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Albert Music Hall. Traditional musical gatherings of the NJ Pinelands. An evening of live country, bluegrass, and pinelands music each Saturday night at 7:30 PM. Year round

Blaxploitation: Funk Goes to the Movies / Dave Thompson

Thompson, Dave. "Blaxploitation: Funk Goes to the Movies." Funk. San Francisco: Backbeat Books, 2001. p. 207-213.

Note: this is an essay, not a chapter, from Dave Thompson's book Funk.

The essay begins talking about the recent 2000 re-release of Shaft with Samuel L. Jackson and how the accompanying score had changed from Isaac Hayes’ iconic funk soundtrack to the “urban dance” of R. Kelly, Outkast, and Too $hort. However, back in the early 1970s, the media created narrow stereotypical genres for anything outside the mainstream musical scene and thus, blaxploitation wasn’t just a film movement but a music movement and way of life as well. It originated outside the Hollywood system, where most black actors and directors felt relegated to before the blaxploitation boom. Although blaxploitation was categorized under the B-movie moniker, its connection to the large counterculture of dissatisfied, young, black people gave it a larger impact than your typical B-movie films (i.e. horror, etc.). The “A movies” featured black stars. However, they didn’t address the black audience. Blaxploitation arose out of black society’s need to be represented on screen.

Thomson introduces Melvin Van Peebles and Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song as the answer to that problem. After detailing the production and financial troubles encountered by Van Peebles, he goes into the distribution of the film. However, because only two theaters played it on the opening weekend and nobody would advertise or review it, it was ignored by the media. Additionally, there was no publicity money left over from production, so Van Peebles had to use the "dynamite" soundtrack (recorded by then-unknown Earth Wind & Fire) in order to create awareness for his film. This was the first time that a soundtrack was used to market a film – something that is quite common now. The blaxploitation films that came after would follow suit, each with its own funky soundtrack – Shaft had Isaac Hayes, Superfly had Curtis Mayfield. The essay then describes summarizes the plot of several blaxploitation movies (since it is, after all, in a book about music).

This is relevant because it transformed the way many films are advertised. Instead of going through the traditional avenues of trailers and critical reviews, Van Peebles used funk, the music of the streets at that time, to get the message out that a corresponding movie that was just as funky was playing. With the success of the album, more distributors decided to show the film and eventually, it became the highest grossing independent film ever (at that point). Thus, the distribution and advertisement of this film serves as a reminder to the mainstream of culture's power to create an underground success based solely on word of mouth and music.

JSTOR: The Journal of Musicology, Vol. 18, No. 1, (2001 ), pp. 170-188

Sheer, Miriam. "The Godard/Beethoven Connection: On the Use of Beethoven's Quartets in Godard's Films." The Journal of Musicology, 18.1 170-188.

This article by Miriam Sheer discusses Godard's artistic use of Beethoven's string quartert in four of his films, and how this use reflects his sensitivity to the social differentiation of musical styles. His specific mixing of musical styles in certain films emphasizes their respective social connotations, and complements the situations and personalities of the characters whom they accompany. Sheer quotes an interview with Abraham Segal in which Godard said, "I try to use music like another picture which isn't a picture, like another element. Like another sound, but in a different form."

The description of Godard's use of Beethoven in many of his films parallels a commentary on his use of jazz in Breathless. His use of jazz references the classic American crime drama, in which jazz is used to insinuate impending moments of danger. In Breathless, jazz is used in countless situations such as when Michel picks up newspapers, which warn of his imminent arrest, and in a crescendo just before he murders a cop. The rhythmic structure of jazz as a musical genre echoes the spontaneity and improvisational nature of the film and its protagonist (Michel). In contrast to Michel's jazzy motif, Patricia is often accompanied by more orchestral, dreamy and romantical music, which is more representative of her character.

Music that makes a man a killer Bernard Herrmann's film scores spoke as loudly as any dialogue, says Mark Monahan

Monahan, Mark. "Music that makes a man a killer Bernard Herrmann's film scores spoke as loudly as any dialogue, says Mark Monahan." The Daily Telegraph 1 July 2006. 8 April 2008.

