Arachnophonia: Table Songs of Georgia

Editor’s note: Arachnophonia (“Arachno” = spider / “-phonia” = sound) is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library‘s collection.

All links included in these posts will take you to either the library catalog record for the item in question or to additional relevant information from around the web.

Today’s installment of Arachnophonia is by student assistant Nikoloz (class of 2026) and features collection of traditional Georgian choral music. Thanks, Nikoloz!

Table Songs of Georgia – The Tsinandali Choir

Table Songs of Georgia - Tsinandali Choir

Although the country of Georgia is small, its history and culture are rich with no bounds. Over the millennia of struggle, Georgia has amassed history and myth. It’s hard to take in all of it, but one can experience a small piece of Georgian culture by listening to the traditional choir songs passed down through generations. The songs often talk about freedom, victory, faith, tradition, family, brotherhood, and more.

The Music Library has 3 CDs with mesmerizing collections of Georgian songs, for example, Table Songs of Georgia. This is a collection of songs that are, of course, commonly sung at tables during feasts.

The other 2 CDs are Supra / Iberi and Georgia the resounding polyphony of the Caucausus [sic].”

Students can come by the Music Library and listen to these CDs in one of our study rooms!

Music of Chile

At the Music Library, we have celebrated this year’s Chile-themed International Education Week with an exhibit about the country’s music.

Chile - International Ed Week flyer

Our exhibit highlights items (both physical and streaming) from UR’s collection as well as information about traditional Chilean instruments and dance. It also includes thumbnail biographical info on several Chilean musicians.

Here’s a little info on the music with some links to items in the library’s collection and a few video clips for good measure!

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The traditional music of Chile is a rich mixture of Spanish and Pre-Columbian influences.

Some of the traditional instruments commonly used in Chile include Andean instruments such as

Charango

* The charango – a small stringed instrument of the lute family. It was traditionally made from armadillo shell, but is more commonly made of wood today. It has 10 strings.

and

Zampoña - Chilean pan pipes

* The zampoña – these are Chilean panpipes.

You can hear some examples of these instruments in action on songs like “Nieve, Viento Y Sol (Snow, Wind and Sun)” which is available to stream at this link: https://richmond.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01URICH_INST/191gg5k/alma9917693733606241

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The Cueca is considered to be the “most traditional music and dance of Chile” and is officially the country’s national dance. While cueca’s origins are not entirely certain, indigenous, African and Spanish influences are evident.

Cueca

It is a partner dance which is indented imitate the courtship of a rooster and hen. Men usually wear a traditional Chilean cowboy costume while women traditionally don a flowered dresses with an apron.

Here is a video of a cueca performance:

And here is a link to a reference article about the dance.

***

Nueva Canción Chilena

In the 1960s and 1970s, Chilean songwriters like Victor Jara and Violeta Parra used the tonada as a foundation of the “Nueva Canción,” explicitly political music that blended Chilean folk music with progressive politics, similar to the way Bob Dylan and Joan Baez led a political folk revival around the same time in the U.S.

The foundations of nueva canción were laid by Violeta Parra (1917-1967) who was a popular folk singer-songwriter and musicologist who researched and recovered the poetry and songs of rural Chile.

Photograph of Violeta Parra

The library owns several resources with information about her and also a 2013 biopic about her called Violeta se fu a los cielos (Violeta Went to Heaven) that’s worth a look. Here’s the trailer for the film:

Víctor Jara (1932-1973) was a legendary Chilean folk singer and political activist who also pioneered nueva canción. His activism led to his murder by the Pinochet dictatorship in 1973.

Photograph of Victor Jara

Jara’s life and work continue to be celebrated by Latin American artists as well as globally known bands like U2 and The Clash. The 2018 documentary film The Resurrection of Víctor Jara is a great introduction to his life and legacy and is available to UR students, faculty and staff as a streaming video resource.
Here’s a trailer for the documentary:

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Claudio Arrau (1903-1991) was a Chilean pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire, especially the works of Bach, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt and Brahms.

Photograph of Claudio Arrau

He is widely considered to be one of the greatest pianists of the twentieth century.

