On the Music of Dramtic Sadness…
Miriam Rocek: I really give [The producers of Cold Case History] major points for, in ‘the bodies in the well’ one, resisting the urge to use the ubiquitous “Vaguely Ethnic Fiddle Music of Bad Things Happening to Jews” in the background music.
Miriam Rocek: that may be the first British…anything I’ve seen that dealt with anti-semitic violence that didn’t use that damn fiddle
poirier.monique@gmail.com: Is it wrong to laugh at that perfect description?
Miriam Rocek: not at all
Miriam Rocek: it goes along with the “Mournful Irish Flute of Potato Famine” and the “Female Ululating Voice of Bad Things Happening to Muslims”
poirier.monique@gmail.com: ….also, is it wrong that I have large collections of all of these kinds of music?
Miriam Rocek: hee
Miriam Rocek: at some point my friends and I made a list of all the various types of generically ethnic music employed for Bad Things Are Happening To various people…it’s funny how ubiquitous it is once you start looking for it
Miriam Rocek: I think it was the Vaguely Ethnic Fiddle we noticed first…we were watching some mystery set in England during WWII, and the detective was like “this object is clearly from a looted synagogue!” and ALL OF A SUDDEN there was this really jarring fiddle
poirier.monique@gmail.com: Bad things happening to Native Americans tends to be flute or slow powwow pieces.
Miriam Rocek: yes
Miriam Rocek: Native Americans get the mournful flute, occasionally I think they lend it to Ireland
poirier.monique@gmail.com5: Hehehhe
Miriam Rocek: pre 19th century black people get drums
Miriam Rocek: like, a steady, funereal drumbeat
Miriam Rocek: oh, and white women get a tinkly piano
poirier.monique@gmail.com: And/or mournful white woman inanely singinging sadly
Miriam Rocek: white men don’t get shit; stuff that happens to them is assumed to be just sad without musical intervention
Miriam Rocek: yes
poirier.monique@gmail.com: Like Sarah Mclachlan
Miriam Rocek: possibly Sarah Mclachlan
Miriam Rocek: JINX
poirier.monique@gmail.com: JINX
poirier.monique@gmail.com: hehehehehehheh
Miriam Rocek: haha, that just made my day
