Women in American Operas of the 1950s
Feminist analysis of some of the most performed works in the American-opera canon, emphasizing the voices and perspectives of the sopranos who brought these operas to life. In the 1950s, composers and librettists in the United States were busy seeking to create an opera repertory that would be deeply responsive to American culture and American concerns. They did not break free, however, of the age-old paradigm so typically expressed in European opera: that is, of women as either saintly and pure or sexually corrupt, with no middle ground. As a result, in American opera of the 1950s, women risked becoming once again opera's inevitable victims. Yet the sopranos who were tasked with portraying these paragons of virtue and their opposites did not always take them as their composers and librettists made them. Sometimes they rewrote, through their performances, the roles they had been assigned. Sometimes they used their lived experiences to invest greater authenticity in the roles. With chapters on The Tender Land, Susannah, The Ballad of Baby Doe, and Lizzie Borden, this book analyzes some of the most performed yet understudied works in the American-opera canon. It acknowledges Catherine Cl矇ment's famous description of opera as "the undoing of women," while at the same time illuminating how singers like Beverly Sills and Phyllis Curtin worked to resist such undoing, years before the official resurgence of the American feminist movement. In short, they ended up helping to dismantle powerful gendered stereotypes that had often reigned unquestioned in opera houses until then.
Brass Democracy
A new understanding of the birth of jazz through a fine-grained social history of early African American musiciansBrassroots Democracy recasts the birth of jazz, unearthing vibrant narratives of New Orleans musicians to reveal how early jazz was inextricably tied to the mass mobilization of freedpeople during Reconstruction and the decades that followed. Benjamin Barson presents a "music history from below," following the musicians as they built communes, performed at Civil Rights rallies, and participated in general strikes. Perhaps most importantly, Barson locates the first emancipatory revolution in the Americas--Haiti--as a nexus for cultural and political change in nineteenth-century Louisiana. In dialogue with the work of recent historians who have inverted traditional histories of Latin American and Caribbean independence by centering the influence of Haitian activists abroad, this work traces the impact of Haitian culture in New Orleans and its legacy in movements for liberation.Brassroots Democracy demonstrates how Black musicians infused participatory music practice with innovative forms of grassroots democracy. Late nineteenth-century Black brass bands and activists rehearsed these participatory models through collective performance that embodied the democratic ethos of Black Reconstruction. Termed "Brassroots Democracy," this fusion of political and musical spheres revolutionized both. Brassroots Democracy illuminates the Black Atlantic struggles that informed music-as-world-making from the Haitian Revolution through Reconstruction to the jazz revolution. The work theorizes the roots of the New Orleans brass band tradition in the social relations grown in maroon ecologies across the Americas. Their fruits contributed to the socio-sonic commons of the music we call jazz today.
Listen
An extraordinary archive of the most iconic sites on the American musical landscape. Prompted by the closing of New York's famed CBGB, Rhona Bitner embarked on a thirteen-year journey to photograph 403 venues across twenty-six states and eighty-nine cities--the studios, concert halls, arenas, high schools, bars, ballrooms, prisons, and fields where the most memorable songs were inspired, recorded, performed, and listened to. Close to 300 of those photographs are included in this book. Featuring Jimi Hendrix's recording studio, Elvis's Graceland music room, Aretha Franklin's family church, the Georgia auditorium where fourteen-year-old Little Richard was discovered and Ray Charles, Otis Redding, James Brown, and Sam Cooke took the stage, and the high school where a young Bob Dylan first performed, this book showcases each locale that played a seminal role in the soundtracks of generations. While Bitner recorded these sites empty and silent, the reverberations of fabled tunes still echo from within their walls. With informative texts on each location and archival images of performers recording or playing in the venues, this encyclopedic collection is a must-have addition to the libraries of music aficionados everywhere.
Echoes of the Past. Crafting and Playing Ancient Rim-Blown Flutes
"Echoes of the Past. Crafting and Playing Ancient Rim-Blown Flutes" is an in-depth exploration of creating some of the oldest musical instruments in the world. Drawing from over 45 years of experience, the author guides readers through the intricate building processes (including crafting the necessary tools), tuning, and playing rim-blown flutes from various cultures, offering a unique insight into these timeless instruments. The book begins with a detailed examination of the Egyptian Kawala flute, with origins stretching back to prehistoric times. It also provides extensive details on how to build Egyptian Ney flutes, which were first developed by ancient Egyptian craftsmen and are still cherished today. Readers are taken step by step through the techniques and materials required to create these flutes, focusing on the rich traditions and sounds that have captivated musicians for millennia. The journey also discusses the Indonesian Saluang Darek and Saluang Sirompak flutes, which hold a significant place in the country's musical heritage. Readers are guided through the construction of these instruments, uncovering the cultural nuances and craftsmanship behind their enchanting sounds. A particular highlight of the book is the examination of the Native American Pueblo or Anasazi flute. Readers have the opportunity to recreate flutes from the seventh century AD, as displayed in the Arizona State Museum. They learn how to calculate hole positions and revive forgotten music. The book provides an unparalleled guide to bringing the spiritual and cultural importance of these ancient flutes back to life. Throughout the book, more than 150 detailed figures and images accompany the text, offering visual guidance and enhancing the learning experience. This makes the book a unique resource, serving as a practical guide for crafting these instruments and a testament to the enduring legacy of music across cultures and time. By bringing these ancient sounds to life, the book c
Grandma’s Music Sucks
In Grandmas Music: Bridging the Musical Generation Gap, explore the evolution of music trends, the appeal of Grandmas music choices, and how music connects generations. Discover the cultural significance of Grandmas music and strategies for preserving and promoting it for future generations. This captivating book sheds light on the timeless. of music and its ability to transcend generations and preserve cultural heritage.power
Composing Resonance
