10 April 2013 (Wednesday)

19 students came today!!  

Because there were so many new/first-time students I did a quick introduction of the class again and had the students introduce themselves to the rest of the class.

I asked if an student would pick a first song for the group. The song chosen was "One More Day" (video, lyrics, song info) from the musical Les Miserables (info). 

As the group talked one of the other students mentioned he likes the song "Waka Waka" (video, lyrics, song info) by Shakira (info). After we watched a bit of that song I had to show the group the original version of that song from Cameroon (video), followed by the video clip of Shakira claiming to have written it herself! Apparenly Shakira's not the first to steal the song: here's another Latin American version of it.

The next song chosen was "Sad Tango" (video, song info) by Rain (info). The student who chose this song chose it because he likes the mix of strings with hip-hop.

Rain is actually from Korea, but he sings this song in Japanese. In fact, there is probably not a Korean version of this song; the Japanese version is the only one Rain did. The reason he sings this song in Japanese is that he can sell many more cds in Japan than in Korea. Apparently many Korean artists make songs just for the Japanese market.

One of the students this quarter is from Thailand and I asked him to pick a Thai song.  He chose "Live & Learn" (video with lyrics).

At this point a student raised his hand and said he has a song on his phone that he recorded from the radio but he doesn't know the name of the song. While he played the song off of his phone I used the Shazam app (info) to "listen" and figure out which song it is. The song was "Ho Hey" (video, lyrics, song info) by the Lumineers (info). Even though he can't understand the lyrics, the student who picked this song says he likes how the song makes him feel positive. It makes him think about how everything will be easier when he goes back to his home country.

The next song chosen was "Let It Go" (video, lyrics) by Wiz Khalifa (info) featuring Akon (info). The student who chose this song said he likes Akon a lot and this is his favorite Akon song.

Time was running out and we only had time for one more song.  The last song was chosen by an American woman who was visiting the class. I am glad to have additional American voices and perspectives to my own. She chose "Summertime" (video, song info) by Leontyne Price (info) because summer is coming. (Apparently there are over 25,000 recorded versions of the song "Summertime"!)


Unfortunately I had to end class a little bit early because I had an evening appointment. But next week I can stay longer and I look forward to learning more about the students' favorite music!

A note: some students have said they like jazz. This week, from 17 - 20 April, there is a jazz festival in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle (info). It will be a good chance to hear excellent jazz music and see the some local bars.

Speaking of jazz, here are some of the best places to see jazz music in Seattle:


Jazz Alley
The Triple Door
Tula's
Serafina (perfect restaurant for a romantic date!)
Egan's Ballard Jam House
The Royal Room (excellent jazz club, but you need a car to get there)