15 October 2014 (Wednesday)

Today 8 students came to talk music. The theme was "songs about rain or songs for a rainy day". 

But class started out with technical problems: In the unfamiliar room I couldn't get the laptop to display on the screen. As I kept trying different things to get it to work I taught the students the term "Murphy's Law" (definition), which basically means "Anything that can go wrong at the moment is going wrong." 

So a lot of time was wasted with technical problems before listening to music :-(

One of the students brought a guitar! But she is just at the beginning of starting to learn to play so she didn't have any songs to play for us yet. Perhaps in the next weeks?

Before listening to songs I clarified another couple of terms that often confuse students: "classic" and "classical":

"Classical" is music with an orchestra like Mozart or Beethoven or Bach.

"Classic" is a term that is used more broadly. For music is means songs or music that everyone likes. As an example of a "classic" song I played "Hey Jude" (video, lyrics, song info) by The Beatles (info).

There are also "classic" movies like "The Sound Of Music" (info + more on that below) or "It's A Wonderful Life" (info, which Americans traditionally watch during the Christmas holidays).

But colloquially "classic" is also used as an adjective to describe things that most people like. We often talk about "classic cars" like a 1967 Mustang (info).  

Or even among friends if someone tells a story that is typical of that person you can say, "That was a classic Steve thing to do (or say)".

Using the word "classic" in conversation will impress your American friends! But if you are talking about Mozart, say "classical"!

At this point I also had to do another of my classic Language Of Music explanations: define the word "cheesy".  This is a term Americans use *a lot*! It is hard to describe exactly what cheesy is, but I always say it is trying too hard to be creative. Here is one definition of it. 

The best way for me to define "cheesy" is to show this video: "Said I Loved You...But I Lied" (video, lyrics, song info) by Michael Bolton (info). Look how hard he is trying to impress us with his emotions and voice while standing on a mountain and fire all around him. Super-cheesy!

I also think Celine Dion (info) is cheesy in general, and especially the song/video for "My Heart Will Go On" (video, lyrics, song info), but this is where the subjectivity of what one person thinks is cheesy another feels is evocative.

Two students were talking about the guitar in class and asked me how the scale is sung in English. I told them we learn it from this song in the classic film "The Sound Of Music": "Do-Re-Mi" (video, song info with lyrics)

Finally we listened to a song on the "rain" theme: "Set Fire To The Rain" (video with lyrics, song info) by Adele (info). The song text is pretty self-explanatory and Adele has a great, classic voice.

I forgot to ask in class, but I should have posed this question: Why is Celine Dion cheesy but Adele isn't? Or is Adele cheesy, too?

The student who picked that song said Adele's voice reminds her of an Arab singer's voice, Asala Ad-El-Horouf. Unfortunately I can't find the song the student chose and I don't want to just guess. But I do remember hearing the similarities of her voice to Adele's!

At some point in the discussion the same student mentioned that she always listens to the singer Fayrouz (info) in the morning. It's "morning music" for her. Here a playlist of songs. 

(As an example of how much I personally learn from this class, I looked for Fayrouz's music in the Seattle Public Library and found out there is a DVD about her influence called "We Loved Each Other So Much" (info). I will watch it!)

This Middle Eastern music made me think of a singer's voice I loved when I was in my 20's: Ofra Haza (info). Specifically I loved her song "Im Nin'Alu" (video, song info). (Here's the traditional version of the song.)

But I explained to the class that I actually discovered her voice and that song in a rap song where it was sampled: "Paid In Full" (video, lyrics, song info) by Eric B & Rakim (info). It's always interesting to me to see how one song or artists leads people to another song/artist.

Now back to the rain theme: "November Rain" (video, lyrics, song info) by Guns N Roses (info). Again, the choice is pretty self-explanatory. While Guns N Roses is considered a hard rock band, the student who chose this song said he prefers their mellower songs, like this one.

I mentioned that the original bass player for Guns N Roses, Duff McKagan (info) is from Seattle. He moved to Los Angeles around age 18, joined Guns N Roses, got famous, left Guns N Roses and moved back to Seattle where he now lives. And he plays in a very cool new band from Seattle, Walking Papers (info). I showed the class their video for "Capital T" (video, lyrics). I also really like "Two Tickets And A Room" (video, lyrics). But they also have mellow songs. They are a good band, on their way up!

