Thursday, April 23, 2009

How to Find Free Music - Oldies But Goodies

Are you looking to find some free music oldies but goodies without joining a club or signing a membership? Are you frustrated with having to buy CD sets in order to get your favorite song? Well don't worry because there are many places where you can still get your favorite songs for free!
Whether you enjoy the rock bands of the 70's and 80's, groups from the 60's like the Beatles, Rolling Stones or even the Monkees, you are sure to find what you want! Maybe you are searching for Big Band music like Glenn Miller or Tommy Dorsey, or really enjoy the music of the 50's. No problem, you can find whatever you like without having to jump through hoops or pay for music sets when you only want a song or two!
Here are some great places to find free music oldies but goodies:
* Project Playlist
If you are looking for a place to get great rock music, you will find everything from Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash to punk rock, heavy metal or great rock ballads of the 70's and 80's from groups like KISS, AC/DC and Whitesnake as well as many more. Project playlist carries many other genres of music as well.
* Pandora Radio
Design your own radio station! Would you like to create a free list of only the songs that you enjoy? You can find an extensive selection of songs in their library and choose what you want. Then sit back and relax as you here your songs being played exclusively on your new radio station.
*Jango
Covering music genres like country, jazz, rock, pop, r&b and even electronica as well as others, Jango will let you create your own playlist of great music. If you just want to turn on a station and listen , you can choose from their wide selection of radio stations.
*GotRadio
If you enjoy big band music or are stuck in the fifties, check out GotRadio. They specialize in free music oldies but goodies.
There are many ways to get your favorite songs for free. No matter what style of music you enjoy, you don't have to be subject to club prices or membership fees to get it. Here are some more ideas for you to consider.
*Go to your favorite genres website. You will find lists of your favorite artists and songs that you can choose from.
*Online companies will often give away free downloads as a reward for you trying their products.
*Social Networks
Many social networking sites are now giving you the ability to create your own playlists within your social site.
No matter what style of music you like, today you have plenty of opportunities to find free music oldies but goodies! Give it a try and I'm sure you will be satisfied.

Learn to Play Acoustic Guitar - How You Can Teach Yourself to Play Guitar

So, you want to learn to play acoustic guitar? Whatever the reason is you can teach yourself to play guitar. Many popular guitarists today have had a far amount of success as self-taught learners. You too can be in that category. However, it can be hard to know where to start learning.
Here are a couple places you should start.
Find an acoustic guitar! Many assume that in order to learn to play acoustic guitar you need to shell out a ton of money. In fact, you don't have too, and it's probably best if you don't blow all your money. Try seeing if you could borrow a friend's or coworker's guitar to learn on. It's surprising to find how many own one but never play it!
Start to learn to play acoustic guitar with the internet. The internet has a lot of resources that can get you started. When you first start off, you will need to learn some basic chords like: A, E, D, C, G, Em, Am, Dm. Search for chord diagrams for the fingerings. Once you learn some basic chords, search for chords of your favorite songs. YouTube is also a great resource for lessons.
Learn to play acoustic guitar with online lessons. The problem with just searching the internet for how-to's on playing the guitar is that this information can be very disorganized. It can be hard to find lessons and resources that are relevant to your level. It's easy to get lost in all of this information and end up discouraged. The best way to teach yourself to play guitar is through online guitar lessons. These give you everything you need to take you from a complete beginner to a very proficient player.

