Last week, Deanna asked:
"How do you hear/perceive music? Can you tell when music is out of tune or pleasant? Care to elaborate about your musical experiences?"
And a timely question, too, my dear, as I already had a draft written about music. Well played. Well played, indeed.
Questions about music and "how much can you hear" are tricky ones to answer. When someone asks how much I can hear, what they usually mean is, "How much can you hear compared to what I can hear?" If I don't know how hearing people hear, I'm not sure how to compare what I hear to what they hear, you hear?
giggle. I'm really so easily amused.
Ahem. Back to music. For most of my life, I cared more about the lyrics than the melody so I tended to listen to pretty mellow music where the instruments didn't drown out the song. Even then, it was a task. Back in the olden days, when people still bought CDs and owned CD players so they could rock out while they built Stonehenge, I would pop a CD in and open the little booklet it came with and read along with the music. I would count and memorize beats to keep me on track and I even used to count the seconds from the time the CD switched to a new track to the time the first word was sung.
Now I listen to music via the newfangled internets (iTunes and even YouTube) and I ask the Google(yes, I just said "the Google." I'm trying to make it catch on. Embrace it) for lyrics. I can usually read along pretty well but the printed lyrics don't always tell you everything, like maybe that they sing the chorus twice, not once, before the bridge, or that the first stanza is repeated at the end of the song. With YouTube, the only words on the screen are the ones being sung at that moment so I know what's going on. So it takes me a while to get to the point where I can listen to something without needing the read the lyrics... something as simple as learning a new song can be time-consuming
So while everyone else was rocking out to their Walkmans (Walk-what, now? my younger readers are asking. It's what the dinosaurs used before iPods came along), I was buried in books instead. Oh, and even with the volume set at its highest, I couldn't really hear the music through the headphones (head-what, now? It's what cavemen used before earbuds), so I was never into the mobile music scene. I also prefer male singers over female because the deeper voices are easier to understand. The ladies' voices are higher and seem to blend with the music in such a way that it's hard for me to separate the lyrics from the melody.
It's only been in recent years that I've really allowed myself to listen to the nuances of instrumental music, or instrumental interludes in songs. I can hear it and I can get caught up in whatever emotion it's trying to convey. I know when it's a powerful piece, or somber, or light, or cheerful. But I have to really be concentrating, otherwise it will just blur into frustrating background noise. I would guess, too, that I don't hear it as clearly or as sharply as hearing people do, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate a good performance.
I'm not sure how well I do at nothing whether or not something is out of tune. Do you guys remember The Little Rascals, when Alfalfa is singing to Darla in the beginning and his voice cracks? Every time I watched it with my friends, they would laugh because he sounded funny but I couldn't really tell that he wasn't singing well. But then the few times I've watched American Idol, I can usually tell the bad singers from the good ones and sometimes even the just okay singers from the better ones.
My friend Kelly wrote about her experiences with listening to music and while I was never a JT fan like she is ;), I can relate to how she appreciates music and the roles it has played in her life. Check her out or I will send the Google after you.
Mk, kids, it's your turn now. What do you want to know about hearing loss?
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Sunday, February 28, 2010
You'll never walk alone
Random fact of the day: VeggieTales are alive and well in my house. Things I've re-learned this weekend include, but are not limited to: God is bigger than the boogey man, a thankful heart is a happy heart and God made you special and He loves you very much! (insert cheesy grin)
Hearing aids: I've been reflecting lately on how lonely it is inside these hearing aids. Not in a wah-wah, poor me, life is soooooooooo hard kind of way. Just in a let's face it, this is the way it is kind of way. Even when I'm around people, it's hard not to get wrapped up in my own thoughts because trying to keep up with everyone gets tiring. Can you imagine a world in which the only person you could rely on to be a source of entertainment, a conversation starter or a deep thought sharer was... you? And not being able to find the words to explain to people what that's like? It's just lonely sometimes. And I wish I had better words to explain it. I think if people really know what when on inside of someone's hearing aids, they might be quicker to help. More eager to include. So this is me doing my best to put it out there.
In other news: I know I ragged on the Winter Olympics earlier, but I found myself watching them over the last few weeks. I cheered when Shaun White won a gold. I cried when Joannie Rochette skated. I sat on the edge of my couch during men's speed skating. And I loved that millions across the country and around the world were doing the same thing.
I'm really not an athletic person. My idea of hiking involves a gym and an elliptical. Skiing is best left to the pros and ice skating conjures images of butt-ice contact. No thanks. But I was riveted by the Opening Ceremony and have been following a bit of the Closing Ceremony tonight. I love that even in hard times - in the midst of earthquakes and wars and racism and tsunamis and terrorism and a thousand other horros - we can put aside our differences long enough to play some games. To just shut it all out for a little bit and cheer and cry and celebrate together.
