Dallas's Music of Diverse Cultures Blog

 1. The South Sudan conflict: artist sing for peace I'd like to start off with some background information here. This conflict began in June of 2016 When trips loyal to the south Sudan president Salva Kiir broke out in a civil war with this of his deputy, Riek Machar. The Civil War caused tens of thousands of people to die until Machar eventually returned to the capital in April 2017 under a peace deal. However, more violence broke out when five of Kiir’s men were killed at a checkpoint. Which created more bottles that left hundreds dead. This led to a group of South Sudanese artists (The All Stars) “singing for peace” to warn others of the revenge culture. MC Lumoex came up with the idea to use music to specifically send the message  “how revenge will finish us” to the people. Dafa Dafa, which was the song that was released, translates to revenge in the local Arabic. I personally think it is unique how this group of men came together to use music as a messenger to the people ...

    To begin, I would like to say that I chose to focus this blog specifically on the country Kenya. Personally, I think it’s easier to understand new material of different concepts when the origin is the same. First off I would like to think about the traditional instruments of Kenya.       Getting off we have the Ngoma (drums) that are specifically used and traditional dances in an over-the-top fashion. Similarly, these drums are not one-size-fits-all. They have drums that are in different shapes and sizes that are used for different types of dances. I also think it’s interesting how the drums are used in a powerful way and traditional dances. This kind of reminds me of the Native Americans.      This next point I found quite interesting. I found this song bowing down- Kenyan Gospel Music by Judy Karanja, who is the type of new gospel singer. New gospel from what I understand or translated hymns or short local songs that are now c...

     To start, I think it is essential to let you know a bit about my religious background. I was raised in a Pentecostal Holiness Church and went to a Baptist private school from K-5 through 10th grade. While many of you might know there’s a pretty big difference between the two. Throughout my years spent in the church, we typically sang hymns with the choir. However, sometimes the choir would put their spin on these traditional hymns. However, I would like to focus on the songs we listen to in chapel at my private school because I tend to connect on a deeper level to contemporary music.       One specific song by Hillsong called Oceans (where my feet may fail) connects with me on a spiritual level if you will.  I would also like to preface this song is quite long, but I think listening to the whole piece is vital to understand how into it Christians (or at least I) get. (Also, I have placed the full lyrics at the bottom!)      Th...

 1. The purpose  In the grand scheme of things, we have learned about the Native American culture and what I would call a brief synopsis. Let's be serious when we learned about the Native American culture in school. We learn about the culture typically at a young age and not well retained, especially their music. There are hundreds of Native American tribes throughout the United States, and each and everyone has music that reflects their traditions and roots to their ancestors. Typically the Native American's could use music to tell stories, heritage, wars, ceremonies, and even celebrations. Sometimes their music was used to sing prayers and invoke spirits. One thing that all of these different songs had in common is the human voice. An essential instrument in the Native American culture is the human voice. Though out history we have listened and learned about harmonies and melodies, and I couldn't think of a better example. It is the most portable instrument that you could...