not_entirely: (Default)
not_entirely ([personal profile] not_entirely) wrote in [community profile] fandomhigh2006-08-14 02:18 am
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History of Earth Music, Monday afternoon

Lucas was back in his chair. Today, the stereo system also had a television perched on top of it.

"Right, so, last week we talked about radio and records and how they changed the face of music, bringing it to a larger audience and opening it up for more people to listen to and enjoy. This brought on about a bazillion (and yes, that's a precise statistic) more music genres to the field--many, many more than we'd ever be able to cover in one summer workshop. We're talking swing, big band, early rock and roll, doo wop, folk-rock, classic rock, disco, R&B, motown, rap, country, hip-hop, alternative, indy, electronica, techno, trance, heavy metal, punk . . . the list goes on and on and on. And for most of the 20th century, radio and audio recordings ruled the world of music. Then things changed again, starting, I believe, with the Beatles, who started making movies. Case in point: A Hard Day's Night. They weren't the only ones, but they're considered the big-wigs of music innovation in the second half of the 20th century, so we give them their dues. After this, people came up with a brilliant concept: making music videos. After that came MTV, then VH1, neither of which really play videos any more. . . . but what can you do?"

Lucas hit a button on the remote, and Video Killed the Radio Star started playing.

"How did video change the face of music? Well, first off, as the Buggles so succinctly tell us, it killed the radio star. Now, to be a big name in music, you didn't just have to sing, you had to look neat. I've got some examples here: some videos tell a story along with the song, some are just televised concerts. Some are just kind of weird.

"Let's see what you think. How has the popular application of music videos changed music? Is it a good thing, or a bad thing? What do you like to see in music videos? What pisses you off?"

Once the discussion had pretty much wrapped up, Lucas went on. "Next week is our last class. We'll be talking about the future of music on Earth. I want you all to think about this over the week. How is modern technology continuing to affect music? What do you think popular music will be like in the next ten years? Twenty? Fifty? We'll talk about that next week, and I'll see about getting you guys a bit of a special treat. Thanks."

[ooc: Links are to youtube.com videos, and the contents may not be safe for work. Feel free to link to other examples of videos in the discussion or what have you, but please let us know if they're work safe. We want to keep our jobs, after all.]

Re: sign in

[identity profile] walter-n-wires.livejournal.com 2006-08-14 08:09 am (UTC)(link)
Walter signed in

Re: sign in

[identity profile] mmmanchovies.livejournal.com 2006-08-14 11:11 am (UTC)(link)
Fry signed in

Re: Discussion

[identity profile] mmmanchovies.livejournal.com 2006-08-14 11:14 am (UTC)(link)
"I think music videos are neat. They let you stare at the TV while listening to music instead of just listening to music and staring at the wall. That way, you get to tell your parents that you're watching something, even if it's just MC Hammer trying to keep his pants from falling down or psychedelic lights that move fast enough to give you an epileptic fit. The ones with unicorns are weird though."

Re: sign in

[identity profile] actingltcrumpet.livejournal.com 2006-08-14 01:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Archie signed in.

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[identity profile] moonbrain-tam.livejournal.com 2006-08-14 07:09 pm (UTC)(link)
River signed in.

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[identity profile] enginegirl.livejournal.com 2006-08-14 07:43 pm (UTC)(link)
Kaylee signed in.

Re: OOC

[identity profile] sogothcally.livejournal.com 2006-08-15 12:30 am (UTC)(link)
Best Music Video Ever (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9FDNLvfHrU)...

Re: Discussion

[identity profile] actingltcrumpet.livejournal.com 2006-08-15 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
"I have to admit I don't understand the concept," Archie said. "I always thought of music as a medium in which, if anything, one went to watch the musicians playing. Some of these abstract videos seem to . . . well, they detract from the music for me. But that may be simply because I'm not used to them."