When I read the article in the Washington Post about the woman who listened to sad songs to grieve for her son, it struck me as a very unusual coping method. I lost my grandmother very suddenly four years ago and in the wake of that tragedy, if I heard a sad song somewhere I would immediately try to block it out. Sad songs only make me even more depressed. The way I see it, if you are grieving, then you shouldn't seek out things that will bring you to tears over and over again. This would send me into an unending circle: listen, cry, listen, cry... nothing is being accomplished here! In order to move on you must find something to take your mind away from despair rather than seeking out ways to revisit it.

I've created a video to help with making the links in the playlists. The playlist tutorial is linked to my personal blog.

Yesterday my group had to write about how lyrics are important and I agree with that side of the argument for most songs. I think that the lady in the Downloading Empathy article would agree too. She used music to deal with her grief, like many people use music for various emotions. Right now in my AFAM class we're reading Spirituals. The slaves used spirituals to appeal and relate with their own individual statuses. We had to read like 20 of them and they all have lyrics that are essential in conveying the right emotions. It made me think of what we were doing in this class so i wrote this.

Have you ever set your music player on shuffle and then tried to interpret the logic behind the sequencing of music that flows into your ears? What decisions does the software make while sorting through your collection for the next song? If you could write software to make playlsists from a library of music, how might you set up the program? Would you group songs by genre, tone, tempo, artist, theme, some other category? And then once you had the categories, how would you mix together songs into a sequence? Would you tell a story, set a mood, capture a moment, or express an aspect of culture?

After reading the article, I had to agree with the author. Music is such a powerful factor for people that the new IMixes are a perfect way to spread news, discuss social or political views, or find sanctuary from the nuisances of daily life.

I know, personally, that music can be a balm to a broken heart. My cousin was killed in a car accident last year, and at her memorial they played "I Can Only Imagine" by Mercy Me. Everytime I hear that song now, I think of her, and I remember the kind of person she was. Music is a way for everyone, no matter what kind of person they are, to express themselves.

Well, this class should be a nice opportunity to get a look at the kinds of things a faculty member might do at the University. I wish I could say that my work is representative of most of the intellectual activity you will encounter here, but that would be shading the truth. I revel, a bit, in sitting at least somewhat on the edges of the academic crowd. At the same time, I do lots of work in the English Department, heading committees, directing programs, writing all the time. So, I'm a professor, but I also like to follow my own tune from time to time.

Much or our reading in this class will be conducted online. For next week, we'll start with an online article. "Downloading Empathy to Your iPod" is from the Washington Post. You may need to register to view the article, but it should be free. If you have a reaction to the article, you can respond to this posting or to the responses of others.

You will need to purchase a USB microphone for this class. You can get one for as little as $20.00--most likely the Logitech Desktop USB microphone. If you think you will use the microphone outside of class and a fair amound during your four years at Carolina, you might want to invest in the Samson Q1U USB microphone for about $50.00--this is a bit more awkward, as it is a handheld microphone. For the best possible setup you can try the Samson C01U USB microphone and a cheap desktop microphone stand.