Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Weblog Journal #4

The role of my music in my life... This is such a huge topic to tackle and put into words, I don't really know of any other way to look at it other than how my experiences with music and my taste in music have evolved throughout my life:

Throughout my childhood I grew up listening to operas and classical music in the car. My mom grew up playing piano and often played in the house, so my first exposure to music was definitely classical. I also began playing violin when I was 7, which obviously got me even more interested in classical music and composers.

My first exposure to other genres of music (besides what was played on the radio) was through my older brother who was a huge fan of rap from a young age. So I began listened to Eminem in fourth grade, and I remember feeling exposed to a new world of music that I had no idea existed. I listened to all kinds of rap throughout middle school, which I suppose was linked with my adolescence and finding my own identity as a pre-teen/teenager.

During my freshman year of high school I was exposed to The Doors for the first time, and I became immediately obsessed. I went through a huge phase of getting really into 70's rock, like Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, as well as some 90's grunge and jam bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam. I suppose this also related to this typical rebellious teenage phase that most people go through.

Since high school, I've gotten into all sorts of new genres and artists, which probably has to do with meeting so many new types of people with various interests in college. My current obsessions are Tyler the Creator, OFWGKTA, and The Weeknd, as well as some electronic music like Infected Mushroom, Crystal Castles, and Big Gigantic. I always seem to be a few years behind with the new music scene; I find it rather stressful to stay on top of it all. Some of my favorite artists are in completely different genres of music, so I guess I like a little bit of everything, as long as it's music with some sort of deeper message. (Nothing annoys me more than all the overrated songs played on the radio. And furthermore, I think the best music that is produced, no matter the year, usually isn't played on the radio.)

In terms of music's role in conflict, I think ultimately music is a form of expression. It is a way to voice one's opinions, but I'm not sure if I would consider it a form of communication because an artist can record music, but he or she can't make people listen to it. I also don't think music can solve conflict in itself, perhaps other than exposing issues and problems that may otherwise go unnoticed. But I'm sure there are some counterexamples to this that I'm unaware of.

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