Music is actually just a bunch of sounds put together in a way that sounds rhythmically correct and / or sounds pleasing to the ear. But a person talking in rhythm to his footsteps doesn't get stuck in one's head, so what makes music so special?
I think that music is so special because of it has a continuously changing tone, there are notes that coordinate with each other, there are usually lyrics that can relate to people all over the world, and there is a continuous background rhythm. Continuously changing tone really makes music sound good. When someone talks, it is very monotone and it doesn't really have a sound to it. Music, on the other hand, has a tone that continuously changes, which makes it sound more pleasing to the ear than blah blah blah. Also, in music, notes usually coordinate with each other well. When writing music, people think for a while about what note to use next instead of simply throwing out a random note at a completely random time. This way, the music sounds cleaner with less imperfections than a person talking. Another reason music probably sounds good to a human ear is because of the lyrics. The lyrics go in rhythm to the song, which allows more flow, and the lyrics usually talk about overcoming something that average people all over the world have to overcome. People like to be understood, and if something as important as a song that everyone listens to tells about the people's daily life, then the people feel understood. A background rhythm is what music listeners snap their fingers to. It makes people want to jump along and it makes the ground vibrate. It is one more thing to remember the music by.
Music is a wonderful part of our culture today. It is so special because of its continuously changing tone, its notes that coordinate with each other, its lyrics, and its background rhythm.
Hey! Does, "It is very monotone" make sense? My mom thinks it is incorrect.
ReplyDeleteYep, that makes sense, but it's awkward. Better if it's "The human voice is monotone, and doesn't really have a unique sound to it." Or something like that?
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ReplyDeleteHalf of my response to your Mosque post doesn't show up because of a glitch, so I hosted it on another platform.
ReplyDeletehttp://happinessneverevolves.blogspot.com/
I need an invite to go to your new blog...
ReplyDeleteTry again - it should work now.
ReplyDelete"Almost everyone on earth listens to music once in their life time." <===== "listens to music _at least_ once in their lifetime."
ReplyDelete"Music is actually just a bunch of sounds put together in a way that sounds rhythmically correct and / or sounds pleasing to the ear." <==== You never want to use the word "bunch" when you're writing. "Music consists of groups of sounds woven together in a way that sounds pleasing to the ear." Note how "woven together" sounds better than "put together" because it's so much more specific. You also want to make sentences simple and streamlined; no and/or's if you avoid them.
"But a person talking in rhythm to his footsteps doesn't get stuck in one's head, so what makes music so special?" <==== This sentence is awkward - read it out loud to your parents. Revise for tomorrow's post.
"I think that music is so special because of it has a continuously changing tone, there are notes that coordinate with each other, there are usually lyrics that can relate to people all over the world, and there is a continuous background rhythm." <===== Here's a prime example of the importance of parallel structure. Here, let me put that in Caps Lock to stress its importance. PARALLEL STRUCTURE!
It goes like this: When you're writing a complex sentence with many branches and subunits, you want each of those subunits to behave the same way. Take for example this sentence: "I love swimming, taking my sister out to the park, and writing Lovecraftian short stories of horrible quality."
The three words in the above sentence to look for are: "swimming," "taking," and "writing." Those are all actions, and they must all match up. You can't have one be "swim" and the other be "taking" and that last be "to write." The sentence just doesn't sound right: "I love to swim, taking my sister to the park, and the beauty of the written word."
You need all the parts of the sentence to be the same - you need PARALLELISM!
This sentence is grammatically correct: "I love Graham Greene's books because of their intricate plotlines, their beautiful wording, and their excessive attention to detail."
However, this sentence isn't: "I love Greene's books because they have intricate plotlines, their beautiful wording, and there is excessive attention to detail."
So, having went over the basics of PARALLELISM, how would revise this sentence? "I think that music is so special because of it has a continuously changing tone, there are notes that coordinate with each other, there are usually lyrics that can relate to people all over the world, and there is a continuous background rhythm."
You have several transition words here: "because of it has", "there are notes," "there are usually," there is a". You need to make them all match up by using PARALLELISM!
"Continuously changing tone really makes music sound good." There's nothing at all wrong with this sentence, but I wanted to point out something for future reference: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Continually_vs_Continuously A lot of people get "continually" and "continuously" mixed up, so be careful!
