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August 24, 2010

The British Invasion

Filed under: Business — Tags: , — jhozzzzzzz @ 5:59 pm

The Kasabian concert at the Kool Haus seemed like a concert somewhere in England (even though I haven’t been there). This band out of Leicester pumped out amazing electronic, rock beats with an amazing light show. I’ve heard them on the radio with their hit "Club Foot" and have noticed them gaining more and more interest of us fellow Canadians.

After mingling in the crowd during the opening bands and at intermission I met Jeremy, straight from London, England who arrived to Toronto the night before for business. Finding out about the concert the day of, he was shocked that Kasabian was playing a venue like the Kool Haus. "Kasabian is one of the top bands in the UK. They’re brilliant!" he said over and over.

"Brilliant" and "fantastic" were the popular words of the evening as I numerously heard not only Jeremy say, but also many others after almost every track ended.

Tom Meighan, the lead singer and the three other band mates all had the British shag and a killer sound to go with them. There is nothing better than hearing a band in concert and being exposed to the songs that you don’t hear on the radio especially when you know that they are massive somewhere else in the world.

For those of you who are wondering the same as I was about ‘what the heck does Kasabian mean?’ they named themselves after Linda Kasabian, who was Charles Manson’s getaway driver. That is about how American these boys get, everything else other than their name seemed strictly Brit.

I think that we will be hearing more of Kasabian in the future and who knows maybe their huge fame in England it may make it here to Canada, just like it has for many UK bands.

Farris Green
farris@sugarcainentertainment.com

August 20, 2010

How I Learned How To Play The Guitar After Giving Up In Disgust

Filed under: Business — Tags: , — x0xpinkyx0x @ 11:56 pm

I was 17 at the time (the Beatles era), and it was considered cool to play the guitar. I had a little training in music in elementary school where I had learned how to play the trumpet. I remember that the only reason I started the trumpet was because my daddy had run across an old beat up horn that a woman was selling for $10.

So, in my junior year of high school I set about to teach myself how to play a few chords so I could strum along with “Love, Love Me Do” and “I Want To Hold Your Hand”. However, it never occurred to me that learning how to play the guitar might just be a little different than learning the trumpet.

Actually, what happened was that I gave up after about 2 weeks and threw the old guitar that my daddy had given me in the corner and in frustration declared “I don’t see how anyone can play a guitar”.

It’s funny how I remember thinking those very words. I didn’t know it then but my difficulty with learning how to play was because my guitar strings were about a half inch off the fret board and it was extremely difficult to mash the strings down. After about 1 week I was developing thick calluses on the tips of my fingers on my left hand.

My desire to play eventually overcame my initial frustration and I did go on to conquer the instrument to become quite proficient. Eventually I ended up attending the Berklee College of Music studying guitar.

If you have a desire to play the guitar my advice is to not give up, Eventually you’ll succeed if you don’t quit.

Steve McArthur

Suggested Guitar Instruction

August 14, 2010

Common Thoughts That Kill Inspiration

Filed under: Business — Tags: , — geekadviser @ 5:58 pm

Do you sit down at the piano and feel anxiety or peace? Are you anxious to begin creating or does the thought of being at your instrument bring you a sense of well being? It all begins with what you’re telling yourself. If you think that what you are doing is not good enough, it’s sure to kill off that quiet little motor of inspiration.

The thought of not good enough can put you into a deep freeze. It can stifle creativity and keep you stuck in doubt – a very nasty place to be in. Let’s examine this thought of not good enough.

The first question that comes to mind is ‘not good enough for whom?’ Who are you comparing yourself to? If you hold yourself up to someone think about why that is. For example, I admire the playing of George Winston, but I’m not him and don’t expect to be. His right hand technique is amazing and as much as I want to be able to play that succinctly, I just can’t do it.