Here are a couple of library resources about his life and work:

* Claudio Arrau, the Emperor (DVD)

* Piano Lessons with Claudio Arrau: A Guide to His Philosophy and Techniques (Book)

***

Of course, this is only a small sampling of music from Chile, but hopefully it will intrigue you and make you want to learn more!

Map of Chile and surrounding countries

Digital Resources: Qwest.TV

The Music Library has more resources available than physical items. We’re highlighting some of our digital resources, and including information about them as told by our student employees.

Today’s digital resource is:

Qwest.TV

Qwest.TV

Here’s what student manager Abby (class of 2021) had to say about this resource:

QwestTV is the first ever streaming service dedicated to Jazz, Soul, Funk & World Music. Created by Quincy Jones and curated by other music legends, this service contains hundreds of concerts, documentaries, archives, and exclusive content. And with the “My List” feature, you can keep track of all your favorites. On top of premium streaming video, QwestTV also offers articles, interviews, and album reviews written by professional journalists and renowned jazz experts. With content spanning decades, this service is a powerful research tool and just an all-around awesome resource for any music lover.”

qwesttv

New CDs added – COVID closure, Part 1

New CDs for Covid Closure 2020
Part 1

Concertos, Orchestral and Chamber Music

John Luther Adams – Become Desert
J.S. Bach – Bach – The Six Partitas – Angela Hewitt
Rachel Barton Pine – Blues Dialogues

Rachel Barton Pine - Blues Dialogues

Rachel Barton Pine – Violin Concertos * Dvorak/Khachaturian
Silvestre Revueltas – Revueltas – Centennial Anthology 1899-1999, 15 Masterpieces
Various Artists – Project W: Works by Diverse Women Composers

Project W

Organ Music

Bruce Stevens – Rheinberger Organ Sonatas Volume 5

Bruce Stevens - Rheinberger Organ Sonatas V. 5

Jazz

Delfeayo Marsalis & Uptown Jazz Orchestra – Jazz Party
Makaya McCraven – In The Moment
Makaya McCraven – Universal Beings

Delfeayo Marsalis - Jazz Party

Opera, Opera Excerpts and Art Songs

Michael Fabiano – Verdi * Donizetti
Alexander Zemlinsky – A Florentine Tragedy / Six Maeterlinck Songs

Zemlinsky - A Florentine Tragedy Six Maeterlinck Songs

Choral Music

Jan Garbarek & the Hilliard Ensemble – Remember me, my dear
Johannes Ockeghem – Johannes Ockeghem: Complete Songs Volume 1
Jake Runestad – The Hope of Loving: Choral Music of Jake Runestad

Runestad - Hope of Loving

Ambient Music

Kankyo Ongaku – Japanese Ambient, Environmental & New Age Music, 1980-1990

Ongaku - Japanese Ambient

Popular Music

Bedouine – Bird Songs of a Killjoy
James Hunter Six – Nick of Time
James Hunter Six – Whatever It Takes
Janelle Monae – The Electric Lady

Bedouine - Bird Songs of a Killjoy

The Primitives – Bloom! The Full Story 1985-1992
Lou Reed – The Essential Lou Reed
Lou Reed – Metal Machine Music
Harry Styles – Harry Styles
Various Artists – Strut My Stuff: Obscure Country & Hillbilly Boppers

Strut My Stuff - Obscure Country

World Music

Lambert Company – Attractive Hebrews: The Lambert Yiddish Cylinders, 1901-1905
Nazar – Guerrilla

Nazar - Guerrilla

New CDs added – November/December 2019

New CDs for November & December 2019

Concertos and Chamber Music

Ludwig van Beethoven – Complete Piano Concertos – Jan Lisiecki/Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

Beethoven Concertos - Lisiecki

Jazz

Joyce DiDonato – Songplay

Joyce DiDonato - Songplay

Opera, Opera Excerpts and Art Songs

Mason Bates – The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs
Tobias Picker – Fantastic Mr. Fox
Gregory Spears – Fellow Travelers

