Discussion questions for episodes 5 & 6

Episode 5

1. At the beginning of this episode, Krukowski asserts, “the marginal-the rejected-the repressed-is whatever the powerful have decided is of no use at the moment.” What does he mean by this statement? He goes on to ask, “But might it [the marginal-the rejected-the repressed] not be a key to alternate approaches to art, to society-to power itself?” (“Marginalized” is an adjective that describes a person, group, or concept that is treated as insignificant or peripheral.)What is he trying to get at with this question? How does music indicate the differences between the powerful and the marginalized?

Krukowski asserts “the marginal-the rejected-the repressed-is whatever the powerful have decided is of no use at the moment.” he means that the changes come from the audience. The audience has the power to replace bookstores and physical places that sell the music and books online such as Amazon, and eBay. Our lives are being busy and running fast so people prefer to shop their books or music online to go store to explore and what the book stores or record stores have. Record stores became in a margin because of technology and digital apps that offered thousands of songs on their phones.   

• How are the music listening experiences enabled by Forced Exposure different from those that Paul Lamere is working on with platforms like Spotify?

Digital Companies such as Spotify, Apple Music, and Pandora have music recommendations done by computers using algorithms through the recommendations that the audiences give. , acoustic similarity, and cultural recommendations. The difference is that forced exposure can have a human give you a personalized recommendation because they listened to the music themselves. Paul Lamere said the goals of that is they know automatically what you want to listen through your music playlist. Those company like Spotify, Echo nest has designs the recommendation program to figure out what do you want to listen.   

1. What distinctions does Krukowski draw between being “surprised” by music and “discovering” music? What are the differences between these experiences and according to Krukowski, why are they important?

According to Krukowski indicates the differences between surprised and discovering in music surprise are not the same as discovering. Discover that when you use the app to discover what do you want exactly to hear. I am using Spotify app as an example,  You discover what do you want to hear because the application has millions of the song around the world. Later you got a surprise when you find a song that related to what are you listen to. In fact that it should not surprise us because this app uses a recommendation program that gives us the music related to our favorite music to keep us listening to music the app.      

Episode 6

• According to Krukowski, what is noise? What is the signal? Why are these distinctions important?

According to Krukowski indicate the differences between noise and signal, he states that noise the voice that you want to her but the signal is sound that you want to her and interested to or you pay your attention to. 

• What central idea about noise does this episode convey? Why is it significant?

The central idea about the noise and signal in this episode is depending on the person responded for example, when kids in the park scream, their scream is signal for their parents but it is noise for the elderly who are sitting in the park.   

• How does this episode relate to other episodes? 

This episode is special because the impact of digital sound can create serious disease hearing loss according to the world health organization reported that 1.1 billion young people are now at risk of hearing loss from the personal audio. In episode 2 space, Krukowski said digital audio makes people create their private space and also they listen to music instead of talking to each other, It a result of that they prefer the noise and face the risk of losing their hearing. In episode 3 love digital sound has a negative impact on the music quality, the song now became noisier than before because of the digital tools. 

Episodes 3 & 4

Episode 3

• According to Krukowski, what are the main differences between a microphone and a cellphone and why is this difference important?

The main differences between microphone and cellphone is a microphone make sound clear but cell phone makes sound quality worse and more aggressive. The problem with a cellphone is to transfer words without feeling and sound of music. Cellphone engineers only care about transferring the word not the feeling or where we are or the sound of breathing.    

• What do Krukowski and Gary Tomlinson, the professor he interviews, assert about the “musical” qualities of the voice and how are these changed by digital transmission?

Musical qualities of the voice are changed by digital transmission. A digital transmission transfers the music as a word but it does not translate the feeling. The main idea of music is expressing the feeling, not the only word. In addition to losing the voice music tones will change the musical qualities.    

•  What is the significance of Krukowski’s comments on the voice to ideas about community and interpersonal connection?

Krukowski’s comments that digital tools make share our idea and interpersonal to farther distance and easier to reach, but it fails to connect and communicate with each other.    

