From whatever perspective you choose, discuss the influence of music technology and its effect upon contemporary musical composition.'

"From whatever perspective you choose, discuss the influence of music technology and its effect upon contemporary musical composition." Ever since music was first recorded advances in technology have been used with and around music to make the production, recording and performance of music much easier for the artist(s) behind it. As more and more technology did, and is being released onto the music scene, creation of genres and new instruments has been great. Ranging from new types of stringed instruments, to virtual instruments which have made a massive impact on music in the past 30 years. A lot of genres depend on virtual instruments and computers to even exist such as Hardstyle and Hardcore (not to be confused with the metal 'hardcore.') For 100's of years music in the western world has been following a set example of rules. Such as, how a piece sound be composed and what notes can be used with which notes and chords and what not. It was always a very large focus on tonality. But, due to the introduction of synthesized sound these rules have been indirectly rewrote as a lot of electronic music uses its own rules and is more focused on the sound they create rather than their musicality. Although, this being said, they do not completely ignore the previous rules that have been set up, it is better said that they bend the rules of musical composition. Speaking of the

  • Word count: 1272
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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'Life is a cabaret...' Do the events of the film support this view of Sally?

Cabaret 'Life is a cabaret...' Do the events of the film support this view of Sally? Sally's powerful closing song, in which she asserts that 'life is a cabaret', indicates her decision to turn away from reality. She chooses the world of the cabaret as a way forward in life over her real relationships with Brian or her father. The song's call to a frivolous life stands in stark contrast to the events portrayed in the film. Sally is characteristically ignorant of the fact that Berlin may be in any kind of serious trouble. She offers us a fantasy, for we can see that outside of the Kit Kat Club, life is anything but a cabaret. Bob Fosse depicts a politically unstable and economically depressed society on the verge of moral breakdown. Throughout the film, the audience comes to understand that the cabaret provides an escape from the burden of society's troubles. Fritz Wendel voices Berlin's exhausted attitude towards the devastating effects of inflation upon meeting Brian in the Kit Kat Club. The people's desperate need for change is also evident in the gradual acceptance of the Nazis, who offer stability, wealth, and a return to glory for a crumbling nation. Sally, however, revels in the 'divine decadence' of 1931 Berlin. Sally's defiant song challenges society's expectations of people. Her attitude towards all external problems throughout the film is to forge ahead in a

  • Word count: 878
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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Creative Writing - We stood imperially on the summit of this wondrous peak.

Ananda Kumar English Creative Writing Coursework We stood imperially on the summit of this wondrous peak. We had conquered the mighty North face of the Eiger, the most treacherous ascent in the Alps. Daniel Anker and I sat astonished on the summit grinning insanely at each other, unable to fathom words to describe our exultation. We watched the sky in awe as clouds rolled by. Just then, Daniel, who was naturally anxious about practically everything, spotted a group of storm clouds approaching menacingly towards our position. "Stop being so worried, its just some minor storm clouds, they'll pass," I said trying to comfort him. He was a fantastic climber and companion, but easily traumatised. The clouds did look slightly perilous, and my slight trepidation bubbled to my usually ice cold exterior. "You look kind of scared" Daniel replied. I ignored him. I felt a tension that hung in the atmosphere. There was a fizzing, crackling feel in the air around us as we pulled on the hemp ropes and our jackets rustled in the electric atmosphere. I looked deep into Daniel's eyes. He was horrified at the helplessness of our situation. We were at the mercy of nature. My worst fears had been realised. A storm was upon us. Just then there was a colossal explosion of thunder. We stared in mute amazement as ostentatious lightning, the colour of burnished gold, burst in

  • Word count: 1378
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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The 1960s.

G.C.S.E History Coursework Assignment the 1960s by Donna Whitfield The 1960s was the decade of change, revolution and freedom for both Britain and America. To many the 60's are remembered as the 'swinging sixties' a golden age, which was enjoyed immensely, but others blame the 1960's for some of the failings in society. In the mid 1950's Britain was recovering from a long period of economic hardship after a long and draining war. Shortages and austerity were still very much part of everyday life there was little mobility in Britain as most could not afford a car, the choice of radio stations could be counted on one hand all of which catered for adults not children. The concept of consumer choice was simply 'Can I afford it?' or 'do they have it in stock' the answer was usually no to both. Times were hard but this was soon to change. Britain suddenly seemed to emerge from its gloom, people believed for the first time in years that they could truly leave there troubles behind them. Like the USA, Britain enjoyed full employment and rising living standards. Things seemed to change very rapidly; fashions altered continuously, becoming more extreme. Skirts became shorter and shorter whilst colours became brighter and brighter. Music also changed, artists started to challenge traditional social views. They sang rock and roll music which adults strongly disapproved of, despite

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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"popular culture in the 1960's did more harm than good" Use the sources and your own knowledge to explain whether you agree with this view.

Coursework 960's "popular culture in the 1960's did more harm than good" Use the sources and your own knowledge to explain whether you agree with this view. The 1960's has caused many split opinions as to whether it was a bad or good influence on the young people in that era. There are many people who thought the '60's were a good influence sources A, D and I support this view. The quote 'it was very heaven to be alive' sums up the 1960's for many people. The 1960s also brought a lot of new opportunities that the previous generation had not had such as television programmes in the advert in source D which shows the rising importance of the teenagers. Source I is very good at showing the good influence of the 60's on the young people. However in source A may not be totally reliable as it was written in the 90's and was from the opinion of someone who was looking at their childhood with fond memories. Some people had argument for both a good influence and bad influence. These sources are sources C, E and H. The writers of these sources had both good and bad things to say about the 1960's. Source C sys 'it was never as crazy as they used to say it was.' Which goes against the perceptions of bad influences of pop music, however this source also suggests that there was some crazy and wild behaviour such as Johnny rays coat. This source is good because it is reliable and from

