EA on Music Theory Print

Early British popular music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Broadside ballads#

Broadside ballads were arguably the first form of commercial popular music in Britain. They were a product of the development of cheap print from the 16th century. They were generally printed on one side of a large sheet of poor quality paper. This could also be cut in half lengthways to make ‘broadslips’, or folded to make chapbooks. They were produced in huge numbers, with over 400,000 being sold in England annually by the 1660s. Many were sold by travelling chapmen in city streets or at fairs. The subject matter varied from what has been defined as the traditional ballad, although many traditional ballads were printed as broadsides. Among the topics were love, religion, drinking-songs, legends and early journalism, which included disasters, political events and signs, wonders and prodigies.

Early music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Terminology#

Interpretations of historical scope of “early music” vary. The original Academy of Ancient Music formed in 1726 defined “Ancient” music as works written by composers who lived before the end of the 16th century. Johannes Brahms and his contemporaries would have understood Early music to range from the High Renaissance and Baroque, while some scholars consider that Early music should include the music of ancient Greece or Rome before 500 AD (a period that is generally covered by the term Ancient music). Music critic Michael Kennedy excludes Baroque, defining Early music as “musical compositions from the earliest times up to and including music of the Renaissance period”. Musicologist Thomas Forrest Kelly considers that the essence of Early music is the revival of “forgotten” musical repertoire and that the term is intertwined with the rediscovery of old performance practice. According to the UK’s National Centre for Early Music, the term “early music” refers to both a repertory (European music written between 1250 and 1750 embracing Medieval, Renaissance and the Baroque) – and a historically informed approach to the performance of that music. Today, the understanding of “Early music” has come to include “any music for which a historically appropriate style of performance must be reconstructed on the basis of surviving scores, treatises, instruments and other contemporary evidence.”

Early music of the British Isles

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Medieval music to 1450#

Surviving sources indicate that there was a rich and varied musical soundscape in medieval Britain. Historians usually distinguish between ecclesiastical music, designed for use in church, or in religious ceremonies, and secular music for use from royal and baronial courts, celebrations of some religious events, to public and private entertainments of the people. Our understanding of this music is limited by a lack of written sources for much of what was an oral culture.

Early Norwegian black metal scene

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Ideology#

The Norwegian black metal scene was vehemently opposed to Christianity and organized religion as a whole. In interviews during the early 1990s, Euronymous and other members of the scene portrayed themselves as militant misanthropic devil worshippers who sought to spread hatred, sorrow, and evil. They criticized the Church of Satan for being too “humane.” The theistic Satanism they advocated was an inversion of Christianity. Euronymous was the key figure behind this ideology. When asked why such statements were made to the press, Ihsahn of Emperor stated, “I think that was very much to create fear among people.” He added that the scene “wanted to be in opposition to society” and “tried to concentrate more on just being ’evil’ than having a real Satanic philosophy.” Vikernes claimed that the reason they professed to advocate “evil” was to provoke. According to the book Lords of Chaos, many who knew Euronymous claim that “the extreme Satanic image he projected was, in fact, just that – a projection which bore little resemblance to his real personality.” Those making this assertion include Necrobutcher, Kjetil Manheim, while Metalion, who had known Euronymous since 1985 and considered him his best friend, remarked that Euronymous “was always telling what he thought… worshipping death and being extreme.” Regarding other members of the scene, Samuel Fridh suggests that there is no evidence to support their early claims of being devil worshippers, and Leif A. Lier, who led the police investigation following Euronymous’s death, stated that he and his team had not encountered a single Satanist. Tenebris from the Misanthropic Luciferian Order, a Swedish Satanic order, noted that the Norwegian scene “meant a lot as long as it lasted. Back then, in 1991, things mainly concerned black metal and ideological Satanism (not so much practical Satanism, but anyway…)… It grew quickly to become a sort of black metal army… and kind of stood and fell with Euronymous and his shop. Therefore, it vanished with his death in ‘93… Sadly enough, many people involved at the time betrayed their ideals and lost their interest when things fell apart. Like it was nothing more than a hype of temporary nature.” Regarding the term “black metal,” Euronymous stated that it applies to any heavy metal band that identifies as theistic Satanists and writes Satanic lyrics. At the time, bands with a style akin to Norwegian black metal but lacking Satanic lyrics tended to use alternative terms to describe their music. Some bands within the scene were intrigued by pre-Christian Norway and its traditions, and there was an undercurrent of romantic nationalism present. Additionally, some scene members engaged with Nazi imagery, primarily as a means of provocation. In a private letter written in the early 1990s, Euronymous asserted that “almost all” Norwegian black metal bands at the time were “more or less Nazis.” He expressed an interest in totalitarian communist states, claiming he wished to see people “rot under communist dictatorship.”

Earth anthem

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Voices for Today#

“Voices for Today” is a song composed by Benjamin Britten in 1965 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. The lyrics are based on Virgil’s fourth Eclogue.

