Reflection on "Music Lessons"

While reading Alissa Quart's "Music Lessons," I was reminded of all of the times I have supported artists or been drawn to their projects because of their independent, self-serving marketing and business models. One of the things that struck me was how frequently I download those "pay-what-you-want" albums by bands that I like, usually not paying anything for them, and then going to spend upwards of $20 on the same album on vinyl for my collection or tickets to their shows. I just recently did this for one of my favorite bands, Circle Takes the Square, a band that I don't expect many people who read this to actually enjoy. They put out their EP for a set price, and then released their full album as "pay-what-you-want." It made me realize how well this Free Culture Method actually works. Additionally, I also am drawn to artists that have started to "Go Micro." One of the sites that helps promote the venture to go micro is Kickstarter (or Indiegogo). This past year, another one of my favorite bands, Murder By Death (for fans of Johnny Cash, indie music, folk, and Americana whiskey lovers), decided to put out their latest album by themselves. In order to fund this process, they had people pledge certain amounts of money to which they would be "rewarded" with a copy of the CD. For larger donations/pledges, the band made the rewards come with more or be super excited. I think for $1000 dollars, a few lucky (and might I add rich) fans could get the band to cover any song that they requested. Either way, this system of Kickstarter is one aspect of Going Micro that gets the fans involved in the process from the very beginning. It's really neat!

I'm actually planning on putting together a chapbook to self-publish, something that's becoming more and more popular with the rise of e-books and indie publishing firms. 

Vocabulary Post: TLPH Chs. 9 &10 and various essays in _Beyond Words_

1. scrutinized: verb: examined or inspected closely
2. breadth: noun: the distance or measurement from one area or thing to another
3. rigor: noun: the quality of being extensively thorough or accurate
4. merited: noun: the quality of being good or worthy
5. volatility: noun: unpredictability
6. spewing: verb: forcing out large quantities of something
7. protégé: noun: a person who is guided and supported by an older, more experienced, influential person
8. warbles: verb: sounding in a trilling or quivering voice
9. drawl: noun: slow, lazy way of speaking
10. omnipresent: adjective: present everywhere at the same time
11. grisly: adjective: causing horror or disgust
12.  argot: noun: jargon or slang of a particular group or class
13. berated: verb: schooled or criticized
14.  cacophony: noun: harsh mixture of sounds
15. bombastic: adjective: high sounding but with little meaning
16. visceral: adjective: deep
17. lingua franca: noun: language that is adopted as a common language
18. renegade: rebellious
19. conspicuous: adjective: standing out to be clearly visible
20. watershed: noun: an event or period marking the turning point in a course of action or affairs
21. tenements: noun: a room or set of rooms forming a separate residence within a house or block of apartments
12. de facto: adverb: in fact or in effect, whether by right or not
13. pundit: noun: expert in a particular subject or field
14. denigrating: verb: criticizing unfairly
15. prescient: adjective: having or showing knowledge of something before it happens
16. payola: noun: the practice of bribing someone to use their position or power to promote a particular item of interest
17. monoculture: the cultivation of a single crop in a given area
18. synergy: the interaction of two or more people, etc. working together
19. draconian: excessively harsh and severe
20. pragmatism: a practical attitude or policy
21. clad: clothed
22. parcel: quantity or amount of something
23. trenchant: piercing in expression or style
24. èlan: enthusiasm
25. diffident: modest or shy because of a lack of self-confidence
26. fervid: passionate
27. pervasive: spreading widely through an area or a group of people
28. clout: influence or power
29. panacea: solution or remedy for all difficulties
30. bereft: lacking
31. bequeath: leave to a person
32. pastiche: artistic work in a style that imitates another style of an artist, the time period of a work, or the period of the work

If anyone's interested...

...here is a link to my poetry tumblr.

Here's a video about Web 2.0 that is interesting.

Although this video kind of outdated (it was made 6 years ago), some of the things are still interesting to think about and consider in terms of communication and the Internet.

Vocabulary from 2 Moodle Articles for Thursday 1/31/13

1. lamenting: verb-mourn, express regret or disappointment over something considered unsatisfactory, unreasonable, or unfair
2. condemnation: noun-the expression of very strong disapproval
3. inanities: (inane), adjective-silly, stupid
4. begrudged: verb--give reluctantly or resentfully (used with one object); envy the possession or enjoyment of something (used with two objects)
5. corollary: noun--a direct or natural consequence or result
6. encroachment: noun--intrusion of a person's territory or rights
7. starkly: adverb--unpleasantly or sharply clear, impossible to avoid
8. autonomy: noun-freedom from external control or influence
9. titillating: adjective: stimulating or exciting
10. parochially: adverb-having a limited or narrow outlook or scope
11. surreptitiously: adverb-doing something secretly because it would not be approved of
12. adamant: adjective: refusing to be persuaded to to change one's mind

Introduction Post

Hi Readers!

I'm Jackie, a Supplemental Instructor for Prof. Lawson's 113B class at CSUN. This blog will be a place where I place my vocabulary lists, reflections of classes, and some writing or exercises that I do, myself.

Welcome!