Mark Monahan writes about Mr. Bernard Herrmann’s musical career spanning from Citizen Kane in 1941 through Taxi Driver in 1976. Monahan asserts that creating music for motion pictures is an incredibly arduous task and that the people responsible for it are extraordinarily talented. He feels that cinema would be unimaginable if not for the fantastic and wild feelings created by film scores. Monahan writes that he considers Bernard Herrmann to be one of the leading film composers of the last 100 years. Herrmann, a Russian born immigrant attended NYU to study music and made his Broadway debut at the young age of 20. He began composing for CBS radio shows and this put him into contact with Orson Welles. Welles took Herrmann on for the film Citizen Kane, and thereby launched the composer’s long and successful scoring career. After Kane, Herrmann teamed with Hitchcock and was responsible for the musical scores of all the great Hitchcock films through the end of the 1960s. Monahan has much respect for Herrmann’s talent. He writes that, “Rather than merely setting the scene or complementing the action (though they do both magnificently), [Herrmann’s scores] virtually are the action, brilliantly elucidating the characters' gnarled inner lives.” He says that the opening scene of Citizen Kane (the ascending of Xanadu’s fence) is given “a sense of dread, regret and death of the soul…” Herrmann’s most famous musical passage is the shrieking violins of the Psycho’s shower scene. In his later career he works for French and American New Wave filmmakers.

The musical score to any film is one of the most psychologically defining aspects of the experience. The music, much like lighting, sets a mood. Before the audience even knows what will happen on screen, they can get a sense of what might happen just based on the musical foreshadowing. Herrmann brilliantly uses his musical score to set the mood and tone in Citizen Kane. In happy scenes such as those with the young Kane attending parties in his honor, the music is light and we think nothing of it. In more dramatic scenes such as the initial scene of Xanadu, the newsreel scenes, and the final scene of the film with the revelation of Rosebud, the music obviously takes a more dramatic and serious tone.

Music in Film

Shumway, David R. “Rock 'n' Roll Sound Tracks and the Production of Nostalgia” Cinema Journal 38.2 (1999): 36-51
The article discusses the idea of soundtracks and their growth in modern film. A soundtrack is described as an album put together consisting of prerecorded music with the aim of linking ideas of the film with concepts that the audiences understands through recognized music. The article states that the concept of a rock and roll soundtrack became popular with the films The Graduate, and Easy Rider. While The Graduate features pop music that provides nostalgia, Easy Rider includes music that represents youthful rebellion. The music in Easy Rider is diegetic, while it is not in The Graduate, but it is meant to be heard and contributes to the film. In Easy Rider, the music often exists to send a message and is the focus of attention. The article also touches upon the idyllic idea of generational cohesion that is present in the music of the film. The plot of the film abnegates the concept however, as the dreams of communalism are ended with the deaths of the main characters. The article also discusses at length the nostalgic role of music in the films American Graffiti, The Big Chill, Dirty Dancing, and Baby, It’s You.
Reading this article provides acumen for Easy Rider as a complete work. The music becomes just as important as the plot, as it contributes to the message. The fact that the music in the film was all prerecorded instead of the film having a score supports the idea of auteurism because all of the music was chosen from the filmmaker's personal collection. The music also provides a way for the audience to connect to the story on a personal level. In moments when the music is the focus of the film, the viewer can feel the mood of the story and understand the message through lyrics.

SayatJ;-Nova : an 18th-century troubadour : a biographical and literary study / by Charles Dowsett.

Dowsett, Charles. . SayatJ;-Nova : an 18th-century troubadour : a biographical and literary study / by Charles Dowsett. 2877232999 series Lovanii : In aedibus Peeters, 1997.
Call#: Van Pelt Library BR60.C5 S85 t.91

This book by Charles Dowsett offeres his deep philological knowledge and insight into the legendary and almost mystical figure, Sayat Nova. It can be safely said that hardly anything was known to western world about this legendary Armenian troubadour Sayat Nova till this study was translated into French, and to English. His multilingual talent, that resembles the one of the subject matter, Sayat Nova allows him to look at the poems by Sayat Nova not only from mere literature point of view but also his multiculturality and internationality.

