Culture Discussion #1 - "Music of Our Lives" (Cultural Meaning of Music)
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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.