4B-Song Critique

http://www.youtube.com/my_videos?feature=mhum
Song Critique

3B-Soundscape Critique

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVhz5lOHbYI
Soundscape Critique of Ashton, Tony, and Mark.

Music/Song

http://www.box.net/shared/7l552033u8



By:Annalisa

4A-Brainwashed

Brainwashed-Seth Godin

Make Art

Seth Godin’s Brainwashed is an eye-opener to the idea that we are becoming mechanized and are not becoming all that we can be. We are simply striving to be plain, normal, and boring. This is dangerous for us and for the future of the world. In this section he talks about making art and how everyone is capable of making art. “Art is an original gift, a connection that changes the recipient, a human ability to make a difference.” Art is when we interact with another human and by this action we create something that wasn’t there before. There are no instructions for art because it is new every-time. The last point he makes is that art is risky but it is all worth it.

Ship

This idea to ship goes along with the idea of making art. In order to make art there needs to be someone who is willing to ship his or her ideas out there. There would be no art if only one individual saw the piece and it is impossible to connect with another human being if there is no connection. To ship is to get things done, to make things happen, and creating the outcomes. There are many individuals who have great ideas but are unwilling to share the ideas because of the risk of failure. “Quieting the lizard, acknowledging it and then ignoring it-it’s the only way.”

This blog has increased my need for more art in my life. I enjoy trying to learn the proper ways of discussing art and learning more about different works. This blog has indeed helped me become more aware of art but I do not know if it has made me a better artist. It is hard to put a deadline on art. I think the hardest part is having only one week to do a project that would require at least two weeks. Blogging about ideas has helped me ship out my ideas to others and think about things in another way than I usually do. It helps me see what others students are capable of and helps me learn new things. I am now more aware of what is art and that there is a strong need for artists in every workplace.

 

3A-Demo

Iron & Wine-Such Great Heights

The Postal Service-Such Great Heights

“Such Great Heights” is one of those songs where no matter how the artist rearranges the notes behind the lyrics, it will change anyone’s emotions. The lyrics in each of these songs stay the same in the sense that there is no spontaneity in adding words. These artists change the feelings of the song by how they speak the words. The only similarity that can be heard is the fact that the lyrics have not changed in each of the songs. The artists have taken a completely different feel on the musical portion of the work. These two different versions give the listener a completely different experience

There is a definite text and subtext of each of these songs. In the Iron & Wine version there is a more melancholy feel for such a happy song. For example, “I think it’s a sign that the freckles in our eyes are mirror images and when we kiss they’re perfectly aligned.” The sounds behind the words are not upbeat but more easygoing compared to the Postal Service version. As I listen to the Iron & Wine version I feel very somber and relaxed compared to the lyrics. Reading the lyrics makes me very happy and makes me want to sing along compared to my mood from the subtext.

The Postal Service version has a feeling of tension and release. During the entirety of the song there is a beat that never ends and keeps the speed fast. The lyrics are also overlapped and this causes the listener to never have a break for just the sounds. There is a never-ending circle of voices in this version. The Postal Service uses the sounds in the background to keep the intensity high and to not know where the song will go next. The only release that happens is when the song is slowly ending and there are no lyrics. The organization of this piece is a little more chaotic than I&W’s because there are many sounds that come in at different times. During the I&W piece, the organization is steadier and there is not that much depth in the sense that there are a lot of instruments being played. In I&W’s piece, the intensity stays the same and is lead by his voice. He keeps his voice at a steady volume and a lower pitch. It is almost like he is singing a lullaby instead of a love song. There is a definite order to the organization during this piece and which gives it a steady beat.

This is a tough call on which song I like better. It definitely changes when my mood changes but I have a lot of history with this song. I would have to say that the Postal Service version is my favorite for many reasons. I do like the Iron & Wine version but it gets old listening to the same steady organized beat over and over again in a three-minute song. I like the fact that the Postal Service has taken a melancholy song and has turned it into something that is upbeat and has a similar feel to the lyrics in the song. I also like the fact that the Postal Service has added a background vocal to make the listener feel like the singer was talking to an actual lover. It gives the song a realistic touch.

