Essay #5
Viva la Vida de Música
Spanish natives have always had a special place in their hearts for music and the cultural aspect of the rhythm that they listen to and understand. They take music very seriously and have some of the best singers and song writers in the business. Not only does the Hispanic culture use their music for recreation and entertainment but they also use their music for cultural celebrations in their Hispanic community. Knowing how much of an impact that the music has on the sense of hearing of the Hispanic culture, can only also have a huge impact on the future of Hispanic music.
In the past couple of centuries, the Hispanic culture has evolved greatly in their sense of hearing based on their indigenous music. The Hispanic culture celebrates many festivals during each year. Many are for religious reasons and many are just for fun. A lot of their music was heroic and novelesque romances that were vital to their daily obstacles and turmoils. As time passed the Hispanic cultures had different music for different occasions. For important rites of passage the entragas were used and for even the passing away of someone’s soul as a farewell song were called the despedimientos (Rael). The listener was able to tell which type of music was being played based on the tempo of the music and based on where the music was
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<!–[if gte vml 1]> <![endif]–><!–[if !vml]–><!–[endif]–>being played. The Hispanic culture would play the entragas when a girl who was 15 was celebrating her Quinceañera because the Quinceañera is a rite of passage whenever a Hispanic girl turns 15. The celebration is not only heard in the entragas, but also in the dance and the conversation that is being done by the whole family. The Quinceañera is something that every 15 year-old Hispanic girl dreams of having. They are able to hear the rustle of their new dress that they are wearing to the ball; they are also able to hear the music that their court of girls and guys will learn a special dance to. The girl also always has a song that is dedicated to her from her parents. Every Quinceañera is different, just like every song and everyone’s sense of hearing is different based on where they are.
In the present time there are also many ways that a person could use their hearing to listen to the modern day Latin singers. Many of the famous ones include Shakira, Ricky Martin, and Selena. All three of these huge Latin sensations have come very far in their music to be recognized in their countries. And they also are known world-wide for all of their songs and all of their appearances across the world. Getting their music out to not only their countries but to the world shows that they want people from different ends of the world to know about their heritage and how they listen to certain music and how they play music, especially the Latin singer Selena. Even though Selena was from Texas, she had a strong Mexican background from
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her parents. She was in a family band that had her singing, her brother playing guitar, and her sister playing the drums (biography.com). She coined the name queen of tejano. Tejano is a type of Mexican music that blended the traditional Mexican beat with another style of music, such as country (Leal). “Tejano is the music of the heart” (Leal). Selena knew that what she was doing was something that she loved and that it was something that came from her heart and she knew that her fans could understand her because most of them were going through the same struggles as she was going through. Selena had always loved music and loved hearing other singers sing and play in bands. With out the sense of hearing, Selena, and most of the artists today would never had been able to succeed in their passion, music. Sadly Selena didn’t get to hear her last album because she was shot by the founder of her fan club, Yolanda Saldivar.
The future of Latin music is something that can be predicted based on the combination of the cultural celebrations that involved music and also the more modern style of music that is being produced today. Recently Mexican rappers were becoming more famous for their songs in that they were being produced in their country, and also in the United States. Who can say what new and improved songs and different types of genres that can be produced through the new tastes that the ear longs to hear. Only time will tell what sensational songs the Latin community will produce. Knowing all the potential that the Latin community has in its music industry shows how they are so passionate for their music and how they are able to hear all of the amazing songs they have to offer to not only their country, but the entire world.
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Kylie Smith
Marlen Harrison
English 101
19 November 2008
Viva la Vida de Música
Spanish natives have always had a special place in their hearts for music and the cultural aspect of the rhythm that they listen to and understand. They take music very seriously and have some of the best singers and song writers in the business. Not only does the Hispanic culture use their music for recreation and entertainment but they also use their music for cultural celebrations in their Hispanic community. Knowing how much of an impact that the music has on the sense of hearing of the Hispanic culture, can only also have a huge impact on the future of Hispanic music.