New Media TheorySeries Editor: Byron HawkWhat People Are Saying"I'm excited by the way Composing Resonance brings together classroom experiences, experimental sound art, and musicians' practices under the headings of material and sonic rhetorics. It is an exciting expansion of work by the Comstock and Hocks, whose research has already recursively influenced many of the scholars cited in this volume." -Eric Detweiler, author of Responsible Pedagogy: Moving Beyond Authority and Mastery in Higher EducationThe visual and digital turns in both media studies and writing studies have ushered in a welcome focus on sound studies and sonic composition. COMPOSING RESONANCE: CULTURE AND COLLABORATION IN SONIC PRACTICES advances current discussions of sonic rhetoric as well as multimodal rhetorics and digital writing more generally. Comstock and Hocks expand interdisciplinary conversations on cultural and environmental soundscapes, music production, and sonic archives.COMPOSING RESONANCE offers an important new cultural and rhetorical framework for situated sonic practices. Michelle Comstock and Mary Hocks demonstrate how sound artists and musicians' ritualized practices of embodied listening create an acute sense of presence, evoke multiple pasts, and powerfully contribute to our experience of location, personal soundscapes, and identity in time and space. Such sonic practices also offer important lessons for writing and composition students. The sound artists and musicians Comstock and Hocks study have developed practices for resonating with and shaping this vibrant medium, including priming the ear/body to receive diverse sounds and exchanging them within and across cultures and communities. These sonic practices have helped students understand sound as a powerful, often flawed, location device, and record and remix sound elements to move the self and others toward a richer, more diverse, multispecies, interrelational sense of place, culture, history, and environment.Michelle Comstock is Associate Professor of Writing, Rhetoric, and Technology in the Department of English at the University of Colorado Denver. Her research on sonic rhetoric, cultural studies, and the environmental humanities have appeared in Computers and Composition, Community Literacy Journal, Rhetoric Review, and JAC, among others. She is the co-author of Composing Public Space and is currently co-producing a grant-sponsored digital audio tour of the Auraria Campus and its history of displacement.Mary Hocks is Associate Professor of English at Georgia State University. Her articles have appeared in College Composition and Communication, Writing Program Administration, Rhetoric Review, and Computers and Composition, as well as numerous edited collections in feminist rhetorics and digital writing. She is the co-editor of Eloquent Images: Word and Image in the Age of New Media, and co-author of the Handbook of Technical Communication.
The Future of Electronic Music
Discover a world of innovation and creativity with The Evolution of Electronic Music Instruments. This comprehensive guide explores the history and future of electronic music, from analog synthesizers to advanced controllers, wearable interfaces, gestural control, augmented and virtual reality, biofeedback, machine learning, and interactive installations. With a focus on multidimensional expression and emerging technologies, this book is an essential resource for musicians, producers, and technology enthusiasts.
A New Philosophy of Opera
Known as opera's "disrupter-in-residence," director Yuval Sharon has never adhered to the art form's conventions. In his many productions in both the United States and Europe, he constantly challenges the perception of opera as aloof by urging, among other things: performing operas in "non-places," such as parking lots; encouraging the use of amplification; and shuffling the traditional structure of classic works, like performing Puccini's La boh癡me in reverse order, ending not with the tubercular heroine Mimi's death but with her first falling in love. With A New Philosophy of Opera, Sharon has crafted a radical and refreshing book that can act as an introduction to the art form for the culturally curious, or as a manifesto for his fellow artists. In an engaging style that ranges from the provocative to the personal, Sharon offers a 360-degree view of the art form, from the audience experience to the artist's process; from its socially conscious potential to its economic reality; and from its practical to its emotional and spiritual dimensions. Surveying the role of opera in the United States and drawing on his experiences from Berlin to Los Angeles, Sharon lays out his vision for an "anti-elite opera" that celebrates the imagination and challenges the status quo. With an illustrated and unconventional history of the art form (not following a straight line but tracing a fantastical "time-curve") weaving throughout the book, Sharon resists the notion of the opera as "dying" and instead portrays it as a glorious chaos constantly being reborn and reshaped. With its advocacy of opera as an "enchanted space" and its revolutionary message, A New Philosophy of Opera is itself a work of art--a living book with profound philosophical implications--that will stand the test of time.
Dolly Parton All the Songs
Take a deep dive into Dolly Parton's almost 60 year career with this complete guide featuring more than 400 photographs, little-known stories behind each album, and behind-the-scenes details about the recording of each track, the musicians involved, and the songwriting process. Organized chronologically, and covering every album and every song that Dolly has ever released, Dolly Parton All the Songs is the result of years of research by three Dolly megafans and longtime music journalists. Beginning with a childhood famously spent making music with her family in Tennessee's Great Smoky Mountains, Dolly Parton All the Songs follows along as the country music superstar conquers Nashville, Hollywood, and then the world with her captivating music, unforgettable style, and unmatched humor and kindness. At 608 pages, Dolly Parton All the Songs is filled with amazing photographs of Dolly in all her glory, and it features tons of fascinating details about Dolly's recording process, including which musicians appeared on each track, and little-known details about her working relationship with Porter Wagoner (she wrote the classic track "I Will Always Love You" about him), as well as looking at her forays into film stardom with appearances in classic movies like 9 to 5, Steel Magnolias, and the recent Netflix series, Heartstrings. This is a must-have book for any fan of Dolly Parton and country music.
We Oughta Know
A lively collection of essays that re-examines the extraordinary legacies of the four Canadian women who dominated '90s music and changed the industry forever Fully revised and updated, with a foreword by Vivek Shraya "A fascinating, fun, and infuriating read." -- Tegan Quin, Tegan and Sara In this of-the-moment essay collection, celebrated music journalist Andrea Warner explores the ways in which C矇line Dion, Shania Twain, Alanis Morissette, and Sarah McLachlan became bonafide global superstars while revolutionizing '90s music. In an era when male-fronted musical acts dominated radio and were given serious critical consideration, these four women were reduced, mocked, and disparaged by the media and became pop culture jokes, even as their albums were topping the charts and demolishing sales records. With empathy, humor, and reflections on her own teenaged perceptions of C矇line, Shania, Alanis, and Sarah, Andrea offers us a revised and expanded edition of her 2015 book, providing a new perspective on the legacies of the four Canadian women who dominated the '90s airwaves and influenced an entire generation of current day popstars with their voices, fashion, and advocacy. As the world is now reconsidering the treatment and reputations of key women in '90s entertainment, We Oughta Know is definitively entering the chat.
