Thursday 27 February 2014

Musical Quote Quiz!

I love quizzes of all sorts, so I thought it would be fun to start making my own quizzes in this blog, for the entertainment of my readers! I'm going to test the idea with a simple Musical Quote Quiz and see if anyone takes part, so if you want more quizzes in the future, get active today :)

Les Rules of the Quote Quiz: I'm going to give you 10 short quotes from 10 different musicals, and your job is to guess (or know) the name of the musical, the character who sings (all the samples are solo parts), and the song. Submit your answers to the comments and be sure to check in exactly three weeks from now, March the 20th, when I post the right answers and everyone's points. The winner gets eternal praise and glory, and the honorable title of musical savant extraordinaire. I think it goes without saying that searching all the right answers from the wonderful world of Internet would make the whole thing kind of pointless and ridiculously easy, so challenge yourselves don't run to Google okay?

Let's get started!

Little hint: One of the quotes belongs to this love-sick gentleman.

Quote 1:

"Life's more painless for the brainless 
Why think too hard when it's so soothing?"

Quote 2:

"Small pleasures, small pleasures, who would deny us these?
Gin toddies, large measures, no skimpin' if you please!"

Quote 3:

"I have often walked down this street before
But the pavement always stayed beneath my feet before."

Quote 4:

"Have you asked of yourselves what's the price you might pay?
Is it simply a game for rich young boys to play?"

Quote 5: 

"Do they think that walls could hide you?
Even now I'm at your window
I am in the dark beside you
Buried sweetly in your yellow hair."

Quote 6:

"Those who speak of what they know
Find too late that prudent silence is wise."

Quote 7:

"My heart wants to beat like the wings of the birds that rise from the lake to the trees
My heart wants to sigh like a chime that flies from a  church on a breeze."

Quote 8: 

"What does he know of me, my lord and master?
When he has looked at me, what has he seen?"

Quote 9:

"I liked my memories as they were,
but now I'll leave remembering her."

Quote 10:

"Who do you think you are, barging in on me and my guitar?
Little girl hey, the door is that way, the fire's out anyway."



Wednesday 26 February 2014

Voice of the Week: Eartha Kitt

How I found out

Eartha Kitt's Christmas tune Santa Baby is extremely famous and absolutely amusing.


Commentary

My admiration of Ms Kitt doesn't stem just from her singing voice, exceptional as it is. I admire the life she led, how she kept her head remarkably straight even though she experienced rejection many times in her life, sometimes because of her skin colour; supposedly her father was a white man. When she made statements against the Vietnam War, there was so much general tension towards her that she moved to Europe and made her career there for ten years. Kitt spoke four languages fluently (especially French) and many of her songs reflect this talent. She is so unique in many ways, including her looks, her voice, and her perceptions of race. I recommend you look up some quotes by Eartha Kitt, she was a very intelligent woman who knew how to place her words and wasn't afraid to state her opinions.




Favourite songs

Angelitos Negros

Just An Old-Fashioned Girl

Uska Dara

Angelitos Negros demonstrates the power and the beauty in Eartha Kitt's voice, while Just An Old-Fasnioned Girl is just one example of her unapologetically humorous performances. I wanted to feature this specific video of Uska Dara because I have never seen, and never will see hereafter, a performance more fitting to the description of "captivating".

I would listen to this music when...

Eartha Kitt's voice is like a massage to the ears, so when I want to pamper my sense of hearing I know what to do.

Random lyric sample

C'est si bon
De guetter dans ses yeux
Un espoir merveilleux
Qui donne le frisson
C'est si bon
Ces petits sensations
Ça vaut mieux qu'un million
C'est tellement, tellement bon
(C'est Si Bon)

Stars ★★★★★

Monday 17 February 2014

Voice of the Week: Lorde

Sorry for the late Voice of the Week, here it comes!


How I found out

I heard Royals on the radio, like everyone else on the planet who has been anywhere near a radio station.

