Critical Response #3

-Official Video of Happy Ending-

Happy Ending by Mika, released in October 8, 2007.


Lyrics:

This is the way you left me,
I'm not pretending.
No hope, no love, no glory,
No Happy Ending.
This is the way that we love,
Like it's forever.
Then live the rest of our life,
But not together.


Wake up in the morning, stumble on my life
Can't get no love without sacrifice
If anything should happen, I guess I wish you well
A little bit of heaven, but a little bit of hell


This is the hardest story that I've ever told
No hope, or love, or glory
Happy endings gone forever more
I feel as if I'm wastin'
And I'm wastin' everyday


This is the way you left me,
I'm not pretending.
No hope, no love, no glory,
No Happy Ending.
This is the way that we love,
Like it's forever.
Then live the rest of our life,
But not together.


2 o'clock in the morning, something's on my mind
Can't get no rest; keep walkin' around
If I pretend that nothin' ever went wrong, I can get to my sleep
I can think that we just carried on


This is the hardest story that I've ever told
No hope, or love, or glory
Happy endings gone forever more
I feel as if I'm wastin'
And I'm wastin' everyday


This is the way you left me,
I'm not pretending.
No hope, no love, no glory,
No Happy Ending.
This is the way that we love,
Like it's forever.
Then live the rest of our life,
But not together.


A Little bit of love, little bit of love
Little bit of love, little bit of love [repeat]


I feel as if I'm wastin'
And I'm wastin' everyday


This is the way you left me,
I'm not pretending.
No hope, no love, no glory,
No Happy Ending.
This is the way that we love,
Like it's forever.
To live the rest of our life,
But not together.


This is the way you left me,
I'm not pretending.
No hope, no love, no glory,
No Happy Ending.

Element of Music:

• Instrucmentation: I like how they start of with a piano notes and slowly adding other musical instrument in there. The piano sound was the loudest and clearest among them, showing some gentle and calm in the music. I also love the choir singing the chorus, it sound very nice and emotional. At the end, I love how the whole instruments, choirs, and vocalist sing really loud and divided to two parts, it was very powerful and it moved me somehow.
• Form:  The lyrics of this song is very different from the rest of the song. The sequence of this song goes like A-B-C-A-B1-C-A-C-D-A-A It started with chorus, which mostly start with a verse.  Most of the verse are chorus, including the ending where they sing the chorus 2 times, except one of them is half of the chorus.

Summary:
This song is belong to pop rock genre. It mixes the light lyrics, and catchy pop style with rock style. This song is most likely the vocalist is heartbroken and lock himself in his own room. He must be thinking everything will be a happy ending at the end, but his love left him with nothing. However, I think he's trying to get on without her, and wished her well. I have never heard of this song before, but it catches most of my attention from the Axis of Awesome. I love how it start with the chorus, how he sings very high, and at the end where it separated to two parts. The ending really moved me, because it sound they're trying to cheer the heartbroken by getting louder and louder and stronger with everyone singing together. This song relates to many of my life, though I have not really experienced love, but it relates to when I am parting with some friends. When I moved to Canada, I had to say goodbye to many friends, once I moved here, I have no motivation and starting to missed my old friend. Sometime I tried to pretend I'm sick to stay home, but failed many time. Then as days goes on, I slowly getting used to the situation and beginning to get motivation. Although, I haven't seen my old friends for a long time, since I lost all their contacts. I sometimes remember the fight and fun we had, I really missed those day and it would makes me really sad to think about it. However, I still hoping they're living happy and healthy. I think this song is fill with a little bit of happy ending instead of no happy ending.

Critical Response #2

This is an example of Concerto:
Howl's Moving Castle Lives (3 songs combined, solo part is near the end)

This is an example of Dance

Grande Valse Villageoise (The Garland Waltz)

-AMV of Good Life-

Good Life by One Republic, released in November 19, 2010.

Lyrics:

Woke up in London yesterday

Found myself in the city near Piccadilly

Don't really know how I got here

I got some pictures on my phone

New names and numbers that I don't know

Address to places like Abbey Road

Day turns to night, night turns to whatever we want

We're young enough to say

Oh, this has gotta be the good life

This has gotta be the good life

This could really be a good life, good life

I say, "Oh, got this feeling that you can't fight"

Like this city is on fire tonight

This could really be a good life, a good, good life

To my friends in New York, I say hello

My friends in L.A. they don't know

Where I've been for the past few years or so

Paris to China to Colorado

Sometimes there's airplanes I can' t jump out

Sometimes there's bullshit that don't work now

We are God of stories, but please tell me

What there is to complain about?