One of my new favorite Olympic commercials is that "You'll Never Walk Alone" one that P&G has done as part of its "Moms" series. (Lyrics here) Love it. I always mist up at the end. Partly because, come on, how can you not? Mom's-my-biggest-fan doesn't leave dry eyes often. And partly because isn't that something we all need to know? To press on when things are tough and maybe even scary? That there's a light at the end of the tunnel and that we'll never go through it alone?
The song isn't an overtly Christian one, but the last lines say it all:
Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone
As long as that hope is in Christ, we will never walk alone. Even when I'm at my loneliest, I'm never really alone. And there is a tremendous amount of relief wrapped up in that one little sentence that all the words in the world couldn't do it justice.
Hearing aids: I've been reflecting lately on how lonely it is inside these hearing aids. Not in a wah-wah, poor me, life is soooooooooo hard kind of way. Just in a let's face it, this is the way it is kind of way. Even when I'm around people, it's hard not to get wrapped up in my own thoughts because trying to keep up with everyone gets tiring. Can you imagine a world in which the only person you could rely on to be a source of entertainment, a conversation starter or a deep thought sharer was... you? And not being able to find the words to explain to people what that's like? It's just lonely sometimes. And I wish I had better words to explain it. I think if people really know what when on inside of someone's hearing aids, they might be quicker to help. More eager to include. So this is me doing my best to put it out there.
In other news: I know I ragged on the Winter Olympics earlier, but I found myself watching them over the last few weeks. I cheered when Shaun White won a gold. I cried when Joannie Rochette skated. I sat on the edge of my couch during men's speed skating. And I loved that millions across the country and around the world were doing the same thing.
I'm really not an athletic person. My idea of hiking involves a gym and an elliptical. Skiing is best left to the pros and ice skating conjures images of butt-ice contact. No thanks. But I was riveted by the Opening Ceremony and have been following a bit of the Closing Ceremony tonight. I love that even in hard times - in the midst of earthquakes and wars and racism and tsunamis and terrorism and a thousand other horros - we can put aside our differences long enough to play some games. To just shut it all out for a little bit and cheer and cry and celebrate together.
One of my new favorite Olympic commercials is that "You'll Never Walk Alone" one that P&G has done as part of its "Moms" series. (Lyrics here) Love it. I always mist up at the end. Partly because, come on, how can you not? Mom's-my-biggest-fan doesn't leave dry eyes often. And partly because isn't that something we all need to know? To press on when things are tough and maybe even scary? That there's a light at the end of the tunnel and that we'll never go through it alone?
The song isn't an overtly Christian one, but the last lines say it all:
Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone
As long as that hope is in Christ, we will never walk alone. Even when I'm at my loneliest, I'm never really alone. And there is a tremendous amount of relief wrapped up in that one little sentence that all the words in the world couldn't do it justice.
Friday, January 22, 2010
The hills are aliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiive....
Random fact of the day: I hate doing dishes even though I have a dishwasher. I don't like putting them away for some reason. So I end up just retrieving (clean) dishes from the dishwasher when I need them. It's like having an extra cabinet! :D
Hearing Aids: I love music. I wouldn't say I'm as up to speed with what the cool kids listen to these days, though. Out of ALL the songs they sang on Glee this past fall, I knew... two? I grew up listening to Christian music - I had it in my head that anything else was just evil. (Yet I watch "secular" TV with noooo problem. Hm) Plus honestly, the cool kid music is hard to hear. Like bands today purposefully record their albums so that the music overshadows the lyrics. The Christian artists I listened to tended to be easier to hear because they didn't do that (some do, I know. I don't listen to them lol).
Anyway, I've always been thankful that God in His grace left me enough hearing to enjoy music. (I am pretty sure I owe my early spiritual formation to Michael Card. ;)) It's a process for me to learn a song. I have to memorize it by following along with printed lyrics and once I memorize the lyrics, I also memorize beats. I even used to count how many seconds between the opening instrumental and the first lyrics so I wouldn't miss anything. If anything's off, if I count just half a beat too slow or too fast, if I forget just one line, I've lost my place in the song and while I hear the music, it doesn't make sense anymore. I can no longer appreciate it the way the artist wrote it.
Isn't life like that sometimes? The last several years and in particular, the last six months, have been something else. Church hurt. I got angry. And stayed angry. I moved out. I moved in. I got a job. Got left out. Railed against hypocrisy while being the poster child for it. I lost my place and while I could live some kind of life, it paled - pales - in comparison to who Jesus is.
I was listening to an old CD yesterday. I hadn't listened to it in years. I forgot some of the lyrics. I remembered the chorus, but that was all I remembered. For the life of me, I could not remember anything else but the chorus. I get so frustrated when that happens. Just one more lapse in communication. I prayed, as I always do, "God, please, help me understand the music!" And almost immediately, I heard the last stanza as if I'd been singing it all my life.