Days and Days
A revelatory adventure that leads two friends into the belly of the beast with the '90s most influential U.K. punk band that changed so many lives It might seem odd -- a punk band introducing poetry into someone's life. But what if this lyrical influence was the reason you became a writer in the first place? Days and Days weaves together two stories. One is a tale of friendship and self-discovery that occurs during a backpacking adventure through England, Scotland, and Ireland. The other celebrates the highly influential yet underestimated UK band Leatherface, a group that The Guardian called "the greatest British punk band of the modern era." Without so much as a single hostel booked, Chris MacDonald and his friend Jason cross the Atlantic. They sleep in train stations, endure a haunting on top of a volcano in Edinburgh, are driven out of Belfast by the IRA, and witness the mother of all storms. They also find themselves in the rehearsal space of their teenage punk idols, a building steeped in cultural significance for the Sunderland music scene. Days and Days is about the silver thread that connects us even after drifting apart. It's a story about forgiveness and reflection, how beauty can be found within callous cladding. Leatherface band members, colleagues, and friends generously share personal insights that guide the reader into the melancholy, darkness, and humor that surround Sunderland's best-kept secret.
Beyond Reason
Beyond Reason relates Wagner's works to the philosophical and cultural ideas of his time, centering on the four music dramas he created in the second half of his career: Der Ring des Nibelungen, Tristan und Isolde, Die Meistersinger von N羹rnberg, and Parsifal. Karol Berger seeks to penetrate the "secret" of large-scale form in Wagner's music dramas and to answer those critics, most prominently Nietzsche, who condemned Wagner for his putative inability to weld small expressive gestures into larger wholes. Organized by individual opera, this is essential reading for both musicologists and Wagner experts.
The Psytrance Scene
Embark. mind-expanding journey through the history, culture, and music of Psytrance, from its origins in Goa to its global subculture and the future of the genre.Discover the influential figures, subgenres, and musical characteristics that define this vibrant and spiritual electronic music movement.With insights into the psychedelic experiences, rituals, and visuals at Psytrance events, explore the global impact of this genre and its role in connecting people across continents.Delve into the digital age and the challenges and opportunities it presents to the Psytrance scene.This comprehensive and immersive guide is a must-read for both avid fans and newcomers to the world of Psytrance.
Embodied Expression in Popular Music
Theory in popular music has historically tended to approach musical processes of rhythm, harmony, counterpoint, and form as abstractions, without very directly engaging the intimate connection between the performer and instrument in popular music performance. Embodied Expression in Popular Music illuminates under-researched aspects of music theory in popular music studies by situating musical analysis in a context of embodied movement in vocal and instrumental performance. Author Timothy Koozin offers a performance-based analytical methodology that progresses from basic idiomatic gestures, to gestural combinations and interactions with large-scale design, to broader interpretive strategies that engage with theories of embodiment, the musical topic, and narrative. The book examines artistic practices in popular song that draw from a vast range of stylistic sources, including rock, blues, folk, soul, funk, fusion, and hip-hop, as well as European classical and African American gospel musical traditions. Exploring the interrelationships in how we create, hear, and understand music through the body, Koozin demonstrates how a focus on body-instrument interaction can illuminate musical structures while leveling implied hierarchies of cultural value. He provides detailed analysis of artists' creative strategies in singing and playing their instruments, probing how musicians represent subjectivities of gender, race, and social class in shaping songs and whole albums. Tracing connections from foundational blues, gospel, and rock musicians to current rap artists, he clarifies how inferences of musical topic and narrative are part of a larger creative process in strategically positioning musical gestures. By engaging with songs by female artists and artists of color, Koozin also challenges the methodological framing of traditional theory scholarship. As a contribution to work on embodiment and meaning in music, this study of popular song explores how the situated and engaged body is active in listening, performing, and the formation of musical cultures, as it provides a means by which we understand our own bodies in relation to the world.
The Contemporary Contrabass
Now in its second edition the acclaimed volume is more than a book about the contrabass, but an introduction to string playing at a time in the history of Western music when timbre has finally ascended to its rightful role among musical parameters. It articulates the real musical image and potential of the contrabass, and introduces new concepts, aesthetics, and techniques. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1989.
The Contemporary Contrabass
Now in its second edition the acclaimed volume is more than a book about the contrabass, but an introduction to string playing at a time in the history of Western music when timbre has finally ascended to its rightful role among musical parameters. It articulates the real musical image and potential of the contrabass, and introduces new concepts, aesthetics, and techniques. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1989.
HowExpert Guide to Freestyle Rap
Are you ready to take your freestyle rap skills to the next level? Whether you're a complete beginner or an experienced rapper looking to refine your craft, HowExpert Guide to Freestyle Rap is your ultimate resource for mastering the art of improvised rapping. This comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know to become a confident and skilled freestyle rapper.Inside this book, you'll discover: - Chapter 1: The History and Evolution of Freestyle Rap- Chapter 2: Fundamentals of Freestyle Rap- Chapter 3: Building Your Rap Vocabulary- Chapter 4: Mastering Rhymes and Rhythms- Chapter 5: Techniques for Freestyle Rap- Chapter 6: Developing Your Unique Style- Chapter 7: Practicing Freestyle Rap- Chapter 8: Crafting Engaging Freestyle Lyrics- Chapter 9: Enhancing Your Delivery- Chapter 10: Performing Freestyle Rap Live- Chapter 11: Freestyle Rap Battles- Chapter 12: Collaborating with Other Artists- Chapter 13: Recording and Sharing Your Freestyles- Chapter 14: Building Your Freestyle Rap Career- Chapter 15: Overcoming Common Challenges- Chapter 16: Continuous Improvement and Growth- Chapter 17: Advanced Freestyle Rap Techniques- Chapter 18: Inspiring Stories from Successful Freestyle Rappers- Chapter 19: Resources for Freestyle Rappers- AppendicesHowExpert Guide to Freestyle Rap is more than just a book; it's a complete roadmap for anyone passionate about freestyle rapping. Whether you aim to impress in cyphers, compete in rap battles, or build a career in freestyle rap, this guide equips you with the knowledge, techniques, and confidence to achieve your goals. Start your freestyle rap journey today and become the rapper you've always dreamed of being!HowExpert publishes how to guides on all topics from A to Z.