In the book, Dowsett reveals the mystified life of Sayat Nova; The author scrupulously points out Sayat Nova’s international identity by nature; born into moderate Armenian family in Georgia, who spoke multiple languages including, Georgian, Armenian, Azeri, Turkish, and Persian, in which he produced his work of poetry and music. (His most famous work move fluently between all four languages.) He was active as court troubadour in Georgia in his early life, but was expelled to Armenia where he joined the local church to continue his practice. It also points out his extraordinary religious perspective and his life as a priest, and, importantly, the ethnic tolerance; he uses Persian vocabrary in many of his poems and appealed to Muslim audiences as well. In some of his poem he displayed his sympathy for Islam. He asserted that he perceived himself as “ bridge between the various Caucasian Peoples. For my own sake of argument, this legendary figure Sayat Nova, and the life of the director Sergei Paradjanov have undeniably much in common starting from their multilingual ability and intercultural identity as well as their broad range of active field.

EBSCOhost: Book Review

[Review of Bernard Hermann's Score of Citizen Kane]

Kosovsky, Robert. "[Untitled]." Rev. of Citizen Kane, the Magnificent Ambersons, by Bernard Hermann. American Music: 221-227.

Citizen Kane was the first film project on which Academy Award winning composer Bernard Hermann worked, and the music he created played an integral role in defining the characters of the film and crafting Citizen Kane as a creative work. This article explains the role that Bernard Hermann played in making Citizen Kane a great film, the relationship between Hermann and Welles, and explains the technical side of how Hermann made the different “cues” for the film.

As is mentioned in the article, Hermann and Welles both worked on radio in their early careers, where Hermann composed and arranged upwards of 2,500 shows for CBS. This is where Welles and Hermann met, both exploring their respective arts and collaborating occasionally on shows, including Welles’ famous rendition of War of the Worlds that sent thousands of people across the United States into hysterics. When Welles got his first film deal to make Citizen Kane, he insisted upon having Hermann do the music, giving Hermann his first opportunity to compose for a film. Hermann proved to be exceptional in this and his future projects because while he understood that the primary role of a film score was to complement the visuals of the film, his extensive experience in radio ensured that his scores could act as standalone pieces, as well.

Also, the article discusses the technical side of composing for cinema, explaining how Hermann used “leitmotifs” – a kind of recurring musical motif in reference to a character, location, or theme – to strengthen the relationship between the score and the visuals, creating leitmotifs for many of the films key players, Rosebud, and the various mental states that Kane experienced throughout the film.

JSTOR: Ethnology, Vol. 1, No. 4, (1962 ), pp. 425-451

This article specifically speaks of communication through music while emphasizing the importance of human behavior that is recognized based on the context of music. The author states that while it is easy for even the untrained ear to understand the artists' temperament while listening to a particular song, this analysis can go beyond one person and can be applied to an entire culture. This is possible because one can frame "behavior" in a cultural setting. Thus, if a culture has a particular ‘style' of music that it can be broken down into, this ‘style' is a reflection of the culture itself and a progression or change in that style within a framework of time is representative of change within that culture. The author uses a system of "cantometrics" for rating a song and eventually leading to the possibility of using song as an indicator of "social and psychological pattern in a culture."

Pather Panchali literally translates to "path of song" or "song of the little road." Panchali here specifically refers to a type of narrative folk song that was performed in Bengal in the early twentieth century. Thus the name of the film is itself representative of the time period it was made in, as well as the culture it alludes to. Composed by maestro Ravi Shankar, the music stays noticeably in tune with the emotional stability of the characters that live in a remote village in Bengal in the 1950's. The art of the music is wedded to the truth of the characters themselves and thus the movie as a compositional whole becomes reflective of the lives of a poor family living in Bengal.

Celluloid jukebox : popular music and the movies since the 50s / edited by Jonathan Romney and Adrian Wootton.

