of music. My musical roots date back to pre-birth in the womb. My mother, to give a bit of history, studied music from high school on to post graduate school. She recieved a masters from Stanford and a Doctoral degree from USC. She teaches primarily piano and vocal music although she has conducted college orchestras and is the president of multiple professional choral groups. Needless to say, music has been an integral part of my life from the beginning.

My first musical experience was taking piano lessons from my mother at an early age. After I had a decent amount of piano experience under my belt, I took up the Violin. I studied for many years under Marcie Vaj. Third chair of the Los Angeles Phil Harmonic. When High School rolled around I began taking drum lessons from Marcus Miller. Originally I intended on playing in the Marching Band, but that interest grew to include jazz trap-set drumming. I have studied jazz for many years and it is my intention to continue for many years. I also participated in vocal music as a boy sopranno for many years of my life until my voice changed. I am now a bass vocalist.

This class is right up my ally in the sense that it will only further expand my musical horizons and make me far more aware of cultures and music that I have never learned before. I am very excited to absorb as much musical and cultural knowledge as possible.

Week 2
Music penetrates our lives everyday and in every way possible. There is never a moment in the modern world when musical sound is not being broadcast, consumed, played, absorbed, or just plain, hummed. With regards to an example of an event where music is a central part but not the entire experience, a marching band half time show comes to mind. When a marching band coordinated to put on a show, the music is integrated with dance steps, complex formations, tight rythums and cadences, as well as flag twirling and batton flair. The music is a key element, but the splendor of the show comes from the combination of all the physical elements.

Week 3
After watching the two Youtube videos I decided that the greatest and most vast difference between the two performances was the element of dance. The video "Ratna Ayu" featured exclusively female dancers dressed in very elaborate garb, which added to the performance as an element of the dance itself. The music was played by many people in both videos althoug there seemed to be more people playing together in the "Gamelan Bali Nyepi" video. The outdoor vs indoor settings contrasted as well as did the loose feel of the "Gamelan Bali Nyepi" video when juxtapposed with the "Ratna Ayu" viedo. The "Ratna Ayu" video portrayed a performance that seemed ritualistic but performance oriented at the core whereas the "Gamelan Bali Nyepi" video seemed to portray a more common festival type gathering which seemed more down to Earth and much more common.

Week 4

Appolgies for the delay in accesing my blog. I experienced login difficulties and a conflict of gmail accounts due to blogger's association with Google. Either way, what time has past and what's done is done.

Identity and time alike, are realtive concepts. The thought that a certain style of music is ancient is neither definite nor discreet. A style of music may date back to a certain era if one must take the style for an unchanging and classified entity. I prefer to take a more dynamic approach and claim that a musical style has no beginning and certainly has no end as it is always changing and fluctuating. That being said I believe it is possible that one person's perception of "ancient" may be quite different than anothers. Furthermore, as these differing perceptions are seperate, they are comparable relative to each other. The idea that a type of music is not as ancient as it has been marketed draws upon the assumption that an "ancient" style of music is a static entity. The music is being presented as ancient, when the music may very well be modern through a relative comparison to many other neighboring styles of music. Reese argues that the music is catered to tourests an therefore by nature different from the true ancient style. The Focus on Naxi style is played out in contrast to the lack of emphasis on Han style.

The main criticism of Western scholars with regards to the modern Chinese Orchestra is that it too closely resembles a Western Orchestra. The inclusion of many distinctly Western instruments and the regimented organization in the western style detract from the authenticity of the Chinese culture. The music is no more or less pleasing or fascinating, but the style is less Chinese according to these scholars. I believe that these arguments hold some merit as there is great value in preserving the authenticity and originality of traditional style, but I am also inclined to state that the music played can be adapted and it is of no consequence whether new styles are played and grow out of the old. With respect to authenticity, I believe it is also a relative term that can differ from person to person. There is no true measure of authenticity in the field of ethnomusicology because change and adaptation must be accounted for.