Episode 4

• Krukowski begins by discussing the issue of music file sharing. What is your opinion on this issue? Should music be freely available or should one have to pay? 

Krukowski discussing the issue of music file sharing, before the technology they gain money from travel tours and music albums. People bought music to listen to because it was not available. With digital audio and technology such as phone applications and youtube, the music become available and free online why do they buy the album and song available on the internet. I know that the songwriters, producers, singers lose money because they donot sell music album as before but I have one question if they lose money why do they make new songs and albums. I know they donot lose money they earn from other ways. Even though the song is free online but when you pay for a subscription on your phone or you watch the song on youtube,  the singer earns money. Based on that music is not free but it is available.       

• How does this episode represent the relationships between music, community, and culture?

Music has a different language, music describes people’s feelings, their culture, and their community. Every culture has its special song that discuss also their life topics, for example, bob Dylan sang for the Vietnam war and he uses music to protest of sending soldiers to Vietnam. A singer can succeed when he feels connected and closer to people’s problems and use his talent to express their feelings  The melody of the song has changed by technology and digital tools. For example in the old songs, you find people dress nicely setting in the opera to hear the musician sang slowly and clearly without stress the enjoy comparing to now our life is fall of stress and life responsibility and that made us rush as a result our song is rush as our lifestyle. In the old song, it was impossible for any song to had any unsuitable words, in comparison, music now is influence by street language.           

• Does charging money for music impede the formation of communities around this music or does it help support the circulation of music?

Money and music are connected but the singers are artists they have a message from their songs. their concern should be on their talent not on the money they will earn form the song. They should be concerned to make their music last in the long term not to sing for the short-term and make it forgettable. Many companies’ concern now about focusing on how to develop technology not to improve the music as art.

Ways of Hearing, Episode 1 & 2

Episode 1

What is Krukowski’s main point about how we experience time in the “real” world versus are experiences with “digital” time? Why are these differences significant?

According to Radiotopia First showcase series: “Ways of Hearing” by Krukowski point out a digital audio change our perception and our sense of time. The difference between real-time and digital time. Real-time is our lifetime but the digital audio has digital time. 

What does Krukowski mean when he says that listening has a lot to do with how we navigate space?

Krukowski means when he says that listening has to a lot to do with how we navigate space was about hearing of environmental sounds. When you hear the noise of the crowded street or the sound of a bird or the train that develops our sense of hearing and sense about space. Because of digital sound and headphones, we lost that sense of hearing and block your feeling toward the environmental sounds.    

Episode 2

• In the interview at the beginning of the episode, Jeremiah Moss argues that developers in Astor Place are “privatizing public space in a very stealth way.” What does he mean by this? What does Moss say about the distinction between public and private space, and why is it important?

Jeremiah moss argues that digital audio controls the singles that we hear in public and made people create their own privet space from public space. That means the music that you hear just sounds in your ear through the headphone but you did not occupy other space. You only hear environmental sounds.   

• What is the significance of Emily Thompson’s idea that the development of concert halls arose from desires to “control interior spaces”? How is this desire, according to Krukowski, related to earbuds and headphones?

The significance idea of Emily Thompson’s point that the development of concert halls arose from desires to control interior spaces people will be silent to hear and they will be concentrate and they will avoid distraction,  Because of the audience criticize toward what they hear and concentrate on to judge what they listening.      

• In your own opinion, what are the key ideas from this episode about the relationship between sound and space? What strikes you as interesting about the ways that sound influences our experience of space

The most interesting part was before the experience of hearing from the radio was different because you imagine the situation from hearing you recognize the space, sounds, and situation from your ears and also build your imagination. Before we listen to the serious, drama, movie from the radio and it was more interesting than watching T.V or listen to your headphone. Now the audience wants to void the time or waiting for transportation by using headphones to hear music. My childhood was influenced by the radio because I was living with my grandmother and we used to sleep in the same room the whole night. she turned the radio on the whole night and also when she cooked, that was the valuable moment in my life because I used to listen to a bedtime story on the radio that builds my imagination, but the ability to hear. I remember I used to wake up at 6 o’clock in the morning because of the clock on the radio. There was the kid’s voice that woke me up at 6 o’clock in school days. Technology makes our lives run fast.  