ReplyDelete"Another reason music probably sounds good to a human ear is because of the lyrics." <==== You aim for your sentences to be simple and elegant. "Music also sounds good because it has lyrics."
"The lyrics go in rhythm to the song, which allows more flow, and the lyrics usually talk about overcoming something that average people all over the world have to overcome." <===== "The lyrics flow in rhythm with the song, and provide something for the listener to relate to."
Though on an unrelated note - what about classical music? It doesn't have lyrics, but can be sublime, no?
"Music is a wonderful part of our culture today. It is so special because of its continuously changing tone, its notes that coordinate with each other, its lyrics, and its background rhythm." <====This is a middle schooler's concluding sentence. And we don't want to write like middle schooler's, do we? =] Nope, we want to write like true wordsmiths of the highest caliber.
You're using the "summarize everything and list out my main points" conclusion right now. That's adequate, but mediocre. The next step up is the "something that sounds profound" conclusion. Maybe "Music is a universal constant in human culture, a healthy drug that provides a common language and stretches the world over."
I have an image of conclusions as a ladder. It goes from top to bottom like this:
1) You don't have a conclusion, only a last sentence, because the entire essay is one seamless whole. Labels such as "Introduction," "Supporting paragraphs" and "Conclusion" don't apply.
2) Conclusion so good it doesn't draw attention to itself, but is instead a natural extension of the essay.
3) Good conclusion that ties everything up in an original or emotionally satisfactorily manner. Usually when it ties back to the beginning, or ends on a profound note.
4) Generic, "universal moral theme" conclusion.
5) Generic, "In conclusion, this is my point because of this, and because of this, and because of this."
6) "So yeah. Um. That's what I think."
7) No conclusion at all, the essay left dangling and unresolved.
You're at around number 5 right now - a long ways still to go, eh? =] Of course the list is arbitrary and somewhat simplified, but you get the point.
I'm leaving Brown today, so this might be my last response for a few days. I'm still expecting you to post everyday (350+) and I'll be checking in on this blog frequently. But it does mean that you'll be on your own for a bit until I get settled down over there and find my bearings.
ReplyDeleteYou and I have come pretty far in the past two months. You've gone from writing this: http://fortunatelinguistics.blogspot.com/2010/06/dad-continued.html
to this:http://fortunatelinguistics.blogspot.com/2010/08/persuasive-on-mosque.html
But if there's one thing I can't teach you, it's the drive/urge/passion/NEED to write. That's something you'll have to learn on your own.
So in the coming days and weeks and months and years, I want you to keep a seedling in the back of your head - the penchant for observation and for rumination. When you're walking on the way to school, don't stare at your shoes - learn to look above and around you. How would you describe the people ahead of you? The half-torn leaf that just drifted by? The air, the sky, the feel of ground underneath your shoes, the texture of the backpack you're carrying, the gray cracked pavement you're walking on?
Learn to notice, to observe, to ponder. Why is it that one group of people developed the fork, one group developed chopsticks, and one group remained content to eat with their hands? Why does your teacher act the way she does? What's her life story? Why do we forget the memories of early childhood? What will you be like in ten years? Twenty? What type of woman will Sarah grow into? Where do all the lost socks go? What will the English language look like two thousand years from now? Why do people like traveling? Why is our form of mathematics built upon base ten, and not base twelve? Is there a life after death? What ice cream is better: Strawberry or chocolate mint?
Learn to question and wonder. Read Sagan’s passage on The Little Blue Dot. Read the Bible and the Quran and the Indian Holy texts, just in order to understand and comprehend. After seeing a movie, don’t just talk about whether it was good or not, but Why it was so. When visiting unfamiliar cities, explore and wander and walk down unfamiliar streets. Talk to and meet new people. Learn by example. Always ask “Why?” Put yourself in other people’s shoes.
That’s the best advice I can give you. When you discover the capacity to Wonder, then you’ll have gained something infinitely more important than good grades, or the ability to write well, or being the top of your class.
I can only point you in the right direction. It’s up to you to poke and prod instead of merely complete – it’s up to you to choose to think instead of to be passive. And when you finally begin Wondering, then you’ll find that words will come naturally, will come easily. It’s only then that writing will become a joy, not a chore. The world is a wondrous place. Go out and marvel at it. Go out and wonder.