Blog Post 10

I was asked to analyze an opera piece on youtube, so I chose…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrMN8pJbxT4

This opera piece by Stabat Mater Rossini, took place on a stage with a full orchestra with many western membranophones, chordophones, and brass aerophones. It was conducted by an oriental conductor and the main opera singer was Lella Cuberli, who had support from a large choir in the back. All the performers are well dressed in western dress up clothes with suits and dresses. The choir in choir garments. The opera singer was off to the front and center, obviously making her the center of attention.

The song has a homophony quality, since the musicians accompanied Lella the opera singer. The song has a duple meter with a simple meter. The music started with a big entrance, but then had a drop off and then crescendo-ed over time as Lella Cuberli developed the song. She seemed to have an ornamental quality to most of her singing. Her voice seemed to vibrate and waver in pitch, which is known as vibrato. Her timbre seemed to be in an upper register but using a lot of air from her diaphragm to create the sound. In this particular piece there was no male singer, but also there seemed to be no interaction between the opera singer and the conductor.

Blog Post 9

After watching the film Avatar, I looked into the film score and Na’vi music types. Although having some similarities, the film score and Na’vi are quite different. Both music types used membranophones, chordophones, vocals, and aerophones. The music in the Na’vi contains European wordless vocals, combined with Asian and African timbers. Also a main difference is that the Na’vi language was chanted and sung in the native language, while the film score was sung in English with only Western timbers.

In the examples the Avatar theme song can be heard with only western female timbers with a more sound from the diaphragm, while the “Gathering all the Na’vi clans for battle” song contained a short segment with multi cultural timbers of shouting, rather than a western singing like quality. The film score also had more of an up beat pop-like rhythm that was fairly simply with a simple melody, while the Na’vi music had a polyrhythmic scheme as the music escalated like some African music cultures. Although the music from the Na’vi has a few African qualities, they also contain many western music styles of instrumentation that reveals a similar quality to that of World of Warcraft music.

The mix of cultures throughout is what most likely what gives this movie the out of world feeling due to the inability of the viewer to point down to the source of the music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsM6iK_OBFU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEFlJKvBc8s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgkPAxiKkiI

Frisco Community Bible Church Youth Worship Team Ethnography

Introduction

The Dallas music-culture I have observed, analyzed, and participated in was the Frisco Community Bible Church Youth Worship Team. If the music culture is referred to as “the worship team” it is because the musicians decided that “it would be easier to call it that until a new name can be decided upon” (Anonymous). This blog will focusing on Ideas About Music, Activities Involving Music, Repertoires of Music, Material Culture of Music, and the Preservation of Music of this particular music culture. Although these aspects of music-cultures will reveal shared characteristics to other Christian music cultures, the aspects will also illustrate unique characteristics which set it apart from other music cultures in the Dallas area.

Methodology

The methods I used to collect my data and information about this music culture was by attending one of their monthly performances and interviewing some members of the culture. Most of the information I received from two college members, but I also noted and in my field work at the event. One interviewee was Rebecca Yu, a college student and Collin County Community College and the other one asked to stay anonymous. Contrary to the two college students I interviewed, most of the musicians are in high school, but my sources were sufficient enough to obtain the information needed grasp a strong understand of the culture.

The event I attended for my field work took place on a Sunday morning at 11:00 in a large sanctuary room in the Frisco Community Bible Church. The room had great acoustics and with rows upon rows of large red cushioned chairs. The stage had a large carpeted platform with a podium in the middle and grand piano on the left. Sharon, a high school girl, lead the “worship” section the Sunday service I attended. Each performer, dressed in suites and dresses, sharing microphones. In the congregation and I was able to participate in singing along with the performers because the words were displayed through a projector. In the back there were AV guys in charge of the over head projector, setting up the microphones, and making sure the performance runs smoothly.

Aspects of This Music-Culture


Ideas About Music
The beliefs in this music culture are based on an Evangelical denomination of Christianity. This church is a sister-church off the Dallas Chinese Bible Church (DCBC) in Richardson, Texas, a church I use to attend years ago. Apparently, the “church underwent a name change from Frisco Chinese Bible Church to Frisco Community Bible Church to give off a more accurate name based on the church’s doctrine” (Anonymous), thus leading to the Frisco Community Bible Church Youth Worship Team. Although, FCBC sprung from DCBC, a traditional style against Christian rock, rap, and use of drums, in both cultures music “plays an important role in our cultures. Music at our church is through any format that comes from the heart and its only intention is to glorify God” (Yu). This music culture shows a more liberal progressive form of music in contrast to other music cultures in the Dallas area.

Activities Involving Music
The music that is performed can be found on iTunes, Youtube, stores, and occasionally performed live at concerts, but most “music sources are mostly found on the web and played by the worship team” (Yu). Although these students do this out of free will, “they enjoy the events as a hobby, but with a professional attitude” (Yu).

I had the opportunity to join a few of their practice sessions and witness “music in the making” so to speak. Although some of the members compose music competitively or as a hobby, they don’t compose any music for the Sunday services, due to time constraints.

