...Question 1 Does eHarmony have a competitive advantage? If so, where does it come from? I believe that eHarmony does have a competitive advantage. This is largely due, I believe, to their focus on and first moves toward a customer base that was looking for serious, long-term relationships and compatibility. eHarmony aimed to assist each user in ensuring they were found with a compatible partner(s). In doing this, as well as promotions by company founder Dr. Neil Clark Warren, eHarmony managed to gain the interest of faith communities, a previously untapped market segment by dating sites. As a result, there was exponential growth with 100,000 registrations within a few weeks and by early the next year there had been 300,000. This meant that eHarmony were able to break even early and become cash-flow positive only two years from it's initial breakthrough. Competitive advantage was created for eHarmony largely through it's efficient and integrated system that it offered. It contained a Personality Profile, a Matching Algorithm and a Guided Communication System. This system was exclusive and purpose built for eHarmony as well as being patented. Upon registration, members were required to fill in an extensive Personality Profile that covered many areas of compatibility, however, were largely represented by three guiding principles; Values, Personality and Interests. This information was then assessed by focus group. Once completed, eHarmony's algorithm would assign members with...
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...- Strategy Case Analysis Executive Summary Executive Summary eHarmony is uniquely placed in the online personals market through strategic innovation eHarmony is placed in a highly competitive market * Different segments exist within the market- e.g. free do it yourself, niche sites, paid do it yourself, etc. each having many players * Emerging threat from substitutes like social networking sites * Direct competition launched by biggest competitor ‘Match’ through its ‘Chemistry’ offering eHarmony’s key valuable resource is its vast bank of customer data that it uses to match customers based on its proprietary algorithm, and its brand/reputation * Data bank is rare and inimitable for competitors or new market entrants, making it a critical resource leading to competitive advantage * “Match for life” reputation as a result of rigorous registration process attracting customers interested in long-term relationships eHarmony offers a higher value to its customers in comparison to its competitors in terms of specialization of service offered, efficiency and quality of matches and the detailed screening process Going forward, eHarmony should focus on expanding service offerings (offering services for parenting, weddings, etc.) and explore geographic expansion to other English speaking Western countries * Expansion would be re-enforcing with eHarmony’s critical resources like its intensive R&D capabilities, customer loyalty and reputation ...
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...消失遠近法 • 空気遠近法 光、影、色 ▪ 参考文献 杉浦明平訳 岩波文庫 レオナルドダビンチの手記 （上） The Notebooks of Leonardo, Da Vinch Irma A. Richter, Oxford University Press －絵画とほかの芸術との 画家は、自分をする美を見たいと思えば、 肝をつぶす：to be amazed 実際この宇宙の中に本質として、現在としてあるいは想像としてあるものを、かれはまず頭の中に、次は手の中に所有する。そしてそれは非常に優秀なので、それらがいかなるものであろうとも、同時に一眸の中に均衡のとれた調和を生じる。these are of such excellence that they can present a proportioned and harmonious view of the whole, that can be seen simultaneously, at one glance, just as things in nature. 絵画は自然から生まれる、自然の孫。 絵画を軽蔑するものは哲学をも、また自然を愛していない． he who despises painting loves neither philosophy nor nature. 絵と詩の 絵と音楽 音楽は絵画の姉妹という以外に呼びようがない。 眼に比べて第二次的な感官たる聴覚に従い、 for she is depending on hearing, the sense which comes second[1],and her harmony is composed of the union of its proportional parts sounded simultaneously, rising and falling in one or more harmonic rhythms. 「音楽」は「絵画」の姉妹である。だが絵画は音楽に勝り君臨する。なぜならそれは音楽のように生まれた直後に死にはしない。絵画は存在し続け、実際単なる一片の平面にすぎないものに命を吹込んで君に見せるのだから。 But painting excels and ranks higher than music, because it does not fade away as soon as it is born, as is the fate of unhappy music. On the contrary, it endures and has all the appearance of being alive, though in fact it is confined to one surface. The musician claims that...
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..."If You Can Count To 7, You Can Play Almost Any Tune in Existence On The Piano - By Ear" ...Using Little Known Secrets That Professional Musicians Have Been Using For Years. Dear Friend: Have you ever wondered why a professional musician is able to hear a song and almost instantaneously play that song on the piano? Is this a gift that he or she is born with? In some cases (very rare), it is. But, in most cases, this ability was learned over time. There is no magic behind this ability, but there is knowledge. Most go through years and years of trying to play piano without ever coming close to the knowledge that is required to get to this level. Best of all, you need: · · | No Experience | | No Private Lessons | And, you can work at your own pace. Imagine what it would be like to finally be able to sit down at the piano and play any song you can think of in a few minutes. Or, how about being able to make up songs that really sound good and impress others that hear them. You will finally be able to: | Hear a song and be able to figure out this tune by ear in a few minutes | | Sing a tune, and almost instantly figure it out on the piano | | Play songs without having sheet music in front of you | | Play for a band | | Play and impress friends | | Learn this valuable information without having to pay $50 or more an hour for weekly private piano lessons | This is possible. More Amazingly, this is easy to learn. As a matter of fact, once you start...
