Vikings

                                              The Vikings were savages

I am not quite sure of the history of the Vikings, and neither is the internet, but I percieve that the vikings were pillagers who had no pity. They ransacked towns, killing just about everyone who did not comply with their demands. They were large men, closely related to barbarians.

The noun viking comes from Old Norse, meaning "expedition overseas".

They travelled much by sea, using longships and knarrs.

                 
               
Longships were used for warfare and exploration, designed for speed and agility. The longship had oars stick out from its side, which were rowed by strong men.

                              
The knarr was mostly used for cargo, even though they were some times used for warfare.


According to custom, all free Norse men were required to own weapons, as well as permitted to carry them all the time. These arms were also indicative of a Viking's social status: a wealthy Viking would have a complete ensemble of a helmet, shield, chainmail shirt, and sword. A typical bóndi was more likely to fight with a spear and shield, and most also carried a seax as a utility knife and side-arm. Bows were used in the opening stages of land battles, and at sea, but tended to be considered less "honorable" than a hand weapon. Vikings were relatively unusual for the time in their use of axes as a main battle weapon. The Húscarls, the elite guard of King Cnut were armed with two-handed axes which could split shields or metal helmets with
ease.

Even though Vikings were savages, they had feelings.  They expressed their emotions with music, whether it was through chants for sacrifices, or songs played on the lyre with a lively tune. Foreigners thought of their music as ugly. An Arab merchant visiting Hereby, Denmark, in the 10th century had this to say about the Viking's singing: "Never before I have heard uglier songs than those of the Vikings in Slesvig (in Denmark). The growling sound coming from their throats reminds me of dogs howling, only more untamed." Another visitor compared their singing to the sound of a heavily loaded cart rolling down a hillside. The storyteller explains the sound was a result of lack of moderation in contact with alcohol. (Obviously, even back then, beer and brass music obviously went well together.) 

There were two kinds of musicians back in viking times: Jesters and Skalds. Jesters were held in low regards, as they were commonly used for humor and court. You could kill a jester and not recieve punishment for the activity. Skalds travelled all around viking territory, singing to the viking chiefs and kings of the realm.

In conclusion, vikings were very vile creatures(Arghhhh!) who killed many and ransacked lots of land, but they still had a heart that held beautiful(not really) viking songs that made their lives worthwhile.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking

Music is awesome

During our music appreciation class we listened to different types of musics in different Eras. For example we listened to the Modern type music, Classical period, Romantic period, Renaissance period, and Medieval period. I really enjoyed listening to all these different types of music especially the Classical and Medieval period. Classical music has a peaceful and exciting kind of feeling , although sometimes it has a very thick texture or multiple melodies at once, I still think it shares a little bit of the same sensation in itself.
In my opinion some of the best samples of music in this era are: Symphony No.9 by Beethoven and Symphony No.35 by Mozart.
Medieval period music was good and fun to listen to. In this era instruments weren't used very much because people didn't have different types of them like todays. So they used their voices to make different sounds as an instrument in the background or made harmony with the voice of the singer. This is exactly what Louis Armstrong did in 40s and 50s when in the middle of the song everybody stopped and he grabbed the old microphone and started making sounds like "Ba bam da doraab.." or how he started the song "When you're smilling"
I think one of the best examples of Medieval period is "Sumer is Icumen In" (This is not the original version and its a bit faster) Yes this song reminds us of old men with long white beard walking down the road in a jogging way and singing this song! This was actually made after the time when in Europe the weather was so cold that farmers couldn't grow anything and people were hungry and you can tell that these people were happy that summer was coming. (Quote from Mr.Allder: Life sucked for these people for a long time so they're happy that its summer! - you're the best)
Finally we listened to an ancient Greek music called "Seikilos epitaph" (It starts at 00:20).It is the oldest example of music that survived. I was really excited to listen to it cause I wanted to hear in which ways their music in old days were different than the other times and eras. The texture is very thin in this song because we have only the string instrument and the voice of the singer. Also the string instrument has harmony with the singer whenever she starts to sing. I think it is really cool that Greek had developed a musical system in the third or fourth century.

Hi there!

My name is Nima. I'm a senior at GreenbrierEast Highschool. I really like music and I listen to amlost any kind of music and thats why I'm in music appreciation class! Yes thats right this blog is for my class..
I'm also learning how to play Guitar and Piano in school.