In the beginning of this week we had a guest speaker Dr.
Chris Vaneman talk about African American blues. One thing that I found interesting
was a statement he said about Robert Johnson. It was around the terms of that
he set the prototype for great musicians dying at age 27. I decided to look up
one artist that died at 27 and I found Amy Winehouse.
She was
born on September 14th, 1983 in Southgate London and unfortunately
died on-July 23rd, 2011 in Camden London. She was best known for her
powerful vocal range and her mix of musical genres. Such as Neo-soul, rhythm
and blues and Jazz. One of her famous Songs were “Rehab”. I remember singing this song when I was younger but I
never really knew what it was about. I just knew it was catchy and made me want
to dance. It breaks my heart to see so much talent go to waste because of
alcohol, drugs etc. Plus, the fact that she was incredibly talented even makes
it worse because she brought so much art into the world. When I hear her sing
for some odd reason she reminds me of Billie Holiday but just a modern flavor
of her. Here is a little video to
lighten up the mood a little bit=)
The Goblet drum best known as the Doumbeck drum and it is a
single headed membranophone with a goblet shaped body. There are two types of
Goblet drums, the Eygyptian and Turkish. The video below is a like a Drum
orchestra. I find the video fascinating because the drum beating reminds me of
Africa.
One thing I love about Latin America are the dances. I
remember taking a small dance class at my High school and we did the rumba. I
find the Latin culture sexy, colorful and lively. One area of Latin America I
am very fond of is the Brazilian Dancers. The Lambada and Samba dances originally
came from Brazil. I think the Brazilian dancers are so beautiful and I would
love to be one. However, I don’t know if I would like it if my bottom was being
exposed. I do love their outfits though, they are very colorful and sparkly!
Hi Sherami!
ReplyDeleteYou found some great things to share and I enjoyed watching them all! I love that you pointed out that Amy Winehouse had a voice that was much like Billie Holiday's manner of singing; I never thought about that. I also really enjoyed the drumming and Brazilian dancing videos; I definitely started dancing a little bit on both of them.
Thanks for sharing :)
-Hati
Way to lighten up the mood. A song that fit Amy Winehouse talent and worth. I use to listen to Amy Winehouse myself and she had a beautiful voice. When I discovered she died at the age of 27 I was surprise because she had such talent. Nevertheless, her legacy lives on because of her music.
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ReplyDeleteHello Sherami!
ReplyDeleteI love that Amy Winehouse video you put up. It reminds me of a Frank Sinatra duet CD I have in my car. I had only ever heard her sing "Rehab," so seeing this side of her is really cool. I also love the Brazilian dance video you put up! Ever since seeing Rio (the movie about the bird) I have been fascinated by Carnival.
Emma
Great post Sherami! Hearing Dr. Vaneman talk about the 27 club made me really sad because the world has lost so many great musicians, Amy Winehouse being one of them. I giggled when you said you sang one of her songs at a young age and wish I could've seen you do it. That's some pretty heavy material! Being someone who can't dance but wishes they could, I really enjoyed the last video as well.
ReplyDeleteI do love the 'spice' in the Latin dances as well! The music they dance to is so full of life and passion; the way I think any person should be. The outfits are awesome too, and you can tell these Brazilian dancers are quite confident in themselves (you'd have to be to wear those outfits..!). Cool finds, Sherami!
ReplyDeleteHello, Sherami.
ReplyDeleteThe drum orchestra was very catchy! It was fun to hear the relative of the Turkish drum. I also hear a lot of similarities between the orchestra, the most prevalent similarity being the abundance of polyrhythm! One thing I don't think we saw in the African culture, though, was the drum solos.
-Angelina Hart
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Amy Winehouse. I have always been a huge fan of hers, and I totally wish I would have thought of her myself. I also liked the drum orchestra, very cool and interesting sound! Great blog! (:
ReplyDeleteThe Amy Winehouse video is actually completely appropriate--her singing owes a lot to the style developed by earlier generations of female blues singers. And, yes, Samba is a very, very good time.
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