A Musical Analysis of the Past: America is in the Heart by Carlos Bulosan Re-told through the Craft of Folk Songs

TL;DRAbstract

Songwriting is an art in which lessons and experiences of the past and present can be communicated through the channel of music and writing. From this mode of communication, this creative project embodies a different take on the incorporation of "voice" by analyzing a significant work of Filipino American literature to be further experienced by the general public in song. In this project I aimed to create three relatable songs for future listeners by incorporating themes from the novel, America is in the Heart by Carlos Bulosan. As a Filipino immigrant, poet and activist during the Great Depression, Bulosan’s journey symbolizes prominent themes of individuality, silence, and farewell which are deeply relatable to listeners from all walks of life. Through the use of found poetry, themes were found and then interpreted into folk songs. This project required that I balance three separate roles: researcher, folk musician, and identification as a Filipino American in order to acquire themes

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