Fantastic Mr Fox

Gospel Music

Various – Sorrow Come Pass Me Around: A Survey of Rural Black Religious Music

Sorrow Come Pass Me Around

Popular Music

Various – Beat girls espanol! : 1960s she-pop from Spain
Various – C’est Chic!: French Girl Singers of the 1960s
Various – Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll

Don't Think I've Forgotten

Various – Nippon Girls: Japanese Pop, Beat & Bossa Nova 1966-70
Various – Qat, Coffee & Qambus: Raw 45s from Yemen

Beat Girls Espanol

Folk Music

Various – The Art of Field Recording Vol. 2: Fifty Years of Traditional American Music
Various – The Year of Jubilo: 78 RPM Recordings of Songs from the Civil War

The Year of Jubilo

New CDs added in August!

New CDs for August 2017

Chamber Music, Concertos and Orchestral Music

Frederic Chopin – Paul Badura-Skoda plays the Chopin Piano Concertos
Aaron Copland and Benjamin Britten – Piano Concertos
Howard Hanson – Symphonies Nos. 3 & 6 and Fantasy Variations on a Theme of Youth

Jascha Heifetz – Beethoven & Brahms Concertos
Sergiu Luca & Malcom Bilson – Mozart Sonatas for Fortepiano and Violin: Late Viennese Sonatas

Gwendolyn Mok – The Composer’s Piano: Brhams Late Piano Works Op. 116-119
Jean-Philippe Rameau – Piece de Clavecin en Concert
Ralph Vaughan Williams – Concerto in C for Two Pianos; Job: A Masque For Dancing
Manuela Wiesler & Julian Jacobson – Schubert*Reinecke*Boehm

Band Music

Frederick Fennell – Screamers (Circus Marches)
Johan Willem Friso Military Band – Alliance of the Free
Jack Stamp – Cloudsplitter
U.S. Marine Band – Picture Studies

Popular Music

Betty – Carnival
Betty – Limboland
Betty – Snowbiz
The Human League – Dare!

Humor/Parody

The Capitol Steps – Obama Mia!
The Capitol Steps – Take The Money and Run for President

Musicals & Film Soundtracks

Irving Berlin – Irving Berlin’s Annie Get Your Gun: The New Broadway Cast Recording
Laurence O’Keefe – Bat Boy : The Musical
Jule Styne – Bells Are Ringing
Betty – Betty Rules
Galt MacDermot & Bill Dumaresq – The Human Comedy: A Modern Opera

Frank Wildhorn – Jekyll & Hyde : The Musical
Various Artists – Repo Man: Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Marvin Hamlisch – Sweet Smell of Success
Boy George – Taboo: Original London Cast
Boy George – Taboo: Original Broadway Cast
Jeanine Tesori – Thoroughly Modern Millie
Michael John LaChiusa – The Wild Party

Folk / World Music

Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy – One

New CDs added in July!

New CDs for July 2017

Orchestral Music

Ernest Bloch – America (An Epic Rhapsody)
Margaret Brouwer – Orchestral and Percussion Music

Bloch - America

Diana Cotoman – Symphonie No. 1
Diana Cotoman – Symphonie No. 2
Diana Cotoman – Tableaux & Poemes
Frederick Delius – Appalachia / The Song of the High Hills
Henri Dutilleux – Metaboles / The Shadows of Time
Henri Dutilleux – Symphony No. 2

Delius - Appalachia

G.F. Handel – Water Music / Music for the Royal Fireworks
Hans Werner Henze – Drei sinfonische eduden / Quattro poemi / Nachstucke und arien / La selva incantata
Hans Wener Henze – Ode to the West Wind / Five Neapolitan Songs / Three Dithyrambs
Vincent D’Indy – Jour d’ete a la montagne, Op. 61 & Symphonie sur un chant montagnard “Chevenole”, Op. 25
King’s Consort – The Coronation of King George II
Olivier Messiaen – Turangali^la symphony
Christopher Rouse – Odna Zhizn / Symphonies Nos. 3 & 4 / Prospero’s Rooms
Bright Sheng – The Phoenix