HowExpert Guide to Freestyle Rap
Are you ready to take your freestyle rap skills to the next level? Whether you're a complete beginner or an experienced rapper looking to refine your craft, HowExpert Guide to Freestyle Rap is your ultimate resource for mastering the art of improvised rapping. This comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know to become a confident and skilled freestyle rapper.Inside this book, you'll discover: - Chapter 1: The History and Evolution of Freestyle Rap- Chapter 2: Fundamentals of Freestyle Rap- Chapter 3: Building Your Rap Vocabulary- Chapter 4: Mastering Rhymes and Rhythms- Chapter 5: Techniques for Freestyle Rap- Chapter 6: Developing Your Unique Style- Chapter 7: Practicing Freestyle Rap- Chapter 8: Crafting Engaging Freestyle Lyrics- Chapter 9: Enhancing Your Delivery- Chapter 10: Performing Freestyle Rap Live- Chapter 11: Freestyle Rap Battles- Chapter 12: Collaborating with Other Artists- Chapter 13: Recording and Sharing Your Freestyles- Chapter 14: Building Your Freestyle Rap Career- Chapter 15: Overcoming Common Challenges- Chapter 16: Continuous Improvement and Growth- Chapter 17: Advanced Freestyle Rap Techniques- Chapter 18: Inspiring Stories from Successful Freestyle Rappers- Chapter 19: Resources for Freestyle Rappers- AppendicesHowExpert Guide to Freestyle Rap is more than just a book; it's a complete roadmap for anyone passionate about freestyle rapping. Whether you aim to impress in cyphers, compete in rap battles, or build a career in freestyle rap, this guide equips you with the knowledge, techniques, and confidence to achieve your goals. Start your freestyle rap journey today and become the rapper you've always dreamed of being!HowExpert publishes how to guides on all topics from A to Z.
Conversations with Greil Marcus
Greil Marcus once said to an interviewer, "There is an infinite amount of meaning about anything, and I free associate." For more than four decades, Marcus has explored the connections among figures, sounds, and events in culture, relating unrelated points of departure, mapping alternate histories and surprising correspondences. He is a unique and influential voice in American letters. Marcus was born in 1945 in San Francisco. In 1968 he published his first piece, a review of Magic Bus: The Who on Tour, in Rolling Stone, where he became the magazine's first records editor. Renowned for his ongoing "Real Life Top Ten" column, Marcus has been a writer for a number of magazines and websites and is the author or editor of over fifteen books. His critique is egalitarian: no figure, object, or event is too high, low, celebrated, or obscure for an inquiry into the ways in which our lives can open outward, often unexpectedly. In Conversations with Greil Marcus, Marcus discuses in lively, wide-ranging interviews his books and columns as well as his critical methodology and broad approach to his material, signaled by a generosity of spirit leavened with aggressive critical standards.
The Woodilee Collection of Traditional Music
Music Collection DescriptionThis is a music collection of over 70 completely original tunes composed by the bagpiper Simon McKerrell. The tunes include everything from basic Scottish and Irish style slow airs, through to marches, jigs, reels and some more complex tunes including 2/4 marches, strathspeys and hornpipes. There are many tunes set for the Highland pipes and additionally some that go beyond that scale for fiddle, banjo, accordion, whistle or other instruments that play folk or traditional music. The book includes twenty-five of his original compositions from the 2007 McKerrell-MacDonald Collection plus forty eight brand new compositions.Biography Simon McKerrell is one of the leading players of Scottish Highland, Border and Irish Uilleann bagpipes in the world today. He has recorded twelve albums and was a founding member of 'Back of the Moon' and performs both as soloist and in folk ensembles, often being called upon for cross-genre and collaborative musical projects. He has won many bagpipe prizes at major international piping competitions and is a member of the Spirit of Scotland pipe band. He is a senior lecturer in music at Newcastle University and has previously held positions at The National Piping Centre in Glasgow, the Universities of Glasgow and Sheffield and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. More information on him and his music can be found at his website: www.simonmckerrell.com.
The Cambridge Stravinsky Encyclopedia
Igor Stravinsky is one of a small number of early modernist composers whose music epitomises the stylistic crisis of twentieth-century music, from the Russian nationalist heritage of the early works, the neo-classical works which anticipate the stylistic diversity of the contemporary musical scene in the early twenty-first century and the integration of serial techniques during his final period. With entries written by more than fifty international contributors from Russian, European and American traditions, The Cambridge Stravinsky Encyclopedia presents multiple perspectives on the life, works, writings and aesthetic relationships of this multi-faceted creative artist. This important resource explores Stravinsky's relationships with virtually all the major artistic figures of his time, painters, dramatists, choreographers and producers as well musicians and brings together fresh insights into to the life and work of one of the twentieth century's greatest composers.
How Hip Hop Became Hit Pop
A free ebook version of this title is available through Luminos, University of California Press's Open Access publishing program. Visit www.luminosoa.org to learn more. How Hip Hop Became Hit Pop examines the programming practices at commercial radio stations in the 1980s and early 1990s to uncover how the radio industry facilitated hip hop's introduction into the musical mainstream. Constructed primarily by the Top 40 radio format, the musical mainstream featured mostly white artists for mostly white audiences. With the introduction of hip hop to these programs, the radio industry was fundamentally altered, as stations struggled to incorporate the genre's diverse audience. At the same time, as artists negotiated expanding audiences and industry pressure to make songs fit within the confines of radio formats, the sound of hip hop changed. Drawing from archival research, Amy Coddington shows how the racial structuring of the radio industry influenced the way hip hop was sold to the American public, and how the genre's growing popularity transformed ideas about who constitutes the mainstream. The author gratefully acknowledges the AMS 75 PAYS Fund of the American Musicological Society, supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Disability and Accessibility in the Music Classroom
Disability and Accessibility in the Music Classroom provides college music history instructors with a concise guide on how to create an accessible and inclusive classroom environment.
