Parks are made to bring music to the many, but by the time many are attuned to hear it there is little left but noise.
– Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac: Sketches Here and There
Last post, I introduced my theme, Music + The Environment. Music and the environment work in a sort of symbiotic relationship. Music is constantly affecting the environment and vice versa. Moreover, music is constantly affecting how I interact with and, thus, affect the environment. This past month has been an adventure. I’ve explored a greenbelt around my home, visited Paris, and bought tickets to go see my favorite artist at the moment (who was actually mentioned in my previous post).
Stress + Fitbit
I live with a host family out in Avrillé, a short drive away from Angers. My home is in a very quiet area with mostly elderly people. Every now and then late at night, music will be blaring from someone’s home; however, I have yet to figure out who has been listening to dance music at two in the morning and why. My host mom told me about some lake that was nearby the house, so I decided to go and scope it out. I was able to stumble upon it and was met with a beautiful trail that ran along the lake. The lake is called Le Brionneau and it’s quite stunning. I’ve gone a few times since then and people are always walking, running, or simply sitting and taking in the view. I’ve tried to see if more people have been using earphones than not and it has actually been pretty even. About half of the walkers/runners enjoy listening to their own music while the other half enjoys the hearing the world around them (or maybe they just forgot their earphones).
This month, my stress levels have been rather high. I think the combination of missing home, traveling, having to navigate a new place with a different language, and school has taken a toll on me. Perhaps there are other factors as well, but in any case, I haven’t been feeling so great. In order to combat that, I’ve been visiting the greenbelt more while listening to some of my favorite songs. I can definitely say that when I take the time out to go outside and be alone with my thoughts and nature, I feel much more at ease. I think a huge contributor to my stress is allowing it to flourish in the small space of my bedroom rather than going outside and allowing it all to be released.
Overall, I’d say that my stress levels were at a 10, and down to a 3 when I took the time to go outside and relax.
As far as the FitBit goes, I’ve been walking an insanely large amount. I’ve been averaging about 10,000 steps a day, and this number only but increases when I’m traveling. While in Paris, I walked over 23,000 steps the first day and burned over 1,000 calories. I’m not much of a calorie counter, but that has to be pretty good, right? I should be losing pounds, but I’m not. Thanks, cheese.
Paris
My journey in Paris was an exhausting, yet very fulfilling one. I had been one other time before this past trip; however, I think I definitely walked way more this time around.
Something I noticed right away was that there were way more street performers there than there are here in Angers. I suppose it isn’t much of a surprise considering Paris is well-known for its food, fashion, and of course, it’s music! It’s no secret that there are a lot of buskers in the area – Matador Network actually ranks it as the fourth best place to busk in the world (1). A place I noticed people busking was the metro. With a fast growing population and a need for efficient transportation, the Paris metro network was opened July 19th, 1900 (2). With the introduction of underground transportation, we’ve expanded the way in which we interact with the environment. Thousands upon thousands of people use the service daily to get from place to place efficiently. This, in turn, has become a great place for buskers to entertain.
In Austin, we don’t have this culture simply because there is no underground transportation system. (Although there are talks of a light rail system if you’re curious (5))Most if not all of our daily interactions take place above ground. So for me, dealing with navigating that whole new world on top of seeing the musicians that came with it was a whole new experience. I suppose the closest experience I’ve had to that back in the states is seeing people perform at bus stops. It’s not quite the same, but they are both places that people go to so that they can get from point A to point B.
Outside of the metro, there were many street performers posted up on curbs, bridges, riversides, and more. There was a group of people playing instruments across the river from Notre Dame. They were filled with so much energy and happiness and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the environment around them. That same day, I ran into a duo that consisted of two young guys playing acoustic guitar and singing. Unfortunately, I lost the picture I took of them. Those were the two that stuck out to me, but there were many people playing music out in the world. Something that rang true with all of them was their respect for the environment. Walking around France, and Europe in general, one can pick up (no pun intended) on the amount of litter around. According to Elephant Journal, about half a ton of land litter is on every one kilometer of European roads (3). So it was very surprising to me seeing how well-kept the buskers kept their areas. If they took a food break or happened to drop a napkin or anything like that, they made sure to pick it up and dispose of it properly. I suppose in a way it’s the same thing as keeping your workspace clean. Their square of road or metro-space is their office per se.
Concert
So last post, I added a song by Lianne La Havas. I am very excited because I purchased tickets to go see her Thanksgiving weekend. This will be my first actual concert in France and I’m curious to see if there will be any notable differences. I’ll definitely keep an eye out to see if there are a good amount of waste baskets (and whether or not there is an opportunity to recycle), how people seem to arrive to the venue (car, metro, bike, walking), and things like that. I’ve been reading an article by Reverb that talks about ways to “Green Your Concerts” and there are so many things that I never really even thought about like how you get to the concert, and “retro-fitting” their restrooms (4).
As far as a song for this month goes, there has definitely been one song that has been playing a lot here. Every time I go outside and someone has their car window rolled down or even just going to the grocery store, this song comes on. It’s a dance-y track, which the French seem to be very much into.
Here you have it: Ain’t Nobody (Loves Me Better) by Felix Jaehn feat. Jasmine Thompson
I chose this song because it makes me feel like running which in turn gives me a chance to go out and interact with nature.