Overview
I tried to make my selections reflect the diversity of music across the world along with across time. There were a number of classical/orchestral tracks, so I tried to pick just one. Variety was the main focus I had in mind as I curated the 10 pieces of music. As the podcast described, picking music that reflects earth and humans is no easy endeavour. Instruments and voices extend beyond cultures as do tempos and harmonies. From the perspective of this week’s readings, the discussion of preservation as it relates to culture was striking. Who chooses what we preserve? Are they an appropriate arbiter of determining what is worthy and what is not? Who is being cater to? Would an extraterrestrial appreciate a particular sound or tempo over another? If one knew, would it change their choices?
Even collecting these 10 selections as a group may influence how they are construed together It is similar to how Smith (1999) describes the benefits and drawbacks of using digitization as a preservation technique. In the podcast, they also discussed the rationale for using the copper and gold album (and their inclination to use it today if the project were to be redone) – I thought that was quite interesting as I was expecting them to take an audiophile approach that records sound better than digital audio but instead they discussed the tactile components of the media.
| Music Selection | Rationale |
| Wedding song – Peru
|
A beautiful song with vocal only was both lovely and haunting at the same time. This was the only track with a female voice, so I felt it was important to include. It goes to my diversity emphasis withing the selection process. |
| Tchakrulo – Choir – Georgia
|
The podcast called this a drinking song, but I liked the voices together more than their call for another drink. The harmonic singing is very impactful and worthy of its inclusion in the top 10. As above, the gender of the voices set it apart from other available pieces. |
| Johnny B Goode – Chuck Berry
|
I like the story behind the song. Wouldn’t image that extraterrestrials understand English, but the description of a time and place is a nice compliment to the other tracks. How the voice and instruments play off one another is also fun. |
| Melancholy Blues-L Armstrong&HisHotSeven
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I love how the instruments play off one another to tell a story of their own. I don’t find this track melancholy at all, as it always has a clarinet response to the trombone and trumpet; quite sassy actually. Selecting this track, it dawned on me of the fun (or challenge) of choosing the order of the tracks on the album. |
| Melanesian panpipes
|
If breathing had a song this would be it. Another track where it differs from more contemporary music and very unique. If the extraterrestrials did breathe then perhaps they would have a greater appreciation for this instrument and track. |
| El Cascabel-Lorenzo Barcelata&the Mari
|
Less aggressive a track than some of the higher-tempo options, I enjoy the rhythm of the tune. The vocals are a pleasing accompaniment to the instruments. With diversity in mind, I selected this track as it provided a difference sound than others. |
| Flowing Streams – China
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This instrument is so different from many contemporary North American instruments. It is a nice counterpoint to many of the other tracks. Britannica describes three main characteristics of Chinese music as linearity, transparency, and word orientation. |
| Cranes in their nest-Japan(Shakuhachi) | Instrumental only piece is calming to my ears and differs from much of the other music that includes vocals. The slower tempo was a nice change from much of the other music. Tranquility was not as evident in the other selected music. |
| Tchenhoukoumen, percussion Senegal
|
I enjoy the beat on this track and the increased tempo as it progressed. The rhythmic nature of this track is exciting but with an uplifting edge whereas some of the other tracks seemed very aggressive. I would describe this track as being beat-first rather than having the beat in the background. |
| Bach, Brandenburg no 2, part 1
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The complexity of this orchestration is what placed it among the top 10. The highs and lows along with the tempo changes is an idea juxtaposition to many of the other tracks. The variety of the instruments was also a nice compliment to many of the other pieces of music. |
Hey Sam,
I really appreciated your questions above about who chooses what we preserve and who are we catering too. They allowed me to reflect further on something that I continued to think about during this activity: what this record might look like had it been created by someone not in North America, or even not in Europe. Though we might try to be as inclusive and diverse as possible, we only have our own lived experiences. Though I’m sure this record was created with the counsel of many, it is still something to consider. This same thought goes for what we decide to preserve and digitize. How do we place value on information? What is important to some could be meaningless to others.