The Culture Wars – Thoughts on Music & the Arts in America – The 2008 Campaign
Besides the oft-used Copland (or Copland-esque) music for evocation of Americana, music is an intrinsic tool during the political campaigns, and let’s face it – the 2008 campaign practically started directly after the 2004 presidential election. It is amazing that the only time that classical music is used by politicians is to punctuate dramatic points or for documentaries. Just as a start, let’s look at the American Political Conventions:
Democratic National Convention – Live musicians performing music at the rallies for the headliners like Clinton, Biden & Obama. You had pop artists such as Stevie Wonder & Sheryl Crow perform at the convention. When documentary videos were played, the soundtracks featured sweeping symphonic scores.
Republican National Convention – After a number of country music stars (Gretchen Wilson, John Ritch & Joe Nichols) coming out to perform at the convention, was it just me, but the documentaries on candidates such as McCain featured synthesized music. For the headliners, we have only recorded music – no surprise there, since both parties used specific tracks for emotional & political effect at rallies & on television. I would at least have been more impressed, musically speaking, if they would have done the video game soundtrack trick: use sample libraries to create a symphonic score & have a few real performers record tracks & voila! (Not ‘viola’ as my auto spell check changed it to!) A recording that will fool the masses but not most of us here reading this.
What does this tell us about the candidates &/ or parties? ‘Classical Music’ has only a utilitarian function for both parties really. It is amazing how much of the electorate’s emotions is manipulated by musical choices, with very little understanding of that music. I don’t see political parties discussing the value of arts or culture on the campaign trail. How does it fit into education in American life. That’s something we’ll explore later.I will not make some sort of endorsement here & you can look to past administrations to look at arts funding. That has been an issue dear to everyone involved in the arts. There are a lot of issues that people are concerned about during this American election cycle.
The most important issue in presidential & local elections is the one YOU care about. As citizens here, we have an obligation to do our patriotic duty & vote – & vote passionately. Be informed on issues, and especially about ones you care about. No matter who you support, get out the vote & make sure your colleagues, friends & family do as well.
A few Links for American Politics & Music:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_and_politics
http://www.music.ucsb.edu/projects/musicandpolitics/archive/2008-1/beal.html
Let’s use our art to make a difference. One policy trend we DO need to change: the obliteration of arts funding in schools across the country. This is eroding an already weakening emphasis of the arts & culture in favor of testing and a remedial focus on reading, writing & math. More in the Culture Wars Series soon. Upcoming topics include ‘The Value of the Arts’ & ‘Performer’s Thoughts on the Essential Mission of Music Education.’
Disclaimer - These opinions expressed here are those of Phillip W. Serna and are not necessarily condoned or reflected by DoubleBassBlog.org or the ArtsAddict Blog. To contact Phillip Serna, visit www.phillipwserna.com or www.violsinourschools.org.
Funky Formalwear
Most guys I know have formal wear that resembles a petri dish. I don’t know if women’s formal wear gets this nasty (something tells me it doesn’t). Men seem to be able to tolerate a high degree of funkitude before deciding to finally take their formal clothes into the cleaners.
Perhaps it’s the fact that we only wear our outfits for a short period of time on performance days that makes us less likely to keep them spic and span. The problem is that we are usually working up a sweat under hot lights while in our outfits–not a good thing for keeping clothing stink-free! Throw in some coffee stains and ketchup from late-night drive-through joints and you’ve got a real mess on your hands, wardrobe-wise.
I’ve got a white vest so nasty that I shudder when I see it in broad daylight, yet I wore this grimy thing for years before finally breaking down and getting a new one. The same is true for my pants, jacket, and white shirts. I stretch their life significantly further than I would for my regular duds, and just when I’m about to chuck that skanky coat or those nightmarishly nasty dress shirts, I reconsider and wear them for another year or two.
One evening, as I was puttering around and getting ready for a gig, I happened to drape my pants over a hot lamp. The lamp ended up burning a big hole in one of the pant legs, and I frantically tried to think of a suitable way to patch this big charred opening in my polyester pants.
I tried using electrical tape, which didn’t work at all, then got out the needle and thread and tried to stitch it back together. After ending up only making the hole bigger and uglier, I realized that I’d have to wear these things with the hole for that concert and hunt for new tux pants in the morning. I tried to tape the hole closed as best I could, wadding a big clump of tape up and jamming it in my pants. It held for a little while, but as I played the concert I happened to look down at the floor, noticing that it had fallen off and was laying by my foot. At that point, trying to tape it back together would only make it more obvious, so I resigned myself finishing up the concert with a big hole in my pants. Just what the audience paid to see, I imagine…
There used to be a yearly used formalwear sale at the Gingiss wearhouse in suburban Chicago, and classical musicians would descend like vultures, picking up old white shirts for a few bucks, tails for $15, and used pants for a real bargain. Musicians around town were radiant with joy (and perhaps from stinky baked-in rental sweat as well!) as they showed off their ill-fitting and slightly stained but super cheap bargain duds. This magical day of used clothing acquisition ended a few years ago–who knows where musicians in Chicagoland are trolling for formalwear these days?