             

 

Soundscape Dan & Annalisa

 or go to http://danielrambacher.blogspot.com/

2- Finding Your Howl- Jonathon Flaum

Finding Your Howl by Jonathon Flaum

1B- 14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas- Mitch Ditkoff

14 Ways to Get Breakthrough Ideas by Mitch Ditkoff

This article was one that inspired and intrigued me. It is always hard to find ideas when your brain is always doing the same thing over and over to find them but this article started to spark new ideas in my head. I am very interested in trying new ways to think about old ideas and to see what would become of this. In this article Ditkoff writes about how there are two different ways of innovating, the “I think therefore I am” and “I am therefore I think.” He points out that most individuals are a hybrid of these two schools of thought. This is exactly what we need in this world to find new innovative ideas that are somewhat practically but at the same time are able to let us fly and try something new. The three approaches that I found the most interesting and would like to write about are 6. Define the right challenge, 10. Hang out with diverse groups of people,14. Suspend logic.

6. Define the Right Challenge

Almost all of the suggestions that Ditkoff introduced were great and new suggestions to me or I already knew them and saw them in a new light as a way to find innovation. Everyone these days is trying to find a new idea but is not starting the process in the way that would give them the best results. I am a strong believer in first finding the REAL problem whichever way is perfect for the individual. Ditkoff talks about framing the challenge that is set before you before you try and tackle it so that you do not get lost in the other information or the other information may be able to spark an idea. Right now I am in two consulting business groups and what we call framing is called baselining. It consists of asking questions about every aspect of a business so that we have a strong understanding of what the business is truly about and what powers the business. This activity helps us find the true problem to the business because most problems are really from a completely different part of the business. This process has taught me to look at the big picture so that I can ask the right questions and find the right answers because I have all the information in front of me. This is a very good suggestion in my field because if I do not know what I am looking for then how would I ever be able to solve it.

10. Hang out with Diverse Groups of People

A hermit may get an idea but without interacting with other people and the world he will not know if it is innovative or will not see what the true needs are. When we are around the same people all the time we will almost always think the exact same way and do the exact same things. There is no change or mixing up the regular path because there are no variables in the situation. If you have not noticed before new people in your life can change the way you think about things because they see things in a different light than you may ever see them in. But when we are just seeing the same people individuals will start to fall into groupthink. This is because no one is challenging them to second guess what they are seeing because it has already been established what the group would think. Another suggestion that he proposed was about discomfort and hanging out with different and new people is definitely one way of finding discomfort. Throwing yourself into new problems and new places can help you second-guess your true reality. Artists do this all the time because the art that they produce is usually a different reality and lets the viewer jump into their lives and see things from a different point of view. I agree that to find a new and brilliant idea there must be some form of tension and or new surroundings. If you do the same thing over and over again you will always get the same result.

14. Suspend Logic

Logic is a main aspect of American culture. If there is no practical reason for an idea then why even have the idea in the first place. But that is not how the best ideas are formed. Everyone thought that Einstein was crazy because he thought of ideas and plans that didn’t seem practical at the time but now are common knowledge. Daydreaming is how artists change a normal idea into something fantastic and new. When people are stuck in the same humdrum of noise and just think about what is practical they are not letting themselves go to another form of thinking that could free their mind. Daydreaming for a child is almost their reality and as we start to learn the practical information in school we start to lose what our imagination and usually never go back to having one. There is no way that an artist would ever be able to think of wonderful ideas if they thought about them in only one reality. We all need a distant world that is not like ours to find new ways of thinking and new ideas. Challenging our brain to not think the way that we always think is one great way to get innovative ideas.

