Thinking back to what form of mass media has been the most influential form of my socialization, I realized music has most defined and shaped my self-identity over the years. (p.49, 57) Socialization is defined by Brym and Lie as “the process by which people learn their culture. They do so by entering and disengaging from a succession of roles and becoming aware of themselves as they interact with others.” (p. 49) My earliest childhood memories are of being immersed in music, whether on TV, radio, or record albums, as music is one of my mothers, a former singer and pianist, greatest loves. Growing up, music in one way or another was always on in my home. Now my musical tastes are eclectic and vary from what I was exposed to growing up and I don’t often listen to much of the music from my early childhood, even though I do still enjoy it if I hear it. But the genre of music, and particularly the artist I discovered and fell in love with during my adolescence, has never changed and has provided me with the greatest self-socialization from amongst the varied mass media choices available. (Chapter 3 PowerPoint, slide 20) Gospel hymns were the largest part of the music I was exposed to from a young age, not only through exposure of radio, but because my mother, along with her younger brother, and my grandmother were part of a gospel singing group for over a decade till I was around 3 or 4. They not only traveled to churches in neighboring states, but during their “career” as local celebrities, they recorded 10 gospel albums as the “Victory Trio”. They had their recording studio set up in my grandmother’s basement and though I was very young, I remember sitting on the other side of the glass, huge headphones on my ears as I listened t... ... middle of paper ... ...f my parent’s and grandparent’s strong religious beliefs it was constantly reinforced at a young age that rock music, especially hard rock such as AC/DC or KISS was satanic and would lead to demon worship, since according to my grandfather, who was an Independent Baptist preacher, AC/DC stood for the Anti-Christ/Devil’s Child and KISS stood for Knight’s in Satan’s Service. He preached this to our congregation that no one should listen to this music on the radio or it would corrupt our minds and allow the devil to take control. At the age of around 7 or 8, since no one in my family listened to that type of music, I didn’t question what I was told since that would have been considered deviant behavior and a break against a norm that not only my family, their friends, but most of the religious Southern community I grew up in felt was a deviance in our society. (p. 95)
Music’s role on society has changed drastically through the course of its history as it has become ever so increasingly expansive. Many of the previous musical movements were only for the wealthy as entertainment
The first time I attended the Episcopal Church in my hometown with a girlfriend, I was shocked by the complexity of the melodies the organist played, by the sheer, tuneful competence of the singing. Until then I don’t think I knew it was possible to worship God in cadences and keys actually indicated in a hymnal.
Music is the one thing that has been around since pretty much forever. And in that forever we've created hundreds of music genres including; Classical, Rock/Metal, Country, Pop, Jazz, Rap, and the list goes on. For thousands of years we have made and listened to music but why? I think it's because music is an emotional release for all of us. Music just makes us happier and calmer and better. Let me explain to you why I think this.
Contemporary, as well as older, Gospel music originated from the “Spirituals.” The spirituals, also known as the “Negro Spirituals or African-American folk songs,” were religious songs sung by the African Americans slaves in Southern America. The spirituals spawned from teachings of Christianity from slave owners, the church and even hymns. The songs were usually about love, hope, peace, oppression, freedom and even used as a secret code. The African American slaves would sing while working so much so that slave o...
This natural human desire to belong to a social group that possesses positive characteristics in order to raise self-esteem may be one of the reasons why a person’s social identity is one of the factors affecting a person’s music taste.
The Hollywood music industry has a tendency to emulate the idea that musical bands or artists express “their” individual thoughts and beliefs through the music they produce and more importantly the lyrics they preform. From gangster rappers portraying a tough or thug lifestyle in their dress, actions, and lyrics, to various boy bands constantly being portrayed as sensitive heart throbs singing countless love ballads. However, when it comes to these “individual identities” they are often nothing more than carefully constructed “characters,” that have their lyrics crafted and perfected in order to appeal to certain groups of people. What is interesting about the modern idea identity, is that one can observe clear changes in the “identities” of targeted demographics based on the types of things that massively successful artists sing about. Specifically one is able to see a link between certain behaviors of adolescents, and popular music subject matter.
I can’t touch music, but it touches me. I cannot exist without it. Music surrounds me and envelops me. The music isn’t just background noise, it has power. The lyrics beat and intensity can fill me with angst, sadden me, pump me up and help me relax. Music is life and it has power. It helps me delve deep into my personality and individuality and has helped me discover a more introspective side of myself. However, it wasn’t always like this.
In modern society, it is relatively clear that people consume hours of television, reading magazines, browse the Internet or look at other forms of communication. It is typically unavoidable and therefore we are prone to view a lot of uncensored media. Popular music is the forefront of media and is a very powerful tool to communicate messages to society. We see that there is a constant debate between theory and the realities of men and women’s daily lives thus creating question as to how this affects us. There are many different sources discussing gender in relation to popular music. The ones I will be focusing on in this essay are Tara Brabazon, Simon Frith, Kate McCarthy, Julia Downes and Jamie Glantz. McCarthy and Frith discuss the objectification and segregation of women, while Downes, specific to the Punk genre, explores barriers created for women and having them to compromise. Brabazon takes a different perspective as to how popular music affects men while Glantz looks at societal boundaries. These sources explore various dimensions of music, with the one common factor of being in relation to gender.