3 Ways to Spice Up Beginner Chords

Your first steps on guitar usually involve strumming simple open chord arrangements of songs. This can be quite satisfying, but you'll soon want to do better. Here are three picking techniques that offer you a step by step route to build your simple chords, spice up your accompaniments, and develop some finger agility.
The three techniques shown here all involve playing with the bass notes of the chords. In order of increasing technical difficulty you will learn about:
1. Alternating bass
2. Bass hammers
3. Bass runs
Alternating Bass
Use alternating bass with a simple bass-strum pattern to give your songs a jaunty swing. You play a bass note on the first and third beat and strum the chord on beats two and four.
There are two kinds of bass strum that are easy to play with open guitar chords.
On A, D or E chords you can easily alternate between the root of the chord and its fifth. The fifth note is found on the string below the root, two frets up, or on the open string above the root (not available for the E chord).
For example, on an A major chord you pick the root (A) on the open fifth string on beat one, and the fifth (E) on either the fourth string second fret or the open sixth string on beat three.
On C and G chords it's a little harder to play the fifth. You can play it on the C chord by changing your fingering to hold down the third fret of the sixth string and play the fifth (G) note there. On the G chord you can play the fifth on the open D string. This takes a little practice to accurately skip over the fifth string in between.
As an easier alternative on G and C is to play the third of the chord instead. This note is found one string and one fret down from the root; second fret of the fourth string on C major, second fret fifth string on G.
Bass Hammers
Once you've got the hang of alternating bass you can extend it to play bass hammers. You use the same fretted notes as for alternating bass, but hammer a finger onto them instead of playing them straight. Hammer onto either the fifth (A, D, or E chords) or the third (C and G).
Use the finger that normally frets these notes and try to move only that finger, lifting it off the bass note and hammering onto it while holding the other notes of the chord. It takes a little practice to move only the desired finger.
Practice this technique with different timing. You can hammer down very quickly, sounding only a brief "ghost" note on the open string, or let it sound longer and hammer down at the last instant before strumming the chord.
Bass Runs
A little more complicated, the bass run offers you more possibilities to create interesting sounding accompaniments. The bass run is a series of notes on the bass strings leading up to a chord change. You can use notes from either the major scale of the key the song is in, or use a chromatic scale moving one fret at a time.
Your bass run should finish on a note that leads to the new chord. Here are three common leading notes you can use: walk up to the seventh of the new chord, walk down to its second, or walk up or down to its fifth.
You can use quarter notes, eighths, triplets, or a mixture to create interesting rhythm patterns for your bass runs. Experiment with different timings to get a feel for their effect and choose your favourites.
Now you know three ways to get more out of your beginner guitar chords and give simple open chord song arrangements some added sparkle. Let's review them here as a reminder.
1. Alternating bass - add some swing to your chord accompaniments.
2. Bass hammers - adding more emphasis to bass notes.
3. Bass runs - to emphasise chord movement.
If you want to improve your open chord playing these techniques can help you. Pick a three chord song you know and try out these techniques to make it better.

How to Find Song Lyrics

Has this ever happened to you: you're listening to a great song on the radio but the lyrics are going by so fast that you can't make all of them out? The DJ (if they're even speaking) doesn't usually offer much other than the song title and artist if you're lucky. Don't you wish sometimes you knew all the words to that song that you just can't get out of your head?
If this is a familiar experience to you, I'm here to tell you that you have options. And I'm not talking about just making up words to replace those you can't distinguish. You don't even need to invest in a karaoke system and cds. Your lyrics quest can begin and end with a few mouse clicks and keyboard strokes.
The internet has numerous websites dedicated to song lyrics of all types. Most of these websites require no financial or signup commitment, so you can browse lyrics to your heart's content. Entering the text "song lyrics" into your favorite search engine will get the ball rolling for you.
You can also reverse this technique to find the title of a song if you know some of the lyrics. This can be less effective, but I've been able to find several song titles by simply entering in a line of the lyrics into a search engine. You may want to include the lyric in quotes if you try this approach.
If your search is for a real specialized genre of music and the traditional search method for lyrics doesn't bring anything back, I suggest trying one of the several discussion forums like Yahoo Answers. Keep in mind, the replies you get from sites like these can be from anyone, so there is no guarantee on the accuracy of the answers you get.

Play Popular Piano Songs

If you have ever been to a wedding or another social gathering where the piano was being played, and you wished that you could play it, then you may want to learn how to play piano. Popular songs like the wedding march can get you a lot of work if you know how to play it well. Learning any new skill can benefit and enrich your life. Whether you want to play professionally as a hobby, learning to play piano can be very relaxing once you learn to play it well.
If you want to learn how to play the piano or keyboard, the first thing you need to do is find some good lessons. Instrumentmaster.com includes lessons for almost any instrument imaginable. By using this site, you can save a lot of money on a professional trainer or classes. Instead, you can simply watch the videos and learn at your own pace. If you are on a budget and cannot afford a personal tutor, online lessons may be the ideal option for you.
When learning to play piano, popular songs will come naturally to you as you progress through the learning process. Soon you will be able to play all of your favorites to perfection. An entire world of music is out there just waiting for you to play it. With a piano, you can learn all of the classics or you can learn some of the newer songs. If you want to, you can even create your own music and your own songs.
Playing an instrument is great for anybody. It helps to keep the mind sharp and you can enjoy music any time you want to. The piano is a great instrument and you can learn to play a lot of different styles of music on it.
Sam Landeck isn't Michael Buble but he could give the crooner a run for his money... on the piano, that is! Sam teaches piano and runs popular website LearnTheKeyboardOnline.Com as an online resource for those looking for info on piano popular songs and the like. Check out his site now!