Prompt 14:

I have always fallen habit to only thinking things that are practical can be useful and meaningful. But this is a major problem and has sometimes halted my brain to think of new ideas and new solutions to a problem. I usually go straight to the point and do not look around at other things that may help solve my problem. I have also always thought that daydreaming was a great way of getting ideas but am so lost on how to do it anymore. This week when I have time or even when I do not have time I would like the daydream and just that. I would like to let my mind go free. Another way that I may be able to suspend practicality is when I have to write my next paper instead of starting the paper maybe draw or paint for a little before so that I can get new ideas about the paper.

 

1A- Always an artist.

There has not been a day in my life where I did not create something. I am always seeing everything in a different light or different meaning. I take in inspiration from everyday things such as how someone walks and try to figure out a way to incorporate those images or movements into my dance. I have always lived and breathed dancing. It is my way of expressing my feelings and letting my creative side run wild. A deep connection with the audience or just trying to change a simple move into a complex one is my main goal. I enjoy content that makes the audience's mind think and try to think deeper into what is really being viewed or heard. As an artist, it was easy to make the audience second guess what they know. I have always been interested in this sort of mind changing art and try to put these techniques into my own art. I am an artist and will forever be one.

I may just be a media management major but I will always want to be involved in the creative side of this industry. I am always interested in music. Every aspect of making a record interests me but I am the most interested in the lyrics. No matter what the background noise is I mainly listen to what is being said and how it is being said. There has been one man that has always been able to inspire me in his career and that is the clever and witty, John Mayer.

John has always been able to touch my soul and muster up feelings that I may not want to feel or do want to feel. His ironic and sometimes misdirecting text make a simple song seem innocent but they are really about something entirely different. There are so many examples such as “Assassin.” The listener may think that the song is about an assassin by these lyrics, “I was a killer, was the best they’d ever seen” but then he hits you with, “I’d steal your heart before you ever heard a thing.” Even the video makes him appear to be an assassin but then it shakes up the viewer's brain. He is truly talking about being able to break hearts but the name of the song is misdirecting you and making you think deeper into what the song is truly talking about. His work has always made me think deeper into what I want to say and how to turn words into art. I would love to get inside of his head and learn how he can turn something so simple into something complex. He is truly an artist.

From the minute that The Thin Red Line started, I was amazed. This movie is truly a film a viewer will never forget. Terrence Malick changes a scene into a feeling. His unique way to film a scene is what truly hit me as an artist. He does not simply put images on the screen but makes the audience feel they are there. For example in many of the scenes in The Thin Red Line, there is no action or diegetic noises it was just a solider and what their thoughts were at the moment. The Thin Red Line has a constant feeling of tension. Just playing what the soldiers are thinking is one way that he cranks up the tension in the film. This is when he uses silence to create tension and then when he finally lets the tension release, one minute later there will be even heavier tension. The one aspect of the film that struck me the most is that he could make the audience feel the same feeling that the character was feeling just by his cinematography. His work is a reason that I changed my major. He is very creative and is not like any other artists I can think of. He draws you in and keeps you in the story and when the film is done you feel that you belonged with the characters and the story. 

 

As a dancer, I can fully understand and am inspired by this great story. Darren Aronofsky has portrayed the life of a dancer perfectly. This is another example of a story appearing to be one idea and then changes into something that is entirely different. Ballet has always been seen as light, airy, and easy but in this film he touches on the completely different side of the spectrum, the dark side. During the entire movie, everything appears to be objective and Natalie Portman’s character is just a dancer that is trying to be the principal dancer. What the viewer will soon realize is that the movie is truly subjective. By the end the viewer will be questioning what truly happened to her and change the reality of the viewer. Darren Aronofsky is genius in the way that he can lead a viewer down one road and then the viewer will notice that they are on a totally different road. This movie is a piece of art and is an example of what hard work can give you. The movie has been in the works for around 4 years and is masterpiece in my eyes.