{"id":19,"date":"2018-03-18T22:31:31","date_gmt":"2018-03-18T22:31:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/?p=19"},"modified":"2018-05-17T12:05:23","modified_gmt":"2018-05-17T11:05:23","slug":"week-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/2018\/03\/18\/week-5\/","title":{"rendered":"Spanish Folk Music"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rebels<\/strong><\/a><\/h1>\n

\"Image<\/a><\/p>\n

Artist:\u00a0<\/strong>L’Ham De Foc<\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n

\u00a0Country:<\/strong>\u00a0 Spain 2002<\/span><\/h2>\n

Album:<\/b> Can\u00e7\u00f3 De Dona<\/span><\/a><\/h2>\n

A reaction by Sue, Mark, Alex and Elle.<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

All of these statements are true reactions to\u00a0Rebels<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>by people who don’t consider themselves to be professional musicians or ethnomusicologists.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

L\u2019Ham De Foc <\/strong>or The Hook of Fire <\/strong>are a Valencian folk band who were formed in 1998 by traditional Spanish singer Mara Aranda<\/a>. She formed the group as a project with infleunces from all over the Mediterranean but with a strong Valencian undertone. The band were incredibly successful, becoming one of the most popular bands in Spain at the time as they were seen to bring together people who liked varying musical genres: they weren\u2019t following musical trends. They released three albums, all of which were critically acclaimed, with their first album, U, <\/em><\/a>meaning One, being released in 1999. Although successful they weren\u2019t happy with the sound and felt more could have been done with the record. For that reason they spent two years in Crete researching the sounds behind the Greek Island before releasing their second album Can\u00e7\u00f3 de Dona i Home <\/em><\/a>or Woman and Man\u2019s Song.<\/em> Their third album was released four years later in 2005 with great success.<\/p>\n

Rebels <\/strong>is the 7th<\/sup> track on L\u2019Ham De Foc\u2019s second album Can\u00e7\u00f3 de Dona i Home<\/em> but there is very little information regarding the track anywhere so one can only make assumptions about the nature of the lyrics. A song particularly inspired by the Medieval music, one must assume the same of the lyrics.<\/p>\n

Preface to this entry: Due to the very little information on the song which I have been able to gain (not through want of trying), the interview containing the interviewees reactions will be a lot shorter than in previous entries. <\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2018Three critically acclaimed albums for a Medieval sound really doesn\u2019t sit well\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mark Dent<\/strong> is an IT consultant.<\/p>\n

Before knowing anything:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nothing about this music appeals to me. And I\u2019m going to say the thing that no one wants to say out loud: it is because of the language and it is because of the sound. It has a Medieval tinge to it that I don\u2019t want to hear in the modern music which I listen to\u2026 Also I just can\u2019t understand what they\u2019re saying, but I genuinely don\u2019t think understanding them would help me like this piece more. It\u2019s got such a distinct sound, a distinct sound which I don\u2019t enjoy in music. I think that perhaps lies in the flamenco guitar and the drumming, which seemed sporadic and random, not fitting with the rhythm of the guitar. Now, it\u2019s only redeeming feature was the female voice who was soothing and nice to listen to, but because it was accompanied by the guitar and drum I was distracted and couldn\u2019t completely focus on her.<\/p>\n

After being informed:<\/strong><\/p>\n

I am shocked. I am completely shocked. This music was popular?! With a lot of people?! I assume that\u2019s because it was something completely different form the norm at the time\u2026 But three critically acclaimed albums for a Medieval sound really doesn\u2019t sit well with me. Perhaps the message which they are trying to convey is where the importance lies\u2026 But it sounds like no one knows much about that, so to me, I really can\u2019t find the appeal.<\/p>\n

\u2018Why did you just play me a piece of must from Game of Thrones?\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sue Dent<\/strong> is a Receptionist for the NHS.<\/p>\n

Before knowing anything:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Why did you just play me a piece of music from Game of Thrones?<\/a> Because that\u2019s exactly what it sounded like. The acoustic guitar which was playing in the background was really Medieval sounding and in all honesty, I\u2019m not sure how it made me feel. I neither disliked or enjoyed the song. Now, perhaps that\u2019s because I became too focussed on it sounding like GOT but really, it\u2019s because I couldn\u2019t gauge who or what the market for this would be. It doesn\u2019t sound like anything that would be popular in chart music as it sounds too old, and it certainly wouldn\u2019t be popular in the Anglo-American world unless it became a theme song, so I spent the entire song trying to figure out the marketability of the song. I suppose you could say that I enjoyed it, but I definitely wouldn\u2019t choose to listen to it again\u2026 Mostly because it had such a Medieval tone that I couldn\u2019t simply sit back and listen to it.<\/p>\n