Christian Music Lyrics

The Internet is the greatest resource for Christian music lyrics. Christian music lovers often search the Internet to find their favorite Christian music lyrics. All you need to do is search by artist, title or album, and the site will offer you the lyrics of the song. The sites offering Christian music lyrics usually have a huge database. For Christian music fans, those sites are the ultimate destination for Christian music lyrics. These Christian music sites are equipped to fulfill all your lyric needs.
Among thousands of Christian music lyrics, you will definitely find your favorite one. Along with offering Christian music lyrics, they also offer the latest news on Christian music. They talk about the latest releases. Those who want to find their favorite Christian songs can search various sites. They may end up learning new Christian songs. The sites always add new songs and lyrics to their databases. You should know the lyrics of the songs so that you don’t lose track of the tune. You need to learn the lyrics of a special hymn to avoid any embarrassing situation at church. You will feel more confident if you know the lyrics.
Renowned musicians have written Christian music lyrics. So, adequate knowledge of Christian music lyrics will definitely help people enjoy the music. Christian music lyrics are quite easy to learn. You can check out leading Christian music sites to get the lyrics and start practicing. New Christian music lyrics are always coming up. If you want to play a more active role in church, start learning Christian music lyrics now!
Christian Music provides detailed information on Christian Music, Christian Music Lyrics, Download Christian Music, Christian Sheet Music and more. Christian Music is affiliated with Southern Gospel Music.

How to Read Piano Notes - Reading Piano Notes

Learning how to read piano notes involves several different concepts and requires much practice. Reading piano sheet music entails understanding the time and key signature, both bass and treble clefs, and being able to read the actual notes. In this article, I will teach you a quick and easy memorization trick to read piano notes.
There are two clefs in piano sheet music. The notes in the lines and spaces read differently for each clef. These notes start at A, continue down the alphabet to G, and then repeat. For example, if you start on C, the next white key would be D, followed by E. Since this pattern repeats, A will come after G. Reading the piano notes from actually sheet music is a little trickier. The easiest way to go about this is to create acronyms as a memorization tactic.
The treble clef is usually played with the right hand. The lines on the sheet music represent the notes of E-G-B-D-F. I have always remembered this with the acronym Every Good Boy Does Fine. The spaces on the treble clef represent F-A-C-E. I doubt anyone has used anything other than "FACE" to memorize this one.
The bass clef is played with the left hand. This clef also contains some fun-filled acronyms to remember the piano notes. The lines stand for G-B-D-F-A. An easy saying for this is "Great Big Dogs Fight Animals." The spaces of the bass clef are A-C-E-G, or as I like to say, "All Cows Eat Grass."
If you do not want to use these acronyms, you can create your own that you will remember best. Don't underestimate this tactic; it is actually an immense help when trying to learn how to read piano notes. With some practice and experience, you will eventually be able to read music from the page without having to think back to the memorization trick.

How to Learn to Play the Guitar - 5 Basic Steps to Learning the Guitar

You are wondering how to learn to play the guitar; you can easily pick up this instrument with some basic steps. Please understand that to become an expert will take time but with the following steps and a decent online course you will soon be enjoying your favourite tunes.
1. You can't Buy Skill - Don't get caught up in having the best or most expensive guitar. No matter how much you spend you will still need to practice to become proficient. A more expensive amp for example will not improve your sound if you don't know how to play to begin with.
2. Check your Action: Ensure the distance between the fingerboard and the underside of the string is appropriate for your fingers. Any reputable guitar shop will assist in this.
3. K.I.S.S - Keep It Simple Silly. Start with basic chords. Save the more complex chords for later. If you try and get too complicated to fast you will get frustrated and quit. There are many great songs that are comprised of simple chords.
4. Rhythm is Key: To have a consistent flow you need to keep the beat in the beginning, use a metronome or even your foot to keep pace.
5. Simple Songs - To keep from getting frustrated and to build your confidence limit yourself to 2 chord songs, as you become more proficient then you can work your way up to more difficult pieces.
By utilizing these 5 basic steps you will discover how to learn to play the guitar quickly and with far less frustration than without. The guitar is a fun to play and with a little patience you will master this melodic instrument in no time.

History of Rap Music

It may seem to be a daunting task to trace back the history of rap music and history of bossa nova, though you can see one similarity-informal music associated with highly informal dance style. As far as origin of rap music is concerned most people agree that it is Afro-American and Latino Street culture of New York City. Not only this city but the surrounding areas as well that have influence of African people and their culture.
If we see it carefully, then we will definitely notice that rap music rhyming poetry combined with heavy drum beats and music usually sung at higher pitches. Most of the time rap music is associated with chorus sung by another performer in their original traditional pop, rhythm and blues. Though, rap music was primarily an American music style with African influence over music and lyrics, but recently it has been spread evenly to almost entire world.
There is hardly any country or nation, where rap music can not be seen in some form or other. Perhaps this is one of the most sought after music styles amongst the youngsters. However, when it comes to trace back the history then it is believed that hip hop and rap music started in the early 70s and during the late 70s and early 80s it gained much popularity not in America but throughout the world.
The history of rap music and hip hop music is full of controversies and bans, as the lyrics revolve around sex, drugs and crime; even the most famous pop stars and hip hop musicians and singers were found to be associated with several controversies in their life. For that reason, no matter how popular this music style was or still is, but it has always had a bad reputation in the eyes of mainstream society and its people around the world. Sometimes it gang culture is also criticized along with it dirty lyrics. Unfortunately or coincidentally one of the members of the Last Poet was sentenced to prison and he wasn't able to perform for their second album later within a year.

