Karsyn's Adventure Through Music

  This week I wanted to explore the music in China. I started by looking into some of the more traditional styles of music and then went to the modern popular music. I was intrigued to learn that the philosopher Confucius was one of the original people to set the tone for the traditional styles of Chinese music. Traditional Chinese songs are said to promote tranquility and calm. You can hear how peaceful the music is in this selection. Next while looking into modern Chinese music, I found out that the popular music has a modern ballad style that include changes in tempo and the arrangements to keep up with the times. It still maintains a simple arrangement. Artists tend to keep their song in one key to not make it sound strange. In this song I like the simple sound. Finally I wanted to look into the dance styles in China. I was interested to read into the style of Wu Shu. It is similar to Kung Fu, but includes more dance and acrobatics. The dance is constantly evolving and adding ...

    When I listen to music, I tend to like to listen to more mellow music and most of it is classified as “R&B/Soul.” This is the main reason I picked Soul, decided to go more in depth with the genre, and teach you about it while I learn more about it as well.   Soul music is a product of the 1950s America. It bloomed from African American Gospel music after segregation in the late 1800s caused church to be separated. Since the church was split, it forced the African Americans to build their own churches and create their own worship songs. At the time of the creation of these separated churches, the birth of two types of soul music formed through the gospels they were singing.   After the songs were later rewritten with new lyrics, the two types started to separate themselves. The more upbeat songs with a quicker tempo turned into the up-tempo soul songs, while some of the slower tempo songs turned into love songs that had more romantic meanings. An exa...

For my musical interview, I decided to talk to my dad about he grew up with music. He grew up near the same town I did, so I was wondering how the culture if where we grew up and his parents had an affect on what he listed to. Me: Hey dad, I have a few questions for you about the music you listened to when you were growing up, and how it shaped what you listen to now. Dad: Alright go for it. Me: Okay, first I was wondering what types of music you listened to when you were growing up? Dad: Honestly, I listened to almost every type of music, but we mostly listened to classic rock. Me: why did you listen to classic rock? Was it someone in the family? Dad: Usually my dad chose to listen to it on the radio, so I just grew up with it being played all of the time when we were at home or in the car. Me: So, what music do you typically like to listen to now? And what caused your music taste to change over time? Dad: Right now, I’ve been listening to mostly music from the ‘90s an...

  For my blog this week, I wanted to learn about the music of Madagascar. I started by looking into the popular music right now. Currently one of the more popular genres throughout Madagascar is Salegy . It is a type of electric music with a more upbeat tempo. The energizing beats of the salegy are commonly played for people on the dance floor. It has been popular among the people of Madagascar since the mid-1900s. Typically, the music is played continuously to keep the energizing vibes for the people. Although I was able to listen to the whole hour of this selection. I was initially very intrigued by the sound as soon as I turned it on. Second I wanted to look into the more traditional styles of music in Madagascar. When searching about the traditional music, I found that Valiha  is one of the main staples of traditional music. It is a chordophone with sixteen strings. The sound of it is similar to a harp. Originally, it belonged to two ethnic groups but ended up spreading to...

While we were talking about the powwows in class, I found myself very interested in the styles of dancing they performed. It made me wonder what some other types of dances may occur and what the meaning behind the dances were. While talking about the different types of dancing that occur, I was curious to see if there were any other types of dances or dances that are not as commonly performed. One very interesting dance form I came across was the hoop dance. I found it interesting while searching hoop dances  that the hoops even have deeper significance behind them. The hoops are representative of a circle that can show how all the problems that are created can link back to the originator and the person that should be responsible. In the dance, one to thirty hoops are typically used. The hoops are used to make shapes and tell many different stories.    In an article about powwow dances  , I discovered that some of the more traditional dances, reflected the times from...

  Hello! I am Karsyn and I am a freshman here at Converse. I don’t have much music experience, but I was captain on the drill team/ dance team in my high school’s band. I love listening to mostly any types of music. I think it can very relaxing or very uplifting to listen to music during my day-to-day life.                I had lived all of my life in the south- western Pennsylvania, but I am excited for the new experience of living in the south. Before Converse, I was on a competitive gymnastics team for almost ten years, which led to my decision to be on the acrobatics and tumbling team here at Converse. Here at Converse, I plan to be either a Biochemistry or Chemistry major.                  My go to style of music currently is R&B/soul. I like the somewhat calming aspects of the music and I feel as if I could always chill out...