Because I had so many technical problems at the beginning of class that was all the time we had for the day. :-(  

Next week we will be in the same room (HUB 332) but this time I know how to make the equipment work, so we will have more time for music!  The theme for next class will be songs you listen to while studying. Or any other song you want to share!

8 October 2014 (Wednesday)

The second meeting of Fall Quarter and 13 students came to talk music.

Since there were so many new students we did another quick round of introductions.

To start the conversation one student said he had experienced his first concert in the US: Kasabian (info) at The Showbox downtown (info) this past weekend. Because going to concerts abroad is such a cool cultural experience and because The Showbox is *my* personal favorite concert hall in the world I was really excited to hear about his experience. He liked the show, especially getting to see the band up so close. I asked which song by Kasabian is his favorite and he said it is "Fire" (video, lyrics, song info). They played this song toward the end of the concert.

(My favorite Kasabian song is "Where Did All The Love Go?" (video, lyrics, song info) -- it's on my phone and I like to listen to it while walking or driving.)

Another student said he wants to see some concerts in Seattle. One great concert hall right in the University District is The Neptune Theater (info). Excellent bands often play there. 

Here is a list of *all* concerts big and small coming to Seattle: Pollstar website.

On the topic of knowing which cultural things are happening in Seattle I told the class about the free(!) weekly newspaper The Stranger (website). Reading the articles -- especially interviews, which are transcripts of how people talk! -- is a good way to practice English and it's also the best place to find out what is happening in the city for all kinds of culture -- art, music, food, movies. It comes out every Wednesday and can be found in cafes and around the UW; it's very easy to find. And it's free!

Speaking of Seattle music and The Neptune, one of my favorite singers from Seattle, Mark Lanegan (info) is playing The Neptune on 29 October. Lanegan's style isn't for everyone -- his songs are pretty depressing and in his concerts he the lights are low and he doesn't move -- but he is a legend. And I personally love his music. 

If you want to hear some of his music, here's an acoustic set he did in Seattle this past summer. But this is more like what the concert on the 29th will be like. (One of my favorite songs of his is "Resurrection Song" which starts at 7:57 in the second video).

If you don't like Lanegan's music, I won't take offense; I understand he's not an easy listen. But he's an artist I grew up with so I associate my youth in Seattle with him and his music.

Actually, in 1990 before Kurt Cobain (info) was ever famous, he played on a Mark Lanegan solo album, playing "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" (lyrics, song info). Nirvana later famously covered that same song on their unplugged album. But Kurt got the idea from Lanegan! Lanegan version with Cobain; Nirvana version. By now you probably wonder what the original version of this song sounds like. "In The Pines" (video) by Lead Belly (info).

The next song chosen was "Clock Strikes" (video, lyrics) by One OK Rock (info). The student who chose this song discovered them by following links from other band and loves their bands lyrics (even though she doesn't speak Japanese -- she looks them up and translates them online). She said their live clips are even better than this official video.

Here's a review of their first concert in the US, in Los Angeles this past February; sounds like a great show! I wonder if they will come Seattle some time... Maybe in 2015?

The next song chosen was a band with a Japanese reference in their name, Tokio Hotel (info), but the band is from Germany. The song chosen was "Run, Run, Run" (video, lyrics, song info). We talked about the idea of "running" and whether it's a negative, like running away from problems, or if it can be a positive. 

On that theme, one of my current favorite songs is called "Rowing" (video, lyrics, song info) by Soundgarden (info; another Seattle band from my youth) -- I like the lyric "Don't know where I'm going, I just keep on rowing". I like that the song is about moving forward. So maybe sometimes running -- or rowing -- forward is a good thing?

The next song was "My Love" (video, lyrics, song info) by Westlife (info). The student who chose this song said the songs relaxes him and is popular in Korea. He also said the song is popular among English learners. 

Then another student said that when she was learning English in school the teacher had a given the students a piece of paper with the lyrics where some words were omitted and that students had to fill in the missing words by listening to the song. I like that English learning exercise!

The next song was "Demons" (video, lyrics, song info) by Imagine Dragons (info). The student who chose it says she likes the lyrics of the song about seeking truth and people overcoming problems. 