Hymn to the United Nations#

On the request of then United Nations Secretary-General U Thant, a “Hymn to the United Nations” was performed on the occasion of its 26th anniversary, on October 24, 1971, by Pablo Casals, the lyrics to which were penned by the poet W. H. Auden.

East African urban music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Description and history#

The three countries involved in this genre share a common colonial history and close cultural and linguistic relationships. Especially since the 1960s, popular musicians have shared their talents across the borders of the three nations and helped move the music of the area from traditional to benga/rumba and now Afro-urban music. Musicians of the early 1990s, including Tedd Josiah (Kenya), P-Funk (Tanzania) and Steve Jean (Uganda), began to combine western influences with the area’s more traditional popular music. Local radio stations were at first reluctant to experiment with this new music, until privately operated FM stations began to appear and needed new material to establish a market niche. By 2000 urban music groups like X-plastaz (Tanzania), 237 Street Cypher (Kenya), and Kalamashaka (Kenya) had developed local followings and were beginning to tour abroad. Production houses specializing in the genre—such as Ogopa Djs, Swahili Entertainment Africa, Samawati, HipHop kila pahali, Home Boyz and Bongo Records—have emerged. Problems with financing and technical infrastructure have hampered development, and the industry generally lacks executives well-versed in the music business. Some groups like Ukoo Flani Mau Mau, a slum-based hip hop organization with members from Kenya and Tanzania founded by the group Kalamashaka, have attempted to further development of industry with the help of Foundation UpToYouToo. In 2004 the Kilio Cha Haki, A Cry for Justice (by Nairobi Yetu) compilation appeared, featuring Rha Goddess, a performing artist and socio-political activist based in New York. Nairobi Yetu is a collaboration of 38-strong collective from Nairobi, among them G.rongi and Kalamashaka. Swahili Entertainment Inc. and Nomadic Wax Records combined in late 2004 to start the distribution and publishing of East African urban music. Other companies like Bab Kubwa and Project 254 Records are also working to develop and expand the market for this music. This upshot of this music can be well seen in the documentary HIP HOP Colony.

East Coast hip-hop

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Musical style#

In contrast to the more simplistic rhyme pattern and scheme used in Old-school hip-hop, hip-hop in the late 1980s developed a stronger emphasis on lyrical dexterity. It also became characterized by multi-syllabic rhymes, complex wordplay, a continuous free-flowing delivery and intricate metaphors. Although East Coast hip-hop can vary in sound and style, “aggressive” beats and the combining of samples were common to the subgenre in the mid- to late 1980s. The aggressive and hard-hitting beats of the form were emphasized by such acts as EPMD, Beastie Boys and Public Enemy, while artists such as Rakim, Boogie Down Productions, LL Cool J, Big Daddy Kane, Nas, The Notorious B.I.G., and Slick Rick were noted for their lyrical skill. Lyrical themes throughout the history of East Coast hip-hop have ranged from lyrical consciousness by such artists as Public Enemy and A Tribe Called Quest to Mafioso rap themes by rappers such as Raekwon, MF Grimm and Kool G Rap.

East Coast–West Coast hip-hop rivalry

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Background#

Hip-hop music and hip-hop culture is widely considered to have originated on the East Coast of the United States in New York City. As a result, New York rappers were often perceived as feeling their hip-hop scene was superior to other regional hip-hop cultures whereas those on the West Coast of the United States had developed an inferiority complex. Although Tim Dog would not figure into the later stages of the feud, his diss track presaged what was to come. This was also the same year that Uncle Luke came out with the album In the Nude which also dissed Dr. Dre. In 1991, Suge Knight co-founded Death Row Records in Los Angeles alongside Dr. Dre, Dick Griffey and the D.O.C. Knight, a native of Compton, California, and a Blood, was among those in the West Coast hip-hop scene irritated by the East Coast’s perceived condescension toward the West. The next year, the label’s debut releases by Brooklyn-based rapper the Notorious B.I.G. (also known as Biggie Smalls) and Long Island–based rapper Craig Mack became immediate critical and commercial successes. By 1994, New York–born, California-based rapper and actor Tupac “2Pac” Shakur had released two successful albums and starred in three movies. However, at the same time, his career was in jeopardy as he was low on money and standing trial in New York City on charges of sexual abuse, sodomy, and weapons possession.

Easy listening

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

The style has been synonymous with the tag “with strings”. String instruments had been used in sweet bands in the 1930s and were the dominant soundtrack for movies of Hollywood’s Golden Age. In the 1940s and 1950s strings had been used in jazz and popular music contexts. As examples in the jazz genre, there are recordings of Frank Sinatra. Another example of a practitioner in the popular context was Dinah Washington’s “What a Difference a Day Makes”. In the 1950s the use of strings quickly became a main feature of the developing easy listening genre. Jackie Gleason, whose first ten albums went gold, expressed the goal was to produce “musical wallpaper that should never be intrusive, but conducive”. Similarly, in 1956, John Serry Sr. sought to utilize the accordion within the context of a jazz sextet to create a soothing mood ideally suited for “low pressure” listening on his album Squeeze Play.