Wacky Wednesday Fun Links #1 & 2

I missed last week’s fun link so here’s one link for last week, plus one for this week, since I don’t plan on posting one on Good Friday.

September 3, 2020 update: The two games originally posted are gone. However, there are more listed on the original site, Music Tech Teacher.

Friday Fun Link #16

Just when I thought I finished all my work for the week. Maestro is all set to play Frisbee but I just couldn’t log off without doing today’s Friday Fun Link. Head to PBS Kids’ Music site and try some of their online games. Maestro and I played a game called “Jam with Wiley”. He picked out the bongo drums for our instrument, while I tried to play the colour-coded drum that corresponded with the moving notes on the screen. A very tricky feat when you’re holding a musical dog under one arm and trying to manipulate the stylus in the other hand.  

 Enjoy!  

Friday Fun Link #14

Break In The Road is a site that proves that you can make music out of everyday sounds. Collect various sounds from around the website’s city to create your own music, do a little sound mixing and put your song together. Have fun.  

Friday Fun Link #12

One of the most enjoyable concerts I ever attended was by Victor Borge, a Danish musical comedian. His rendition of a vocal recital is notably memorable. You can hear some sound clips of his performances at A Tribute to Victor Borge. Enjoy!

Movie Music Musings

Christmas Break gives me a chance to catch up on all the movies and shows I want to see. I finally got around to watching The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe. Excellent story but excessive use of the blue screen. The actors were a delight to watch. Casting was excellent. As a writer and musician, I couldn’t help but analyze the movie from these two angles. I’ve never read the books (but I will next year). The writer within reveled at picking out symbolism and foreshadowing, while the musician was moved to tears when Aslan went to meet his fate. The drum’s tattoo filled the theatre with dread as Aslan padded up to face the witch. The strings sang out their doleful melodies, swelling into a heartbreaking crescendo as the terms of Aslan's bargain with the witch were fulfilled.

Music makes a huge difference in movies, I think. If the music doesn’t match what is happening on the screen, it does make it more difficult to connect with the characters emotionally.

Both The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and the Star Wars Trilogies are superb examples of when the music, action and dialogue are seamlessly joined and balanced. It’s Wagnerian, really.

Wag-huh? Richard Wagner (pronounced VAHG-ner) was a German composer, conductor and writer who lived in the 1800s. He revolutionized opera by his use of leitmotifs – a recurring theme that is associated with a certain character or event. Look no further than Luke Skywalker’s theme played when he contemplated his destiny standing before Tatooine’s twin suns or the theme for the Fellowship of the Ring.

***

On a final note, this will be my last post for 2005. Happy New Year everyone! May 2006 be a healthy, prosperous and happy one for you.

© 2005, Musespeak™, Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.