Commentary

Listening to Lorde was a surprising experience in many ways. First and foremost, there aren't a whole lot of teenage alto singers around who can sing with her confidence. Secondly, I really like the backgrounds, because they are simple enough to highlight her unique voice, but yet there's always an element of interest too. Thirdly, I'm truly amazed that she's a teenaged, female singer (and songwriter) who does not fill up her first album with unintentionally melodramatic break-up songs. Instead, her lyrics are very intriguing and not at all straightforward. But despite all this praise I'm giving, Lorde will probably not rank on my very top favourite artists. She has a couple of songs that really "click" with me, but mostly I would listen to her just as nice background music because, again, there is some musical chemistry issue here that doesn't trigger a total "wow!" reaction from me. However, I'm absolutely giving her the thumbs up for doing something completely different than what the music industry seems to think young women should be doing, and for getting to an incredibly mature start with her first album.

Favourite songs


White Teeth Teens

The Love Club


I would listen to this music when...

I'm not in any particular mood but don't want to sit around in a quiet house.

Random lyric sample

We're never done with killing time
Can I kill it with you?
Till my veins turn red and blue
We come around here all the time
Got a lot not to do 
Let me kill it with you
(400 Lux, album Pure Heroine)

Stars ★★

Friday 7 February 2014

Tag: Ask my bookshelf

A friend of mine posted a really fun tag in Facebook, so I decided to share it here at Music & My Mind and pass it on to other bloggers! The idea is to answer the questions below with titles of books from your own bookshelf – just the titles as they are, no modifications or explanations! The questions are translated by me, because that friend in Facebook posted it in Finnish.

1. Are you a man or a woman?

Little Women

2. Describe yourself

The Hobbit

3. What does life mean to you?

Shakespeare & the Making of Theatre

4. How are you doing?

A Storm of Swords

5. Describe your current home.

The Two Towers

6. Where would you like to travel?

A Tale of Two Cities

7. Describe your best friend.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

8. What is your favourite color?

Black Beauty

9. What is the weather like now?

Wuthering Heights

10. What is the best season in your opinion?

The Winter's Tale

11. If your life was a tv series, what would it be called?

Unfinished Tales

12. What is your (romantic) relationship like?

The Casual Vacancy

13. What are you afraid of?

A Communicative Grammar of English

14. Aphorism for the day.

Tales of Mystery & Imagination

15. What advice would you like to give?

As You Like It

16. How would you prefer to die?

1000 Places to See Before You Die


And now it's time to tag some people and pass on the fun. I'll tag Frankie SavageIndigo Montoya and Hamlette. There are no rules here as to how many people you should tag, and of course anyone is free to pass this on!

Have fun perusing your bookshelves!

Wednesday 5 February 2014

Voice of the Week: Emeli Sandé


How I found out

I can't remember if I heard Next To Me first, when it played everywhere (including Glee), or if I heard her cover of Beyoncé's Crazy In Love when there was buzz about The Great Gatsby film.

Commentary

For some reason, it took me more than two listen-throughs of Sandé's album (she's made just one studio album so far) to fully appreciate her talent. I think the reason was that her type of voice doesn't quite resonate with me. Not that she doesn't hit the notes or have power in her voice, of course she does, but it's just a matter of preference. (A similar example would be Jennifer Hudson – unbelievably huge voice and great ability to project emotion, yet she bores me. Please don't throw that shoe at me.) However, I then started paying more attention to her lyrics, and came to respect her very much as a lyricist. This week's "Random lyric sample" actually isn't random at all, I chose them because I absolutely adore those last two lines. And there are lots of golden moments like this in Sandé's other songs.

Favourite songs


Next To Me

Daddy

Wonder

Do I even have to tell you what an awesome, positive beat Next To Me has? Daddy has some mysterious alluring quality in it, and Wonder makes a great addition to a work-out playlist – tested and approved by yours truly!

I would listen to this music when...

I get home after having a really good day.

Random lyric sample

If you're looking for the big adventure
And gold is all that's on your mind
If all you want's someone to take your picture
Then I won't waste your time
See, maybe I'm too quiet for you
You probably never noticed me
But if you're too big to follow rivers
How you ever gonna find the sea?
(River, album Our Version of Events)

Stars ★★★★

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Suggestions for featured Voice of the Week subjects are still welcome! I'd love to "find" some singers or groups that I've never heard of.