Music, Performance and Authenticity in Films - Essay Example

? Music, Performance and Authenti in Films Music, Performance and Authenti in Films Introduction Commonly, rock music performance relies on highly conscious and thought provoking recorded pieces which implore the different themes in this music genre. Currently, rock music is finding its way into the film industry, undeniably attracting a significant clique of new followers who would not associate themselves with rock music before. A good example of this instance is the adaptation of Pink Floyd’s album The Wall – the film Pink Floyd-The Wall. In addition, rock film performance has been encrypted from Quadrophenia, the album of the group The Who, to the film bearing the same name as the album. This transformation of recorded audio music pieces into films did not bring any disparaging change in the rock culture; rather, it boosted and made rock performance more livelier and entertaining, attracting more and more enthusiasts. Initially, rock artists recorded music without the inclusion of videos and other display features that would make it more appealing. While rock music performance concentrates on the rock culture promotion through recording the audio pieces, the film performance is greatly involved in the use of visuals to promote the same culture. This paper will critically compare and contrast the differences and similarities in the music, the authenticity, and self-conscious film performances of Pink Floyd and The Who. Pink Floyd – The wall The film Pink Floyd-The Wall was adapted from the album The Wall. The writer of the film utilized the music lyrics to convey different themes as represented in the original songs. Some of these include the theme of isolation, cruelty, insanity, fascism, and hard mentality as fashioned by the wall. Notably, throughout the film, there is an expression of a sad and brutal mood of the music as depicted by the author’s feelings in his school day poems. In the film, the author portrays the authoritarian rule he passed through and the great oppression he suffered in the hands of the illustrated authoritative figures such as teachers, policemen, and skinheads. The main character in this film, Pink, leads a life in the realm of emotional problems. He is internally alienated from himself; he tries to build the wall of social isolation from the rest of the world. While music metaphorically illustrates this social alienation, the film projects the character into the real emotional situation (Kaarki 2002, p. 184). There is an illustration of severe emotional suffering that revolves in the abyss of loss and isolation resulting from fatherless childhood (due to his father death in the British war) and the domineering, overprotective, and phobia-filled love of his mother. As noted, Pink built a mental wall that could allow him to live a life free of the emotional troubles caused by the failing education system which concentrated on producing societal compliant sycophants, by police brutality, estranged marriage, and uncontrollable drug abuse (Pink Floyd 1982). Remarkably, not only does the film performance demonstrate the ability of the writer to describe the moods of the song but also evokes the emotions of the film viewers. Through the evaluation of the harmony of the film performance, viewers are able to observe the relevance of the musical performance which develops and maintains the psychological wall built by Pink to run away from his pains. Significantly, the film performance brings out a better understanding of the music themes with an illustrative depiction of the continuous piling of problems as one runs away from their effects rather than finding solutions. In the film, the author excellently matches the themes present in the music with the film performance, giving insightful, enigmatic, and arresting images. Factually, critics have been of the view that the lifestyle as described in the song perfectly suits the film performance with its spectacular ability to conjure captivating and memorable images that elicit lingering and powerful responses (Auslander 1998, p. 78). Moreover, the film has the ability to mesmerize the esteemed spectators with its events capturing their imaginations and resultant emotions. For instance, the film illustrates the early childhood life of Pink as disturbed with exhilarated feelings of betrayal after the painful death of his soldier father. There is a clear costume resemblance which fits the descriptions in the song. An example of this is the use of graphics that depicts a Nazi-style costume when the author successfully describes the war which led to the passing away of Pink’s father in the hands of Germans (Auslander 1998, p. 66). The images in the film are frightful and undoubtedly tormenting, as they profoundly cement the lyrics in the music as expressed by the writer. The music version is also provocatively illustrated in the film with the character hairstyles taking the center stage. Furthermore, the music applies metaphorical phrases in the description of the narrator’s feelings, and the film effectively uses the description to build the alluring images which depict the true thoughts of the writer. The use of the wall in the film does not directly have the literal meaning but it illustrates the life obstacles one