Bright Sheng - The Phoenix

Chamber Music and Concertos

Martha Argerich – Debut Recital: Chopin, Brahms, Liszt, Ravel, Prokofiev
Ludwig van Beethoven – Bearbeitungen Fur Blaser
Ludwig van Beethoven – Legacy: The Spirit of Beethoven – Gwendolyn Mok
Ludwig van Beethoven – Sonatas for Violin and Piano
Ebb & Flow Arts – Explorations

Martha Argerich

Soovin Kim; Jeremy Denk; Jupiter String Quartet – Concert in D Major; Chausson / Sonata No. 1 in A Major; Faure
Steven Mackey – Banana Dump Truck: Music of Steven Mackey
Sphinx Virtuosi – Live in Concert
Richard Strauss – Violin Concerto / Sonata in Eb
Charles Wuorinen – Ashberyana / Fenton Songs
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich – Violin Concerto / Rituals

Banana Dump Truck

Popular Music

The Chainsmokers – Bouquet
Kaia Kater – Nine Pin
Josh Ritter – Sermon on the Rocks

Chainsmokers - Bouquet

Duncan Sheik – Legerdemain
Various artists – Tamla Motwon : Connoisseurs
Suzanne Vega – Tales from the Realm of the Queen of Pentacles

Tamla Motown

Band Music

Thomas Coates – Thomas Coates : The Father of Band Music in America

Thomas Coates

Cantatas, Choruses, Operas and Oratorios

J.S. Bach – St. Mark Passion
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy – Psalmen un Moetetten / Oratorium Christus Op. 97
Ludwig van Beethoven – Fidelio
Ludwig van Beethoven – Missa Solemnis
George Frideric Handel – Amor e gelosia : Operatic Arias
George Frideric Handel – Delirio : Italian Cantatas
George Frideric Handel – Rinaldo

Handel - Rinaldo

Witold Lutoslawski – Twenty Polish Christmas Carols
Musica Ficta – Danske julesalmer og sange
Ariel Ramirez – Missa Criolla / Navidad Nuestra
Paul Schoenfield – Concerto for Violin & Orchestra / Four Motets / The Merchant and the Pauper (excerpts)
John Tavener – Lament for Jerusalem
Kurt Weill – The Seven Deadly Sins

Musica Ficta

Jazz

Seamus Blake & Chris Cheek with Reeds Ramble – Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off
Jane Ira Bloom – Early Americans
Avishai Cohen – Into The Silence
The Cookers – The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart

Cookers - Call of the Wild

Fred Hersch Trio – Alive at the Vanguard
Harold Lopez-Nussa – El Viaje
Joe Mulholland Trio – Runaway Train

Harold Lopez-Nussa El Viaje-1

Musicals & Film Music

City of Prague Philharmonic – Psycho : The Essential Alfred Hitchcock
Osvaldo Golijov – Youth Without Youth : Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Maury Yeston – Titanic : A New Musical

Psycho: The Essential Alfred Hitchcock

World / Folk Music

Sheila Chandra – Monsoon
Maarja Nuut – Une meeles = In the hold of a dream
Various Artists – Why The Mountains Are Black : Primeval Greek Village Music : 1907-1960
Various Artists – Women of Africa

Women of Africa

New CDs added in January!

New CDs for January 2017

Blues

Alan Lomax – Parchman Farm: Photographs and Field Recordings: 1947-1959

John Adams - Scheherazade.2

Classical

John Adams – Scheherazade.2
Franz Berwald – 4 Symphonies
Johannes Brahms – Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2, Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel, Op. 24, Waltzes, Op. 39
Bartolomeo Campagnoli – Six String Quartets

Campagnoli - Six String Quatets

Electronic Music

Mason Bates – Works for Orchestra

Mason Bates - Works for Orchestra

Jazz

Andy Gonzalez –Entre Colegas
Bob Mintzer – All L.A. Band
Ted Nash Big Band – Presidential Suite: Eight Variations on Freedom

Bob Mintzer - All L.A. Band

Musical Theatre

Steve Martin & Edie Brickell – Bright Star: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Bright Star

Opera

Jennifer Higdon – Cold Mountain

Cold Mountain

Vocal Music

Christian Gerhaher – Ferne Geliebte
Christian Gerhaher – Mahler Lieder
Christian Gerhaher – Franz Schubert: Die schone Mullerin
Craig Hella Johnson – Considering Matthew Shepard
Anna Netrebko – Verismo

Anna Netrebko - Verismo

World Music

Anoushka Shankar – Land of Gold

Anoushka Shankar - Land of Gold

New CDs added in April!

