Music obviously plays a big role in every one's lives. Judgments are almost made immediately, once someone finds out the type of music you listen to. It draws people with similar tastes together, as well as seclude us from the rest of the world when we're alone in the subway. What I want to know is not why we are so drawn to these combinations of noises, but rather why we are so drawn to each different genre of music. Everyone has their own standards of what they consider "good music." So how would these standards reflect on the key aspects of each individual's life?
Some of my (naive?)interpretations are:
People look for the song's...
1. Ranking in Top 100 Songs- wants to keep up with the trends, and familiarize themselves with what's going to play on the radio/at other people's houses.
2. "Cool beat"- if not a dancer, then the person is probably looking to be accepted by a wide range of people. Trying to demonstrate their openmindedness, or at least tolerance, to everyone.
3. Technicality/Vocals- perfectionist. Does/judge things by the rules and what they've learned.
4. Lyrics- want to know they can relate to others. Or see music as a way of making a message into a wildfire.
5. Mood- wants to lose him/herself into a world created by the combination between the prior images that the person have seen and the sounds that he/she is currently hearing.
These interpretations are very vague, and I think I'm making a lot of assumptions here. But this is what my experience has led me to believe. I definitely do not think this can be a unit, or something that is even worth teaching. It is merely came out of my curiosity and desire to break down the different components in music and to see what they can say about a person.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Hypothetically Speaking
"I have a competition in me. I want no one else to succeed." [Daniel Plainview, There Will Be Blood]
Suppose we live a society where only the elites can survive. And suppose that everyone can only do one of the three things:
1. Obtain self-excellence (In video games terms, "buff" yourself)
2. Remain the same ("AFK BRB")
3. Debilitate another person ("debuff")
Which one would you do? What if you were under a time constraint to become the best. In the first option, you can become one of the elites through your hard work. But keep in mind, this will require many times as much effort and time. The second option will be the most boring, but at least you won't fail...nor succeed. The third option would be the easiest and the fastest. Although you don't improve, you can surely be the best if you "debuff" the people enough times- muhahaha.
Suppose we live a society where only the elites can survive. And suppose that everyone can only do one of the three things:
1. Obtain self-excellence (In video games terms, "buff" yourself)
2. Remain the same ("AFK BRB")
3. Debilitate another person ("debuff")
Which one would you do? What if you were under a time constraint to become the best. In the first option, you can become one of the elites through your hard work. But keep in mind, this will require many times as much effort and time. The second option will be the most boring, but at least you won't fail...nor succeed. The third option would be the easiest and the fastest. Although you don't improve, you can surely be the best if you "debuff" the people enough times- muhahaha.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Remember to Comment, Rate and Subscribe...Please
[We talked about this before in our last meeting, but I guess it took me several weeks for me to gather my thoughts and focus to blog about it---even now, I think this post is really broken up]
In the last meeting, I was talking about how much time, effort, and money we spend in order to trigger certain reactions from the people around you. How hard do we try so that people will comment, and momentarily revolve around us?
I would say that most people, or at least most teenagers- or at least most of the teenagers that I've met in my life, focus very much on trying to get these responses/approvals. I think this is the reason why people buy big shiny cars, buy nice clothes, put make-up on, go to the gym to work out, go to tanning salons, jack up the volume on their iPods while shaking his/her head frantically, etc. In one of essays that I wrote for the AWOL class I said, "In America, it is a rare to have people doing something for the sake of doing it. There has to be some sort of self-satisfaction, whether it in shape of a gift, money, return-service, tax-reduction, etc." And I think it still applies here. We're doing all these little things so that we can receive these comments that will satisfy our desire to be the center of attention.
This obsession for others approval may be the reason for our obsession for things like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc. Those web pages may just be another accessory to project him/herself to the world, and have the world comment on his/her status.
Perhaps we're doing all of this because it has always been our nature to put ourselves out there. As an infant, we always projected ourselves whenever we wanted something that only others can provide us. But as we grow out of the diaper changes and the nipple, the need for the attention remains (for some, the other two will return at a later age). It could also be that it is part of our animal instincts to demonstrate that amongst each other, each of us are number one, if not in the world then at least in our capitalist society. Or perhaps, it has to do with our constant exposure to the media. Almost every aspect of the movie is made to display information to the viewers, whether it be about the characters, the mood, or the plot. Maybe, in the same way, we feel like we need to recount our lives. We want people to know about us and what's going on in our lives, so that they can give us reviews. Regardless of what the reason is, I think that we spend great amounts of efforts in getting others to acknowledge us and comment on us.
Other than just putting in time, effort, and money to receive these comments, I think we're also sacrificing our private lives and thoughts. For those who are honest, their private lives/thoughts are no longer private since "the outsiders" are well aware of what goes on in your family and in your head. For all the others who think that their lives and thoughts are boring, theirs might as well not even exist, because even the host will not have it. In this case, most people create lives (not really thoughts) that they wish they had. And I guess this is how this blog would connect to Kate's blog about the masking. One reason we create masks would be to conceal the our boring lives, and instead we display something that can win the approval of others and possibly trigger responses and comments.
In the last meeting, I was talking about how much time, effort, and money we spend in order to trigger certain reactions from the people around you. How hard do we try so that people will comment, and momentarily revolve around us?
I would say that most people, or at least most teenagers- or at least most of the teenagers that I've met in my life, focus very much on trying to get these responses/approvals. I think this is the reason why people buy big shiny cars, buy nice clothes, put make-up on, go to the gym to work out, go to tanning salons, jack up the volume on their iPods while shaking his/her head frantically, etc. In one of essays that I wrote for the AWOL class I said, "In America, it is a rare to have people doing something for the sake of doing it. There has to be some sort of self-satisfaction, whether it in shape of a gift, money, return-service, tax-reduction, etc." And I think it still applies here. We're doing all these little things so that we can receive these comments that will satisfy our desire to be the center of attention.
This obsession for others approval may be the reason for our obsession for things like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc. Those web pages may just be another accessory to project him/herself to the world, and have the world comment on his/her status.
Perhaps we're doing all of this because it has always been our nature to put ourselves out there. As an infant, we always projected ourselves whenever we wanted something that only others can provide us. But as we grow out of the diaper changes and the nipple, the need for the attention remains (for some, the other two will return at a later age). It could also be that it is part of our animal instincts to demonstrate that amongst each other, each of us are number one, if not in the world then at least in our capitalist society. Or perhaps, it has to do with our constant exposure to the media. Almost every aspect of the movie is made to display information to the viewers, whether it be about the characters, the mood, or the plot. Maybe, in the same way, we feel like we need to recount our lives. We want people to know about us and what's going on in our lives, so that they can give us reviews. Regardless of what the reason is, I think that we spend great amounts of efforts in getting others to acknowledge us and comment on us.
Other than just putting in time, effort, and money to receive these comments, I think we're also sacrificing our private lives and thoughts. For those who are honest, their private lives/thoughts are no longer private since "the outsiders" are well aware of what goes on in your family and in your head. For all the others who think that their lives and thoughts are boring, theirs might as well not even exist, because even the host will not have it. In this case, most people create lives (not really thoughts) that they wish they had. And I guess this is how this blog would connect to Kate's blog about the masking. One reason we create masks would be to conceal the our boring lives, and instead we display something that can win the approval of others and possibly trigger responses and comments.
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