Depending on the mood and tone of the song, the melisma expresses grief or happiness. In “Ride With Me,” Williams sings a melisma when he says, “take my hand.” Because the song has an optimistic tone the melisma instills a sense of excitement into the audience. Music alone would be pointless, while expressing words without music throughout the whole song takes away from the emotion and flavor of the song. However, parts of song only have instruments playing, enhancing the quality of the music. It plays the same pattern and rhythm of the voice just after the singer stops singing. This allows the audience to remember the words the singer was expressing seconds earlier, personifying the music and allowing it to speak out to the audience. Most of the time, the instrument playing this role is the guitar. An example of this would be after Williams says, “baby would you ride with me” in the song “Ride With Me,” when there is a guitar solo. Because the timbre of the guitar more closely resembles the human voice than the drum, it is optimal for it to perform the job, since its note range is closer to the human voice. The drums are bass instruments. This is not to say the drums are not important, coupled with the guitar, it plays the background music as the singers sing. The drums play in the song “Fall in Love Tonight.” The constant drumbeat adds excitement since it has a high pitch and low note. In addition, it can intensify the grief if the theme is sad, causing the audience to feel sorry for the singer. Essentially, the music is a key component evoking emotion, whether it is happy or sad. If the song is happy, the music encourages the audience members to dance to the beat, if not clap. In order to further allow the audience to connect to the song, the singer tells the audience what the song is about. The songs’ themes adapt to people’s current way of life to increase this effect although they are similar to themes of songs in the past.
(For more of Zane Williams' music: click here)
(For more of Zane Williams' music: click here)
In the second performance, most of the qualities of the first performance apply, emphasizing the common qualities of country music. The band, Buster Jiggs with the lead female singer, Kristin Muennink performs. Some of the notes she sings are high, while others are low, due to the fact that female singers of this music culture sing this way. Like the first performance, the melismas emphasize certain words and ideas, giving importance to a strong emotion. In the song “Pretty White Wings,” when Muennink sings, “I’m the only one who cries,” the melisma present serves to intensify the grief that is the tone of the song. The words, in turn, briefly describe a certain theme common to the country music culture. The themes, as aforementioned, can be about drinking, romance, and friendship. The entire song, “Madhouse,” is about love. To make the audience have a greater connection to the song, the singer asks the audience whether they ever had this experience. The tempo of most of the songs is slow, with prolonged musical notes. Throughout the song, “Pretty White Wings,” the notes are lengthened soothing the listener. At least one another performer, other than the singer, is playing the guitar, emphasizing its importance in the country music culture. It is the second most important part of the music after the voice of the singer. The guitar and the voice complement one another, especially in the song, “Madhouse.” Without either of them, there is a feeling the song is missing something. The words of the song stimulate the mind, causing them to think about an experience they once had similar to the song’s anecdote.
(Zane Williams, Buster Jiggs)
