Thursday, March 31, 2011

Totes rant

*Note: if you don't care about music and you don't care to hear me ranting, then don't read this post.

Confession: I'm usually half asleep during my morning Music 306 (Survey of Music Literature 2) class.
Don't get me wrong, it's interesting stuff,
but combined with my professor's monotone voice and the morning hours, I struggle.
Today, however, something my professor said caught my attention and I haven't really been able to think of anything else since.

Here's a little background before I get into it:  Music 306 is a class that all music majors have to take.  MOST music majors consist of either music education majors, instrumentalist performance majors, or classical vocal majors.  Media majors (my major) are like the awkward "we don't know where to put these people so we just stuck them in here" majors.  The classes that aren't specific to the Media Music major are a mix of classes that the instrumentalists have to take with a few classes that the Music Dance Theatre majors have to take.  It really is an awkward major.  ANYWAY, most of the people in my Music 306 class are very well acquainted with classical music and already know and love music history.  Not me.  So while they are performing pieces from the past, I perform pieces of today, and pieces for the future (I'm a songwriter).  There is nothing wrong with this.  I appreciate music from the past because it has shaped the way music is today.  I just feel a little out of place as the students discuss "the variations of Bach's expositions and how the Recapitulations of Rachmanioff modulate and blah blah blah blah..."

This morning in class we were discussing the modernist composer "Berio."  He's from post WWIIish and his music is...different.  After we listened to a song by Berio, the class discussed why we should appreciate music like this.  Our professor said that "we have to listen to it for what it is."  I couldn't agree more.  This music doesn't have to be aesthetically pleasing, but it should be appreciated because it has changed the music world.
Right after this discussion, my professor went on to say that the only music people are listening to today is music from the past (he said from the 50s-70s to be specific).  Wait, what?  Um...no.  He then discredited what is going on in the music world today and said that it isn't influential...that it's garbage.
I couldn't believe that the professor that said we should appreciate a different musician's music for what it was turns around and contradicts his own statement.  By saying this, he was acting like the traditionalists that rejected Van Gough's paintings or the Soviet Union who criticized Shostakovich's music because they wanted music to be more like music of the past.
Music is changing every single day.  In order to have a part in what happens TOMORROW, we must appreciate and understand what is going on TODAY.  My professor admitted that he didn't know one song that was on the radio.  This man knows everything there is to know about music history, so how can he be so blind to music today?  If he were teaching the same class 100 years from now, I'm SURE that he would know everything there is to know about Lady Gaga, and though he may not like her unique musical style, he will say to his class "we must appreciate it for what it is."  Although there is definitely some crappy music out there (like there ALWAYS has been), today's musical world will shape tomorrow's musical world.

And there's my rant.
The end.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

BORED BORED BORED


It's been what...5 hours...since Ben left and I am already bored out of my mind.  This is going to be a looooooonnngggg month.  Expect a lot of blog posts.  Blog posts about absolutely nothing.

Ben went on a trip for Costa Rica for a week and then he's going to D.C. to start his summer selling pest control.  I am stuck in this crazy little town called Provo until April 22, when I will graduate BYU!!

Until then, kill me now.

Friday, March 25, 2011

Balloon animals

The other day Ben pulled out a bag of balloons and this little balloon pump and started working away.  After hearing a lot of squeaking balloons, he handed me this:


How cute!  He is a man full of secret talents!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

tag, you're it, no tag backs


If you know me at all, you must know that I love staying up late and I hate waking up early.  I'm the epitome of a night owl.  So here I am, writing in my blog at 1:30am, because I've been trying to fall asleep for an hour.  And let's face it...I'm not going to bed until 2:30.

Life has been reeal good lately.  Like roller blading down the road with the neighborhood kids without a care in the world good.  Since I've been a "grown up", I've always kind of looked back on my childhood years with a longing feeling.  I wanted to feel that way again.  I was a weird kid.  I wasn't outgoing but I wasn't introverted either.  I didn't care AT ALL what other people thought.  If I didn't want to make conversation, I was silent.  If I wanted to sing and dance and be a total ham, then I would be just that.  I was just me, marching to the beat of my own little drum.  My life feels like that again.

I mean, sucky things have totally happened.

Like, oh my freaking goodness, the hot pots in Midway are off-limits now.
Back in November I went to the hot pots and there may or may not have had signs that looked like this:

But I didn't think anything of it, so I went in anyway.
The hot pots are these natural hot water springs that feel like hot tubs in mud.  They are part of nature, so they've been around forever.

Good citizens of Utah have been attending the hot pots for a long time until recently, when the land was sold to the Grinch himself.  The grinch has demanded that any person in the hot pots be cited for criminal trespassing.  BAH HUMBUG!!
So after a few trips to the Wasatch County Criminal Court (I know, I'm such a rebel), I have to pay a $300 dollar fee and behave for 6 months to get the charge off my record.  Phew.

Mostly good things have been happening though.  Don't worry.
-Food seems to taste better these days.  No, I'm not trying to be deep.  Ben took me to this place:

I could not believe how good the food was!!  Heaven in my mouth.

-Spa packages are totes worth it.  I had my first spa day as a birthday present.  Loved it.  I probably couldn't get myself to spend that money myself, but it was a cleansing experience.  Benny's done it again.

-I'm worried that my fear of dirt bike riding will never diminish.  We went riding a couple weeks ago.  Even though it was such a great time, Ben had to talk me through every sand patch, rocky hill, and big turn.  He was so patient.  I am such a baby.

-June 11 will be an amazing day.  I CANNOT wait to marry this man:

When I'm with him, I don't long for anything else.
He makes it real for me.