1 post tagged “songline”
i just started reading a book (i know, me? read? it must be important!) -- a song to sing, a life to live by don and emily saliers (the latter of indigo girls fame, a band that i have loved since late high school--1995!).
i've personally felt for a long time that music is more than something to be enjoyed--it is something that should speak to your heart, speak to your soul. music has the power to touch and move me in ways that nothing else can. i've only read the first chapter in this book, so i only vaguely know where they're taking it, but when the right song is playing, when it fits the moment so well you could cry, it has the same effect (i gather) as "the spirit moving in you" (to borrow a christian metaphor). like emily, my entire family is very churchy, but i grew apart starting in high school and really haven't looked back. just from the short blurbs i've read knowing about the indigo girls and the type of music they sing and the message they convey, i knew this book was a must-read for me, and i'm excited to finish it.
in chapter 1, they talk about "songlines" -- one's personal musical heritage. here's my own:
my mom comes from a very musical family, much of it influenced by the church. the majority of my aunts (and my mom) can play piano and love singing. that totally comes from my grandmother. she had a wonderful alto and sang hymns (even when no one was around) all the time. i don't know where my dad his love of music from (my paternal grandmother wasn't really a great singer nor did she play an instrument, afaik), but yeah, he's totally into it as well.
my mom sings very well and used to sing at weddings and at church (she was in the choir). sometimes she and my dad would sing duets--their favorite being "all i ask of you" from phantom of the opera (their most favorite-est musical evar. EVAR!). somehow my brother and i love singing along to songs--maybe because we saw our parents do it so freely? music clearly moved them, and it moves us. singing in the car, i remember my mom would always admonish us to "sing an octave higher" because we weren't putting enough energy into our singing and were kind of muddling through the song. she'd also criticize pop singers, calling them "no-voice #1" (janet jackson) and "no-voice #2" (paula abdul) because they didn't have good enough voices to be popular. they got us to play instruments when we were young, although we both quit way too early, well, i quit way too early. (i wish i had continued with piano.)
music was one of the highlights of going to church. i'd dread going every week, but singspiration almost made it tolerable. to be able to sing in public even with a crappy voice? love it. well, loved it. (as i said, i don't go to church anymore.)
while i listen mostly to pop punk and indie music nowadays, there's no denying the power certain genres of music have on me, and i can always rely on them to get me through tough times. [i'm kinda rushing this post because i have to get going to the airport--NYC weekend!]
from trance (techno) to rent to artists like the indigo girls, pet shop boys, and imogen heap, music has lifted my heart, soothed my soul, and transported me outside of my everyday existence. transcendence, some might call it.
in chapter 1, they talk about "songlines" -- one's personal musical heritage. here's my own:
my mom comes from a very musical family, much of it influenced by the church. the majority of my aunts (and my mom) can play piano and love singing. that totally comes from my grandmother. she had a wonderful alto and sang hymns (even when no one was around) all the time. i don't know where my dad his love of music from (my paternal grandmother wasn't really a great singer nor did she play an instrument, afaik), but yeah, he's totally into it as well.
my mom sings very well and used to sing at weddings and at church (she was in the choir). sometimes she and my dad would sing duets--their favorite being "all i ask of you" from phantom of the opera (their most favorite-est musical evar. EVAR!). somehow my brother and i love singing along to songs--maybe because we saw our parents do it so freely? music clearly moved them, and it moves us. singing in the car, i remember my mom would always admonish us to "sing an octave higher" because we weren't putting enough energy into our singing and were kind of muddling through the song. she'd also criticize pop singers, calling them "no-voice #1" (janet jackson) and "no-voice #2" (paula abdul) because they didn't have good enough voices to be popular. they got us to play instruments when we were young, although we both quit way too early, well, i quit way too early. (i wish i had continued with piano.)
music was one of the highlights of going to church. i'd dread going every week, but singspiration almost made it tolerable. to be able to sing in public even with a crappy voice? love it. well, loved it. (as i said, i don't go to church anymore.)
while i listen mostly to pop punk and indie music nowadays, there's no denying the power certain genres of music have on me, and i can always rely on them to get me through tough times. [i'm kinda rushing this post because i have to get going to the airport--NYC weekend!]
from trance (techno) to rent to artists like the indigo girls, pet shop boys, and imogen heap, music has lifted my heart, soothed my soul, and transported me outside of my everyday existence. transcendence, some might call it.