has to face in life. More over, it is used to describe the emotional, psychological, and social problems the writer is facing, which are continuously pushing him to solitude life purportedly to run away from the troubles. Some of the wall bricks described by the writer include the fatherless childhood, the harsh domineering mother, the estranged marriage, police brutality, failing government policies, drug abuse, and unfavorable education system. Though the walls are metaphorically conceivable in the music, the film projects the real instances the writer came into contact with in his daily life (Atkins 2000, p. 119). A notable difference in the film performance and the music is the use of flashbacks. In the film, a character is able to reflect on what happened earlier in his life and project the images as they were happening. The main character, Pink, is able to flashback his childhood life to give the viewers a detailed preview of the oppressions he suffered while young. This helps develop the film plot for more understanding of the wall building. In the view of music, clear voices of Pink’s mother and his estranged wife are provided. These voices are harnessed by the film and depicted as real images as he communicates to his mother and arguing with his wife. Music portrays a continuous flow of the events to attain its rhythmic and harmony aspects. The narrator uses the depicted relationship of the music and the film performance to explain the mood described by the music. Essentially, the film does not capture all the lyrics in the music but captures only thought provoking lyrics critical to the viewers’ emotions (Atkins 2000, p. 119). All the episodes in the film illustrate the events as described in the musical lyrics that depict the real life of the writer or the main character, Pink. Changing of the mood in the film and that of the viewers is achieved through regular intervals of heavy rock tunes. In the course of the film, the projected themes are well cemented, as the viewers relate them to what they see in the real life. In the music performance, the listeners are only able to imagine such instances, and in most situations the thoughts disappear without a critical analysis of the themes. Critics have long believed that live performance presented by the films provides a more peculiar, special, and empathetic relationship, as it connects with the distinct deities, values, and behavior patterns of the viewers (Atkins 2000, p. 121) Another distinct feature in the film performance is the use of color combinations to illustrate different themes and moods. In the music performance, theme variations are achieved through the use and analysis of different words (Huq 2006, p. 52). Remarkably, the changing colors respond to the changing views of the narrator, such as facing atrocities inflicted by the police and bad life he was exposed to by his uncaring wife. While the end of a piece or stanza in music marks the end of an event, in the film performance change of colors is also used to indicate the end and start of an event. The diction and tune of expression in both the music and film performance are different, as each serves varying objectives. Through body language and different costumes, the characters in the film illustrate varying instances of disillusionment; in the music performance, variations in tone depict different oppressing moments. Clearly, as noted by critics, according to musical rules, music flow must avoid dramatizing an event (Huq 2006, p. 52). This feature is not applicable in the film performance, which entirely relies on the dramatic events to critically emphasize various episodes. Similarly, repetition is applied both in the film and in the music through foreshadowing due to the emerging differences in the process of expressing a given theme. However, the rock culture of loud noise and powerful rhythm characterizes both the film and the live music performance. Notably, as the performance nears the climax, the noise and the rhythmic movements increase. Another remarkable and common feature between the music and film performance is the mood at the end of the performance. In both instances, there is a painful mood at the end, and this leaves the listeners and the viewers wondering if Pink really lived. Though when showing midlife, the music and the film illustrate some instances of happiness, the ultimate end is so tormenting and painful as it makes ponder the sufferings the character must have endured (Scarfe 2012, p. 120) Quadrophenia This 1979 cast film is an adaptation of the album Quadrophenia written by The Who. The music lyrics are used to detail the social events that characterized the disillusionment of the narrator after his teenage years. Most of the events as described in the music form the central episodes in the film. A notable similarity observed in the music and the film performance is the changes in the mood occurring in harmony with the music lyrics. According to the narrator, he is more frustrated and depressed by the happening events, for which, he believes, his parents bear the greatest responsibility (Quadrophenia 1979). Moreover, the music attains demonstration of different feelings through tonal variations, and the film achieves the same through variation in illustrations and colors. Different combinations