Chick Webb and his Orchestra Featuring Ella Fitzgerald (Encounter 5)

I have always been a fan of jazz, blues, big bands and the old crooners who have a way of bringing pure talent to the table and transcending above the bands of today. The voices and the instruments played are an absolute pleasure to listen to. I have so many favorites and I was able to locate and download a collaboration of two of the many great artists of the big band era released by the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. Chick Webb and his Orchestra Featuring Ella Fitzgerald is the album I chose to review. The album was released in 1981 in the genre of Big Band; Jazz. The album consist of ten songs each quite short in length but long enough to enjoy the young voice of Ella Fitzgerald and the big band instrumental sound from Chick Webb and his orchestra.

In 1935 Ella Fitzgerald was discovered at the young age of sixteen-and-a-half by emcee Bardu Ali, this discovery was said to be “perhaps the greatest distinction given to the band”. Ella recorded tracks on the album heightening the already soaring Webb orchestra. Ella’s voice was an infectious force that contributed to the orchestra. This album allowed me to hear the early sound of Fitzgerald, where later recordings share a more polished voice. Still young, she was able to stand up with one of the best big bands of the 1930's. Ella Fitzgerald died in 1996 from debilitating diabetes.

William Webb bought his first drum set at the age of eleven and joined his first band, from then he traveled to New York and made name for himself, Chick Webb. Webb was the drummer of his thirteen piece orchestra and he was amazing at orchestrating challenges and winning Battles of the Bands against the greatest, including Benny Goodman. Chick Webb battled illness throughout his life. He contracted tuberculosis of the spine as a young child which obviously did not inhibit him from greatness, but did catch up to him in his later years. At the young age of thirty he passed away due to his long term illness.

When I first listened to the album I laughed as it reminded me of episodes of Tom and Jerry. I could literally see Tom chasing Jerry as the orchestra played to their every move. This album makes you want to move, it took me back to a time that I have only seen in movies, read about and listened to.

Liner Notes
Jasen, David. Chick Webb & his Orchestra Featuring Ella Fitzgerald. Folkways Records FJ 2818. 24 Nov. 2007
<http://media.smithsonianglobalsound.org/liner_notes/folkways/FW02818.pdf>.

Photos
Drummerworld. Chick Webb. 24 Nov. 2007
<http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Chick_Webb.html>.

Smithsonion Folkways Recordings.
<http://www.folkways.si.edu/search/AlbumDetails.aspx?ID=467#>.

This post is my response to the Album Review Project.

Performance (Chapter Five Reflection)

After reading chapter five, my view of performance as a phenomenon has deepened based on the many examples given. When I think of performance I think of the act someone does in order to entertain; puppet shows, plays, comedy shows, musicals, sports games. These are all performances that encompass signs or markers “that let us know a performance is about to take place, is taking place, and is finished” (141). The examples of performance given in the chapter broadened my view of what an actual performance entails. Not only can a performance be an event as listed above but even as simple as “performances of folklore that happen naturally within daily conversations and situations” (128). On page 128, the author gives example of two friends talking about the school semester and one says, “Be careful-don’t count your chickens before they are hatched.” I have heard this proverb a million times and have even said it myself, but not until after reading this chapter did I realize it is an act of performance.

I thought of all the aspects of performance but failed to think of the people being entertained; the audience. The relationship between the performer and the audience is important to the overall interpretation of the performance. Looking even closer into this relationship, the social context is an element of great importance to the performance. The social context includes “those things that relate to the group, community, and culture within the communicative expression takes place” (139). This brings me back to the two friends talking about the school semester, this is also mentioned in the book, if they did not share the same culture, perhaps an exchange student, and this proverb was said, he or she might not have understood its connotation. In order for the performance to be interpreted correctly, the element of social context must be present in order for the performer/audience relationship to take place.

Social context, markers, and everyday verbal communication are only a few of the elements that craft a performance. Chapter five spoke of the many aspects of performance which allowed me to broaden my view of how a performance is created and the characteristics surrounding it.

“This blog entry is my response to the chapter five reflection question.”

Sims, Martha C., and Martine Stephens. Living Folklore An Introduction to the Study of People and Their Traditions. Logan, Utah: Utah State University Press, 2005.

