Manager, writer, editor, & communications specialist
Christina
Donati
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St. Marys Independent Newspaper
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Christina has written bi-weekly as a feature columnist for the print version of the newspaper since June 2017.
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Here, Christina writes feature articles and covers town events.
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The Catholic Register
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Christina has a year long internship as a youth reporter for this newspaper since August 2017.
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Christina writes columns and feature articles which relate to youth and their faith.
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The Regis Magazine
The Regis Magazine
Christina has been writing for The Regis Magazine at her school for two years.
Recently, as of September 2017 she became the Managing Editor.
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Unpublished Work
Why the Music Industry Should Be Begging for Quality Instrumentation
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Comparing modern music to music from past centuries shows an interesting transition of the sound of instrumental and vocals. As instruments evolved, the music industry shifted to create different genres of sound. Is it fair to assume that modern music is of the same quality as music from different eras such as the classical era, the 70s/80s rock era, the jazz era, or the blues era?
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As music has evolved, less emphasis has been placed on the talent, ability, and skill level that it takes to play an instrument, read music, and create a song. In the 21st century, people are no longer interested in learning to read sheet music and play an instrument—now it is too easy for anyone to create a “number one hit song” using mechanized computer sounds.
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Can these modern musicians like Beyonce and Justin Bieber be considered as talented as musicians from the past? Carmine Costanzo, a songwriter in London, Ontario, has a strong opinion on this subject: “I believe there is some talent in the music industry, but it is flooded with a lot of one-hit-wonders and people who just seek the fame.”
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Costanzo explains that the music industry used to have passion, but artists don’t care about that anymore. “The artists who do have talent become overshadowed by the people who are an image, auto-tuned, and don’t write their own music. The music industry is now about how much money a company can make off one artist’s song,” says Costanzo.
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Costanzo believes that the lack of talent in modern music is the result of people not having any interest in learning how to play music properly anymore. He believes people aren't passionate enough about wanting to pick up an instrument and learn it: “The biggest thing is that there isn't anyone in a celebrity status that plays an instrument. Look at Taylor Swift — she used to play guitar and had a small demographic, but then she moved away from guitar to singing with beats and her fame grew ten times. People are bored as well because there is no new Jimmy Page or Eddie Van Halen to wow people and make them say ‘I want to do that too.’” Unfortunately, Costanzo isn't the only one who sees the lack of musical ability in the modern music industry.
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There are facts that support Costanzo's belief that people aren't playing instruments anymore. For example, in an article by the Washington Post called “Why My Guitar Gently Weeps,” Geoff Edgers writes that a famous guitar dealer in Nashville—who has sold guitars to Eric Clapton (only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame) and Paul McCartney—has seen some of the most famous guitar brands, like Gibson, go into debt because there has been a major drop in guitar sales in the last several years.
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After this story, Billboard asked Eric Clapton what he thought about the drop in guitar sales. Clapton’s response was, “I don’t know. Maybe the guitar is over.”
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Similar to Costanzo, Larissa Pandoo, accomplished grade 8 pianist with the Royal Conservatory of Music, says, “There is for sure talent in the music industry today, unfortunately it gets overshadowed by the wonderful creation of auto-tune, and the industry is consumed by the need to make money.”
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When asked why she believes music is changing to computerized sounds rather than recorded instruments, Pandoo said the change is because of “the rise in technology and the need for everything to be done on the computer to be more efficient and convenient.”
Pandoo believes that learning to play an instrument has helped her learn valuable skills in life such as self-control and concentration. For example, Pandoo says, “It is not easy to learn how to read sheet music, it takes years of practice and dedication.”
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However, children are no longer learning those self-control and concentration skills because, as Costanzo points out, “It takes time and practice. People don't want that though because they want to just be able to pick something up and know it, or to be able to just push play.”
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Due to the fast-paced nature of the music industry, there are only attempts to create numerous one-hit-wonders and, coupled with the loss of passion to master a specific instrument, Costanzo believes that there is a difference in new artists’ ability to write songs because they don’t have any passion showing in the music that they produce, whereas musicians from the past produced top quality songs that were full of intense emotion, like November Rain by “Guns N’ Roses.”
