22 July 2022

This new morning, the wind was a little bit cold. 

Walking to my lesson, I believe to hear a melancholy music. After looking after around me, no singer is near me. After few seconds, I understand that sound was carried by the air.

09:00a.m – Irish rhythm in the light

We have begun the day by a little physical exercise combined with song’s culture. By group of two, there was one writer and one runner. The runner had to watch, read and repeat an abstract from a song exposed outside the classroom, then ran to his writer’s partner and whispered, step by step, the song’s lyrics.

It was a very interesting introduction because it was a dynamic and social exercice… And very competitive between participants and physical…

 

Then, we have watched the Reeling in the Years 1994 show. During 25 minutes, the documentary have summarized main past facts acted in 1994.

Mainly, for Ireland, it was a very good year with a lot of success : arts – Presentation of Riverdance, winning the Eurovision contest with the song Rock’n’Roll Kids by Charlie McGettigan and Paul Harrington, the movie “The Family” from Roddy Doyle’s book adaptation, sports – winning in Football and Hurling, politics – the ceasefire between IRA and the loyalist group and economic –  decreasing of the unemployment rate due to Celtic Tiger period.

 

To go further, we have studied the first presentation of the Riverdance show in 1994, and some beginner’s lessons. We had have to describe Riverdance with 10 adjectives.

 

And after, we have practiced on Shoe the Donkey and The Serge of Ennes.  It was funny and we have together laughed a lot.

 

 

To laze themself after this all emotions, we have successively listened to an traditional Irish drinking pub song Whiskey In The Jar in some versions : first was with the folk Dubliner’s group, then the rock Thin Lizzy, and finally the metal band Metallica.

 

 

From each song, we have extracted some typical Irish expressions, and we have understood a deep bond between social culture and the history.

01:00p.m – Dublin nostalgia

Back to the classroom to go on our busking journey.

As a conclusion, this day was highly musical. More than to study words and expressions, in songs lyrics, and probably in many different kinds of arts, I noticed a witness of transmutation from the little old agricultural Dublin to a modern bigger industrial city. This transformation have caused a some of nostalgy to people who couldn’t accept this new era corresponding to a modernization of country.

 

 

My daily reflection

To study the culture by music was very interesting because if we didn’t understand all hisorical and social contexts, we can understand with our heart.

Music items is a really artistic support to study and learn, very different from pictures and movies. Music is hightly reachable to feel emotions and a social context.

Signed by your nostalgic minstrel,

Vivien CAPO