When I doubt, when I wonder, when I struggle, when I lose my place, when I ask, "How could You do this to me?", the answer is always in a song. I think God sometimes plants specific songs on purpose - they get stuck in my head and I'm forced to listen to the message all day. :) Like He sings the song back to me when I've forgotten the words... on the CD and behind the hearing aids.
The Arrow and the Song
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I shot an arrow into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For, so swiftly it flew, the sight
Could not follow it in its flight.
I breathed a song into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For who has sight so keen and strong,
That it can follow the flight of song?
Long, long afterward, in an oak
I found the arrow, still unbroke;
And the song, from beginning to end,
I found again in the heart of a friend.
In other news: I'm hosting brunch tomorrow! So, it's off to chop and brown and slice and prepare! I love it!
Hearing Aids: I love music. I wouldn't say I'm as up to speed with what the cool kids listen to these days, though. Out of ALL the songs they sang on Glee this past fall, I knew... two? I grew up listening to Christian music - I had it in my head that anything else was just evil. (Yet I watch "secular" TV with noooo problem. Hm) Plus honestly, the cool kid music is hard to hear. Like bands today purposefully record their albums so that the music overshadows the lyrics. The Christian artists I listened to tended to be easier to hear because they didn't do that (some do, I know. I don't listen to them lol).
Anyway, I've always been thankful that God in His grace left me enough hearing to enjoy music. (I am pretty sure I owe my early spiritual formation to Michael Card. ;)) It's a process for me to learn a song. I have to memorize it by following along with printed lyrics and once I memorize the lyrics, I also memorize beats. I even used to count how many seconds between the opening instrumental and the first lyrics so I wouldn't miss anything. If anything's off, if I count just half a beat too slow or too fast, if I forget just one line, I've lost my place in the song and while I hear the music, it doesn't make sense anymore. I can no longer appreciate it the way the artist wrote it.
Isn't life like that sometimes? The last several years and in particular, the last six months, have been something else. Church hurt. I got angry. And stayed angry. I moved out. I moved in. I got a job. Got left out. Railed against hypocrisy while being the poster child for it. I lost my place and while I could live some kind of life, it paled - pales - in comparison to who Jesus is.
I was listening to an old CD yesterday. I hadn't listened to it in years. I forgot some of the lyrics. I remembered the chorus, but that was all I remembered. For the life of me, I could not remember anything else but the chorus. I get so frustrated when that happens. Just one more lapse in communication. I prayed, as I always do, "God, please, help me understand the music!" And almost immediately, I heard the last stanza as if I'd been singing it all my life.
When I doubt, when I wonder, when I struggle, when I lose my place, when I ask, "How could You do this to me?", the answer is always in a song. I think God sometimes plants specific songs on purpose - they get stuck in my head and I'm forced to listen to the message all day. :) Like He sings the song back to me when I've forgotten the words... on the CD and behind the hearing aids.
The Arrow and the Song
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I shot an arrow into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For, so swiftly it flew, the sight
Could not follow it in its flight.
I breathed a song into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For who has sight so keen and strong,
That it can follow the flight of song?
Long, long afterward, in an oak
I found the arrow, still unbroke;
And the song, from beginning to end,
I found again in the heart of a friend.
In other news: I'm hosting brunch tomorrow! So, it's off to chop and brown and slice and prepare! I love it!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
So I decided to be hearing for a few minutes
My youngest brother's (16) band had a concert tonight. I didn't have my right hearing aid in (still need to call the audiologist!) and since the music was so loud, I turned off my left hearing aid.
And I could STILL hear the music in my right ear!
So just for kicks, I took out my left hearing aid and I could hear the music in both ears LOL! I decided to just go with it and enjoy being "hearing" for a few minutes!
Hilarity aside, it did concern me for the band members and the people there... my mom (who probably knows my hearing loss history better than I do) said I shouldn't be able to hear anything without my hearing aids until the noise hits the same frequency as a jet plane. That's LOUD, folks! All those kids jammin' to music as loud as a jet plane without any protection for their hearing... methinks I won't be the only hard of hearing person I know for very long!
I actually considered putting an earplug in my right ear just to protect the precious little I have left. Don't take it for granted, folks. Cover those ears! See my parents setting a fine example. ;)
And I could STILL hear the music in my right ear!
So just for kicks, I took out my left hearing aid and I could hear the music in both ears LOL! I decided to just go with it and enjoy being "hearing" for a few minutes!
Hilarity aside, it did concern me for the band members and the people there... my mom (who probably knows my hearing loss history better than I do) said I shouldn't be able to hear anything without my hearing aids until the noise hits the same frequency as a jet plane. That's LOUD, folks! All those kids jammin' to music as loud as a jet plane without any protection for their hearing... methinks I won't be the only hard of hearing person I know for very long!
I actually considered putting an earplug in my right ear just to protect the precious little I have left. Don't take it for granted, folks. Cover those ears! See my parents setting a fine example. ;)
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