Is Yugoslavia Dead? Ponderings by the BBC.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/2767597.stm

In class, we talked about the diversity of Yugoslavia compared to other regions of Eastern Europe. This article from the BBC asserts that in fact, keeping this diversity was a failed attempt at co-existence. Thus, the war came out of awkward relations between regions and ethnic groups; Yugoslavia, in many ways, is proof that a post-racialized global society is still far enough off to be called a pipe dream.

The Synthetic Sound: Alpha

Alpha, the self-described "best-kept secret in the universe," is a Trip Hop group formed in Bristol in 1997. The members met in a Trip Hop studio known as the PIJ; the most frequent vocalist for the group (who goes casually by Corin) was engineering another project of her future Alpha collaborator (Andy), and after a few sessions, they began to explore the Alpha sound. For listeners familiar with the Trip Hop genre, the various sounds produced are recognizable--the unusual female vocals are usually reminiscent of Beth Gibbons, and the beats themselves are usually "chill," if not downright dark. Superficially, the Alpha sound is no different from the so-called Trip Hop convention. However, unlike the iconic Portishead, Alpha is easy and avant-garde; instead of having only one singer, Alpha employs a few--most notably Helen White, Wendy Stubbs, and Martin Barnard--and each one has a distinct, decidedly non-commercial voice. The lyrics are poetry, and the grand abstractness of the words contrasts with the strangely familiar feeling of the music. It's orchestral, stirring, disturbing, and yet Alpha remains utterly undiscovered despite representation by Massive Attack's Don't Touch Recordings and collaborations with the likes of Radiohead, Madonna, David Bowie, and Pulp.

A perfect end - Alpha

"A Perfect End," the appropriate final song on Alpha's 2004 release of Stargazing, demonstrates Alpha's avant-garde style perfectly. The vocals are strange, intimate; the background music broad and orchestral. It is almost impossible to visualize this music being produces in a harbor city in southwest England; it is otherworldly. However, the individual voice that Alpha offers up in each song speaks more strongly of its Bristol roots than is immediately apparent. Alpha's sound is borne of the essential emotions of the everyman, the seamen walking across the street from the recording studio; Alpha puts poetry to the everyday feelings of Bristol and the small towns surrounding the city. Thus, Alpha has taken up the mantle of the continued innovators of Trip Hop, drawing inspiration from their contemporaries and their surroundings to expand the emotional impact of the synthetic sound.

People and Politics: Can Germany and Israel Get Along?

This recent Deutsche Welle report on German/Israeli relations is especially pertinent to our in-class discussion of the future of Europe. The fact of the Holocaust has made a relationship between the two parties tentative, at best, and now with the rate at which globalization is progressing, the need to make a secure alliance is important. The postwar realities of the two countries are drastically different; Germany became prosperous, and Israel became mired in further religious conflict. The key to a healthy international relationship between the two countries lies in their willingness to honor the tragedies of the past and move towards a position of "never again war," as Michael Wolffson states. However, is this a goal that can be realistically achieved?

The Synthetic Sound: Bristol, Then and Now

The trading post of Brigstowe (the modern-day Bristol, home of the Trip Hop Movement) was founded between the Avon River and the Frome River during the Anglo-Saxon age. For a few years after its initial establishment, Brigstowe grew as trade relations expanded with Ireland and South Wales. As the town grew, so did the scope if its trade; its ideal location near the sea facilitated international relations and later attracted maritime explorers such as John Cabot. However, the Norman Conquest of 1066 briefly transformed Brigstowe from a midsized trading post to a castle town. (Today, the castle is no longer. There's a park in its place.) After Brigstowe's "castle period," it assumed its identity as Bristol: the second largest city in England and the hub of the Triangle Trade in the 18th century. By the 19th century, however, Bristol's economic success had lessened. Thanks to the modernization efforts of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the infrastructure and harbor of Bristol did not fall to ruin. Now, despite the establishment of a few supposedly notable centers for the fine arts, Bristol is primarily known for its harbors and its size.

