Because the text around the image was too distracting, I decided on a brief history for each drawing in over voice. I am recording them and placing them on the image for people to click on and listen to. I am also attaching a sound recording of a performance by each artist.
Due to limited time, I decided on a webpage already created for poster interface. My original plan was to create the page on flash, but that will take longer, and its time that I don't have right now. The webpage I found is Glogster.com . It looks very attractive and will go well with my illustrations. I am experimenting with it now and figuring out how i'll be creating buttons to navigate through the images.
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Monday, May 14, 2012
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Progress
After getting together with Dr. McLucas (Former Dean of School of Music) we decided on shifting the focus for this project on Women in Jazz. Because the subject of Women in music is extremely broad, and the genre being so male dominant, focusing on Women in Jazz will be a better option. I currently have 7 women who I will be working on.
Today I will focus on finding recordings from their performances and analyzing their performance style and the energy they put into their instruments. This will allow me to visualize how they were as artists and performers and will help me in starting my digital illustrations.
Today I will focus on finding recordings from their performances and analyzing their performance style and the energy they put into their instruments. This will allow me to visualize how they were as artists and performers and will help me in starting my digital illustrations.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Project Update!
My Ten Female Musicians/Composers
1. Valaida Snow (trumpeter)
It was
natural for Valaida Snow to be an entertainer: at the young age of fifteen, she
was already a recognized professional singer and trumpet player. While
Valaida Snow's beauty attracted audiences, it was her incredible talent as a
jazz trumpeter which truly captivated them. She obtained the nickname,
"Little Louis" due to her Louis Armstrong-like playing style. Valaida
toured and recorded frequently in the United States, Europe and the Far East
both with her own bands and other leaders' bands.
2. Dolly Jones (trumpeter)
Trumpeter
Dolly Jones, later known as Dolly Hutchinson, was one of the earliest jazz
women to record.
3. Melba Liston (trombonist)
It
was her talents as a composer and arranger that distinguished her, rather than
her work as an instrumentalist. She wrote scores for innumerable big bands
including those of Quincy Jones, Count Basic, Duke Ellington and Dizzy
Gillespie. By the time she was eight, Liston was good enough to play solo
trombone on the local radio. Her mother had found a trombone teacher for her.
"He wasn't right. I don't know how, but I knew. So I said no, cancelled,
and went on my own. I was always good in my ears, so I could play by ear.
4. Vi Redd (saxophonist)
Vi
Redd, although greatly under-recorded throughout her career, was a passionate
bop-based altoist and an exciting singer. The daughter of drummer Alton Redd,
Vi was surrounded by music while growing up. She played locally, working
outside of music for the board of education during 1957-1960 before returning
to jazz. Redd played in Las Vegas in 1962, was with Earl Hines in 1964, and led
a group in San Francisco in the mid-'60s with her husband, drummer Richie
Goldberg. Among her other associations were Max Roach, Dizzy Gillespie (1968),
and Count Basie. In 1969 Vi Redd settled in Los Angeles where she gigged
locally on an occasional basis while being busy as an educator.
5. Paula Hampton (drummer)
This
Drummer/Vocalist is a rarity in the field of jazz. But then, Paula Hampton is
the heir to a rare musical heritage. Ms. Hampton’s illustrious career began at
a very early age, when she performed at the famous Cotton Club in Indianapolis,
Indiana with her uncles’ band. Known as “The Hampton Family Band,” their
extensive national tour culminated in a classic ‘battle of the bands’ pitting
them against another famous Hampton -- her uncle, the late Lionel Hampton. Ms.
Hampton is proof that talent runs in families, hers having a show business
history dating as far back as the days of “Black Vaudeville” to present day.
6. Celia Cruz (vocalist)
For
more than half a century, the Queen
of Salsa carried her title with class and distinction. Her powerful
voice and electrifying rhythm garnered more than 100 worldwide recognitions,
multiple platinum and gold records, three GRAMMY® awards and four Latin GRAMMY®
awards, as well as a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. Her boundless
enthusiasm, genuine warmth, and deep-seated humanitarianism made Celia Cruz the
music industry’s most accomplished and revered performer … and the world's most
notable ambassador of Hispanic culture.