People of the Jaguar (Encounter 4)

During a lecture in my anthropology class discussing Mayan culture, my professor stated the IU Art Museum houses several Mayan pieces of pottery. What a perfect opportunity to combine information. I headed straight to the IU Art Museum to fulfill my curiosity by seeing pottery from a time period discussed in my anthropology class, and to also complete an encounter project. Many times I have walked past pieces of art not knowing the history, meaning of symbols, or iconography being represented. After discussing the culture in class, I was able to better understand the history and the use of iconography on the vase I chose to explore, although I could not quite figure out what it represented.

The Polychrome Vase is from the Late Classic Period, AD 700-800, from the forest area of Peten Guatemala. The cylinder shaped vase is made of clay and pigment with male figures painted around the exterior. I assume the vase may be telling a story of a ceremony of an important ritualistic event to please the gods. While researching Mayan pottery I came across a website describing the pottery and the artists, “Maya ceramic artists were highly educated members of the elite. They used slip paint, a mixture of finely ground pigment, clay, and water, to decorate their pottery with images of rituals, myths, geometric motifs, and hieroglyphs. Ceramics were used as tableware, currency, symbols of status, and as offerings to the dead. Clay pots were also made for cooking and storing food.”

After searching the internet for similar Mayan pottery with the figures represented, I found only one that was comparable. Also from the Late Classic Period, the pottery found was said to be representing the Three Noblemen who “offered bread to the gods to ensure success in the planting and harvesting of crops.” The male figures painted on the pottery at the museum did not carry bread, but their bodies are similar in the sitting crossed-leg position, clothing, and head dress, also noted is the profile positioning of the head.

The culture of the Mayas is interesting to say the least. Not only are they known for their pyramids and art, but also for their great achievements: their development of writing and the calendar. The pottery that has survived over the years are small reminders of the Mayan history. We are able to look at the pottery, with a skilled eye and knowledge, and see figures that represent something great and important in their life. A story is told by each piece of pottery that allows us to take a step back in time. The anthropology class sparked my interest of the Mayans but the encounter project gave me the push to act and see the pottery and learn about these hand-made objects.



This post is in response to the Material Culture (Object) encounter assignment.

Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation. “Civilization.ca.” People of the Jaguar. Mar. 2004. 10 Nov. 2007 <http://www.civilization.ca/civil/maya/mmj01eng.html>.

Promotion Ceremony

In 2000 I was promoted to Petty Officer Third Class. For those of you not familiar with the military this advancement is a big step in your military career. This promotion is not simply given to everyone; it is earned through positive evaluations and of course an exam of general military knowledge and knowledge of your specific rating (job). I was a Hospital Corpsman and I was proud to be promoted early in my career. No longer did I have to be apart of the “french fry” group. Those that are not of a Petty Officer wear stripes on their sleeve designating their rank, they look like fries. I was now able to wear a chevron and to be apart of a group that I looked up to and learned from. From the moment I entered the military I set my goal to do well and earn a chevron. The time of the ceremony was a much desired event, ritual.

While reading chapter four there were so many points made that reminded me of the promotion ceremony. On page 97 the author explained that “by a group’s performing a ritual, it is in essence designating a moment in time during which its members are required to pay attention to some of the rules and/or beliefs held by or prompted by the group. And that goal of the ritual isn’t that members simply pay attention to these ideas. Often the more important objective is that they are persuaded to believe that the values portrayed or referred to during the ritual are indeed real, true values the group holds.” During the promotion we as a group recited the Navy Petty Officer’s Creed, Hospital Corpsman’s Pledge, as well as the Sailor’s Creed. While reciting these words I felt honored to be apart of the group. I deserved this position and valued every single word as I recited them, as did my peers and the Petty Officers before us.

The promotion ceremony falls into the “high context” ritual as explained on page 99. The promotion was “stylized and occurred at a set time for specific, announced purposes, there was a dress code, it was conducted by an experienced member of higher ranking of the group, and we had specific actions to perform as well as words to recite.”

I never thought of promotion ceremonies as being considered rituals. After reading chapter four I realize what components make a ritual in fact a ritual, and therefore have thought of other times in my life that I have been apart of a ritual.

“This blog entry is my response to the number four reflection question.”

Sims, Martha C., and Martine Stephens. Living Folklore An Introduction to the Study of People and Their Traditions. Logan, Utah: Utah State University Press, 2005.