Listening Journal Week 1

Not having my text yet, I was unable to listen and find to all of the pieces on the music list. However, the ones that I was able to listen to, offered some great insight to American Music. The first one I listened to was Barbary Allen performed by Jean Ritchie. I enjoyed that this piece was a cappella with just a simple vocal line. Her voice was clear and had a celtic tonal influence. The next piece I listened to was Soldier's Joy performed first by Old tanner and the Skillet Lickers and second by Tommy Jarnell. Although the same song, the second piece was a variation of the piece. Both pieces had Appalachian influences an fiddle techniques. This piece, as well as the next two pieces reminded me of the movie, "O Brother Where Art Thou". The Coo coo and Long John were pieces that reflected African American Culture and offered some insight into early African American Pieces. I was unable to find a recording of Enrique Nigue, however was able to find Son De La Negra. Son De La Negra had a great Hispanic influence and used upbeat rhythms. Finally, Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair, culminated the American Art Song. Thomas Hampson's version was more classically sung than the other popular from different cultures. These pieces show how different cultures have effected American Popular Music. America is often called "the melting pot" and these pieces definitely represented many different cultures of America.