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Don't know if this is anything interests anyone else, or worth discussing , but as a singer, non-jazz mind you, I'm curiously interested in aspects of song lyrics which are directly related to how they work with musical interpretation.
Some of my favorite song lyrics, as stand-alone works separate from the song, kind of like poetry, don't work as well when interpreted musically. Or at least, it seems, phrasing possibilities are more limited. For example, I find it very difficult to vary the phrasing of something like My Foolish Heart very much, without losing the meaning of the lyrics for a would-be listener. (They are a little difficult to convey straight, anyway.) Of course, the setting, speaking to one's heart, is problematic enough, but you have to "hear the commas" somewhat to not lose meaning. Although I find the idea of the song compelling and different, and the song itself beautiful, I can honestly see why there aren't an abundance of classic vocal recordings of it, comparatively.
Meanwhile, Stardust, regardless of its literary quality, is nearly perfect in this respect. It has endless ways of phrasing any part of it without losing the meaning of the phrase or the song itself. And of course, there are a million classic recordings of that tune.
I don't know. This may be more of a singer thing.
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02-15-2016 04:30 PM
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02-16-2016, 03:10 AM #227destinytot Guest
STARDUST is right up my street. Wonderful long vowel sounds with a great melody (and it starts on a IV chord - love that sound - after a fabulous verse).
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02-16-2016, 06:14 AM #228destinytot Guest
Originally Posted by destinytot
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Re' Chain Gang--I absolutely love that song. Reading the words on the written page though almost makes me want to cry. Chrissie is one of the most insightful songwriters of our generation.
Also reminiscent of Lu Williams' songs Drunken Angel and This Old World, and Emmylou's Michelangelo, among many others by these fine songwriters.
Re' Rimbaud--I have never read his poetry--knowing that Patti Smith idolized him, maybe I should--but he drank and used hashish and other drugs heavily and apparently contracted syphilis in 1881. He succumbed to either syphilis or tuberculosis. Drugs and syphilis will adversely affect your artistic output.
BTW I don't know if anyone has mentioned I'm Beginning to See the Light yet, but that is such a quirky, beguiling lyric. Makes much more sense when sung by a great singer than just reading the lyrics.
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02-16-2016, 05:58 PM #230destinytot Guest
Originally Posted by destinytot
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Originally Posted by Nate Miller
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Re' Rimbaud--I have never read his poetry--knowing that Patti Smith idolized him, maybe I should--but he drank and used hashish and other drugs heavily and apparently contracted syphilis in 1881. He succumbed to either syphilis or tuberculosis. Drugs and syphilis will adversely affect your artistic output.
excuse me this sarcasm but I really never care much about details of life of great artists considering that there real life is in their art...
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Originally Posted by Jonah
Originally Posted by Jonah
Last edited by Doctor Jeff; 02-18-2016 at 12:03 PM.
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Originally Posted by destinytot
I'm sure Lins will love it.
Did you hear his songs performed with the Metropol?
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03-04-2016, 07:15 PM #235destinytot Guest
Originally Posted by Lazz
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03-23-2016, 05:05 PM #237destinytot Guest
Thanks, Lazz!
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Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
The types of savant-like 'geniuses' are interesting. Math. Chess. Music. There is also the military 'genius'. One wouldn't think the control of an army would be entrusted to a child, no matter how gifted the child is (or was) it seems. Perhaps somewhere, sometime, a child controlling an army did occur. After all, Joan of Arc was what, 14? Would that qualify? Genghis Kahn was a teenage warlord, I believe. Come to think of it, boy Kings? Clovis... Edward II (who came to a bad end) etc etc, and the boy Pharaohs, King Tut etc. Whether any were military geniuses isn't clear. They all had their generals. But... Alexander the Great? Now, there may be a real, genuine boy military genius.
All I know is that Napoleon was quite a gifted chess player, so who knows what a 14 year old Napoleon might have accomplished.
Interesting to ponder.....
What's happening at the end of this song?
Today, 07:55 PM in Ear Training, Transcribing & Reading