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...estions to Consider: Europe 1. How is the history of European and Arabic cultural contact reveal through musical characteristics in places such as Spain and Bulgaria? In Spain, the authentic flamenco had just a singer. It had a strained type of timbre and melisma was used a lot. It shows that there was Arabic influence because they also had that type of style. And because they also used a guitar as accompaniment, it showed there was European influence because they liked harmony. Bulgarian music also had harmonies but with voices. This was a European characteristic. Their music is very colorful and lively and I think that was Arabic influence. 2. What defines a music as "classical" as opposed to "folk" in the European context? How has "classical" music influenced "folk" music style and performance and vice versa? In the European context, classical music is the highest class of music. Folk is a position relative to classical music. Folk music was meant for the common people. It was the opposite of classical music. Folk played classical music and folk music started to interest higher class people. They wanted to become part of a tradition. Classical music started using some folk themes. 3. Drone is especially prominent in many European music traditions. What are some specific manifestations and how does drone relate to the overall sound? Drone is used in many countries in Europe. For example: Scotland, Ireland, and Hungary. In Scotland and Ireland they use bagpipes...
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...guitars 3. Bars 38 & 39 – 3 chord pattern | Accompaniment | All the guitars accompany the main ostinato patterns | Dynamics | Crescendo (gradually getting louder) at the endConstant dynamics in the rest of the pieceParts fade out | Texture | Layered Texture constantly varied and builds up in layers. It is Polyphonic.The use of multitracking is when instruments are recorded on top of each other, which is added to the texture by layering. | Structure | The piece is spilt into 2 main sections and a coda.Each main section is divided into 4 smaller sections with a different meter and key signature. | Harmony | No cadences and all the harmonies are diatonic. | Instruments | 8 Guitars (1 live guitar) and 2 bass guitars | Rhythm | Lots of syncopationThe same rhythms are repeated through most of the piece so there is little rhythmic variety. | Tonality | E minor but changes constantly to C minor.Reich uses Tonal Ambiguity (when lots of motes are not in the key to make it confusing in what key the piece is in) | Speed | 3/2 and 12/8This particular movement is called ‘Fast’ so its tempo is one crotchet beat = 192. | Electric Counterpoint Other Information: * Steve Reich composed this minimalist piece in 1987. * Lots of note addition is used, meaning notes are added slowly and gradually throughout the piece, building up the melody. * The original guitar player was Pat Methany. * Electric Counterpoint has 3 movements (we are studying...
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...Dowland’s ‘Flow My Tears’ was published in 1600 as an Ayre in a book of songs. The harmony is typical of the early Baroque period, employing many of the commonly used techniques at the time. The chords used are mostly in root or first inversion, as the influence of sacred music on secular music was heavy, and simple accompaniment was commonly used so as not to distract from the melody and the lyrical content. There are a few examples of phyrgian cadences (IVb-V)within the piece (first instance at Bar 2). Another common feature of Baroque music that appears in Flow My Tears is the use of false relation, as it was from the influence of sacred music from the time, which relied heavily on closely voiced parts. There is use of the Tierce de Picardi, a hugely common feature of Baroque music, again with the influence of sacred music. In Summertime, the use of jazz inspired chords (the dominant 11th and 13th, added 6th) are very different to the simple voiced chords of Flow My Tears, with complex dissonances and intervals. In Bar 2, the use of the F natural is the flattened fifth, creating a blue note, common of African-American folk music originating in slave-song. The references to the pentatonic and whole tone scales are the result of Gershwin’s classical background but his interest in jazz, they are also prevalent in African-American folk music. Gershwin’s classical influence can be seen with his use of the augmented 6th chord, also known as the french chord, a common feature of...
