Two Chicago Projects
Chris’s Funeral / Saddest Song You've Ever Heard
Chicago, IL
Date Unknown
Chicago, IL
Date Unknown
During the data-retrieval phase of my funeral project, I’ve received several responses about the interviewees’ song choices at their funerals. “Free Bird” and “Wind Beneath My Wings” are some of the most common choices out there. Is it a coincidence that we think dying is heavily connected with flying, as if dying is an act of thrusting upwards and severing any connection with the earthly world? But that’s not important at the moment.
What I’m investigating is what makes a song funeral-friendly? Although I have pretty much settled on my song choice (“Free Bird” with extended organ solo!), I am wondering whether or not the song decides the mood of the whole event. But a funeral is a sad event, and maybe even if a uplifting song is played people will still feel sad. What are the criteria?
On this day: September 16, 2006, my answer would be that choice wholly depends on the memory. The song may not even be about dying, but it may recall some memory with friends and families. Another guess would be that the song has to be a description of the deceased.
On the same note, I’ve come to think about the saddest song I’ve ever heard, and I’m collecting data from people that I know. Those songs might not make it to my funeral, but I’m interested to see what are people’s criteria for sad songs, as well as their choices for the saddest song ever. Eventually I plan to make an audiobook with the responses.
The funeral will take place when the planning phase is done. At this stage I plan to feature a few objects in the intervention, including photographs and paintings of myself, a small monument, and costumes. The main event will be the reading of eulogies by the people in attendance. The entire process is highly collaborative to the point that I’m not sure whether it’s my work or not anymore. But the work is ABOUT me, and for that’s a different challenge than having the work done BY me.
Please send me some writings, whether it’s an eulogy/elegy or your saddest song you’ve ever heard. There are no deadlines, but the sooner the better. I’m open for discussion and suggestion as well. And if you think you don’t know me well enough, we should start hanging out more!
ahcri@yahoo.com
What I’m investigating is what makes a song funeral-friendly? Although I have pretty much settled on my song choice (“Free Bird” with extended organ solo!), I am wondering whether or not the song decides the mood of the whole event. But a funeral is a sad event, and maybe even if a uplifting song is played people will still feel sad. What are the criteria?
On this day: September 16, 2006, my answer would be that choice wholly depends on the memory. The song may not even be about dying, but it may recall some memory with friends and families. Another guess would be that the song has to be a description of the deceased.
On the same note, I’ve come to think about the saddest song I’ve ever heard, and I’m collecting data from people that I know. Those songs might not make it to my funeral, but I’m interested to see what are people’s criteria for sad songs, as well as their choices for the saddest song ever. Eventually I plan to make an audiobook with the responses.
The funeral will take place when the planning phase is done. At this stage I plan to feature a few objects in the intervention, including photographs and paintings of myself, a small monument, and costumes. The main event will be the reading of eulogies by the people in attendance. The entire process is highly collaborative to the point that I’m not sure whether it’s my work or not anymore. But the work is ABOUT me, and for that’s a different challenge than having the work done BY me.
Please send me some writings, whether it’s an eulogy/elegy or your saddest song you’ve ever heard. There are no deadlines, but the sooner the better. I’m open for discussion and suggestion as well. And if you think you don’t know me well enough, we should start hanging out more!
ahcri@yahoo.com
posted by Ahcri at 3:27 p.m.
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