• The topic I chose to write about is music and lullabies. The reason I think these two are connected is because lullabies contain slow and rhythmic music. Also, it is a very soothing type of music that is intended to put kids to sleep. Also, it connects with music because lullabies are also known as therapeutic music. Soothing or therapeutic music is intended to lower stress. I think the person forgot to include the music entries, so I just talked about how music and lullabies are connected. Also, I agree with the musical characteristics written which were the piano and the vocals with a singer that has a sweet voice. The reason I think piano can help create a beautiful lullaby is because the keys aren’t dissonant, instead, they are very soothing and calm to listen to. Also, it was very interesting to know that these are mostly played in garden parties, I never imagined that!
• If I were to write this topic instead of my own, the music I would pick would be “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”. I noticed that as soon as this piece of music started, it had the sound effects of crickets, indicating that it is time to sleep and it is nighttime. It is helping children fall asleep by noticing these sounds. Also, I noticed that there were many pauses throughout the video and the song didn’t sound like it was sung by an adult, it sounds like it was sung by a kid, to indicate that it is for them as well. Also, the song name also indicates that there are usually stars in the sky at night and how it is bedtime. It sounds very comforting to listen to. The other song I would choose is “Hush Little Baby”. It uses a lot of piano key notes, but they are very relaxing and helps create a peaceful scene. Also, it might’ve also used things that babies like playing with such as their toys to help them feel calm and safe. “You’ll still be the sweetest baby in town. Hush little baby, don’t cry cause, daddy and I love you”. This was sung by a woman in a very calm voice and it doesn’t feel attacking in any type of way. Instead it helps the baby feel protected and the slow, sweet voice is putting the baby slowly to safety without having to worry about anything.

The two pieces that were chosen for the topic Music and Christmas are “Jingle Bells” and “Snow Candy”. The social context behind “Jingle Bells” is that it was not necessarily written for Christmas, but it became popular once people started to hear the song more out there. It started to become a fan favorite and go-to song during the Christmas season. The lyrics repeat throughout most of the song and involve a catchy tune that everyone knows. It includes a slow and steady tempo and the beat follows the words (jingle bell, jingle bell). The pitch changes through the song but not too much. Overall, it’s a very catchy melody and it’s an easy song to follow. The second song, “Snow Candy” by Starship Planet which is where the official unit name came from. The song was created to celebrate the upcoming holiday. It includes an addictive melody in resemblance to K-Pop and it has bell chimes along with a tune that makes you wanna dance around and sing to. The musical characteristics involve an upbeat tempo and catchy rhythm that gives Christmas emotions and feelings.

The two songs I’ve enjoyed listening to are “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber and
“All I Want For Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey. Both of these songs are sung by popular artists. Justin Bieber created his song as a POP, R&B, and reggae influences. He performed the song beforehand and a week later decided to release it since he believed his fan would’ve loved the song. It’s catchy and involves a “bounce” tempo in the beat. His voice creates a very smooth and intimate feeling since we hear the maturation in his voice. It includes both bongos and guitar. He wanted to create a song that everyone would sing and remember every Christmas. The second song by Mariah Carey was created to spread her career forward. Her producers thought of creating a song that she can deliver spiritually and create a piece that is emotive. It was created during the summertime, and they wanted to create songs that can be catchy and more enthusiastic and have a balance between traditional and fun songs. The title itself explains the lyrics, how Mariah wants a special someone rather than presents for Christmas. The song is very upbeat, joyous tone, and many different sounds included that reminds us of Christmas. It includes lots of bell chimes, backup vocals, and synthesizers. The piece also involves different chords to make the song flow and more uplifting for people to want to dance around and have fun.

Whirling dervishes are a classic image of Turkey, spinning serenely in their tombstone-like felt hats and billowing white robes to create a fascinating ceremony aimed at achieving oneness with God. A practising dervish told Culture Trip about the mystic sema ceremony’s meanings, how dervishes train and the challenges once faced by their Sufi order. To have women spinning among men in dervish prayer is a break from tradition for the Istanbul-based group that seeks to update the mystical dervish branch of Islam founded more than 700 years ago.

Qawwali is a well known form of music in south Asia and middle east and usually Sema ceremonies being performed while this type of music is playing in the background. Qawwali seems like it came straight from the medieval period and still holds its unique characters. Qawwali is live performing music which usually happens in Mazar (grave of Well known influential characters). It gives you a very holy and spiritual feeling to enjoy the moment more than that the lyrics of qawwali is the main beauty of the song. Even people who do not dance and go to watch the show they start shaking their body and head. So, this Sema ceremony and qawwali has a great connection and putting both of these together helps to bring the best performance out of it and entertain its crowd. 

The song i picked it’s “ekti Bangladesh Tumi” by Sabina Yasmin. This is a patriotic song to inspire people during difficult that people went through to achieve the independent for the country. Bangladesh used to known as East Pakistan before 1971 after British left Indian sub-continent. Bangla was not even the official language of Bangladesh and Pakistani ruler used to abuse the basic rights of Bangladeshi people. Even Bangladesh is the only country that went through a war to established its mother tongue.

During all these movements a lot of different songs came in to the play to inspire people to achieve the independence and language. And “Ekti Bangladesh Tumi” was one of the most inspiring songs among all of those songs.

This song basically describes Bangladesh is one independent country with huge number of young people who are ready to fight to protect the country and its freedom. And the whole world put their faith on this young people and they believe this people will be able to bring and protect the victory of the country. But this song does not just only carry the message of getting independent from different countries it also talks about getting success in other things like education, economy, women empowerment and other stuffs. Songs like these helped in some extent the country to grow big and achieve its goals.