of various colors help in portraying varying moods in the film. For instance, dark colors are used to illustrate the oppressing and dreadful events that took place in the narrator’s life. The same is achieved through tonal variations in the music performance. Notably, as the tone of the music changes, the listeners are able to imagine and memorize the events as well as build various mental images in depiction of the alleged moods (Wicke 1990, p. 80). These variations aid the narrator in evoking the emotions of the viewers by providing different instances for the viewer to compare and contrast the song’s lyrics against the illustrations depicted in the film. Rock culture is a common feature in both music and film performance. The rhythmic movements and loud noise are present in both performances. Remarkably, the film maintains this rock identity which makes the movie livelier, like a real music performance. Significantly, critics are of the view that the music and the film drew more new young fans, as they share their cultural values and relationships with the state of the performance (Wicke 1990, p. 75). While the film performance attracted teenagers across different cultures, the music performance attracted more youth who could associate themselves with the artists, as they wore similar regalia during the live musical performances. In both performance settings, the writer narrates stories based on a distinct cultural context, in which the experiences of the individuals appear to form the central and common factor that links the performance styles. In the film, the characters are dressed in regalia that related the childhood events and the present events of the narrator (Muller 2008, p. 93). There is a variation in the technology applied in both the film and music performance. While the music relied only on the audio recordings, the film incorporated the use of visuals to depict the rock culture and the different events in the life of the narrator. The film performance allows the viewers to connect the mental and metaphorical features in the music with the real life events as illustrated in the film. Significantly, critics have observed that the music performance is not as consistent as the film performance, hence the call to avail both settings for a better understanding of the narrators message (Auslander 1998, p. 77). Probable factors that foster this difference include the dire demands by the audience and the nature of performing hall. Tetzlaff, (1994, p. 102), points out that the graphics in the film performances portray a live performance as opposed to recorded music pieces. Significantly, this type of rock presentation influences the viewers, and many mimic the film characters in their private lives. Notably, film performance with the visual depictions cements the themes as narrated by the writer much better than the music performance, which mostly gives false impression, as different listeners understand it in varying ways. Conclusion As noted, music and rock performances have varying differences and similarities which significantly affect the views of the audience. Remarkably, music performance uses recorded beats as opposed to visual illustrations represented in the films performance. The rock culture in the music performance is evident in the film performance as the later only forms the graphics and images as fathomed in the music lyrics. Stylistic devices such as rhythm, tone, and noise loudness are common features in the rock music and film performances. In the both set up performances, they are used to depict different events and mood variations throughout the entire performances. However, the authenticity of the performances differs due to the recorded features in relation to the themes displayed to the audience. In the music performance, rock culture is shown through noise and rhythm, while in the film performance provocative visuals are incorporated in addition to noise and rhythm. Reference list Atkins, J., 2000. The Who on Record: A Critical History, 1963-1998. North Carolina: McFarland Publishing. Auslander, P., 1998. Seeing is believing: live performance and the discourse of authenticity in rock culture. Literature and Psychology, 44(4), pp. 1–26. Huq, R., 2006. Beyond subculture: pop, youth and identity in postcolonial world. London: Routledge. Kaarki, K., 2002. “Daddy’s flown across the ocean, leaving just a memory”: Pink Floyd’s The Wall as an audiovisual (re)presentation of the past. History in Words and Images: Proceeding of the Conference on Historical Representation. 26–28 September. Finland: University of Turku. Mueller, A., 2008. The music of the Goth subculture: postmodernism and aesthetics. Available through: ProQuest database. Pink Floyd The Wall, 1982. [Film] Directed by Alan Parker. United Kingdom: MGM/UA. Quadrophenia, 1979. [Film] Directed by Franc Roddam. United Kingdom: The Who Films. Scarfe G., 2012. The Making of Pink Floyd: The Wall. New York: Orion Publishing Group. Tetzlaff, D., 1994. Music for meaning: reading the discourse of authenticity in rock. Journal of Communication Inquiry, 18(1), pp. 95–117. Wicke, P., 1990. My generation: rock music and sub-culture. In: R. Fogg and P. Wicke, eds., Rock Music: Culture, Aesthetics and Sociology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Read More