Personal Narrative: Country Music

As far as I could remember, I have always appreciated by education and wanted to thrive with it. When i was 8 I had the great idea of becoming a mechanical engineer at northwestern.

Education is so important to me because it determines my future. I worked hard to get to where i’m at

because they were the cows I herded and without them I wouldn’t have a job

I'm from Round Rock, or for those of you who don't know where that is, we'll just go with Austin. Round Rock is great and you can find activities to find on some occasion, but when I am in Austin I am never bored. I used to go downtown a lot when I was younger with my Mother, Father, and older sister, but as my parents became busy and my sister and I became more involved in school we make the 20-minute travel to Austin less and less. I grew up with my two sisters and mother in the safety and growing town of Round Rock, but when I was able to drive my friends and I would make the drive downtown to enjoy the ambiance of Austin. I was given more freedom than my older sister was given in high school, but I couldn't complain my mother trusted me

I have always loved music as long as I can remember. I remember the days when I would have to wake up extra early to go to school as a 7 year old because I had to go to my piano lesson two hours before school even started. My mom

Up until I got into high school. I actually enjoyed school prior to my transition into high school. I was a B student and quite happy with a 3.0 GPA. At the time, I really did not give my education much thought. In other words, I did not think about my future then, and education had little value in the great scheme of life. However, I still enjoyed school, and had perfect attendance not missing a day unless it was absolutely a must. Unless I had a rare case of some unforeseen sickness as to keep from infecting others with some viscous illness I was suffering from at the time. It was not until I made the big move into that hierarchy of education that really changed my mind. This new experience of education was so different, so terrifying, so difficult, and overwhelming that I felt there was nothing else to do, but stop attending. I failed so miserably bad it cracked and crumbled the very foundation in which I spent the last nine years constructing. Without this foundation, I was nothing, I was stupid, and had nothing to offer.

Late, A Cowboy Song directed by Jane Barnette was an absolute thrill to experience. Everything from each of the actors’ performances to the intimacy of the stage left me in a sense of awe. It was all done so incredibly well. Choosing two specific actors to write this critique for was somewhat difficult given that there were only three cast members in the entire play and each one of them did an absolutely amazing job. The two that I did end up giving the most attention to were Jake Gillespie and Elsa Bernauer, Crick and Mary respectively. Throughout the play I watched both of these two to see exactly how they became their characters and whether there were any things that needed work. Let’s just dive into Jake Gillespie’s performance.

At the start of the semester I had become more aware and grounded in my voice. In my everyday life, I would notice if I was holding my breath. The reason for this was because over the summer I had to stand-up to one of my shut-up judges, my dad. The incident was extremely emotional, and I coped with it through the use of my actor training; instead of checking out and holding tension, I chose to breathe deeply and stay grounded. This allowed me to speak up even when I was told to shut-up. This awareness of breath was developed through necessity rather than choice. I had to be strong. My strength didn’t only come from being grounded in my breath, but it also came using breathe to stay present in the room. The use of breath also allowed me to go into my body and release the build-up of emotions. As a result of these experiences, my voice was able to drop more consistently to my lower resonator rather than my typical chest voice.

What has influenced a crossroad in two of music’s biggest genres Country, Pop? In this paper I’m going to state and defend my position on why I think it’s good for both genres. I will also give reasons on why people believe “Hick Hop’ is bad for both cultures.

Ever since I was young I have been singing. At five years old it was "Route 66" by John Mayer because it was featured in the movie Cars. Now, I sing anything from "Cantique" (a traditional French choral piece) to "Damned for All Time" in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. I believe in the power of music.

If I could pick one type of music to be my favorite it would be country music. I like country because the music tells a better story in my opinion, it tells a story over a long period of time not just a one to two day period. Country music has the best rhythm to it you can hear the guitar or drums or other instruments they're playing in the background. Also it usually tells of a story I might be in.

I’ve had Kind of Blue on repeat since the day we introduced it in class. There’s something aloof yet optimistic about it. I think it’s Davis—no, it’s definitely Davis. The trumpet is eternally pensive—inquisitive, perhaps lost. And the piano is calm and steady. The whole work (I listen to Flamenco Sketches as I write this) seems… content with searching. Lost in time and space and yet comfortable.

I also love music, especially singing, and I have started to teach myself to play piano as well. Music touches me in a way that no other thing can, it reaches my heart and allows me to express myself in different ways. Using the talent that God gave me to praise his name, convey my feelings and bring happiness to others gives me so much joy and is just so fun to me. My mother always tells me that I have a happy heart because I am always singing.

Sitting in the back seat of our car at the young age of five, I vividly remember hearing the lyrics of my parent’s Fleetwood Mac tape blaring from the speakers. It is from this memory, and many, many car rides that my love for the band Fleetwood Mac grew. Listening to Stevie Nicks, the lead singer of Fleetwood Mac, sing with her raspy, unique voice lead me to be a die-hard fan still to this day. My admiration for Stevie and the amazing performer that she is has played a significant role in my life, especially when I was in my late teens and early twenties. The events of her life, which are often included in her song lyrics, have stayed with me and inspired me to grow as a person. Her story is that of amazing heartache and

The first aspect I think about when I listen to country music is my home and my family. Honestly, I think that is why most people love it so much, especially in the Southeastern United States (U.S.). It also seems to me that it is so dear to the people of the South is because country music started here. I read up on the history of country music, and what basically happened is that a bunch of Europeans immigrated to the United States and brought their own styles and sounds with them. All of this mishmash gave birth to a whole new sound and lyrics that reflected the immigrant’s new way of life. I think that country music as of late has been categorized as either a bunch of hicks singing about their mothers, dogs, and ex’s or as wannabe pop singers, but in reality it is so much more. Country music has very deep roots and even though new country singers have deviated from the traditional strain and sound of country music, I still believe that it is one of the better types of music.