7. MC Sha Rock (Sharon Green, first female
rapper/mc)
Her
career began in 1976 as a b-girl (break dancer) in the Bronx, New York. In
1977, she became the first female emcee to join an all male hip-hop group. The
Funky 4 + 1 More was the first organized/synchronized group to change the way
rap was perfected. MC Sha-Rock became the first female Pioneer MC to set the
standards for females to follow. She is credited with being the First Female
Pioneer to go full circle in a MC rhyming battle. She was responsible for
introducing the Hip Hop/rap culture to various nationalities and countries
throughout the world.
8. Caterina Assandra
Was an
Italian composer and Benedictine nun. She was born in Pavia. She wrote a number
of motets, whose text she may have written, as well as a number of organ
pieces, written in German tablature. Her works were among the first to be
written in the Roman style in Milan. She was taught by Benedetto Rè (Reggio),
and was mentioned by the publisher Lomazzo in the dedication of G.P. Cima's
works. She was a nun at Sant'Agata in Lomello.
9. Maria Theresia von Paradis
Maria
Theresia von Paradis was a remarkable figure in music history, for not only did
she attain significant triumphs as both a composer and performer -- rare enough
achievements for a woman living in eighteenth and nineteenth century Europe --
but she had to cope with the dreadful handicap of blindness.
10. Thelma Terry (bassist)
Bassist and singer Thelma Terry was one of the
first women to take the lead of her own jazz orchestra. Born Thelma Combes to a
poor family in Chicago, at age 18 Terry was already playing first chair in the
Chicago Women's Symphony Orchestra. She was a student at Austin High School,
and many of the so-called "Austin High Gang" served at one time or another
in Thelma Terry's band. Terry was practically alone in her chosen profession at
her time and hardly found it easy to conduct the business of playing jazz as
she would've liked. The boys in her all-male units sometimes didn't take her
very seriously and, as one old-timer put it, "only played in the band
because they wanted to get into (Thelma's) pants." Terry eventually
wearied of the struggle and in 1929, she married and rang the curtain down on
her musical career. Later attempts to make a comeback were rebuffed for various
reasons.
Monday, April 9, 2012
Project Proposal
Project Proposal
Advanced Design
Women in Music
In the musicology area of study, there have been many studies on women in music and the lack of recognition they had during their lifetime. In many music genres, the musical patriarchy has always been male dominant. When people think about the classical era, they think of composers such as Beethoven, Mozart, or go into the baroque era with Bach and Handel. When asked to identify female composers, many cannot think of any. Going into Jazz history, the focus was mainly on Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, and many virtuosic performers, but some of the only female performers recognized for bebop were Ella Fitzgerald or Billie Holiday, and it was mainly for their performances with other famous male artists. When people think of rap or metal rock music, the two genres are also extremely male dominant and those female artist who have made rap or metal rock music are not recognized for the hard work that it takes to break through those norms and create music that they enjoy making. Modern pop music has given many female artists the opportunity to be the most recognized in. There is always the question to whether they are really affirming power through this kind of music, or simply being objectified by society through their performances. This is being based off of the exotic, sexual appeal that many female artists give off from their music videos and concert performances.
With all this information being said, I have decided to create an interface design with digital illustrations to honor the women who are not recognized for their achievements. They will be poster-sized images with text, informing people on what their contribution to music was. This will be somewhat like a tribute to women in different musical genres that have passed on or are still out there, and are not well known for their compositions, songwriting, or performances. The genres will include: classical, jazz, rock/metal, rap, and pop.
The visual style I have in mind is digital illustrations with the use of Photoshop and Illustrator, and the text incorporated would communicate musical works, years of contribution, and some background information on their music education. The layout I was thinking of would be similar to an event poster with buttons that would transition to further background information, musical compositions and performances. Rather than communicating a concert event, I will be creating a commemoration for these woman and their musical contributions.
Some women I have in mind:
Classical Era Caterina Assandra, Italy 1570-160
Maria Theresia von Paradis, Austria 1759-1824
Clara Shumann, Germany 1819-1896
Jazz Lucile DesMoulins, Blues 1900s
Mary Lou Williams, pianist/arranger
Thelma Terry, bassist/singer
Rock/Metal undecided
Rap MC Lyte (Lana Michelle Moarer) 1980s
Pop undecided
Here are examples of the type of graphic and the type of layout I was thinking of for these posters:
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