BARACK OBAMA- MUSIC TO MY EARS
Saturday, December 26th, 2009Let me say at the outset that i have no intention of turning this blog into a political one. so, in keeping with my general aim, i’ll take this tact: words and music are inextricably linked and a skilled orator is at times a composer, an improviser and a performer. with that in mind, i’ll call Barack Obama’s speech a solo and use that as an excuse to include a transcription (not mine) of his “music” on this post… i was deeply impressed by the words of President Obama on inauguration day. On hearing them, i felt as if we, as americans, had finally found a leader who has the potential to urge us to greater things; a man who, with the power of his music, can galvanize a nation. his song set the bar pretty high, relatively speaking, for himself and americans but those of us who believe in the potential of america don’t see his aspirations as unrealistic. well, the first chorus was definitely swingin’ and it left me looking forward to seeing if he’ll actually develop those ideas or fall back on the same ol’ cliches we’ve all heard time and time again. i don’t have an allegiance to any political party (though i’m not at all ashamed to say i voted for President Obama) and i am by nature highly skeptical of the rhetoric of any politician. but for now, i’ll suspend my judgement and hum along to the music of our new American President…
PART ONE
PART TWO
2009 PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION SPEECH (text file)