Judas Priest
Required reading for any metalhead, this collection of entertaining illustrated conversations spans all of Judas Priest's studio albums, right up through 2024's Invincible Shield. In Judas Priest: Album by Album, prolific rock journalist Martin Popoff pays tribute to Judas Priest's discography through a series of in-depth and fascinating conversations about all 19 of the legendary British heavy metal band's studio albums. Inside, Popoff gathers together musicians and metal journalists who offer insights, opinions, and anecdotes about each release. The interviewees include names like Slash (Guns N' Roses), Marty Friedman (Megadeth), Charlie Benante (Anthrax), Todd La Torre (QueensrYche), Bobby Ellsworth (Overkill), and more. Popoff also includes sidebars that provide complete track listings, details on album personnel, and information on where and when the albums were recorded. Richly illustrated with thoughtfully curated performance and offstage photography, as well as rare memorabilia, the conversations comprise a unique historical overview of the band, covering: Legendary guitarists K. K. Downing and Glenn TiptonThe work of iconic lead singer Rob HalfordThe roles of various producers in the band's discographyMega tours undertaken in support of the LPsAnd much more--even controversies surrounding the band are covered.Reexamine the rich catalog of these metal masters with this entertaining and insightful album-by-album exploration.
Prince - The Day I Was There
Prince - The Day I Was There is an oral history of Prince. It is the Prince story in the words of over 250 fans, bringing together eyewitness accounts of concerts from throughout his career and up until his untimely death. Compiled by Prince superfans Alison Howells DiMascio & Sue Houghton, this is a book no Prince fan will want to be without.
Celtic Music for Baritone Ukulele
. The book contains 26 traditional Celtic songs and instrumentals from Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Cornwall expertly arranged for baritone ukulele. . Easy and easy-intermediate fingerstyle (or classical style) arrangements presented in both standard notation and tablature. . Most of the pieces are in a two-voice texture. That is, they include a bass line to be played with the thumb while the other fingers play the melody. In the one-voice pieces, chords are provided for an optional accompaniment by another ukulele or guitar. In addition to the melody and chords, lyrics are included for two of the songs. . The final piece is a fingerstyle duet in which both ukuleles have an interesting part to play. . A brief music theory lesson is included regarding the modes one finds in Celtic music. In addition, there is a helpful Glossary, a Notation Guide and Chord Charts for the most frequently used chords on baritone ukulele. . This book, and others by Ellen S. Whitaker, can be previewed at the author's website: EllenWhitakerGuitar.com.
Count Your Blessings
Ancient practices and hymns of gratitude bolster the faith of modern believers with updated selections from Osbeck's best-selling books Science, history, and Scripture all agree that gratitude is key to living a joy-filled, peaceful life. Even knowing the facts, believers still struggle to find thankfulness in the normal daily grind, let alone life's most difficult situations. Using the powerful stories behind thirty hymns as examples, Count Your Blessings is filled with solid, practical wisdom and calls on the believer to seek God's goodness in a world that does not promise an easy life. Each reading contains guidance for how Christians can "take every thought captive" and choose joy. Each hymn is paired with Scripture readings, wisdom from historical Christians, a meditation, and a practical application. Perfect for individuals, families, or groups, the stories surrounding the hymns foster appreciation for how history undergirds contemporary faith and will move Christians toward a new depth of worship and devotion.
A New Day Yesterday
An entertaining, definitive and in-depth study of prog rock, with a new cover and a foreword by Steve Hackett (Genesis).Progressive rock, a genre formed out of a creative surge in the late Sixties and throughout the Seventies. Made by young musicians for a young audience, prog music looked towards new horizons by synthesising rock, jazz, folk, classical and other styles.While prog has always divided critical opinion, in its heyday it had a large and devoted fanbase, and the era's biggest acts from Pink Floyd to Genesis went on to enjoy long-lasting international and commercial success. Although the scene fragmented in the late Seventies, new generations of young listeners continue to discover the unique sounds of prog today.Examining the myths and misconceptions surrounding the genre, music journalist Mike Barnes paints a vivid, colourful picture of the Seventies based on his own interviews with the musicians, music business insiders, journalists and DJs, and the personal testimonies of fans of that extraordinary decade.Offering something new for even the keenest of prog enthusiasts, A New Day Yesterday is an entertaining and in-depth study of both the music itself and the cultural conditions and attitudes that fed into, and were affected by, this remarkable musical phenomenon.
Maldito Coronavirus!
Maldito Coronavirus!: Mapping Latin American Musical Responses to the Pandemic Moment offers an expansive survey and analysis of local and regional musical responses to the global coronavirus moment. The authors situate this emergent phenomenon within interdisciplinary explorations of music-making on social media platforms, transnational culture flows, emotional intimacy in digital spaces, and the intersections of music, health, and community. The first study of its kind, Maldito Coronavirus! emphasizes the singularity of this cultural moment by examining the myriad ways musicians, promoters, activists, and listeners artistically, emotionally, and organizationally responded to the challenges of living through a global pandemic. Highlighting examples from Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Argentina, and across the Hispanic Caribbean, this book analyzes lyric, affect, and performance and explores the ways participatory digital platforms facilitated cultural sustenance and musical distribution at a time when physical gatherings were unfeasible. Maldito Coronavirus! draws on over a year's worth of digital ethnography as well as insights from folklore, history, ethnomusicology, and the growing literature on music and wellbeing to highlight the locally-contingent ways music-makers responded to a global crisis.
Mindful Rigor
Mindful Rigor: Holistic Training to Enhance Dance Performance establishes a framework for integrating mindfulness into dance practice and performance. Clarifying the significance of mindfulness for dancers, the book begins by building awareness of this practice, acknowledging its roots in ancient Vedic teachings, yet presenting it through contemporary applications relevant to the dance community.Structured in eight chapters, the book includes themes of employing breath to inform movement, recognizing internal dialogue without judgment, developing metacognition to manage learning anxiety, embracing the present moment in movement, achieving flow in various environments, and integrating knowledge both within and beyond the dance studio. Notably, the text incorporates Dr. Brendan Murray's deep stabilizer activation video as well as Polyvagal Theory with respect to movement, courtesy of external contributor Amy Tabback. The inclusion of exercises by Alvin Rangel-Alvarado further broadens the book's perspective.Mindful Rigor is designed to complement dance and performing arts courses and programs that focus on performance enhancement, dancer health and wellness, dance pedagogy, and psychological approaches to dance training. Through its methodical examination of mental conditioning alongside physical training, it is an instrumental text for students seeking a profound and holistic approach to dance.