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“There are powerful songs from the past era [the 70s era] that changed the music world, like 'Stairway to Heaven' or 'Hotel California.' The music from the past had storytellers, songwriters, and caused listeners to have a desire and craving to write their own music,” says Costanzo.
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“Look at Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’–a very powerful song, with many parts that come together to create an art. This song was entirely written by one man, Freddy Mercury, and one producer [Roy Thomas Baker]. Compare ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ to Beyoncé’s ‘Run the World (Girls),’ which had six writers and four producers. The two do not even come close to comparison. For example, just looking at the lyrics, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ is so much more complex; it doesn’t repeat the same lyrics over and over again. Instrumentally, there is a ballad section, an opera section, and a hard rock section, whereas Beyonce’s song is ‘what can we create that is simple and catchy?’ ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ is complex with so many layers and ‘Run the World (Girls)’ is just a ‘rinse and repeat,’ so don’t tell me that Beyonce is a ‘queen’ or ‘musical genius,’” says Costanzo.
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A team of writers tend to be behind the twenty-first century’s greatest hits. To further explain Costanzo’s point, Emily Claire Biggerstaff from Odyssey wrote that the majority of songs on the radio sound exactly alike because they are all written by the same four people.
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In Biggerstaff’s article, she explains that song lyrics have become so simply written in all genres of music that they are considered to be below third grade level, and that melodies have become so bland due to pop stars using the same four chords.
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So, in a world where people do not have the passion to play an instrument, and music is considered simpler and of lesser quality, what can people foresee for the future of the music industry? “I believe people will be impacted not just by music but by the world as well. U2 and many other artists wrote songs to provoke change and a deeper understanding of the world around us, but that seems to be gone,” says Costanzo.
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Costanzo is devastated with what the music industry has become, and he worries for the future of our world in regards to the quality of music that will be produced: “Music has deeper roots, but people seem to forget that. I believe music is lost too because we don’t have the next Led Zeppelin or Elton John. This isn’t good because our understanding of music will just be beats and drops, not heart and style.”
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The Effects of Generation X and the Addiction to Cell Phones
When Sam Harefeld reached for her cell phone while driving, she wasn’t thinking about the consequences. She hadn’t considered the possibility of waking up in a hospital bed after swerving off the road from texting and driving. Luckily, Harefeld lives to tell her cautionary tale.
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When Harefeld was driving home from her boyfriend’s house late at night, she heard the familiar “ping” from her cell phone. Harefeld couldn’t resist the temptation to check what the message was.
Without realizing it, Harefeld had driven into the wrong lane. She tried to get back onto the right side of the road, but ended up swerving, driving into the ditch, and rolling her car. “I have heard many stories about why people shouldn’t text and drive, but I never thought that it would happen to me,” Says Harefeld.
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Texting and driving is a form of distracted driving, and according to Think Insurance, distracted driving increases the chances of a motor vehicle accident by 23 times. Since the year 2000, deaths have doubled due to accidents caused by distracted driving in Ontario.
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Harefeld claims that she knew her desire to check her phone was an impulse. “At the time, I thought that I would be able to multitask without a problem, I didn’t even consider what could happen, I just really wanted to see who had texted me,” Harefeld said.
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Harefeld is a third year psychology student at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, and has done a lot of research on millennial’s addiction to cell phones since her accident four years ago.
Why is it that people continue to text while driving? When asked this question, Harefeld said, “Whether it be an obsession or addiction, I think we have it [an addiction] because people feel a sense of importance when someone texts them. Everyone feels happy knowing a friend is reaching out to them. I think that’s where we get a rush, when we look at our phone and there is a notification, and this drives the obsession.”
Harefeld also believes that people are inclined to check their phones because of a phenomenon known as ‘Fear of Missing Out:’ “I am so used to having it, and if I don’t, I feel like I am going to miss out on something. If I don’t have it with me, I feel naked,” she said while clutching her phone.
