Friday, March 9, 2018

Finish the Sentence Friday - Listicle - Music

Music is as much a part of me as the air I breathe. This blog post is being linked to Finish the Sentence Friday - Listicle - Music. Although the Listicle posts are a list of 10, I felt like I could have gone on forever. There have just been so many experiences in my life, starting at a young age, where I recognized the power that music has. Thanks to Kristi Campbell at Finding Ninee and Kenya G. Johnson at Sporadically Yours we are able to enjoy participating each week in such great opportunities to think about these interesting writing prompts.





1. Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. As a young girl taking piano lessons, I would play this over and over, because I not only loved the music, but I loved how the music made me feel. It still has that same impact on me.





2. Climb Every Mountain by Oscar Hammerstein II and Richard Rogers. The message of this piece gave me the inspiration I needed at a time in my life when I needed it.







3. I Believe  by Ervin Drake, Irvin Graham, Jimmy Shirland, and Al Stillman. I probably heard this first sung by Frankie Lane but have listened the The Lettermen and Elvis Presley sing this too. I even wrote a poem when I was in high school titled I Believe. I wish I had a copy of it now.

4. The Impossible Dream by Mitch Leigh and Joe Darion. At one time or another we all have what seems to be an impossible dream. 




5. Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg.


Lyricist ,Yip Harburg, sings the song he wrote, Somewhere Over The Rainbow from David Paul Kirkpatrick on Vimeo.


6. It's A Small World, by Robert B. Sherman and his brother Richard Sherman.  I know that there are some people who have tired of this song, but I will never forget the time I went to Disney Land when our children were young. When I listened to this music as we went through the It's a Small World attraction, it was truly magical and brought tears to my eyes.

7. Take Me Home, Country Roads by Bill Danoff, Taffy Nivert and John Denver. This song makes me think of some of my roots, because many of my ancestors lived in West Virginia. When our children were growing up, my husband often strummed on the guitar as we sang folk songs as a family. This brings back such happy memories.





8. Water from Another Time by John McCutcheon. This song is a more recent discovery, but it is another piece that makes me reflect and causes me to feel. My husband and I attended one of John McCutcheon's performances and heard this piece.





9. Wanting Memories to Teach Me by Ysaye Barnwell. I recently shared this piece on another post of mine.

10. Remember Me. Many years ago I went to hear Deanna Edwards talk about grieving at an Education Week at BYU. I was so impressed by her music and the power of it. She shared many personal experiences of how music can help people through times of tragedy and sorrow. She has since passed away, but her music remains.


14 comments:

  1. The Remember Me song made me feel like crying maybe because you wrote that she has since passed away. It is a beautiful song. That was also a very sweet rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow. Climb Every Mountain of course reminds me The Sound of Music. I like this orchestra/choir version much more than the "musical" version. Handel's Hallelujah Chorus is in my Christmas music playlist. ;-)

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    1. I loved the prompt this week! There were just so many other songs that came to mind. I really do like a wide range of styles of music.

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  2. Hallelujah is one of those songs that brings me joy each time I hear it. Have you heard any of the newer Hallelujah songs? They're not as joyful, but I like them, too. They're a bit sad, but also hopeful. It's not the same tune, just the "Hallelujah" words, but one of them is Hallelujah by Pentatonix, if you're bored. It starts out kinda icky but gets better. Love that you included John Denver - I almost included his "Rocky Mountain High" song as it reminds me of home (Colorado) but already went overboard with the number of songs/music mentions I had in my post.
    Somewhere Over the Rainbow - what an amazing song. That so many people have done covers/versions of it is testament to its power. There's a version of it mixed with It's a Wonderful World that's on my playlist by Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwoʻole. I remember pausing the song dozens of times to figure out the exact way he transitioned the one song to the next. Thanks so much for your memorable songs playlist! I cried at It's a Small World at Disney, too! So big. <3

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    1. Yes, I have heard the other Hallelujah song. I really like it, even though it doesn't impact me in the same way as Handel's music does. I could have listed several other songs by John Denver. Music and tears just go together for me. There was a time when I was listening to a piece of music that was sung in a different language.Tears flowed. I didn't know what the meaning of the words were, but later when I found a translation, my tears all made sense.

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  3. Over the Rainbow is such a remarkable song in that it can be interpreted by so many (in so many styles and genres) and still remain the same beautiful song. That surely is testament to the timelessness of good music.
    Hallelujah Chorus is one of the songs (like the Ode to Joy from Beethoven's 9th) that has that quality to uplift the listener, whether they want to be uplifted or not!
    lol... no, seriously enjoyable FTSF for it's mix of the universal and the personal.

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    1. I chuckled at your "whether they want to be uplifted or not."
      It has been very interesting for me to see the Listicle posts this time around and I spent a lot more time reading/listening to what people shared, although at times, I didn't listen to the entirety of some pieces. I imagine that was true of other bloggers as well.

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  4. Number six is one of my favorites from Disney, too. See both my girls just still love It's A Small World ride and beg us to go on repeatedly when we go. So, this to me is definitely classic Disney. Therefore was smiling when I read it was on your list. Great list and truly enjoy seeing what was music made everyone's lists :)

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    1. I look forward to see what the Listicle prompt is going to be each week. This one took me a little longer to prepare, because I just kept listening to different artists' renditions to see which one I wanted to share for each song. It was an enjoyable way to spend some time.

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  5. It's funny how our lists are so different and yet most of your songs are favorites of mine as well. Especially having one side of my family with the classical musical education, and then my dad with the folk music and musicals. I really enjoyed this list, thank you!

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    1. So true. My Dad lived during the Big Band era, so I developed an appreciation for that kind of music. I developed a love for the classics from taking piano music. My children played instruments, participated in band, choir, and orchestra. Our children and I share an enjoyment of musicals. Of course I have lived through the transition of so many kinds of music, some that I like, and others, not so much. There are so many choices and so many talents people that contribute to the world of music.

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  6. Yes - Music is all of this. Healing and Fulfilling and Old and New - - I love this list.

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  7. I must say...our two lists couldn't be more different, but that's what's great about it. Music is so personal. It's so amazing that humans create such a thing.

    I have a song on my list called I Believe too, but different one. Funny that.

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  8. Great list of songs! I used to pretend I was Dorothy and sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow in my bedroom. The version you shared is a little bit better. :)

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