After being informed:<\/strong><\/p>\n

I can definitely tell that it\u2019s been inspired by sounds of the Mediterranean, there is something about the Flamenco guitar and drum beat which makes that so obvious. And I can see why people would want to listen to this, it\u2019s something completely different from their normal diet of pop and rock music which is played on the radio \u2013 although I don\u2019t know the extent to which Anglo-American songs are played on Spanish radio. I can also understand why it hasn\u2019t been so popular in the English or American culture, it uses instruments we aren\u2019t familiar with and a language we can\u2019t understand: why would we listen to it?
\n
\n\u2018It is simply there to be appreciated by those who want to appreciate it\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Rachel Brew<\/strong> is a Sociology and Politics student at Newcastle University.<\/p>\n

Before knowing anything:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Now this is what I have been waiting for. This is right up my street. Unlike the first song I listened to, I can appreciate this without understanding the words because I feel like there\u2019s an underlying musicality to it. I can\u2019t see this being particularly popular anywhere in the world but I also don\u2019t see that being the point to this music- it is simply there to be appreciated by those who want to appreciate it\u2026 Like myself. Assuming, like all of the other music you\u2019ve played me over these weeks, that this is politically driven, I feel as though this could be a protest song from Latin America \u2013 it has that kind of vibe to it. In all honesty, even if the lyrics do have a meaning, I feel as though I could just sit back and listen to hours of this music without actually knowing anything about it or understanding the lyrics. It has such a mellow sound, with the woman\u2019s voice really having a great effect upon that.<\/p>\n

After being informed:<\/strong><\/p>\n

If I\u2019m honest the thing I\u2019m most shocked about is how popular it was in Spain \u2013 it gives me hope that the whole world hasn\u2019t been Anglo-Americanised and can still appreciate music from their respective countries. I can certainly hear the influences from Greece and Crete but I don\u2019t know how or why\u2026 It\u2019s just underlying in the music. I think I was right about one thing, that it\u2019s music to be appreciated by those who want to, not by everybody\u2026 And that\u2019s just the point of it.
\n
\n\u2018it\u2019s much too mellow to achieve anything\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Alex Gray<\/strong> is a Biomedical Science student at Newcastle University<\/p>\n

Before knowing anything:<\/strong><\/p>\n

I can appreciate this for what it is, but I can\u2019t really see how it would appeal to anyone to sit down and listen to it. I think because I really enjoy folk music in general, this kind of music sounds great, but it\u2019s not the kind of folk music I enjoy listening to. It\u2019s not upbeat like Flook (my favourite band) and doesn\u2019t have much variation in it either. I suppose, like the other songs I\u2019ve heard, it\u2019s political? But I don\u2019t know how or why this would have any effect \u2013 it\u2019s much too mellow to achieve anything and I also can\u2019t see it being particularly popular in Latin America. The more I think about it, the more I think it has an early 2000s kind of sound, I don\u2019t know why I\u2019m thinking that\u2026 I just am?<\/p>\n

Before knowing anything:<\/strong><\/p>\n

I am completely shocked with all of the information you\u2019ve just given me. Spanish? Popular? Early 2000s? Was I completely right about everything?! No. But almost everything. I\u2019m surprised it\u2019s so popular because it just doesn\u2019t seem like the kind of music that would be, particularly in the early 2000s as English bands were really at the forefront of EVERYTHING during that time. It sounds to me as if Mara Aranda created a band without the intent of it being anything but experimental, to explore the sounds that she enjoyed\u2026 But accidentally found critical acclaim\u2026 I hate when that happens, don\u2019t you?<\/p>\n

Discover some new Spanish folk musicians:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gipsy Kings<\/a><\/p>\n

Hola a todo el mundo<\/a><\/p>\n

Radio Tarifa<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rebels Artist:\u00a0L’Ham De Foc \u00a0Country:\u00a0 Spain 2002 Album: Can\u00e7\u00f3 De Dona A reaction by Sue, Mark, Alex and Elle. All of these statements are true reactions to\u00a0Rebels\u00a0by people who don’t consider themselves to be professional musicians or ethnomusicologists.\u00a0 \u00a0 L\u2019Ham De Foc or The Hook of Fire are a Valencian folk band who were formed … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Spanish Folk Music”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7276,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorised"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7276"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":177,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19\/revisions\/177"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/abrew1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}