Music is the most influential form of media to date. Easily accessible, radio dominated most American homes in the early twentieth-century as the only form of entertainment and connection to the world. It wasn 't until later in the century when radio was used by artist as a creative expression of their beliefs, thoughts and ideas. To most musicians, music was a way of reflecting on personal experiences and environments. The extent of expression has become questionable. Freedom of expression in music may place a danger in American lives. Many songs under the rise of the rap genre were questioned in the late twentieth-century under the accusation the music influenced what was socially deemed as negative behavior. The controversy created by artist’s
If one were to look back into the world’s history, one would find that an important and consistent element is the world of music. Music has presented itself in various forms throughout its spread and through our identification of its magical realm, people have been fortunate enough to come across a means of relation. Whether it is blues and reggae or rap and pop rock, there is music out there for everyone. Music can serve as a stabilizer for some, a relaxant to others, and to many a form of inspiration.
I believe that it would be difficult for someone to make the argument that Negro spirituals have not been influential in the field of music, much less the realm of gospel music today. However, church members often do not make the time to reflect on the heritage of a hymn or song to realize the meaning that the particular piece has carried with it through the decades, even centuries. With this in mind, I am going to look at the history of the Negro spiritual and then at specific hymns in the 1991 Baptist Hymnal, published by Convention Press, to see just what impact the Negro spiritual has had on today's church music. I believe that we will find that these songs have had a significant affect on our music, and that without it, we would not have many of the hymns that are now considered standard church music.
Franz Liszt once said "Music embodies feeling without forcing it to contend and combine with thought, as it is forced in most arts and especially in the art of words. If music has one advantage over the other media through which a person can represent the impressions of the soul, it owes this to its supreme capacity to make each inner impulse audible without the assistance of reason. Reason, after all, is restricted in the diversity of its means and is capable only of confirming or describing our affections, not of communicating them directly in their full intensity. To accomplish this even approximately, reason must search for images and comparisons. Music, on the other hand, presents at once the intensity and the expression of feeling. It is the embodied and intelligible essence of feeling, capable of being apprehended by our senses. It permeates them like a dart, like a ray, like a mist, like a spirit, and fills our soul." Music has been passed down from generation to generation to show an audience beauty and associate with their emotions. My violin teacher Brunilda Myftaraj once stated that I could play violin all day without ending and I would feel empty, she advised that unless I connect with my audience than the music I’m playing has no exquisiteness and means nothing to no-one. My teacher said a respectable performance is one in which the audience is drawn into the beauty of the playing and adores the music so much that they effortlessly remember the music performed. For my capstone I wanted to answer the question on how 2 different types of music can affect the memory of teenagers and young adults. The majority of studies done by the University’s and non-profit organizations all ask how music affects memory of ...
Some may say music is just music; a song is just a song. However, music plays an enormous role in our psychology, because a single song has the ability to bring about many kinds of thoughts and emotions in the listener. Music is subtly one of the main factors in which people identify with certain groups and establish their belonging in society. It shapes people’s perspectives on how the world functions and the roles they play within it. Music can function the same way in a culture; it can reflect many of the culture’s values and ideologies. Music can have many effects on culture and the people’s idea of who they think they are within that culture. Music can serve in a way that promotes cultural identity and pride, yet it could also play a role in the separation of social and economical identities in within cultures.
There are many ways in which music affects and surrounds us. It is our creative outlet, our passion, our distraction, our night out or simply our moment of relaxation. Throughout the centuries, music has played a vital role in our lives. We as a society immerse ourselves in music day to day. From grandiose social gatherings and dances in the Middle Ages, to live concerts and monumental performances to date. Music is in films to elicit emotion and in television commercials to make us consumers of the newest technology. More importantly, it is in our preferred listening device because we choose the particular songs and artists we like and want to hear. The Marriam-Webster dictionary defines music as “sounds that are sung by voices or played on musical instruments; the art or skill of creating or performing music.” But why do we choose attend the Bruce Springsteen concert at Wrigley Field and not the Chicago Symphony Orchestra? What makes us enjoy one type of music or artist and not another? Whether you make music or simply enjoy it by listening to it, we are all connected to music in a variety of ways.
Music is can be a very complicated and delightful at the same time. Music affects our bodies in several ways when engaging with it. The complicated and delightful apparatus we call music affect people physically, psychologically, and is great with healing emotional affliction, strengthens emotions, and is known to cure illness. Music also plays an influential role in the socialization of teenagers. Mainstream music is available practically everywhere. It is conveniently accessible over the internet, radio, individual recordings and other forms of technology