This was a great idea. I love the fact that I will get to visualize the results in a way that doesn’t mean clicking onto so many sites. The analytics course is my last one and I am signed up for it in the fall.  The evolution of my list was an interesting process. I started out with pieces like Chuck Berry and Mozart’s because I knew them well and thought they would naturally make it on my list. After spending some time listening to the selections and spending Canada Day fighting with family over what “had” to make it on my list, I was left with 10 songs that sent chills down my spine and opened my mind to a more diverse world of music. 11 songs was my magic number so I feel obliged to mention the Bulgarian song “Izlel je Delyo Haydutin” as the bridesmaid. The list is strictly a measure of how the music made me feel. Having played piano and song in choirs, these songs connected with me far more than those that didn’t include voice. With out further ado and in no particular order:

1. Bach, Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F. First Movement – Bach has always held a special place n my heart. The children’s CD “When Bach Comes to Call”, references the Golden Record on Explorer’s mission.

2. Bach, The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 2, Prelude and Fugue in C, No.1. Glenn Gould, piano. – Bach as above, and of course Glenn Gould’s version is special for Canadians.

3. Bach, “Gavotte en rondeaux” from the Partita No. 3 in E major for Violin

4. Navajo Indians, Night Chant, recorded by Willard Rhodes. – This was the one that skimmed into the group like a person catching a subway train as the doors close. I didn’t realize how infecting the chant would become over time.

5. Melancholy Blues,” performed by Louis Armstrong and his Hot Seven Louis Armstrong plays a free and easy style that makes your sadness feel shared. This song speaks volumes about the movement that has gripped the planet as we begin to realize how certain segments of the population have not had a voice. While this voice has always been heard the sound is different in this day and age.

6. Beethoven, Fifth Symphony, First Movement – This song raises music to a level of communication that may speak more about our world than any written work. The ups and downs. The crescendos. I hear debate, war, stormy weather, and love.

7. “Dark Was the Night,” written and performed by Blind Willie Johnson

I hear pure meloncholy in this piece. It’s the taste of sadness we all know but never want to talk about.

8. India, raga, “Jaat Kahan Ho,” sung by Surshri Kesar Bai Kerkar 

My daughter’s recent trip to Rajisthan has got me interested in the music of this wonderful part of India.

9. Georgian S.S.R., chorus, “Tchakrulo,” collected by Radio Moscow.  

As a young student, I was a choir boy and my daughter also followed in my footsteps. I am always amazed by the powerful strength found in a group of voices. It feels like they are all allowing each other to sing more powerfully because of the srength in numbers. We all struggle when singing solo. It’s the power of the group that makes us feel able to let it rip.

10. Australia, Aborigine songs, “Morning Star” and “Devil Bird,” 

I hear a didgeridoo and I have to stop and bounce around like a teenager again. This song went on to expand into other sounds and chanting voices that left a rhythmic mark on my soul.