The Sopranos

system’s seemingly tight hold on his future. Yet in the first episode of Vinyl, the latest television series by director Martin Scorsese, Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger, writer Rich Cohen, and producer Terence Winter (Boardwalk Empire and The Sopranos), desperation stems from obsession, a thirst for a particularly unrefined sound of liberation — that is rock and roll. Drugs are plenty, girls and guys are ready, and the mystical, human connection between…

The opera Moby Dick occurred on November 6, 2016, from 2 PM to 5 PM, at the Winspear Opera House in Downtown Dallas. The Dallas Opera performed the event, and famous performers included the following: Jay Hunter Morris as Captain Ahab, Stephen Costello as Greenhorn, Morgan Smith as Starbuck, Musa Ngqungwana as Queequeg, Jacqueline Echols as Pip, and Peter McGillivray as Stubb. The opera performance was completely backed by a professional orchestra, featuring every instrument one would expect in…

It was in Paris that de Falla published his first piano pieces and songs. In 1914, de Falla published his ever-popular Siete Canciones Populares Españoles. This song set was first written for soprano and piano. Since then, it has been arranged for varying solo instruments in place of the soprano voice. Besides being de Falla’s most arranged composition, it is one of the most frequently performed sets of Spanish-language art songs. The styles of each song are strikingly diverse. They are…

suspension between the outer voices could not have been resolved simply by step, as that would cause another dissonance with the other voices (example 5.1). The solution would have to be to throw out the problematic suspension all together, and have the soprano merely move by…

Zelizer, a Princeton University professor, misconstrued his belief of the association of the public preference of an anti-hero and how it correlates with candidate preference. Julian Zelizer believes Americans support the candidate of the Republican party because he possesses the traits of the anti-hero. Being that I’m a Donald Trump supporter, I do not agree with his assumptions that Americans prefer an anti-hero, I believe Americans want change. Furthermore, I believe the public is…

Your heart pounds in your chest as you run through the dark woods, trying your best to make it to your car or just to safety. You can feel him gaining on you, the sound of crunching leaves signaling his every move, but your legs just aren’t fast enough. You stumble over a conveniently placed log and fall to the hard ground. The tension builds, the unseen orchestra using more strings. Someone in the theater’s audience screams for you to get up and run. Out of breath, you try to scramble away only…

I went to the Spring Choral concert. I had never been to an actual choir concert, but my school choir often performed at pep rallies and had other performances throughout the year so I had a basic idea of what was going to happen. When I arrived I was surprised by how full the concert was. The first concert that I had gone to was probably only a third to a half full, but this one was completely packed from top to bottom. It’s a very different atmosphere with a full house. Everyone seemed really…

In any singer’s life, the formation of vocal nodules on the vocal cords can bring about feelings of fear and devastation. Though treatment is available, vocal nodules have the potential to permanently damage or change the voice, making singing painful and almost impossible. However, if one seeks treatment immediately, nodules can be eradicated. Nodules are formed when the voice is continuously abused, and among other symptoms, may cause throat inflammation, hoarseness, and the feeling of a lump…

“Music speaks what cannot be expressed, soothes the mind and gives it rest, heals the heart and makes it whole, flow from heaven to the soul (Monet).” Feeling good was originally written in 1965, by Nina Simone. This song has been used in the popular culture such as, “Point of No Return” and “Six Feet Under”. A song cover was later done by Jennifer Hudson in 2011, and Lauryn Hill in 2015. Although Nina Simone wrote the song, Jennifer Hudson sang it better due to melody, rhythm, and…

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me…” (Newton) What comes to mind when you read these words? One may recall a specific Sunday morning singing this song in church, while others may have memories of their grandparents humming the tune while grocery shopping. Hymns such as Amazing Grace are sung daily by millions of people across the world. These special songs have the power to bring people together, no matter their differences. In the Christian faith, hymns enhance…