Harefeld believes that people are addicted to their cell phones due to the “Fear of Missing Out.’ What is it about cell phones that make them so addicting in the first place?
A sociology professor who teaches a Mass Media and Society course at the University of Western Ontario discusses cell phone addiction using a text written by Sharif Mowlabocus. “The text discusses cell phones and how we use cell phones in today’s world. The article is prompted by the observation that many of us, including myself, have a very close relationship to our cell phone. We tend to use them to help mitigate discomfort or anxiety.”
Professor believes that there are positives and negatives to using cell phones. For example, the professor discussed how their cell phone allows them to do things that they wouldn’t normally do such as “providing connectivity,” but there are also negative sides. For example, they claim that they feel permanently at work because their phones are always with them, and they have a desire to constantly check their phone which is disruptive.
Perhaps it is this addiction that pushes people to want to check their phones while driving. CBC explains in their article “Why So Many People Text and Drive, Knowing Dangers” that “In a new survey, ninety-eight percent of motorists who own cellphones and text regularly said they were aware of the dangers, yet three-quarters of them admitted to texting while driving, despite laws against it in some states.”
When asked if Harefeld thought that texting and driving derives from an addiction, she agreed: “I think it is because cell phones have become a habit that we just check them without realizing it. I think it goes back to the idea that people think they will be missing out, so they check their phone to make sure.”
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A new RCMP officer from Manitoba had a similar response to Harefeld when asked the same question: “As a professional and as a ride-along, I witnessed and was part of multiple vehicle stops that involved cell phone use. People are so fixated on their text message or checking social media that they don't even notice the lights of a cruiser behind them.”
The RCMP officer said that they will encounter an estimated number of three to five people texting and driving per shift, even though officers do not make it their priority to track down people who are driving while distracted.
“The impulse is simply that people need to feel connected at all times. On another note, it is also associated with habit and the tendency to stick with that 'bad' habit,” the officer said.
Although texting and driving is a big concern because it causes many accidents and deaths every year, the cell phone can impact other parts of people’s lives as well. An article by Jaco Hamnam details three reasons why society is addicted to their phones. These three reasons include the following:
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Our phones feel like an attachment of our self and who we are
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Holding our phones causes us to be reminded of intimate memories
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It fulfills a natural human need to produce and reproduce images and conversations
When asked how cell phones impact people’s lives, the university professor said, “There is all this research about how people are much bolder on social media in terms of bullying, being aggressive, or ‘sexting,’”
Aside from bullying, the professor also said, “Cell phones impact types of intimacy and relationships in terms of the face-to-face interaction because we live in a time where we don’t have a lot of conversations in person anymore.”
The Mass Media and Society university professor continued to explain how many people in society no longer know how to engage in conversation. Instead, they hide behind their phones’ screens because they feel less pressure to give a good first impression, to be liked, to say whatever they want, and they can avoid embarrassment behind a screen in case of rejection.
Harefeld believes cell phones impact relationships as well: “I feel like it [the cell phone] takes away from relationships because trying to get to know someone is a lot easier online rather than in person. For example, if I want to know something about someone, I don’t actually have to ask them, I can just look it up.”
Harefeld explains that people can go on Facebook and find someone’s age, graduation year, work place, cell phone number, and even where they live instead of having awkward conversations to get to know someone in person.
“I feel like that takes away from getting to know someone because it’s like you already know them from looking them up on Facebook, and I think getting to know someone is the best part” she says.
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What can be done to help fix the issues that derive from cell phone addiction? One change the RCMP officer suggested was that “Penalties need to be more severe, where people lose more than just the change in their wallets. I believe if penalties were the same as alcohol and drug-use when associated with driving, then people would think more logically about the use and miss-use of their devices.”
As for cell phone addiction affecting relationships, Harefeld believes in a need course of action would be to raise awareness: “If we can educate people about how our addiction to our cell phones impacts our relationships with one another, then maybe people will change,” she said. “I know that I want to date a real man, not my phone.”
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