Parent Night Playlist

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Canzona No. 1

One of the things I really enjoy about live concerts is the energy of the crowd. At any rock concert or festival, you will see people dancing, smiling, screaming, and waving their hands in the air. The music moves them. They sing along to the lyrics. They stomp their feet and clap their hands. When you’re a part of that crowd, you see a side of people that is normally reserved for those closest to them. You see a part of their soul. When everyone’s guard is down, you don’t even have to try to connect with the people around you – the environment does it for you. As rock historian Robert Palmer observes in his book Rock & Roll: An Unruly History, “rock and roll listeners often seem to be behaving like entranced devotees, true believers.”

I’ve always imagined that one of the best feelings in the world for an artist is to hear an entire stadium singing back their song. But based on the concerts I’ve attended, I can attest to the fact that it’s also a pretty cool feeling to be in the audience while it’s happening.

“Concert” is probably the wrong term for a rock show because it implies a uni-directionality: the artist performs, the audience listens and watches. But in fact, a concert is an exchange more than a show. The event is a mutual co-creation between performers and fans. “My voice comes from the energy of the audience,” said Queen singer Freddie Mercury. “The better they are, the better I get.” The rapture is communicated both ways, which is why concerts are the areas for creating the incredibly strong bond between performer and fan that popular musicians are famous for.

Axe to Grind is a love letter to rock music and the rock concert experience. “Axe” is a nickname for a guitar and the phrase “grab your axe(s)” has been used by musicians and directors to mean, “pick up your instrument(s).” This piece is inspired by three different decades of rock music; the classic rock of the 1970’s (Led Zeppelin, Queen), the Glam metal of the 1980’s (Bon Jovi, Van Halen), and the hard rock/heavy metal of the 1990’s (Guns N’ Roses, Metallica). The work utilizes four iOS devices and the Garage Band app.

Thank you to James Mobley and the Brownstown Middle School Band with the participation of the members of the N-BEAM consortium. For those about to rock, we salute you!

Parent Night Playlist

Clairelarson507

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