Original Composition, “Bowdoin Soundscapes” | Reflection Paper

“Our project incorporates elements of soundscapes and noise music to represent the acoustic environment that encompasses our everyday lives at Bowdoin. With keynotes, signals, and soundmarks, our project includes Schafer’s necessary elements of a soundscape. As the biological sounds transition to a melodic rhythm, our piece incorporates elements of noise music. Upon completing this project, we contribute to the essential preservation of Bowdoin’s unique natural and man-made sounds.”

Final Project for “Musicological Methods”

Professor Huether committed herself to creating a course that followed the contours of each student’s individual interests. Each time my fascination was peaked, Professor Huether did not fail to offer a supplementary reading or recommended listening. My methods course inspired what I hope to be a lifelong musicological pursuit

original short film

Project: Musical Enculturation, Podcast

“For Dr. Huether’s Sound, Self, and Society of Music course, we created this podcast as an all-encompassing reflection on our respective relationships with music. We sought to answer the following questions: What people and relationships have impacted the ways in which we interact with music? How have our relationships with music transformed over the years? What events have inspired changes in musical taste (i.e. concerts, discoveries, etc.)? We had a fantastic time working on this project, as it prompted great reflection and thought regarding one of the dynamic cornerstones of our lives: music.”

Interactive Website: “A Conversation about the Holocaust”

“I thoroughly enjoyed this class because it gave me the space to reckon with the authenticity of Holocaust imagery and education in popular culture. Now, as a History teacher myself, I am always thinking about the ways in which I use imagery in the classroom as a tool to connect to testimony, so as not to perpetuate the deconstruction of familiar imagery into generalized symbology.”

“For my final project in "Music History of the 20th and 21st Centuries," I curated a music program featuring contemporary Chinese composers. With the freedom to design my own collection, I reflected on pieces from my past while discovering new ones in my research. Through the work, I was able to uplift my heritage, bring awareness to music outside of the Western canon, and build a unique listening experience for modern-day concertgoers. Dr. Huether's course can be best described as an exploration of contemporary music through historical, cultural, philosophical, and technological contexts. Students are expected to engage with scholarly literature through writing assignments and class discussions, which occasionally include visits by authorities in the field. Particular topics of interest include the Holocaust, the African Diaspora, film music, opera, and minimalism.”

Final Project-Playlist Curation & Liner Notes

“Teleportation”

“This playlist is called Teleportation designed to bring me to “another dimension”. It is best listened to using a speaker system with good bass turned up to the point where you can feel it in your soul. Each of the songs on this playlist, while different, all elicit a similar feeling within me. They cause a relaxation of my mind and a release of tension in my body. The types of songs that make me close my eyes and sway. While some songs may seem incredibly different, for example, it may not objectively make sense to have the song “Take a Slice” by Glass Animals and” Space Song” by Beach House on the same playlist, the way the playlist flows and is ordered allows for this strange combination. One of my favorite ways an artist can design an album is in its flow and subtle linkage between songs that bring the listener on a journey. Even though I may not be an artist, this was a main goal of mine in the creation of this playlist….”

Interactive Website

“Film Music and the Holocaust focused on the relationship between history, pop culture, and sound. Learning how to look critically at how sound is manipulated in film for specific purposes was invaluable. In my interactive project for my final, I wanted to highlight the importance of sonic elements in storytelling and convey the gravity of China's One Child Policy using the film One Child Nation as my guide.”

Project: Curriculum Development, Thoughtfully Teaching

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

“Reflecting on my own Holocaust education, I chose to create this curriculum around The Boy in the Striped Pajamas because I noticed a disparity in the ways that fictional depictions of the Holocaust and how it can affect Holocaust education. Holocaust education in America is already put on the back burner of many school curriculums due to a lack of time, resources, and knowledge. This is detrimental to future generations as we get farther away from the tragic events of the Holocaust. My goal for this curriculum was to make something easily accessible and understandable for educators to use that would also engage and present historic facts to students. This curriculum presents a historical background for the fictional narrative of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas so educators can use this fictionalization to engage the students in the material while also presenting them with facts and historical knowledge.”

“Music Copyright Law”

“After hearing the lecture by Dr. Dana DeVlieger, a lawyer specializing in music copyright issues, I became interested in recent copyright infringement cases and their impact on the music industry. During the research process for my final project, I discovered that streaming services like Apple Music, Spotify, and SoundCloud have transformed the music industry by providing convenient and affordable access to millions of songs but have also contributed to a rise in complex legal issues surrounding copyright infringement and fair compensation for artists. The case of Marvin Gaye estate v. Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams has raised important questions about the creative process of making music and the extent to which an artist can draw inspiration from previous work.

Overall, the course Music and Everyday Life was both a rewarding and fulfilling experience in which I was able to gather valuable insights into how music plays a role in our daily lives and its impact on our well-being. I was able to learn how to critically analyze and appreciate different types of musical tradition and gain a deeper understanding of the intersection between music and technology.”

@through.the.childrens.eyes

“My biggest inspiration for this project were the postcards my grandfather receives every month for donating to USHMM. Seeing the drawings from the children of Terezin always made me emotional and this project started out as a mission to learn more about the children themselves. Very quickly, however, I realized that there was more benefit in exploring what the art can do as a tool of remembrance in Holocaust education. I hope that this project shows the necessity of viewing art by children who were victims of the Holocaust as more than just art— it is their legacy. Because there is so little documentation of children during the Holocaust their art stands as a reminder of their lives, struggles, and courage in the face of great tragedy.”

Project: Musical Enculturation

“Dark Seeds Grow Beautiful Roots”

My family is Mandé, or from the Mandinka tribe in west Africa. We are from Guinea Conakry, not to be confused with Guinea Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, or Papua New Guinea. This meant two things; all the music I heard growing up was in my first language and all the music I listened to was in my dominant language. Four events impacted my relationship with music; my father being a DJ, my Islamic school shunning music, receiving my first iPod shuffe, and going to boarding school…Growing up black in America, many mistook my skin color as evidence of my childhood and my Mandé identity became a key but overlooked contextual fact about my background that explains my relationship with music.”