When you're happy like a fool, let it take you over

When everything is out you gotta take it in

Elements of Music:

• Lyrics: The lyrics of this song was very unusual. The sequence of this song is A-B-A1-C-B-D-B-A1. There are more than 1 bridge between a chorus. At the end, it end with A2 which most of the song end with chorus. Also the lyrics was talking about a story but I did not quite get it, I know he woke up in a places he doesn't know, but hes having a good life. I really enjoy this irony of been happy of getting lost in a place.
• Harmony: The combination with drums, piano, guitar, vocalists, xylophone, bass, and whistle. I found it powerful very powerful, and have this delight mood along the spot. The vocalist sound like he enjoys his life and have been through a wonderful and exciting adventure. I found it rare that whistle are used in there and it goes with the song, I can picture them walking in the city whistling and enjoy their happy time. 

Summary:

I think this song is about been in a place that you have no idea how you got here is actually not scary but exciting. Since most people would panic and thinking this is a worse day of their life, instead this song shows the opposite of it. The song sounds like they enjoy been in an unknown place and exploring. So I think this song is trying to tell us, even if we are in a strange and different place, we should find some enjoyment in a time like this and enjoy what we have now. I have heard this song many time in the radio on the car. I love this song because it somehow inspired me to have a good time out there and enjoy the exploration I am having with the powerful beat and voice. This song remind me of the experience I had when I went back to Taiwan for a summer camp. It was a the first time went back to Taiwan after been away for 3 years. My dad brought a new house. My relative moved to some places, and some people I knew changed, for example, my aunt who once I knew was taller than me now is shorter than me. I had to live in a different place since my dad's new house was still under construction, so I lived with my aunt which was my first time to live with my relative. I had many fun living with my relative, I get to play with my little cousins whom grown up so much that they seems to be smarter than me. There were many places changed too, and I do not have very much experience in Taiwan since back then I was only a child. The sky train that was still under constructing when I last visited was now finished. I had many problems using the sky train to get to  my summer camp, I kept getting on the wrong train and going to opposite way. The camp I joined was sort of an international students that want to learn or improve Chinese. I've meet many new faces from different country. Most of them are from America, I didn't meet any Canadian there. There were many amazing people, some of them can speak 3 to 5 different languages. It was fun to make friend with new people. During that summer, I had many fun time with newly made friend, and I explored a lot in Taiwan. 

Critical Response #1

-Unofficial Music Video by ohkelsss (She's lip-singing)-

Somebody I Used to Know by Gotye feat. Kimbra, released in July 6, 2011.

Lyrics:

Now and then I think of when we were together
Like when you said you felt so happy you could die
Told myself that you were right for me
But felt so lonely in your company
But that was love and it's an ache I still remember

You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness
Like resignation to the end
Always the end
So when we found that we could not make sense
Well you said that we would still be friends
But I'll admit that I was glad it was over

But you didn't have to cut me off
Make out like it never happened
And that we were nothing
And I don't even need your love
But you treat me like a stranger
And that feels so rough
And you didn't have to stoop so low
Have your friends collect your records
And then change your number
I guess that I don't need that though
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now you're just somebody that I used to know

Now and then I think of all the times you screwed me over
But had me believing it was always something that I'd done
And I don't wanna live that way
Reading into every word you say
You said that you could let it go
And I wouldn't catch you hung up on somebody that you used to know...

But you didn't have to cut me off
Make out like it never happened
And that we were nothing
And I don't even need your love
But you treat me like a stranger
And that feels so rough
And you didn't have to stoop so low
Have your friends collect your records
And then change your number
I guess that I don't need that though
Now you're just somebody that I used to know

I used to know
That I used to know

Somebody...

Elements of Music:

• Dynamics:

It was soft at the very beginning and gradually getting louder and louder then repeat again with the softness.

•  Harmoney:

The combination with bass, guitar, 2 vocalist, xylophone, etc. are well mixed together to combine a very sad and soft sound. The vocalists sound very sad and frustrated and go along with the instrucment.

Summary:

I think this song is about a couple are fighting with each other, and either of them are ignoring him/her. They both think that they're right and he/she is wrong, and won't apologize until he/she apologize first. Later on, they started to have a flashback with each other, and starting to miss each other but they still continue to ignore each other, until they feel like they're both stranger. The song is very emotional, I like how the singer is like telling a story of how they were used to be together and then sounded regretful when they said "Now you're somebody that I used to know." This song reminds me of the time when I had a fight with my friend because I thought she doesn't like me and started to ignore me. She thought that I told her to leave me alone. So the fights goes on and none of us apologize, and at the end, I think I moved away without talking to her ever again. I guess that count as somebody that I used to know, since I never seen her again. I guess if I ever see her again, I would feel really awkward when I'm talking to her, like a stranger talking to a stranger.  

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog about my choir 2011-12!

I am Rose, and I'm in grade 10 this year.

It's a very small class but it's pretty fun! The class is full of different students from grade 9-12!

In this blog you will find some assignment I do for my choir class. Please have fun and enjoy!

Don't foget to comment~ Thank you, please have a nice day!