• According to Berger, how do “publicity”–what we would call advertising–images influence consumers and why is this significant?

According to Berger. He explains the main concept of publicity is glamour. The advertisements in the newspaper and magazine influence us and they summarize our happiness depend on the product they offered to us. It is significant because they post the advertisement everywhere they influence us by seeing this advertising and made us dream about the product and imagine our life if we buy it. Those techniques the advertising company to sell their product.       

• As he compares oil painting to publicity (advertising) photography, Berger argues that oil painting “showed what the owner was already enjoying among his possessions and way of life;” “it enhanced his view of himself as he already was.”  Whereas publicity pictures, “appeal to a way of life that we aspire to or think we aspire to.” Why are these differences important? What do they reveal to us about the production of images for publicity? 

According to “the way of seeing episode 4” john Berger compares the oil painting tp publicity. Berger states te difference purpose between oil painting and publicity. the oil painting shows their ownself and own life and based on their life fact, however, publicity represents ways to aspire others but cannot be achieved. They persuade you to buy their product by using an image of landscape, beautiful women, or using happiness phrases. Your persuasion will be in one idea that if you buy their product your life will be different from it is.          

• Choose one of the “dreams” he offers or thinks of your own. How does this dream offered by advertising use images to manipulate consumers?

In the video, Berger states three dreams such as the dream of later tonight, the skin dream, and the dream of a faraway place. I choose the dream of faraway because in that dream you travel in your imagination from one place to another. When you are sitting in your bed,  You can imagine yourself being in two places at the same time, wearing your elegant clothes, going to an ancient castle. In fact, the dream of faraway, meaning is to allow one thought to pass through the window and travel to elsewhere conjuring image distances without horizon, to be in two worlds at the same time just where European ends.  This dream offered by advertising use image to manipulate consumers by traveling everywhere, for example when the travel agency their advertisement about Bali, Maldives, or paradise, you imagine yourself make a tour there and you think about heaven and how you will be happy there.           

1. One of the main premises in this episode is Berger’s distinction between nakedness and the nude female form as it is traditionally represented in Western art. What are the differences between these things and why are these differences significant? Do they apply to images you have encountered in your experience?

According to episode 2 of ways of seeing by John Bergers states that western art has a tradition to women naked and nude. Bergers criticize that in his video. Barger discusses the concept of a female nude. Nakedness and nude have the same meaning but in the episode have different concepts. The significant difference between naked and nude is the naked woman is to be oneself but nude is seen by others in addition she does not recognize for oneself.  

2. According to Berger, how have Western works of art depicted and defined different roles for men and women? According to Berger, what is the significance of this? Do these depictions influence the ways we think of the differences between men’s and women’s roles in society today?

Berger argues that western art defined different roles for men and women. The man and women’s vision about themselves is different women always see themselves beautiful and also represent beauty instead of men. Women and men did not have the same reflection about themselves. Women always influence by others describing her beauty and looking to her. Berger believes that there is inequality between men and women in society.     

3. How does Berger describe the significance of the mirror in paintings depicting women? What does this object say about the ways beauty is defined in these paintings? What does Berger say about the depiction of the female gaze in the paintings he discusses? What kinds of more contemporary examples does he relate this to, and what significance does he draw from these connections between older European art and depictions of women today?

According to Berger’s description, the mirror is symbolic of oil western painting art. It shows the reflection of women’s beauty and women’s vanity. Berger said that a naked woman is looking at her mirror because she enjoys looking at her beauty that called the painting vanity. Male spectators owners have their own judgment of women nude. Berger draws a connection between the older European, though the comparing between the western painting arts and photograph took to naked women, He shows the similarity of their facial reactions and their eye contact. Now,  In female magazines, There are many photos for women who are nude that shows women still enjoy looking at her beauty through a male.