I accept that and really don’t care so much about it. What’s important to me is to be able to connect with my own creative source. This is the thought that keeps me grounded. If I begin to compare myself to another than I’m hopelessly lost and not focusing on what is truly important.

Another thought that kills inspiration is ‘I’m not ready.’ When will you be ready? Ten years from now? Next week? The fact is you don’t need years of technical expertise to begin creating. If you wait another week or month or year to start, you will never begin and the world will miss out on your own unique voice. You are ready the moment you sit down to play. It all depends on what your goals are.

If your goal is to create a piece of music to perform for others, it will be ready after a certain amount of time. You, however, must be ready now. This means sitting down at the piano and being present in the moment. It all adds up bit by bit.

And last but not least is the thought that you don’t know enough. Here’s some news. You will never know everything and you will always be learning more. It never ends. I don’t know everything there is to know about theory, chords, and harmony. Nobody does. But it doesn’t stop me from experiencing the joy that comes from creating. This is your birthright and every creator’s birthright.

Don’t let the idea that you don’t know enough stop you from your music. Even if you just learn what is in the free piano course you know enough to begin composing, improvising and creating. Fortunately, in the new age style, you don’t need to know sophisticated chord voicing or how to read music. You can jump right in and taste how sweet the act of creation is right away.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music’s online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

August 13, 2010

New Age Piano Tricks

Filed under: Business — Tags: , — stevepmd @ 11:58 pm

One of the things that makes New Age piano so enjoyable is that it’s easy to get started.

One of the “tricks” of the trade is to play an ostinato pattern in the left-hand while the right improvises a melody. Just listen to George Winston’s lovely piece Colors/Dance to hear an excellent example of this technique.

He uses just two chords in the beginning. But just look what he does with them! He maintains interest for a good couple of minutes before any contrast is introduced. Remarkable! And not as easy to do as many people think!

The artistry in this is how he maintains interest. The improvised right-hand melody carries the music through and propels listener attention forward. The left-hand however, is just playing the same ostinato pattern.

Complicated? Hardly. A beautiful piece of music? Absolutely. And all that’s required is the ability to trust your intuition. Trusting intuition is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING A TEACHER CAN HELP YOU LEARN! Why? Because when you trust yourself, you allow the music to come as it should – naturally and easily.

Technique can be taught by most anyone and can be learned readily. However, the ability to trust yourself is something that takes a bit of introspection. Most of us have an internal critic that tries to condemn any creative effort. We must learn to listen to what we say to ourselves and allow for the creative impulse.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music’s online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

August 12, 2010

How to Find Musical Ideas

Filed under: Business — Tags: , — sssknair @ 11:59 pm

The Russian Composer Igor Stravinsky once said: ” A good composer does not imitate; he steals.”

I think what he meant by this is that it’s OK to use a technique developed by another and make it your own. To imitate is to steal a technique or style and, somehow, not incorporate your own voice and energy into it.

We all get our ideas from somewhere, whether by accidentally listening to a piece of music and subconsciously storing it away, or by a conscious act where we say to ourselves: “This sounds great and I want to use it in my own music.”

Some people have the idea that everything created must be original and by that they mean that there must be no outside influences – but this is unrealistic. Haydn taught Beethoven. Italian composers influenced Bach and so on. All past and present composers on this planet have their influences whether they admit them or not.

Now, most of you know that I have two major influences: George Winston and John Herberman. You may or may not know of these people. The point is I admit that they shaped my own style. How? Because I liked listening to them. It’s that simple.

When I sit down to play, I inevitably gravitate towards one style or the other. I’m fine with that. It doesn’t mean that I’m unoriginal. It just means that I acknowledge reality and don’t try to come up with “something original.” What sounds new is 99.9 times out of 100, a modification of what came before.

The whole point I’m trying to make is this: Don’t try to be original. Instead, focus on what you like and love and your own voice will come through in the end. The music may be modified to an extreme (innovation) or just a little (homage). Just don’t imitate.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music’s online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

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