Dowland
Dowland celebrates the story of one of the most important composers to emerge from early modern England. This book contextualizes the geographical, political, religious, cultural, and musical aspects of the life of John Dowland (1563-1626). It provides a window into life as a musician in the Elizabethan-Jacobean era, illuminating the importance of social, courtly, and academic connections as it closely explores the composer's musical compositions. During his lifetime, Dowland was well-known for his prowess as a performing lutenist who established a reputation not only in England, but also in the German and Italian lands, Denmark, and beyond. His lute solos and duos survive in manuscripts collected across Europe. He also issued four books of lute song-ayres, including the most successful secular music anthology of the era, one collection of consort music, and a theoretical translation, all printed in London. In these publications, Dowland utilized innovative print formats and set new standards for contemporary genres. Collectively, Dowland's compositions and writings present the self-styled image of a man always seeking more. This book places these activities within a biographical timeline of ongoing artistic, commercial, and reputational pursuits. As a complete record, Dowland captures the entrepreneurial resourcefulness of the foremost musician of his day, a performing composer who understood expected conventions, seized opportunities, and created a musical legacy that still stands firm 400 years after his death.
Opera, a History of the Impossible Genre
Opera, a History of the Impossible Genre offers an accessible and chronological survey of opera.Beginning in the 16th century, each chapter hones its focus on a representative opera and composer, and provides discussion on historical and political context. With further reading lists, key term definitions, and composer biographies to support learning, this book covers the fundamental elements of the genre, including: subject matter, musical structure, aria and ensemble forms, singing styles, orchestra, and the structure of the libretto. The book will also help readers develop an appreciation of opera as a form of musical entertainment, which, despite seemingly insurmountable financial, philosophical, and artistic hurdles, has overcome the "impossible" to become one of the most popular and thrilling types of music heard on stage today.Opera, a History of the Impossible Genre is an approachable undergraduate textbook for students of opera and survey courses.
Jimi Hendrix - The Day I Was There
An oral history of legendary rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix in the words of fans who saw him live, with concert memories from 1965 to 1970, including his first UK appearances with the Jimi Hendrix Experience, touring the USA with the Experience and with the Band of Gypsys and his final UK concert appearance at the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970.
Iron Maiden
Required reading for any metalhead, this updated compendium of in-depth, entertaining, and profusely illustrated conversations spanning all of Iron Maiden's studio albums includes 2021's Senjutsu. In this new edition of Iron Maiden: Album by Album, prolific rock journalist Martin Popoff pays tribute to Iron Maiden's discography through a series of in-depth, frank, and fascinating conversations about all of the legendary heavy metal band's studio albums. Inside, Popoff gathers together metal journalists, authors, and musicians, who offer insights, opinions, and anecdotes about every release. Richly illustrated with thoughtfully curated performance and offstage photography, as well as rare memorabilia, the conversations comprise a unique historical overview of the band, covering: Early albums with original lead singer Paul Di'Anno The songwriting of founder and bassist Steve Harris The impeccable talents of drummer Nicko McBrain and guitarists Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, and Janick Gers Mega tours undertaken in support of the LPs Fights within the band And much more--even their iconic mascot Eddie is sure to make an appearance or two! Popoff also includes loads of sidebars that provide complete track listings, details on album personnel, and information on where and when the albums were recorded. Reignite your passion for the masters of metal with this captivating album-by-album exploration. Up the Irons!
Run With The Wolf
In Run with the Wolf: Rainbow on Record, Martin Popoff-also author of Sensitive to Light: The Rainbow Story, as well as multiple books on Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Dio-assembles a panel of interested interviewees in celebration of Ritchie Blackmore's legendary band Rainbow, one album at a time, every song considered. The sacred texts discussed are 1975's Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, 1976's Rising, 1978's Long Live Rock 'n' Roll, 1979's Down to Earth, 1981's Difficult to Cure, 1982's Straight Between the Eyes, 1983's Bent Out of Shape and 1995's Stranger in Us All. Look for debates on the comparative value of the band's four different singers (Ronnie James Dio, Graham Bonnet, Joe Lynn Turner and Doogie White), along with ponderings on production, lyrics, Ritchie's solos, favourite keyboard flourishes, Cozy Powell's sound and style and then finally, what is the deal with Stranger in Us All?! Popoff uses the celebrated structure used on similar previous titles embracing the works of The Cure, Blue Oyster Cult, Robert Plant and Thin Lizzy, with Martin serving as pull-no-punches moderator and presenting the panel's arguments in easy-to-read Q&A format. It is the author's hope that by the end of this quite scholarly exercise, every last moat-metal Rainbow fan will find multiple new ways to approach and enjoy this classic catalogue.
Disaster Songs as Intangible Memorials in Atlantic Canada
Disaster Songs as Intangible Memorials in Atlantic Canada draws on a collection of over 600 songs relating to Atlantic Canadian disasters from 1891 up until the present and describes the characteristics that define them as intangible memorials. The book demonstrates the relationship between vernacular memorials - informal memorials collectively and spontaneously created from a variety of objects by the general public - and disaster songs. The author identifies the features that define vernacular memorials and applies them to disaster songs: spontaneity, ephemerality, importance of place, motivations and meaning-making, content, as well as the role of media in inspiring and disseminating memorials and songs. Visit the companion website: www.disastersongs.ca.
Musical Collaboration Between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous People in Australia
This book demonstrates the processes of intercultural musical collaboration and how these processes contribute to facilitating positive relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in Australia.
This Rock ’n’ Roll Won’t Last You Know!
