Musical Ethnography

Music ethnography is a representation of music, which is written and contains the description, as well as the interpretation of certain music culture. This research paper seeks to explore a certain music culture as it related to an interviewee. The intention will be to get an insight into both the substance of music as well as the role that the music plays in peoples lives. First will be an open-ended questionnaire that will address the music life of the respondents. Afterwards, an interview will be conducted to establish how people feel about music. The music obtained will be used to draw conclusions on the style elements that characterize the music.

Questionnaire

Biographical Information

What is your real name? Stage name?

When and where were you born?

Do you have family members? Who are they?

Where did you attend school?

What religion do you ascribe to?

Which ethnic group do you come from?

Experience

Where did you go for your music training?

For how long have you been in the music?

How much do you earn from your music?

What do you spent the earning on?

Musical Activities

Do you play in an ensemble or alone?

How do you related with your dancers?

What is the taste of your music? What about that of your family and friends?

Which specific artists or repertoire do you love listening to?

Where can one get your music? Radio, CD, TV, movies, internet, live performances?

How do you experience music? What do you do when listening to music?

Interview

This is an interview conducted to evaluate what the audience thinks about the song "We Found Love" by Rihanna featuring Calvin Harrins. The interviewee is a fan of love songs.

Me: Hello and welcome for this interview.

Interviewee: Thank you.

Me: I understand that you are a fan of love songs

Interviewee: Yes. I love listening to love songs.

Me: I am going to interview you on several elements of Rihannas song we found love

Interviewee: Go ahead. I am ready.

Me: What instruments do you hear in the song?

Interviewee: The beats of the song are very good. Additionally, the song is very well harmonized. The melody is fantastic.

Me: What do you hear that tells you about the genre and style of the song?

Interviewee: The beat tells me the genre of the music. Additionally, it tells me the purpose of the song.

Me: As the music develops, what changes, what remains the same? What is repeated?

Interviewee: The tone changes as the pitch changes. However, the background beats are the same.

Me: Would you call this a good or bad performance from Rihanna?

Interviewee: This is a very terrific performance because the song is very emotional. The melodies are fantastic.

Me: Do you hear some specific parts of the music? How can you tell?

Interviewee: Of course, I do, especially the chorus. The words are very clear when it comes to the chorus of the song.

Me: How would you describe this type of music?

Interviewee: Definitely, this love song is in the genre of "blues".

Me: How would you describe the style?

Interviewee: The beats are for the current generation. The style fits very well with the youth.

Me: What about the rhythms?

Interviewee: The flow of the song is superb. The way the sounds and silences are combined is great.

Me: Would you sing along the music if you were asked to do so?

Interviewee: Yes, I will. The words are very emotional and sensitive. I can sing along very comfortably.

Me: How would you dance to this music?

Interviewee: I would employ the current style of dances such as break dance. It is not just a song that can be danced with any style.

Me: Thank you very much for your opinion on this song. I hope that this information will help me make proper inferences about the song.

Interviewee: You are welcome.

Documentation of the Song: "We Found Love"

It's like you're screaming, and no one can hearYou almost feel ashamedThat someone could be that importantThat without them, you feel like nothingNo one will ever understand how much it hurtsYou feel hopeless; like nothing can save youAnd when it's over, and it's goneYou almost wish that you could have all that bad stuff backSo that you could have the goodYellow diamonds in the lightNow were standing side by sideAs your shadow crosses mineWhat it takes to come aliveIts the way Im feeling I just cant denyBut Ive gotta let it goWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeShine a light through an open doorLove and life I will divideTurn away 'cause I need you moreFeel the heartbeat in my mindIts the way Im feeling I just cant denyBut Ive gotta let it goWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeYellow diamonds in the lightNow were standing side by sideAs your shadow crosses mine (mine, mine, mine)

We found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless placeWe found love in a hopeless place

Analysis of the Song

The Role of Female Voices in Love Songs

From the information that I gathered from the interview and the general styles of the song, it is important to present an analysis of the song we found love by Rihanna. The appealing nature of female voices in love songs has been seen. From the interview, several elements of music in the contemporary music era can be established. First, the melody of the song is very catchy. In this regard, the audience will be wowed by the melody, as it is appealing to any person, whether in the old age or the youth. The chord progression of the song is also another element in the song that attracts much attention. In this regard, from the interview and the nature of the song, the chords progressions provide a very good rhythm of the song. The beat and rhythm of the song are fantastic, to say the least. From the beginning to the end, the beats change with the change in the tone of the music stirring the emotion of the listeners. From these betas, the genre and style of the song can be established. In this regard, this song is typical of a blue grass song.

The concept of this song is to portray the idea that love can be found everywhere. Rihanna uses this song to bring out this concept very well. She does that by the use of very memorable hooks in the song. More importantly, the lyrics of the song are much harmonized. In this regard, they also rhyme in some cases. The arrangement of the verses and the chorus is intro-verse-chorus-verse-chorus, which makes the song very appealing. The length of the song leaves one yearning to hear more. As such, the audience wants to listen to the song repeatedly.

Conclusion

This song has highlighted the role of the female voices in love songs. From the rhythm and style to the beats, the song is not only appealing to the males but also the female audiences. This shows that females with great voices as well as proper song genres are likely to be very appealing to the audience. Rihanna's song further proves how the structure of the contemporary songs is different from those of the past. However, it follows the conventional structure of songs, which involves the use of several elements to become more appealing to the audience. The harmony of different elements is done so well so that the song can easily be classified.

References

Azlyrics.com,. (2016). RIHANNA LYRICS - We Found Love. Retrieved 30 January 2016, from http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/rihanna/wefoundlove.html