I didn't realize that Imagine Dragons is a Christian band, but I can see from their lyrics that they use a lot of Christian imagery. One that topic I told the students about a local church called Mars Hill (website). Mars Hill is very controversial in Seattle for its very conservative positions on social issues, especially the role of men and women in marriage, but what is amazing for anyone, American or foreigner, to see is how Christianity is packaged as a multimedia "show" at this church: they have a live rock band on the stage and screens throughout the church. It is really amazing. I have told my American friends that they should see a service at Mars Hill to see how Christianity is presented in a modern way because it's so fascinating. But most of my friends won't go there because of the reputation of Mars Hill being so conservative. Nonetheless, I think that since going to church on Sunday is such a common thing for Americans to do it would be a good experience for international students to see what it is like.

The next song chosen was "Remote Control" (video) by Sussie 4 (info), a band from Mexico. This bands sings in a mix of English and Spanish, which is apparently a popular thing to do in Mexico currently. This is a collaboration between two bands. The song is about a relationship break up and the (guy) singer is saying he is glad the girl no longer controls him.

The last song of the day was "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)" (video with lyrics, song info). The student who chose it says she likes how emotional and full of love this song. It is also a Christian song.


With that the class was over for this week. It was good conversations! Since the Fall rain has started, the theme for this week is songs about rain or songs for a rainy day. But as always, any song is welcome, even if not according to that theme. 

Note, the next class on 15 October will be in a different room: HUB 332!

1 October 2014 (Wednesday)

Today was the first meeting of the Fall Quarter. Wow, basically 4 months since the last class! I was very much looking forward to finally doing the class again!

I knew many of the students from last year have returned home so I was curious to see how many would return again and how many new students would show up. Today 2 students from last year came plus 8 new students.

I introduced how the class works and asked each student to introduce themselves with their name, where they are from and what kind of music they like.

Then we started to share some songs we like!

The first song was chosen by one of the returning students. I asked what her song of the summer was and she said is was "Do Life Big" (video, lyrics, song info) by Jamie Grace (info). She had heard it for the first time at a friend's house and immediately loved it; it made her feel happy and energized. I agree, this is a great summer song, a great song to listen to in the car while driving around.

The next clip was chosen by the other returning student. It wasn't exactly a song, rather the film trailer to a movie he had seen which was about an indie band: "Frank" (video, film info). He said the movie is actually better than the clip and the music is good in it, too.

Now we moved to a song chosen by a new student. She chose "Counting Stars" (video, lyrics, song info) by OneRepublic (info). The student had heard this song the first time last Christmas in California. She likes how it's about struggles and dreams. I think this is also a good summer song for listening to while driving :-)

The next song was "Heal The World" (video, lyrics, song info) by Michael Jackson (info). The student who chose it says this is his favorite Michael Jackson song. I asked the class if it's possible for humanity to "heal the world" but while everyone said yes, it's possible, it's not clear how to achieve that goal. Ah, and therein lies an age-old conundrum.

The next song chosen was "Shape Of My Heart" (video, lyrics, song info) by Sting (info), which I must admit is one of my favorite songs, so I was happy to hear it. The student who chose it knows it from the movie "Leon" (info), which most of the class is familiar with but I have never heard of. (I have to warm my classes every year that I am not a movie guy so there are many movies and actors/actresses who I am not familiar with.)

"Shape Of My Heart" musically always reminds me of another Sting song: "Mad About You" (video with lyrics, song info). Both songs have a melancholy to them. I explained the meaning of the word "longing" to describe "Mad About You".

[Note that to be "mad about someone" means you are crazy about them in a positive way, like to be in love with them. To be "mad at someone" means you are angry at them. Just one preposition makes a big difference in these two similar sentences!]

The last song of the day was "Riverside" (video, lyrics, song info) by Agnes Obel (info). Again, this is one of my favorite songs! (Looks like I will enjoy the music chosen by the class this quarter!) The student who chose this song likes her voice and the piano, even if it's a sad song. I really love her singing on this song. Her voice sounds so "round" to me.

As I was writing this blog I read that "Riverside" was used in the very popular TV drama "Grey's Anatomy" (info) which is set in a hospital in Seattle. Here's the clip with "Riverside" in the background.


With that the first class of the new school year was over. Next week's theme is simply "The songs you have been listening to the most in the past week" so that I can learn more about what kind of music the students like. Of course, as always, any song for any reason is welcome.