. Celluloid jukebox : popular music and the movies since the 50s / edited by Jonathan Romney and Adrian Wootton. 0851705065 (cased) series London : British Film Institute, 1995.
Call#: Van Pelt Library ML2075 .C455 1995

Celluloid Jukebox, edited by Jonathan Romney and Adrian Wootton, is a collection of essays from famous filmmakers and musicians all regarding the relationship of popular music and film since the 1950’s. In this book, many essays make stark remarks on the influence of A Hard Day’s Night in the connection between pop music and film. Andy Medhurst’s essay, for example, entitled “It Sort of Happened Here: The Strange, Brief Life of the British Pop Film”, on numerous occasions makes the claim that “the film which irrevocably sundered that connection [between pop music and film] was A Hard Day’s Night,” and that “the kind of static on-stage set-piece that was one of the many causalities of the new approach [was] pioneered by A Hard Day’s Night.” The section of the book, however, that is most supportive of my thesis is the final section of interviews, which asked a number of famous filmmakers what their favorite pop movies are. In response to this question, Cameron Crowe, Amos Poe, and Allison Anders all claimed A Hard Day’s Night.
Allison Anders, a producer of many notable films such as Martin Scorsese’s Grace of the Heart, is quoted as saying, “the very first intoxicated experience of music and movies working together, needless to say, [was] A Hard Day’s Night.” She then went on to say, “when I went to see the movie, I didn’t see the movie itself until I saw it for maybe the tenth time because we were screaming through the whole thing. So it was like seeing a concert with all the little girls.” This quote supports my thesis that A Hard Day’s Night was the first film to successfully unite the pop cultures of film and music in a way that no film previously had, and that it in fact is the first true rock and roll film. Anders’ response to the film, like so many others’, was because of the novelty of the style of this production. A Hard Day’s Night really was like watching a concert for an hour and a half on the silver-screen, and therefore was indeed a rock and roll film. It was different than any other films that came before it, and it forever changed the way music and film interacted. This book, Celluloid Jukebox, gives a great inside understanding of A Hard Day’s Night’s influence on music’s role in film. It speaks of all the films to the present that have used pop music in a similar fashion to the 1964 Beatles’ comedy, and therefore is a great source for my thesis.

Rock over the edge : transformations in popular music culture / edited by Roger Beebe, Denise Fulbrook, and Ben Saunders.

. Rock over the edge : transformations in popular music culture / edited by Roger Beebe, Denise Fulbrook, and Ben Saunders. 082232900X (cloth : alk. paper) series Durham : Duke University Press, c2002.
Call#: Van Pelt Library ML3534 .R6336 2002

"Think about what you’re trying to do to me": rock historiography and the construction of a raced-based dialectic / John J. Sheinbaum

Authority Tools for Audiovisual and Music Catalogers: An Annotated List of Useful Resources

YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

Bushel of 5 string banjos [sound recording].

Bushel of 5 string banjos [sound recording]. Long Island City, N.Y. : Hilltop, [197-]
Call#: Storage/Music: From RECORD page, use Place Request tab WXPN 268

Day in the mountains, 1928 [sound recording].

Day in the mountains, 1928 [sound recording]. New York, N.Y. : County, [196-?]
Call#: Storage/Music: From RECORD page, use Place Request tab WXPN 272

Definition of a FRBR-based Metadata Model for the Indiana University Variations3 Project

"The Indiana University Veriations2 and Variations3 projects use a work-based metadata model for discovery of musical sound recordings, scanned score images, and encoded score notation files. This model has been described as ³FRBR-like² and is mentioned in various discussions of FRBR-based systems, but it is not technically a FRBR implementation.

As the project team investigates long-term sustainability issues for the Variations3 software, we have begun thinking about what a truly FRBR-ized version of the metadata model would look like, and if changing to this type of model would make our system more sustainable and interoperable. As a first step towards answering these questions, members of the Variations3 project team have released a report outlining the potential application of FRBR to a system designed to deliver musical content in a library environment."

Born in flames : termite dreams, dialectical fairy tales, and pop apocalypses / Howard Hampton.

Hampton, Howard, 1958- . Born in flames : termite dreams, dialectical fairy tales, and pop apocalypses / Howard Hampton. [067402317X (alk. paper) ] Cambridge, Mass. : Harvard University Press, 2007.
Call#: Van Pelt Library PN1995 .H238 2007

The capacity for music: What is it, and what