Ok, so this doesn't necessarily have to do with lyrics, but I liked the alliteration. This is me and my friend, Ashley. The picture above is of her boyfriend, Troy's band, JackLaugh. (They're pretty good! You should check them out at http://www.myspace.com/jacklaugh or http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=49545262001.) The other night I went out to see JackLaugh playing at a local bar. I thought they sounded pretty good, but it was kind of hard to understand the lyrics over the music. When the band was done with their first set, Troy came over to talk to Ashley. Naturally, one of the first things he asked her was "how did we sound?" Despite the fact that I have gone to shows for friends and I know it is of no help, my response would have been something along the lines of "you sounded good!" Ashley however started talking to Troy in a much more technical way, detailing how the quality wasn't very good in the corner where we were sitting, but it was better towards the back of the room. They went on to discuss how they had sounded much better at the bar where the band performed last weekend. While Ashley and Troy were talking, I just sat and listened to them with nothing to contribute myself.
Last week I went to visit the ELL classroom at Highland Park to talk to the ELL teacher, Mr. Farstad. We talked about his students and how quickly they end up being mainstreamed after only 4 years in the ELL program. I asked him how well they did in the mainstreamed classes and we talked a little about how ELL students tend to be more quiet in the classroom because they don't always feel comfortable talking around native speakers. It can be hard to jump into a discussion with people when you are not confident that you can keep up in the conversation. Whether it has to do with fluency in the language or knowledge of the content, literacy is important to having confidence in any conversation.
Literacy in anything whether a school subject, a new language, or even understanding how differences in settings can effect how music sounds, is something that takes time and experience to gain. Just as ELL students should have around 7 years before they are mainstreamed, I just need to get more experience by going to more shows so that I can some day join in a conversation about how a band sounds in a particular venue. I'm sure JackLaugh would appreciate more fans, too, so maybe the next time I go to a show some of you can join me and we can all expand our musical literacy!
I completely agree! I think that it is amazing how people can start talking about subjects, such as sound quality or computer programming, and even thought their using English, I have no idea what they are talking about. My siblings have all studied computers and computer programming and when they start talking and using technology jargon, I feel like an idiot because I understand nothing.
ReplyDeleteI also understand what you were saying about the ELLs. In French classes, I was always shy to speak up because I was afraid of sounding bad or saying something wrong. When I got to France, this uncharacteristic shyness got even worse because now I was with native speakers! How intimidating my host family was that first night I was with them! Although I got more comfortable around them as the year went on, they still consider me a very quiet and shy person...can you see it?