This Rock 'n' Roll Won't Last You Know! charts John Verity's journey, as he follows his dream of fame and fortune in a business guaranteed to break your heart. From humble beginnings playing in local groups around his hometown, Bradford, West Yorkshire, John would soon be travelling the world, sharing the stage with his heroes, including Jimi Hendrix, Mountain, and Janis Joplin. On joining Argent in 1974 John soon came to the attention of others in the business, leading to work, as a musician, with Ringo Starr, Colin Blunstone, Keith Emerson, Greg Lake, Tim Rose, Diana Dors, and many others. There were also regular offers to join successful bands, including the Michael Schenker Group, Asia, and the Kinks. Turning to record production, and studio work John then continued, with a number of diverse acts, including Saxon, Motorhead, Tank, The Searchers, Smokie, Brian Connolly, Charlie, Russ Ballard and again, many others. After over sixty years in the business, John is still writing, recording, and performing, with no plans to stop anytime soon, with the words he was to hear so many times at the beginning of his career still ringing in his ears - "This Rock 'n' Roll won't last you know!" This is the story of a young boy with an obsession that turned his world upside down, though JV will insist he wouldn't have it any other way!
Hell On Wheels
As you read this, hundreds of bands are on tour, criss-crossing the country. Some are traveling in tour buses, playing huge venues to thousands of people. Others are in beat-up Ford Econoline vans, playing in tiny clubs to no one. They all have stories about their tours. Some are funny, some are nightmares. This is a compilation of those stories. Adverts, ALL, The Almighty, aMiniature, Mark Arnold, Asexuals, Babes In Toyland, Bad Religion, The Bellrays, The Besnard Lakes, Big DRILL Car, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Bronx, Cadillac Tramps, Chune, Circle Jerks, Henry Cluney, Coffin Break, Crass, The Cult, The Damned, Danzig, Dead Boys, Dead Kennedys, Descendents, D.O.A., Doughboys, Dwarves, Faces, FEAR, fIREHOSE, fluf, Generation X, The Get Up Kids, The Heathens, Hirax, Hot Snakes, Inch, The Jesus Lizard, Kill Sybil, Luscious Jackson, Kevin Lyman, Ian MacKaye, MAD PARADE, Mary's Danish, Minutemen, M.I.A., Naked Raygun, Nashville Pussy, New Model Army, No For An Answer, Overwhelming Colorfast, Petrol Girls, POPDeFECT, Ramones, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rocket from the Crypt, Scratch Acid, Screamin' Sirens, Sharp Shock, Skin Yard, Dave Smalley, S.O.D., The Specials, Superchunk, Supersuckers, Teen Idles, T.S.O.L., Vandals, Warped Tour, Wax, Wendy O Williams, and X.
Cabin Boys, Milkmaids, and Rough Seas
During his correspondence with erotic folklore collector Gershon Legman, famed chantey singer and collector Stan Hugill (1906-1992) shared unexpurgated versions of the songs in his repertoire. These bawdy songs were meant to be a part of Legman's larger project concerning erotic folksong. Upon Legman's death in 1999, the unfinished and unpublished manuscript sank into obscurity and was believed by many to be permanently lost. Thankfully this "holy grail" of chantey texts had been safe in the private collection of Legman's widow, Judith Legman, all along. Cabin Boys, Milkmaids, and Rough Seas: Identity in the Unexpurgated Repertoire of Stan Hugill is the first critical investigation of this repository, reproduced here for the first time. Training an interdisciplinary lens on twenty-four unexpurgated texts, author Jessica M. Floyd interrogates the articulation of gender, sexuality, and identity as it is expressed in these cultural artifacts of the sea. Opening with both a critical explication of the chantey genre, as well as situating Hugill's repertoire in the canon of folksong, the book introduces readers to the critical realities that attend this rich cultural tradition. Analytical chapters demonstrate the kaleidoscopic representation of gender and sexuality in this finite repertoire. Each inquiry is connected and overlapping, demonstrating an ebb and flow not unlike the waters on which the songs were sung. Words of warning, heteronormative economies, and queer undercurrents each collide to present an image of sailing life that is nuanced and complicated, provocative and evocative, transgressive and sometimes radical. The volume allows scholars to place a finger on the pulse of maritime life, feeling and experiencing one voice among the din of working-class song traditions.
The Music of the Future
In this book, author Martin Munro offers a new path into Caribbean studies based on sound. He argues that to understand and begin to transform the past, present, and future of Caribbean studies, historians must do so at the node of both sound and vision. The book makes a compelling case for a broad realignment of Caribbean studies with particular emphasis on the sonic dimensions of Caribbean art, literature, travel writing, history, and society. From there, the book illustrates how sound and vision are closely connected in the Caribbean, to the point where they almost fuse into another, hybrid sense in which might be found the knotty truths and realities of the region, its people, and its relations with others. Munro creates a mode of analyzing and understanding the multiple dialogues between visuality and aurality in relation to race, art, tourism, media, and literature. Crossing national and linguistic borders, he presents the Caribbean as a region and, working across media, he offers an expansive exploration of visuality and sound. The book's primary materials are varied--poems, novels, travel writing, amateur films, tourist movies, music, visual art--but united by the presence of the European-Caribbean, sound-vision dynamic that shapes so many accounts of cultural encounter in the region. The book traces this dynamic across the materials to give a sense of how it reappears in different times and places to become a defining element of European-Caribbean cultural and social relations and of how and why sound in its myriad manifestations becomes such a prevalent marker of Caribbean being, culture, and society.
Life Is A Long Song
A light-hearted look at the famous flute driven rock band Jethro Tull. It is written for Tull fans and obsessives everywhere. It is also written for those who may have always known about the band, had a passing interest and now want to find out more in a light-heartedly serious way. The book takes 33 Tull songs from across the chronological output of the band and looks at them in some detail both musically and lyrically but also attempts to look at said songs from a more obtuse, weird, sideways angle. Each chapter is a musical journey through the song but also looks at what was happening with and around the band members at that time. Some of the dramatic and sad moments involving members of the band are examined. There is also time to recognise the musician's intrinsic and fantastic contributions to the musical world of Jethro Tull over fifty-six years. In the spirit of wilful, blatant subjectivity the book gives each song a mark out of ten to enable a worst to best list to be compiled at the end of the book. This should create much debate and disagreement and be a major fun talking point for readers, fans and nerdy types alike.