Synthesizers, Anyone? (Outline for The Synthetic Sound)

My contribution to The Synthetic Sound will be focused on the Trip Hop movement in Bristol, England. The parts of my paper are as follows:

Geographic influences: Why Bristol? Why Europe? Trip Hop in particular is a genre of electro that has taken off in Europe and yet has never really found its way to the ears of people in the United States. A feasible answer is that Trip Hop is intrinsically linked to its environment, the cultural traditions of this small area of Britain, and the character of the people. Since these sensibilities are less foreign to the European community, the Trip Hop sound gained popularity. Through examining the exact nature of Bristol and the surrounding towns, context for the music will be established as well as a definition of modern English auditory sensibility.

Musical Style/Influences: This is where specific case studies come in. Massive Attack and their label, Alpha, The Sneaker Pimps, Portishead, and Helicopter Girl will allow me to tie specific sounds to specific genres, regions, and peoples.

(But of Course) HISTORY: Does industrialization affect music production? How about the history of music in the UK? Is the music reactionary, and if so, against what? This is the area in which all questions of how will be answered. After all, it can be argued that every artistic sensibility comes out of the circumstances surrounding the artist...is that true?

Hypothetical Thesis: The Bristol-centered Trip Hop movement was a reaction to the postmodern notion of "simulacra" embodied in the commercial music that continues to be produced today. To counteract this commercialism, Trip Hop groups strove to capture the singularity of their towns and people with never-before heard synthetic sounds.

Visions of the Future: Post-Racialization

Dear Ms. MEHness,

Years after the publication of this issue of Time Magazine, there was a news program about the amazing technology used to generate the face of the woman on the cover. At the time, I was about eleven or twelve years old and just beginning to understand my own complex racial identity. I looked at the report, the computer generated face on the cover, and the sensationalized accounts of the (apparently modern) occurrence of racial mixing in this country. Idly, I wondered why Time Magazine never thought to hire a multiracial human model--they exist. In fact, that racially plural, digital face does not represent the people of the future; we're here right now, and guess what? We've always been here.

I'm strangely flattered, in a way, that Time Magazine groups me with the pluralistic, racially revolutionary people that will supposedly change the face of our country and the world. I feel as though I must be experiencing first-hand "futuristic living" as it is defined by Time Magazine. On standardized tests, I bubble in a different race every year; on my college applications, I checked up to five boxes under "Racial Makeup." (In case you were wondering: White, African-American, West Indian, European, Other.) In interviews, I receive such intrepid and sometimes well-intentioned questions such as, "What are you?" or "What's your mix?" If people are uncomfortable with the word "mix," they will usually substitute "nationality," and then when I explain, I get slapped with the "exotic" label. I must say, the life of a person of the future is fairly difficult to convey.

The most interesting conversation I've had about my race in a long time happened a few days ago, when an Orthodox Jewish man asked me how I stay grounded intellectually. According to him, one's personality is formed mostly through the adherence to tradition, and my racial multiplicity worried him because he thought I had no solid cultural base to grow from. His concern for my cultural and spiritual well-being was kindly, so I expressed to him the same Pollyanna vision of the future I envisioned for Europe in MEH:

One day, far in the future, our concept of race will become so dilute that racial discrimination will be virtually impossible.

Tradition will be maintained, but culture individually innovated.

Conflict will come of material, intellectual, and emotional disputes. Xenophobia will be too confusing to entertain.

Then, he shared a picture of his Japanese-Irish-Polish niece and nephew with me. His family's contribution to racial plurality, he said. The people of the future who are the here-and-now.

The Synthetic Sound: Further Mooging

Dear Elizabeth,

The moog, despite its clunky design and now dated technology, is perhaps the most influential musical tool of the electronic movement. Developed by the American Robert Moog, the instant popularization of the analog synthesizer in Germany marked a distinct shift in the way Germans viewed postwar technology. (To learn more about the heavy industry and military technology prevalent in WWII, I suggest checking out the research of fellow MEH bloggers JED, Natewozere, and Sam.) The moog is far from militant; it is, simply, a machine for synthesizing and innovating sounds. The Berlin School's extensive use of the moog was not only a method of expression but also a way of emphasizing technological nonviolence after WWII. Tangerine Dream, especially, used the moog to produce peaceful, ambient sounds--sounds which no one could have imagined coming from a machine.



Naturally, the moog was quickly replaced by digital synthesizers; the Trip Hop movement centered in Bristol skipped the moog completely. However, the idea of spreading a philosophy through innovating sound persisted and allowed for future artists to expand the impact of electronic music throughout Europe (and the world).