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...And the glory of the lord – Handel 1. “and the glory of the lord” first sung by altos in bar 11-14 | syllabic- nearly each syllable has its own note | 2. “shall be revealed”Introduced by tenors bars 17-20 | ‘be revealed’ is set over a descending sequence & revealed is mellismatic (lots of notes for few syllables) | 3. “and all flesh shall see it together” Altos in bar 43-46 | The same bit of melody is repeated three times! | 4. “for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it” tenors & basses bar 51-57 in unison then harmony | Most on same pedal note of A. notes are long- sounds serious & important. | Once the motifs are introduced the parts imitate each other. The parts overlap, so they are sometimes singing in canon. The last four bars of the piece are marked Adagio – they’re much slower. It finished with a plagal cadence (chord V to chord 1). This makes the piece sound like it’s finished. Why does my heart feel so bad – Moby A1 0.00 | Piano only, establishing main chord sequence Am, Am, Em, Em, G, G, D, D. | A2 0.19 | Adds male voice sample “why does my heart______ feel so bad____ why does my soul___ feel so bad__” The sample is unedited. Electronic ghostings from 1953 gospel choir. LOOPED. | A3 0.39 | Adds percussion and countermelody. The left hand of piano is doubled by low synth | A4 0.59 | Adds bass and string synth. These fill out the structure- long sustained chords | A5 1.19 | More...
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...Example of Concert Review Essay [This was a paper written by an actual student in the Popular Music in America class. It is not offered as an award-winning review nor is it compositionally error-free. It did, however, receive an A for this assignment and is an example of the level of writing and analysis that is required to receive an A. Please do not, however, begin your paper in exactly the same way or attempt to copy “buzz words” or phrases. Write your own paper!] On February 17, 2005, the Jazz Ensemble at Tarleton State University had their first concert of the spring semester with special guest trumpeter, Daryl White. The jazz ensembles collectively performed thirteen pieces during the concert. “Fly Me to the Moon”, “Waltz for Debby” and “Ancient Memories” were three stylistically different pieces that allowed the audience to experience the various sounds of jazz music. Jazz music, like all music, tells a story and here are the stories of “Fly Me to the Moon”, “Waltz for Debby” and “Ancient Memories”. “Fly Me to the Moon”, written by Bart Howard and arranged by Sammy Nestico, is an upbeat standard sung most famously by Frank Sinatra. In the instrumental version of this song, a Latin-inspired sounding consonance set the romantic mood at the beginning of this song. A piano and saxophone then alternated the melody of the song as though they were dancing like two lovers flying to the moon. As the passion of the song heated up, the texture changed within...
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...In the musical writings of the late madrigal period, there are many qualities and characteristics that make it distinct from earlier madrigal writings. For example, later madrigal compositions tend to include more chromatic lines, the use of imitative textures and word painting as well as extravagant contrasts in meter and mode, consonances and dissonances, and slower and quick paced rhythms. In Monteverdi’s piece A Un Giro Sol, these qualities make it very clear that is was written during the late madrigal period. The piece displays the use of word painting, uses chromatics, imitation between voices and uses different types of compositional contrasts frequently. For example, the poem changes emotionally at the line “I am sad and weeping” and the music reflects it by shifting into the minor mode as well as chromatics being added. The piece also uses very distinct word painting. In measure 8, in the tenore voice, on the words are “ride l’aria intorno,” meaning the breeze laughs all about, the line becomes melismatic and moves as if it were the breeze, also mimicking laugher. It is then followed by the basso, and then by the upper two voices. In measure 40 in the top voice, the lyric is “langrimose,” which means weeping, there is a falling chromatic line almost as if it was mimicking tears falling. In the lyric “certo quando neceste,” meaning doubtless on the day you were born, the rhythm becomes strict and angry in measure 57. Monteverdi’s use of these characteristics made...
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...Breno Schmidt 6/28/2013 MUS 111 Foundations in Music Reading & Listening: Prelude and Chapters 3 & 4. Chapter 3: Repetition On this chapter the author explain about all different kinds of Repetition that the composers can use on the Music. The author gave an example how composers construct musical phrases. But this also can be problematic. And they have also a three fundamental units of musical speech: Motive (shortest division of theme or phrase), Phrase (three fundamental units of musical speech) and Period (can be short or long until the harmonic come to a close. Exact repeats depends what the composer wants on the music or they can variate the kinds of repetitions. The transposed repeats are made up of exact repeats of a motive, like in the example on the chapter 1 (Haydn). Also, the author compared an example to see about function of repetitions on Haydn’s. Haydn after 2 beats of silence, the gesture repeats the same. The notes are completely the same, but the meaning now it’s completely different. On music repeat a lot times means what it matters. Vocabulary: Repeat: To say again. Startles: To cause to make a quick involuntary movement or start. Grunt: To utter a deep guttural sound Sublime music: Inspiring awe; impressive. Compositional: The combining of distinct parts or elements to form a whole. Chapter 4: “Comma, Semicolon, Period.” On this chapter 4, the author compared music as the way we speak. When we write a speech or a poem we need to write with pauses...