The connection Mittens by Frank Turner and Heartbreak Hotel by Elvis Presley has on the topic of Music and Breakups is pretty clear. Both songs are about the artist’s emotional experience with heartbreak. This person mentions the decrescendo that happens in Heartbreak Hotel and the bright sound of Mittens. Both of these musical characteristics work towards the student’s first introductory slide because they both help people relate and feel better about their situation in a real way.

I would pick songs that focus the artist’s revival after a break up. Some songs that come to mind are “thank u, next” by Ariana Grande and “Irreplaceable” by Beyonce. A lyric found in Grande’s song is “I ain’t worried ’bout nothin’/ Plus, I met someone else/ We havin’ better discussions”. A lyric found in Beyonce’s song goes ““I won’t lose a wink of sleep / ‘Cause the truth of the matter is replacing you is so easy”. Both of these lyrics show how the artists are moving on from their break ups into a new empowering state.

These songs connect to the topic because they are not only songs about a break up, but also show a strong attitude toward a rather sad situation. My topic Music and Childhood probably would not connect very well with these songs but might be a part of an artist’s adolescent years that impacted them significantly.

Everyone’s been there. You go through a breakup and all you want to do is lie on your couch in pajamas listening to melancholic, soul-shattering music. While going through this phase in your life you expect people to understand yourself. It’s very common to hear from people that everything will be fine after a few days but only the person who is going through it will understand how much it hurts. So, people choose to spend time alone with some sad songs. And the lyrics of those songs explain a lot about the situation that the person is going through. So it helps to lower the pain even for time being to reduce the pain of the moment. And it has some downside too. Months after breakup when you feel that you are about to start a new life and you listen to some song that reminds you about the partner that again put you into a sad stage of your life. 

The first song I picked it’s “Chahiye hein tanhai ” from the movie “Love breakup Zindagi”. Finally, the album takes a grim turn with Shafqat Amanat Ali, Salim and Shruti Pathak singing ‘Chhayee hai tanhayee’. A poignant number that creates a pensive mood, the song has a Sufi flavour and is worth hearing. The whole song tries to explain if someone was going to leave you then why did they come in your life. Where they were missing each other saying that the relationship was so happy and they had so much respect and love for each other in their heart, they one partner used to see his/her life in another person’s eyes so how was that possible for them to leave each other. And in a social event they meet each other and that revived the memories and hoping to be each other and not initiated the divorce.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC8z4FrsKTk

The second song i picked it’s “Maan jagi sari raat” from the movie “Bitto Boss” movie. This is a movie which shows the feelings after breakup. It shows the heart does not sleep at night but as time passed it healed all the pain and sufferings. The song shows how much we love each other while being in a relationship and right after the breakup it feels like not to see each other’s face even, and the main message of this song is not taking advantage of your partner while you are in a relationship. 

The connection between Music and Trends and the songs were trendy and allowed people to get to know them better. The first song was BTS which is a korean music group and they got big because of trends and people sharing their music. Although not everyone understands Korean in the US, they are able to enjoy the music through captions and enjoying the dancing as well. For the second song was an artist named Doja Cat, that recently went #1 on billboards on another song. This song “Moooooo” was one of her first songs and she used a lot of memes in order to get her message across. It was a fun song for her fans. 

If I had wrote about this topic I would have picked songs that I see played in the background of Tik Tok. For example one song I would have chosen was “Say So” by Doja Cat. This song is used in various Tik Toks as a dance. This is how it got popular because of the trend of Tik Tok. Another song I would have chosen was “Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion. This song also got popular because of the TikTok trend. Lots of celebrities also started doing the dance that went along with the song as that is what made it so popular and high on billboards.

The topic that I chose was music and Christmas. The 2 music entries that are discussed in the presentation are “Snow candy” By Starship Planet, and “Jingle Bells” By Jim Reeves. The songs have a connection to the Christmas spirit that is discussed in the presentation. Both of the song entries have a Christmasy rhythm to them and you can tell that they are jolly and have a certain type of melody. Also both songs have a catchy tune to them. And can make anyone have a Christmas spirit. The songs have a slow pace and aren’t fast paced like rap songs or other genres of songs. Both songs give you that warm Christmas fuzzy feeling. The musical characteristic in the song “Jingle Bells” By Jim Reeves, is a slow and steady tempo, chorus, and a jolly melody. The musical characteristic in the song “Snow candy” By Starship Planet, is an upbeat tempo and catchy rhythm. The lyrics from “Jingle Bells,” “Oer the fields we go, laughing all the way” shows a sense of jolliness. “Snow Candy,” is in a different language but just by listening to it it makes you feel like being happy and to have a good time. 

If this topic were to be my own I would include a very popular and known Christmas song called “Deck the Halls,” by Pentatonix. And “All I want for Christmas is you,” by Mariah Carey. Both of these songs have a jolly mood to them as well as showing love and care for someone. Send me that’s what the Christmas spirit is all about. Both songs are about Christmas and have very strong spirits to both. Also there are bells and chimes in both of the songs which makes the jolly mood pop out even more. These 2 songs show what the Christmas spirit is about not only about presents but also about showing love. In “Deck the Halls,” the lyrics, “Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la, ‘Tis the season to be jolly, Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la” shows a very exciting and jolly mood. This shows that there is a jolly melody to it. In “All I want for Christmas is you,” the lyrics, “oh, oh, All the lights are shining so brightly everywhere And the sound of children’s laughter fills the air” this shows the kids are very excited for Christmas and it is truly the best time of the year.