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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Asses the claim that youth cultures are hybrid cultures

Multicultural Youth: A critical reflection Asses the claim that youth cultures are hybrid cultures Our presentation was based on the topic area of multicultural youth. The question asked us to asses the claim that youth cultures are hybrid cultures. As a group we decided that we would tackle this question by using popular music as our point of focus. We felt that popular music was something that brought people together in a semi unified fashion irrespective of age colour or creed. For this reason it was agreed that the question of hybridity could be addressed by using popular music as our main point of discussion. We also felt that it was necessary to address some of the points that were raised within the lecture that corresponded with the question, however we also felt that it was necessary to draw upon the information that we received from other topics within this unit. For example, club cultures, street style and consumption. We felt that the amalgamation of all these idea would provide us with a wholesome and informative presentation. The points that we wished to highlight were issues of race and ethnicity, style and consumption and aspects of rave culture. We also felt that it was important to show the hybridity of popular music in youth culture and as a result we paid particular attention to Madonna because we believed that her music provided a good example of

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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If I have to choose one thing that I'm passionate about, then I would have to choose music. Ever since I bought my first CD 10 years ago, it has permeated me in every way I can possibly think

If I have to choose one thing that I'm passionate about, then I would have to choose music. Ever since I bought my first CD 10 years ago, it has permeated me in every way I can possibly think. After that first experience, I quickly dived into my own sister's extensive music collection to catch up on all I've been missing out on. Everything about it just appealed to me in ways I never thought possible. My passion for music comes in two forms. The first form is listening to it. Listening affects me in so many ways. In some ways, it will energize me, especially after concerts. After the last show I went to, Darkest Hour, I found myself yelling in excitement every so often in my car on the way home. I just felt like I could take on the world and go running for ten miles. It's such an amazing rush. This I usually get from my more hardcore taste in metal and rock. It's like pure adrenalin. Another way music is so passionate to me is in it's ability to let me escape from myself for an average of six minutes of a time. For example, there is this song by the band Tool, called Third Eye. The emotion I feel in this song is so astronomical to me. The intricacies of the guitar with the rhythmic drums, in addition to the lyrics and the voice of the singer, just whisks me away every time to another place that lays inside the music. I can just shut my eyes and see myself

  • Word count: 569
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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Metallica - Compare 2 videos

Compare the debut (or a very early) music video of a long-running and successful band, with a recently released video. The two videos must be at least 10 years apart. Both the videos that I have chosen are from Metallica's DVD titled 'The Videos, 1984 - 2004.' Metallica are a heavy metal band and are now icons of the genre. Their earlier albums had made them legends, but in their most recent album, St. Anger (2003), their image had changed completely. They changed their genre from heavy metal to a more hard rock band. Video 1: ENTER SANDMAN (1991) The plot of the music video directly relates to the theme of the song and combines shots of the band playing with images of a child having nightmares. The video has a dark and gloomy mood; matching the song, and there is a constant fear of something popping out and scaring you. The narrative suits the sludgy music and James Hetfield's twisted lullaby lyrics. The lyrics are malicious and the song even includes a small prayer from the child. While the child is praying, the 'Sandman' is watching the child. In the first scene, a child is seen sleeping on his bed in his bedroom. Using lightning effects, the 'Sandman', fades in gradually into a close up shot. The lighting gets dimmer as the song progresses. The video keep changing shots from the band playing the song, to the kid having a nightmare. In the shots of the band playing,

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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Can music be blamed for crime and violence?

Can music be blamed for crime and violence? By Kara Francis Since the beginning of time, music has been the heart and soul for people all over the world, creating stress-relieving bliss that only music can provide. For every emotion felt, there is a song expressing it whether it is sombreness or anger. Violence and Crime is often blamed on the artists' ability to communicate their souls. I'm here to inform and persuade you that music cannot be blamed for crime and violence. The lyrics of a song can be interpreted in many different ways depending upon the individual. These interpretations are often very different to the intentions of the artist and can spark untrue accusations to the artist, who can be blamed for the "secret messages" in the lyrics. Throughout history music has been blamed for crime and violence. In the 1950's the relationship between African Americans and white Americans, was very limited. African American music such as Blues Jazz and Rap was often blamed for the crimes that African Americans committed on white people. Obviously this was mainly a cause of racism but still controversy surrounded the issue. White Americans believed that the African American music was associated with the devil. In the 1960's the Beatles were blamed for the Charles Manson massacre because one of their songs was playing while the murders occurred. The Beatles were a

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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"Where is the love?"- Black Eyed Peas

"Where is the love?"- Black Eyed Peas * What is the social & historical background to the song? - What? It is about how war and terrorism are affecting out world and it focuses on the bad decisions and poor role models in society. It talks of bombing, terrorism, discriminations of all kinds, and the type of values that we as a nation are not showing the youth of today. (1) - When? This song was written around the time of the attacks on the World Trade Center in NYC. (1) - Where? America (1) - Who? Black Eyed Peas and Justin Timberlake sang the song. (1) - Why? It is to raise the awareness of how much others are suffering in the world and for people around the world to reflect about the events that show the ugly and dirty side of the world. It encourages us to spread some love and not to discriminate. Thus, it is also written to free people from discrimination. (3) - How? One can be easily captivated by this song, not because he/she is an avid fan, or lover of this particular musical genre, but because the lyrics when listened carefully express the often all-to-well-hidden feelings of a generation, and of society in general. The main way the writer convey his message or theme is through the lyrics. Secondly, how the song is sung. It is sung by the popular and hip group, attracting more viewers for the song. Subliminal messages are also cleverly devised and crafted,

  • Word count: 1220
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Media Studies
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