Culture Discussion #1 - "Music of Our Lives" (cultural meaning of music)

"Me": I grew up in Easton, Pa., just over 1 hour north of Philadelphia—home of Lafayette College, former heavyweight champion of the world Larry Holmes, and Crayola. I have lived in Philadelphia, New Brunswick, NJ, Chapel Hill, NC, and now here in Central Florida for the past 9 years (in Lake County; during normal times, I commute to campus). My parents are both from New Jersey, although they lived their early childhoods in New York City, where their parents emigrated to from Eastern Europe.

My father is a descendent of Polish peasants. We have carried very few of their cultural traditions through these last several generations—perhaps only my father’s affinity for pierogies. My mother descended from Russian and Polish Jewish merchants—many of whom were lost in the Holocaust. While I do not practice the Jewish faith (my best effort is lighting a few candles each Hannukah) and feel culturally distant from my practicing relatives and the Jewish community, the weight of my mother’s history is ever-present. On both sides, I believe the loss of our cultural traditions is due to my grandparents and great grandparents wanting to fit into American culture. Both of my mother’s parents independently changed their names once they arrived in America to sound less Jewish, hoping to provide their families the best chance at success and peace in their new country. While I can recognize and appreciate the cultures I come from, I don't closely identify with these cultures as my own. … I’m choosing to focus on the culture of Italy. I studied Italian a number of years ago, and admire the culture’s tendency to make the simplest things feel deeply poetic and artistic. … The 2 songs I have selected:

Vesti la Giubba (“Put on the Costume” or “On with the Motley”) from the opera Pagliacci (“Clowns”) (Links to an external site.)

Vesti la Giubba is an aria from the opera “Pagliacci”, written and first performed in 1892. Pagliacci is a play within a play. The main character and singer of Vesti la Giubba is Canio, an actor who plays Pagliaccio (“Clown”). Canio learns that his wife has been cheating on him immediately before a performance. In the song he confronts his anguish and agony while preparing to perform as Pagliaccio before an audience expecting comedy. The disharmony between how he feels and and how his character is expected to act by the audience is jarring. Canio wails so deeply as to shake the theater.

Perhaps the most telling lyric of the song is not in words...in the 10th line, the singer pauses for a breath before sharp, twisting laughter—"ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! ha!" This intentional, gutteral wince is heavier than any words which could have its place. Here the entire opera exists in a few harsh and ironic exhalations.

Ruggero Leoncavallo, who wrote Pagliacci, and Enrico Caruso, the performer of this version of the aria, have distilled a universal form and feeling—that of the need to hide one's misery behind a mask of required, forced lightness—into one brief sound and gesture...creating just a few lasting syllables, which, without formal language or interpretation, can be felt and understood by anyone. Italian culture is a culture of profound feeling and expression—in Italy, a terse laugh can be all-encompassing high art.

La Canzone di Marinella, by Fabrizio de André (Links to an external site.)

"La Canzone di Marinella" is written and performed by Farbrizio de André, an Italian folk hero. It is one of his most popular songs. Heartache and loss are thick in de André's voice throughout, tangible and recognizable without translation. Italian culture is demonstrative, accessible at varying depths; you don't need to know what he is saying to know what he means.

Each element of the song carries the mood of the whole. de André's singing is exhausted and empty, grim with loneliness and grief. The gentle, pensive stroke of his hand along the base of his guitar moves like the pace of an oar in water, swirling, detached from direction, lost. He sings the narration softly to himself, looking at the stars and moon, searching for something we understand is gone; we share in the futility of his search, shivering and drowning, only able to hum along. Hearing him sing is watching him cry. He loves her, and she is gone.

The content of the song is darker than might be guessed, even in translation—it is about a young girl who falls into prostitution, whose body is found in a river, and whose killer is never found. This true story horrified the artist when he read about the event in the newspaper. He wrote the song to make Marinella’s life less grotesque and more beautiful than it had been described in the news. de André felt a profound sense of loss at the death of a girl whose life would otherwise be unremarkable and have only been detailed in a single, short newspaper clipping. In claiming the sadness of her death, he gave her humanity and life. She is still remembered, nearly 70 years later.