New CDs for April 2016

Classical

Johannes Brahms – Sonatas for Clarinet and Piano
Karen Gottlieb – Music For Harp
Mitchell Lurie – Mitchell Lurie, Clarinet

Mitchell Lurie, Clarinet

Mozart/Beethoven – Quintets for Piano & Winds
Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Sebastian Bach – Genius – Music of Johann Sebastian Bach & Antonio Vivaldi

Quintets for Piano & Winds

Pop/Rock/R&B

Bela Fleck & Abigail Washburn – Bela Fleck & Abigail Washburn
Big Sean – Dark Sky Paradise
Tamar Braxton – Calling All Lovers

Bela Fleck & Abigail Washburn

Death Cab For Cutie – Kintsugi
Aretha Franklin – Aretha Sings The Blues
Jason Isbell – Something More Than Free

Aretha Sings The Blues

Jazz

Karrin Allyson – Many A New Day
Louis Armstrong – Blow Satchmo Blow
The Bad Plus – The Bad Plus Joshua Redman
The Bad Plus – The Rite Of Spring

The Bad Plus - The Rite of Spring

Terence Blanchard – Breathless
Michael Dease – Decisions
Chris Dingman – The Subliminal and the Sublime
Gil Evans Project – Lines Of Color

Michael Dease - Decisions

John Fedchock – Like It Is
Marshall Gilkes – Ko¨ln
Scott Hamilton & Jeff Hamilton Trio – Live In Bern
Lionel Hampton – 50th Anniversary Concert – Live at Carnegie Hall

Lionel Hampton - Live at Carnegie Hall

Tommy Igoe and the Birdland Big Band – Eleven
Joe Magnarelli – Three On Two
Matt Ulery’s Loom – Music Box Ballerina
Matt Ulery’s Loom – Wake An Echo

Matt Ulery's Loom - Music Box Ballerina

Marcus Miller – Afrodeezia
Sun Ra and his Arkestra – In The Orbit Of Ra
Matt Ulery – By A Little Light
Matt Ulery – In The Ivory
Matt Ulery – Themes And Scenes

Sun Ra - In the Orbit of Ra

World Music

Andy Lau – Love: Special Edition
Amira Medunjanin – Silk & Stone

Amira Medunjanin - Silk & Stone

Electronic Music

Qluster – Tasten
Jane Rigler – Rarefactions: Compositions via Improvisations
Madeleine Shapiro – Sounds Nature: Works for Cello and Electronics

Jane Rigler - Rarefactions

New CDs added in December!

New CDs for December 2015

Classical

Susan Allen – Postcard From Heaven
Franz Schubert – The Unauthorised Piano Duos, Volume 3

Postcard From Heaven

Early Music

Psallentes – Missa Transfigurationis

Missa Transfigurationis

Film Music

Carmine Coppola and Francis Coppola – Apocalypse Now Redux
James Newton Howard – Snow Falling On Cedars

Snow Falling On Cedars

Pop/Rock

Various Artists – Soul Of Sue Records
Various Artists – I’m A Good Woman – Funk Classics From Sassy Soul
Sisters

I'm A Good Woman

Jazz

Lafayette Harris, Jr. Trio – Bend To The Light
Jacob Fischer- … In New York City
Donald Vega – With Respect To Monty

Bend To The Light

Band Music

The President’s Own U.S. Marine Band – Elements

Elements

World/Folk Music

George Wassouf – The Best of George Wassouf
Various Artists – Teen Dance Music From China and Malaysia
Voices of Ireland – Lord of the Dance and Other Famous Irish Songs &
Dances

Teen Dance Music From China and Malaysia