A little night music
March 6, 2018 12:58 PM Subscribe
Up for a little music theory? Then let the delightful Aimee Nolte explain why "Remember Me" is a worthy winner (SLYT) of the Oscar for best original song.
Because it's a banger
posted by Going To Maine at 1:37 PM on March 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by Going To Maine at 1:37 PM on March 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
I am no music expert but my entire day has been narrated like
Re-meeeember me.. put the laundry in the basket.. rememmmber me .. put water on for tea rememmmmmmmber me
posted by Space Coyote at 2:08 PM on March 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
Re-meeeember me.. put the laundry in the basket.. rememmmber me .. put water on for tea rememmmmmmmber me
posted by Space Coyote at 2:08 PM on March 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
Thank you for this! I just started listening to it. I listen to the Spanish version of the Coco soundtrack a lot, although I don't speak Spanish. That doesn't make me woke, but it does make me happy.
I love the way that "Remember Me" is flexible and reversible, equally suitable for de la Cruz's big splashy production number and a quiet, intimate lullaby. But my favorite song on the soundtrack is "Proud Corazon."
posted by Countess Elena at 3:29 PM on March 6, 2018
I love the way that "Remember Me" is flexible and reversible, equally suitable for de la Cruz's big splashy production number and a quiet, intimate lullaby. But my favorite song on the soundtrack is "Proud Corazon."
posted by Countess Elena at 3:29 PM on March 6, 2018
A bit off topic, but I just love the way she presents her case in that clip. She is very expressive without pushing, you can see the passion and twinkle in her eyes and makes her point cleanly at the same time. If she is reading from something she pre-wrote, I would say she's probably an excellent actress as well. At the very least she's probably a great public speaker and should do a TED talk.
posted by fantasticness at 3:54 PM on March 6, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by fantasticness at 3:54 PM on March 6, 2018 [1 favorite]
oh man, do I get a kick out of her videos. there's a treasure trove of good stuff out there for musicians and non musicians alike. I sent this to my guitar teacher earlier today and he's going to use it in one of his classes. she's top notch!
posted by gorbichov at 4:11 PM on March 6, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by gorbichov at 4:11 PM on March 6, 2018 [1 favorite]
heh, she keeps calling the husband "Richard" while his name is "Robert". a simple mistake, I'm sure, but it's funny to me
posted by numaner at 4:12 PM on March 6, 2018
posted by numaner at 4:12 PM on March 6, 2018
I admit there was a part of me that started to rankle at some of the slash chords obscuring harmonic function (AbM7 / D is a II chord and the Ab part feels like a red herring) but then I remembered her audience and the fact that the former is a lot more approachable than Dm7sus4b5b9 from a pedagogical perspective and felt a little embarrassed. This is a really pretty song and she explains it wonderfully!
posted by invitapriore at 7:39 PM on March 6, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by invitapriore at 7:39 PM on March 6, 2018 [1 favorite]
(AbM7 / D is a II chord and the Ab part feels like a red herring)
yo dawg I heard you like music theory pedantry so that should be a "ii"
posted by thelonius at 5:15 AM on March 7, 2018 [2 favorites]
yo dawg I heard you like music theory pedantry so that should be a "ii"
posted by thelonius at 5:15 AM on March 7, 2018 [2 favorites]
I'm still pissed Reindeers Are Better Than People got stiffed.
posted by gottabefunky at 9:24 AM on March 7, 2018
posted by gottabefunky at 9:24 AM on March 7, 2018
yo dawg I heard you like music theory pedantry so that should be a "ii"
It's reasonably common in the literature to use a capital roman numeral to denote chord function/root so as to abstract away its actual quality (Aldwell and Schachter's Harmony and Voice Leading, which is a standard text for Theory I/II classes, uses this convention for instance), which quality is usually dominated by local voice leading concerns more than structural function.
But, yeah, I know, music isn't a sufficiently respectable discipline to actually sustain anything more than cursory analysis, and anyone who believes otherwise is a smug pedant instead of someone who just relates to it differently than you do.
posted by invitapriore at 2:23 PM on March 7, 2018
It's reasonably common in the literature to use a capital roman numeral to denote chord function/root so as to abstract away its actual quality (Aldwell and Schachter's Harmony and Voice Leading, which is a standard text for Theory I/II classes, uses this convention for instance), which quality is usually dominated by local voice leading concerns more than structural function.
But, yeah, I know, music isn't a sufficiently respectable discipline to actually sustain anything more than cursory analysis, and anyone who believes otherwise is a smug pedant instead of someone who just relates to it differently than you do.
posted by invitapriore at 2:23 PM on March 7, 2018
But, yeah, I know, music isn't a sufficiently respectable discipline to actually sustain anything more than cursory analysis, and anyone who believes otherwise is a smug pedant instead of someone who just relates to it differently than you do.
So I didn't read thelonious's comment as quite so snarky towards you, invitapriore, more of gentle poke at music theory in general. interesting to me is that in my (admittedly incomplete) music education and knowledge, jazz theory in particular takes a different approach to more classic functional theory - Aimee Nolte is a jazz-educated musician, and the concept of slash chords in that context is decidedly not considered frivolous or a "red herring." I see her take on that AbM7/D chord as more "what does this chord feel like to me, or is this a key change?" instead of its strictly functional role as a II chord in the context of the home key. (Jazz musicians are often thinking about the harmony in terms of "how do I improvise over this? what scale or note choices would work? which her reading seems more aligned with.)
Especially given the nature of the song being performed (and written?) on guitar - as guitarists in jazz, there's a lot of mileage to be had out of the concept of slash chords in understand voicings and how the harmony feels. I guess maybe it's a slightly less formalist/more informal approach to understanding what's going with those chords? but like I said, I know enough jazz and traditional music theory to be dangerous so I'm sure there is a lot I'm missing, and may be missing your deeper point about the functional role at the tale end of that song.
posted by gorbichov at 6:36 PM on March 7, 2018
So I didn't read thelonious's comment as quite so snarky towards you, invitapriore, more of gentle poke at music theory in general. interesting to me is that in my (admittedly incomplete) music education and knowledge, jazz theory in particular takes a different approach to more classic functional theory - Aimee Nolte is a jazz-educated musician, and the concept of slash chords in that context is decidedly not considered frivolous or a "red herring." I see her take on that AbM7/D chord as more "what does this chord feel like to me, or is this a key change?" instead of its strictly functional role as a II chord in the context of the home key. (Jazz musicians are often thinking about the harmony in terms of "how do I improvise over this? what scale or note choices would work? which her reading seems more aligned with.)
Especially given the nature of the song being performed (and written?) on guitar - as guitarists in jazz, there's a lot of mileage to be had out of the concept of slash chords in understand voicings and how the harmony feels. I guess maybe it's a slightly less formalist/more informal approach to understanding what's going with those chords? but like I said, I know enough jazz and traditional music theory to be dangerous so I'm sure there is a lot I'm missing, and may be missing your deeper point about the functional role at the tale end of that song.
posted by gorbichov at 6:36 PM on March 7, 2018
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posted by thelonius at 1:03 PM on March 6, 2018 [1 favorite]