This is a cornerstone of Italian culture—a profound sense of responsibility and connection to the essence of life. … I think what can be learned about Italy from the sound and sentiment of its music, or of these songs at least, is the depth of feeling and connection to the essence of simple elements and features; these songs are red sauce made only with tomato, olive oil and salt—revealing the true flavor and texture of the humble main ingredient.

…

Discussion post responses

Hi Alessandra,

Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed my post.

I do consider my primary cultural influence to be my hometown, more so than my state, and I have few connections with any surrounding cities. I’d nearly call us an enclave. We have a range of ongoing traditions that might feel quite strange to the uninitiated (think: Lil’ Sebastian- esque).

Pennsylvania is quite wide—largely, you have the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area and greater Pittsburgh metropolitan area, with 6 hours of cornfields and no interaction between. I feel closer to Boston, along the Northeast Corridor, than I do to Western Pennsylvania, and know many more people in Boston!

It feels kind of strange to say that I’ve not been very interested in connecting to the cultural heritage of my ancestors’ homeland. It feels foreign, that it’s not mine, and would be forced. Maybe something is missing I don’t recognize and as I get older it maybe become more important. I think learning more about Italian culture sounds much more fun!

As different as Boston is, and how far it is from where I grew up, I understand how different people are there from here…I greet friends from home with coarse language that is endearing there and perceived as profane here; as you mentioned, talking over someone in conversation isn’t rude—it’s familiar and expedient!

If I may share one more song with you…I debated back and forth on whether to share this one first…it’s originally a French song, then performed in Italian by Fabrizio de André. It has this strange, upbeat, bizarre circus quality that is fun and catchy, which is really jarring as a backdrop for the lyrics, which are anti-death penalty and so, so dark.

"Il Gorilla" by Fabrizio de André (Links to an external site.)

The Beatles and the Arctic Monkeys and Queen are such great picks! I was bummed for a minute that I wasn’t doing Britain after I read your selections. My Beatles favorites, “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “I Am The Walrus”

1.) Question: I am curious, did your friend from London live in Boston when you met her? And, if so, how did she identity with living in New England, having come from (old) England?

2.) I also noticed: ...you feel that British culture is similar in pace to northeastern culture; I wonder if this will reflect in the pace of the music (underneath the lyrics)...although each culture sings in the same language, outside of lyrical content, will the speed of music from both countries match?

3.) I saw similarities / differences: in the videos you have posted from British culture and the videos I have posted from Italian culture, I noticed a factor more distinct than cultural character...the period of time each song was created in, and the time between production; the gap between Pagliacci (1892) and La Canzone di Marinella (1968) is 76 years; the gap between the Twist and Shout (1963) and the Do I Wanna Know (2013) is 50 years. This shows a big difference in genres versus consistent sound and structure over time. While there may be some inspiration from Pagliacci in de André’s music, the influence of the Beatles is unmistakable in the music of the Arctic Monkeys, including the composition and roles within the band. It seems the compounding influences of British rock and roll will be very interesting! … Hi Michelle!

I found so much of what you've written very interesting.

1. Question: I have a few!

• Having grown up in a South Korean household in Miami, the cultural experiences you name in your post are all related to South Korean culture...do you feel connected to South Florida culturally as well, or do you feel your primary cultural influences at home all relate to South Korea?

• Were you able to look up translated lyrics? I'm curious to see if the feelings of the song translated, without needing to know their written meaning.

2. I also noticed: You say that Italy inspires you to be artistic. What a wonderful thing to say of any culture, that it inspires art. I feel the Renaissance has done a disservice to all of history in creating such incredible art that we will never be able to surpass it! In addition to your love of Italian food, I admire your appreciation of so many elements of the culture. I hope you are able to visit Italy one day!

3. I saw similarities / differences: I noticed you mention South Korean food as very important in retaining your South Korean Culture; and you also mention Italian food as being your favorite type of food. Italian culture is very committed to family, and especially family gatherings around food. Do you feel the family-focused culture and importance of gathering around food in Italy is similar to the culture you grew up with, and might also inspire your love of the culture? … Hi Daniel!