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...Music for Mind, Body, and Soul Music comforts discomfort, and strengthens will. It is a vital element to every single culture. Listen to a beat, and a medley of emotions will arise. Music knows has no limits. Language cannot even constrain its powers. Sometime ago I was trying to learn a new language. Seeing as I don't pick up on linguistics well I decided to search the net for methods to improve memory retention. One strategy that continually popped up was Suggest podia, or Accelerated Mastering. Basically, certain musical pieces can tap into the vast capabilities that remain dormant in the brain. Music is effective, and since the beginning of time (pretty much) proof has been uncovered that show a link between music and human behavior. The Early Beginnings Music dates back to the Predynastic Period (3100 BCE) of Egypt. Depictions of different instruments have been found etched out in ruins, and documents state that music was a critical piece in Egyptian culture. The Egyptians declare their God Thoth (frequently known as "Master of Balance") discovered music. All the secrets of the world were recorded by way of music. Therefore, it is no shock that songs have hidden unknowns directly linking to the brain. At one time Ancient Egypt was a barbaric society. It was the God Osiris who grew to become King, and through his appreciation of songs he civilized the nation. No matter where he went, his musicians were sure to follow. Music filtered the lands of Ancient Greece through...
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...What stylistic features make Flow My Tears a piece of Renaissance music? Composed in 1596, Flow My Tears is a ‘Lute song’ - a style that emerged during the Renaissance period - typically consisting of a voice (a counter tenor or alto in this case) accompanied by a lute. It could also be accompanied by more than one instrument in what was known as a ‘mixed’ or ‘broken’ consort. This performance uses a bass viol. This can be seen as reminiscent of the development of the bass line in defining the harmonic structure of music that was occurring at the time (assuming even greater significance during the baroque era). The texture is melody and accompaniment, however often with enough separate movement in the parts to be contrapuntal. An example of this is a four-part chord in the lute part which creates five parts with the voice in Bar 1 and playing six notes in Bar 16. This is indicative of the period because much of Renaissance music (including Lute songs) employed both homophony and counterpoint. Counterpoint itself developed strongly throughout the Renaissance and Baroque era, featuring heavily in the works of well known composers of the time such as Orlando Gibbons and William Byrd. The tripartite structure of the song relates to the structure of the stanzas - verses 1 and 2 are sung to the same notes whereas verses 3 and 4 are sung to a different melody as is the 5th verse. Whilst the structure itself is not greatly indicative of the period, the through-composed nature...
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...Marshall Law 11 March 2016 Project #1: To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) Music in films before 1970 had a distinct purpose. In the film “To Kill a Mockingbird” the music highlights important material in the film. This music was utilized to enhance the emotion of the film. The musical score was under the direction of Elmer Bernstein, an outstanding musician responsible for many major film scores. This film was produced in 1962, just about the time where avant-garde music was well in effect. Elmer Bernstein implements these new techniques of dissonant harmonious, wide intervals and complex rhythms in his themes throughout the film. There are three points where he utilizes music in this film. He highlights characters, highlights transitions and highlights emotional scenes. Music is not played from beginning to end, as the music is accents key moments. There is no use of source music in this film, allowing all the music to be underscore. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) is based off of the popular novel with the same name. The film follows the endeavors of two children, Scout and Jem, as well as their father, Atticus. Circulating the time of the Great Depression, this film emphasizes racial inequality. As the film develops, the plot reveals an important case dealing with the allegations of an African American man raping a white women. Tom Robinson, the man accused, is found guilty by the jury, only to suicide by cop. The man responsible for the allegations attacks Scout and Jem...
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...nspired by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff’s melodies were masterfully crafted, soulful, reflective and nostalgic. He believed music should remain “unendingly obedient in trying to create beauty”. Rachmaninoff composed the majority of his melodies in the major mode and largely diatonically constructed. This diatonicism is a mark of his reflective spirit and old fashion style that “erred somewhat on the cautious side of his limitations” ; a tendency that could have begun after his breakdown in 1897. His inability to write for such an extended period of time could have stunted his development as a progressive composer; the same progressive composer that once wished to open new paths in music when he created his first symphony. But, for all he claimed to be set in his musical ways, his compositions show a man who seemed to be constantly developing a more complex harmonic language. Works completed after 1910, such as his Prelude op. 32 No. 1 and Etudes Tableaux, began to display subtle, perhaps modernistic, changes in his technique. "The surprising broadening of his musical conscience… has allowed him to write down what, only a decade ago, would have made him turn away with a shudder” . Rachmaninoff’s development as a composer can be seen as “a persistent chromaticizing of his tonal fabric… [with] his chromaticism [Being the] result from altered chords, progressions, and digressions of long exploited keys” . Rachmaninoff’s use of chromaticism is clearly seen in his Prelude Op. 32 No. 1...
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