Repertoires of Music
God of this City: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d61LamkXfwk
Above All: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7Sn5rV
Nothing But the Blood: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvURm3k36IA
Enough: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Pl-FWskj5U
You Never Let Go: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuVQWhCAu4A
Radio Stations: 90.9 FM, 91.3 FM, 94.9 FM

Frisco Community Bible Church Youth Worship Team: http://crazy2idiot.xanga.com/audio/

These are the types of music that the worship team performs. All the song choices are composed by Christian musicians, who are mostly still composing and releasing new songs on the CD’s and radio. “The song choice usually is based on the leadership’s tastes combine with the audience’s preferences, since this can’t usually be done in one song, five or six songs are chosen to appeal to the different age groups” (Yu). On top of the importance of choosing songs, the lyrics have significant meaning in this culture. The last song in the event I attended, the interviewee who wants to keep anonymous, gave a brief speech to connect the song to the sermon. Although, most of this aspect is similar to other Christian music cultures, what makes this one different is that the students are given 100% control over song choice and decided on as a group, which in other music cultures, usually on person or the pastor/reverend/priest requests that the songs be centered around the sermon.

Material Culture of Music
There isn’t much material other than the actual instruments and technology used to create the music. A piano, guitar, violin, drum set, jambe, and microphones are the general tools used in the performance. What makes this unique from many other churches, like DCBC, is that this music church permits drums and jambes. Also another thing unique that sets this culture apart from other professional churches and music cultures is that the team consists of all students in high school or college. “The music itself is stored in a music software program. The tech/AV guys in the back have headphones and large amplifiers and adjusters to tinker with the voices and adjust them to the right volume and tones” (Anonymous). Although most churches have the same team in some vicinity either in a black room or in the back, this church is unique in the fact that the team consist of all teenagers. “No surprise many of these kids are very well experienced and also played instruments. This gives them the edge needed to contribution to the worship team in feedback and other methods to improve” (Anonymous).

Preservation of Music
This music culture is preserved through the kids that grow up in Frisco Community Bible Church who decide to step up with the “intention […] to glorify God” (Yu). As many college kids go off, the middle school and high school students take their place. “If they know how to play an instrument, most of the kids who want to serve are eager to learn” (Yu). Most of the children know at least one to two instruments. If they still want to be involved, but don’t have the money for the instruments, they can still sing and add vocals to the worship team. This method creates a specific age and music background to all the future musicians of this culture. “Unlike other similar Christian music cultures, we aren’t hired, professional, or even good at times; we just care about the heart and giving the people the umph they need to ‘get in the zone’ when the pastor starts preaching” (Anonymous).

Conclusion
The Frisco Community Bible Church Youth Worship Team is a unique music culture with specific attributes that make it different from all other Church singing groups. The aspects of music include Ideas About Music, Activities Involving Music, Repertoires of Music, Material Culture of Music, and the Preservation of Music.

Works Cited
Anonymous, Anonymous, current eldest remaining member. Personal interview. 1 Mar. 2010.
English Worhsip. Texas: Frisco Community Bible Church, 2010.
Yu, Rebecca, current counselor teacher performer. Personal interview. 5 Mar. 2010.

Blog Post 8

Analyzing the Frisco Community Bible Church Youth Worship Team, I had some issues with various tasks in my endeavors to obtain information. Although their receptive culture and approach made this assignment fairly accessible, the reality of them mostly being in high school made it difficult to arrange convenient interviews. Most of the performers had homework due to AP classes and assertive parents. Another issue was that some of the performers had other activities were arranging a meeting would conflict with other activities. Sometimes distance was became a large obstacle. A few of the musicians lived in far of various cities. The interview was luckily fairly simple itself to conduct, although one of the musicians in this music culture reacted very awkwardly in person. I say this because it was an icebreaker oddly enough to the interview. The previous performances were not posted or recorded, which made it hard to find more info to share to the class about the music culture. Many of the AV guys in the back were busy helping set up and take down things, so interviewing them was impossible. Different personalities varied, but they were all still joyful and helpful in my endeavors to learn more about their music culture.

Blog Post 7

The music culture I have been studying is the Frisco Community Bible Church Youth Worship Team. Some aesthetic qualities are the willingness to help and being well dressed, usually in suits, dresses, and other formal attire. The role for these musicians is to prepare the congregation of the English Frisco Community Bible Church hearts and minds for the sermon. Usually they perform monthly on Sundays at 11:00am.

Much of the music choices can be found online, on iTunes, at live concerts, and in stores. The performers mostly perform as a hobby, though they know and perform with other instruments competitively. There are no restrictions on who participates, in the audience, but who serves has a limitation. The limitation is one must be a Christian in order to serve, because in order to serve he/she must do it for the right reasons. No one actually makes their own music in this culture, but they meet to arrange the order and way the music will be performed. The performance is open to all to sing along, so there is a substantial amount of audience participation. This music culture has a separate session where they welcome the whole congregation.

The text has the purpose of bringing the congregation to sing and get us in the right mind set. The last song is usually used to reflect the sermon. Various Christian composers’ songs are picked, but usually the leadership’s tastes combine with the audience’s preferences are kept in mind, also. Since this can’t usually be done in one song, five or six songs are chosen to appeal to the different age groups.

I was lucky to have one of the AV members show me where the performances are displayed online in his Xanga page.
http://crazy2idiot.xanga.com/audio/