We definitely had a unique subculture as a community, overall, with some traditions that could seem bizarre to people not from the community. For one, we have the longest-running high school football rivalry in the country (this Thanksgiving will be the 114th contest). It's played in a college stadium and typically attended by nearly 20,000 fans, spanning both each rival's town and several generations. It's been broadcast by ESPN twice. We also have Easton Area High School Day at the end of the year, rather than homecoming, just to be different. Easton is on the edge of history; George Taylor, a co-signer of the Declaration of Independence, lived in a home downtown which still stands. It's next to a convenience store and a hoagie (sub) shop. America's oldest continuously operating commercial establishment, a pub for much of its life, where Ben Franklin and George Washington are know to have visited, is nearby. Of course, Easton was the third location where the Declaration of Independence was publicly read, on July 8th...so we don't officially celebrate our independence on July 4th—we come together for Heritage Day on July 8th!

George Taylor's House on S. Fourth & Ferry

Bachman Publick House A unique and telling story...during the American Revolution, when metal was scarce as it was being used to make weapons for the war, a congregation was working to build a church downtown. Myer Hart, the first Jewish resident of the city, was able to procure a barrel of nails for construction. In gratitude, in his honor the congregation designed a Star of David, still prominently visible in the now First United Church of Christ's stained glass window...

I could talk about all of this for a while, so I'll stop here...

Perhaps the most unique feature of the culture is how interconnected people are. I grew up knowing nearly everyone in each class 3 to 4 years above and behind me (it's not a small school; I graduated with ~700 students). There are certain cliques, but people mix more than I've seen in most places, in weird combinations—like a lawyer, a cop, and a recent parolee drinking beers together at Mother's or Pearly's or Drinky's (actual bars in the town center square; actual and not uncommon story) the night before Thanksgiving.

It seems to me that you have a very refined and rich sense of music. Hungary was an unconventional and surprising choice! I will bet you will be the only student to have selected this culture, while Italy will probably be more common. How did you develop this diverse taste in music? I will say, I am second generation American on my mother's side, and third generation American on my father's side, so I'm distant from the culture my ancestors would have carried here. I worked with my parents recently to create a family trees on both sides from from research they had done into their histories...they have talked about visiting The Old Country. Perhaps this will be a start in exploring my cultural roots. We will see how their travels go, first! … Hi Michelle!

I feel most connected to my mother's side of the family. I have a close relationship with my aunt, and nearly all of my mother's side of the family have remained in the same town near her in New Jersey, so when I visit I do feel closer to everyone. Not to bum anyone out but, the sad and difficult history of our family creates a shared suffering that is connecting. That's not a tradition, but a shared experience. I am comfortable being familiar if disconnected.

I can't say I chose these songs intentionally because they are sad and dark; I actually had intended to share what I thought was a more upbeat song by Fabrizio de André, which has a sound almost like a circus to me, but in seeking a more direct translation I realized it was even uglier!

[ If you are interested: Il Gorilla (Links to an external site.) ]

I had studied Italian in high school and knew a few songs by de André then, and I had the opportunity to visit Italy with a friend who has family there. I was getting a haircut from their family barber and recognized de André playing in the background and said so—the barber was so excited I recognized his favorite artist that he pulled the CD from his stereo and gave it to me. So, I was familiar with a number of his songs without fully connecting the words to their meanings.

I have to share, you had selected O Sole Mio, sung by Luciano Pavarotti...here is a beautiful version of the song I had chose, Vesti La Giubba (Links to an external site.), also sung by Pavarotti! … Hi Camila,

I'm in! Please share Zoom meeting info. See you Monday!

–Kevin … Hi Daniel,

I very much appreciate you introducing the complexities of the background of Hungarian music and Hungarian culture to the discussion—now that you have pointed it out, I realize I know very littler about Hungary. I enjoy learning about other cultures as well, and I'm glad you shared your interest in Hungary, which is, admittedly, a place very foreign to me. I plan on doing more research now into the history and heritage of the culture!