Under the Ivy
The critically acclaimed definitive biography of Kate Bush, revised and updated for 2024, with a new foreword by Sin矇ad Gleeson.Detailing everything from Bush's upbringing to her early exposition of talent, to her subsequent evolution into a stunningly creative and endlessly fascinating visual and musical artist, Under The Ivy is the story of one woman's life in music. Written with great detail, accuracy and admiration for her work, this is in equal parts an in-depth biography and an immersive analysis of Kate Bush's art.Focusing on her unique working methods, her studio techniques, her timeless albums and inescapable influence, Under The Ivy is an eminently readable and insightful exploration of one of the world's most unique and gifted artists. The text has been updated to include coverage of Bush's return to the top of the charts in 2022 following the extraordinary resurgence of 'Running Up That Hill.' An eye-opening journey of discovery for anyone unfamiliar with the breadth of Bush's work, Under The Ivy also rewards the long-term fan with new insights and fresh analysis.
I Wouldn’t Say It If It Wasn’t True
Summer 1984. I've got the back lounge of this tour bus all to myself, partly because I'm the lead singer but more likely because it means the rest of the band won't have to deal with me for the rest of the day. Just two years earlier I was flunking out at UCLA, working the day shift in a record store, living out of my father's basement. Now I'm living the million-to-one reality of touring the country with my band, The Dream Syndicate, opening for up-and-coming rock darlings R.E.M., and making a big-budget sophomore album for A&M Records. I'm also untethered and unbound, drinking a fifth of Jim Beam every day, barely speaking to my best friend and guitarist, and looking for trouble in all the wrong places. How did I get from there to here? And how do I get out? Stick around and find out. I'll be here, dreaming my dream . . .I Wouldn't Say It If It Wasn't True is a tale of writing songs and playing in bands as a conduit to a world its author could once have barely imagined--a world of major labels, luxury tour buses, and sold-out theaters, but also one of alcohol, drugs, and a low-level rock'n'roll Babylon.Beginning with Wynn's childhood in California in the 60s and 70s, the book builds to a crescendo with the formation of the first incarnation of The Dream Syndicate in 1981 as an antidote to the prepackaged pop music of the era. It charts the highs and lows of the band's early years at the forefront of the Paisley Underground scene alongside Green On Red, Rain Parade, and The Bangles; the seismic impact of their debut album, The Days Of Wine And Roses; the spiraling chaos of the sessions for the follow-up, Medicine Show; the dissolution of the band's first line-up and the launch of a second phase of The Dream Syndicate with Out Of The Grey and Ghost Stories; and more, culminating with the release of the landmark live album Live At Raji's.This is Wynn's story, but it also features some of the biggest and most colorful characters of the period, offering a detailed field guide to the music business that manages to both glorify and demystify in equal measure. And, ultimately, it's a tale of redemption, with music as a vehicle for artistic and personal transformation and transcendence.
Wichita Blues
In conversations on regional blues, the traditions of the Mississippi Delta, the Carolina Piedmont, Chicago, Houston, Memphis, New Orleans, and Los Angeles are frequently lauded. But until now, little attention has been paid to the Midwest, despite the presence and popularity of blues in these heartland communities. Wichita Blues: Music in the African American Community seeks to address this gap in music history by exploring the lively Wichita blues tradition. In interviews with nineteen African American Wichita blues performers, author Patrick Joseph O'Connor reveals the evolution of the blues from the 1930s to the 1960s and beyond. Utilizing twenty-five years of fieldwork, Wichita Blues details the history of performance and camaraderie among the musicians of this often-neglected regional sound. The personal interviews offer unique insight into topics that shape Wichita's sound, including how migration from Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas brought varied artists to the area and the ways musical traditions cross racial divides and generations. The artists articulate the poetics of the blues and the diverse regional influences that can be detected in their music. In exploring the Wichita blues tradition, O'Connor traces African American history in Kansas, ranging from the Exoduster movement in the late nineteenth century and minstrel shows across the state to Black cowboys and growing urban African American communities in Topeka and Wichita. Including a foreword by renowned music scholar David Evans, Wichita Blues allows seasoned blues musicians to tell their own stories and paints a picture of the vibrant Black music scene in the city.
Wichita Blues
In conversations on regional blues, the traditions of the Mississippi Delta, the Carolina Piedmont, Chicago, Houston, Memphis, New Orleans, and Los Angeles are frequently lauded. But until now, little attention has been paid to the Midwest, despite the presence and popularity of blues in these heartland communities. Wichita Blues: Music in the African American Community seeks to address this gap in music history by exploring the lively Wichita blues tradition. In interviews with nineteen African American Wichita blues performers, author Patrick Joseph O'Connor reveals the evolution of the blues from the 1930s to the 1960s and beyond. Utilizing twenty-five years of fieldwork, Wichita Blues details the history of performance and camaraderie among the musicians of this often-neglected regional sound. The personal interviews offer unique insight into topics that shape Wichita's sound, including how migration from Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas brought varied artists to the area and the ways musical traditions cross racial divides and generations. The artists articulate the poetics of the blues and the diverse regional influences that can be detected in their music. In exploring the Wichita blues tradition, O'Connor traces African American history in Kansas, ranging from the Exoduster movement in the late nineteenth century and minstrel shows across the state to Black cowboys and growing urban African American communities in Topeka and Wichita. Including a foreword by renowned music scholar David Evans, Wichita Blues allows seasoned blues musicians to tell their own stories and paints a picture of the vibrant Black music scene in the city.
Why S獺mi Sing
Why S獺mi Sing is an anthropological inquiry into a singing practice found among the Indigenous S獺mi people, living in the northernmost part of Europe.
Classics and Future
- New and Interesting Themes: If you've been playing the same old tunes, try Kehao Cai's series of future-themed piano works for a whole new experience.- Wine made from deep thoughts: These touching pieces reflect Kehao Cai's deep thoughts about the future and the destiny of mankind, while at the same time being mesmerizingly melodic.- Let's take on the highest challenge: The works in the book are very difficult, especially "THE GREATEST PIANIST IN THE WORLD", which is considered to be one of the most difficult piano pieces in the world, and pianists are welcome to challenge themselves to new heights, which is so much fun!