Best of the ‘Viols in Our Schools’ Podcast – Adrian Willaert – 3 Chansons
From the May 18, 2008 Chicago Early Music Consort & Spirit of Gambo – a Chicago Consort of Viols Performance of ‘Bonjour, Mon Coer! – The Sublime 16th-Century French Chanson’ at Glenview Community Church, Glenview, IL. Featuring Gary Berkenstock, Crumhorn, Rackett, Recorders, & Music Director of the Chicago Early Music Consort; Stephanie Sheffield, Soprano; Joel Spears, Lute; & Ken Perlow, Russell Wagner & Dr. Phillip W. Serna, Treble Viol, Tenor Viol & Bass Viol. Audio Recording by Free Chin, Choice Media Design, Chicago, IL.
Visit http://www.chicagoearlymusicconsort.org/ & http://www.spiritofgambo.org/. To subscribe to the podcast and for more information on ‘Viols in Our Schools’ & Doctor Phillip W. Serna, please visit http://www.violsinourschools.org/. For feedback, please email info@violsinourschools.org. Please submit a review in the iTunes store at http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=279089596. Visit the online store to support future outreach activities at http://www.cafepress.com/violadagamba.
‘Viols in Our Schools’ Mission – ‘Viols in Our Schools’ is organized by Dr. Phillip W. Serna of the Spirit of Gambo – a Chicago Consort of Viols and is supported by the Viola da Gamba Society Third Coast as well as a pilot program of the Viola da Gamba Society of America. In 2008, ’Viols in Our Schools’ is pleased to announce a new video podcast as well as a new partnership with the Music Institute of Chicago. Based in the Chicago area, Dr. Serna works to bring the early western string instrument family known as the viola da gamba into many area schools – demonstrating solo literature from the Renaissance, Baroque and early Classical periods for treble viol, tenor viol, bass viol & violone. Future endeavors include bringing consort music into the classroom performed by the Spirit of Gambo – a Chicago Consort of Viols. Including day-long residencies in schools (focusing on string, music & history departments) as well as possible coaching of early string repertoire performed on modern strings and possible collaborative concerts. ‘Viols in Our Schools’ seeks to entertain, while educating audiences about the rich literature for this family of bowed string instruments. Renaissance music for viols, as well as performance of early-western string instruments, is never heard within the school setting, even with a rudimentary music history program that is offered. ‘Viols in Our Schools’ seeks to remedy this by offering performances/ lecture-demonstrations enhancing the music program experience. Additionally, ‘Viols in Our Schools’ attempts to offer resources to make viols available to students. Please help us make viols accessible to both young and old. ‘Viols in Our Schools’ Copyright © 2008 Dr. Phillip W. Serna. For more information, visit http://www.violsinourschools.org/.
University of Illinois bass quartet tours Chicagoland
I had the pleasure of checking out the University of Illinois bass quartet recently (October 22, 2008). This ensemble is comprised of University of Illinois bass professor Michael Cameron and U of I doctoral students Garold Fowler, Hunter Capoccioni, and Alex McHattie, and they were in the midst of doing a tour of top-tier high school programs when I saw them perform.
My life seems to be filled with serendipitous moments, and I was pleasantly surprised to hear that Michael Cameron would be visiting Libertyville High School (where I’m currently student teaching) and doing some work with the bass students. These bass players also happened to be my private students, so it was neat to see my education degree, private teaching studio, and blog world intersect like this.
The quartet played several arrangements by professor Cameron, who has recently launched a publishing company of his own (visit it at BassScores.com). They played for all the string players at the high school, not just the bassists, giving all those violinists, violists, and cellists a chance to hear some fine bass ensemble playing–always a good thing for our instrument!
As you might expect, each of the four bassists in the ensemble had their own unique approach to the bass. One player had the “un-tailpiece” setup consisting of wires stringing together the strings between bridge an endpin socket. Another player had one of the large wooden endpins that have become popular in recent years. These sorts of unusual pieces of gear prompted menu questions from the students, and the quartet members expertly fielded these questions along with more general inquiries about music schools, practicing, and their personal musical backgrounds.
Michael Cameron also did a master class with the bass students, giving them helpful technical advice.
I wonder how many other schools use a bass quartet like this to help promote their institution’s bass programs. What a great experience for both the ensemble and the high scool students. The quartet members get a chance to do a lot of performances (and what group doesn’t want that?), the high school students get to hear a great performance and participate in a master class, and the university gets an opportunity to do some recruiting. Very cool.
100th episode of Contrabass Conversations coming soon
We’ll hit our 100th episode of Contrabass Conversations in the next few weeks–a significant achievement for any podcast! It’s hard to believe that I’ve interviewed, recorded, edited, and published nearly 100 of these buggers–it seems like I just got this podcast going recently, but the two year anniversary is fast approaching.
I decided to do a a retrospective of all the guests I’ve featured in interviews over the past couple of years. It’s titled ‘Origins’ and has prominent bass players answering my traditional first questions: how did you get started as a musician, and what drew you to the bass?
It’s fascinating to hear the likes of Lawrence Hurst, François Rabbath, and Guy Tuneh share their early attraction to the instrument and to learn about the diversity of backgrounds that these great artists have had. I hope you check it out!
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