Learn How to Play a Guitar - Three Methods of Learning to Play the Guitar

You have decided to learn how to play a guitar...excellent choice...now what?
The first thing to consider is how you are going to learn. There are three highly popular methods, not each is equal to the other. You could teach yourself, hire an instructor, or learn online. Read below and I will review each of these options for you.
The least expensive option is teach yourself, this is where the benefits end. This can be a very long task, it will take at the very minimum of a year to be comfortable playing the guitar and in that time you will most likely tech yourself bad habits that will hamper your continued growth.
Many have succeeded in teaching themselves to play guitar, most will tell you they wish they had taken a different more efficient route.
The most common method and most expensive method is to hire a private instructor. While being a very effective way to learn guitar it will be costly. On average, private instructors charge $30.00 per half hour and you are going to need 6 months of instruction before you can consider yourself a decent player.
Let's do the math: 6 months is 24 weeks @ $30.00 a lesson and 1 lesson per week = $720.00.....OUCH
The third option is to learn online. This method overcomes both major flaws in the previous 2 methods. Most online course are a one time very affordable fee for unlimited access to the course material. The fees for these programs are usually less than the cost of 2 months of private lessons. As these lessons are recorded with professionals you will not learn the bad habits that come with teaching yourself.
As you can see, to learn how to play a guitar can happen in numerous ways. You must decide which option is going to work best for yourself. I personally prefer the online lessons as they allow me to work at my own pace and still afford to purchase the Gibson I saw in the window the other week.
If you really want to Learn How to Play a Guitar or just want to find more information on guitar playing in general, visit My Site.

Make Money with Your Music - the Top 5 Ways

Songwriters dream of making their living by writing, and sometimes performing, their songs. But until that day comes they've got to make a living somehow! Sound familiar?
With a little imagination, you can probably find a way to convert your love for music and songwriting into a means of making money. To help you get started, here is a list of ideas worth looking into:
1. Sell your tapes and/or CD's online.
It is really remarkably easy (and pretty darn inexpensive) to set up your own web site and begin selling your tapes, CD's, and whatever else you have to offer. And, although it's beyond the scope of this article to tell you in detail how to do this, as a minimum you will need: a website; a web host; a means of collecting money (you can get a merchant account or use a service such as PayPal); and, of course, visitors to your website.
2. Write and sell an eBook about your music expertise.
An eBook, or electronic book, is extremely popular these days on the Internet. The benefits to you include ease of production and very low delivery cost. Customers benefit from the instant gratification of downloading the book immediately after purchasing it.
Don't forget, information is the hot product for today, especially on the Internet. With a little effort, you can surely come up with special information that others would be willing to pay for.
3. Organize contests.
Why not organize a songwriting contest for all the songwriters in your area? Or, better yet, use the Internet and start one on a national basis! Let's say you collected 250 entries at $10 a pop... that's $2,500. Even if you offered up $500 in prizes, you still walk away with $2,000! You might also get local songwriting clubs, music stores, etc., to help with the advertising and even contribute to the prize offerings.
4. Publish an online newsletter.
Publishing your own newsletter, or "ezine", can be an excellent way to earn some extra money. And, although some folks have succeeded at offering a fee-based newsletter, it's much easier to publish a free one.
Three of the most common ways to make money with your free newsletter are: sell advertising space, promote affiliate programs, and advertise the sale of your own products, such as your tapes and CD's.
5. Start your own jingle business.
There is alot of money to be made in writing jingles. And, as a songwriter, you probably already have all the equipment you will need to get started. It's also good training because it helps you learn to "write on demand".
Brian Cook is a freelance writer whose articles on music and songwriting have appeared on many websites. You can find more of these at http://www.songwritersguide.comv

Music Teaching Resources Advance Strategies More Effectively

Being a music teacher can be a challenging task. It involves a dose of time and effort to be spent on research, enhancement and upgrade in terms of your teaching strategies and methods. Since teaching and learning are both dynamic in nature, you as an educator must know how to advance your music teaching resources and techniques so as to become efficient and effective at all times.
In this article, you would be informed and updated with the latest resources and strategies on music teaching - suitable for all students from different walks of life. This also includes their corresponding benefits, advantages and corresponding approaches. Here they are:
Brainstorming among Students This is a process that is designed for generating multiple ideas/options in which judgment is suspended until a maximum number of ideas have been made. Following generation of ideas, options are typically analyzed; the best solution is identified; and, a plan of action is developed.
Its advantages include: • the active involvement of learners in higher levels of thinking; • the promotion of peer learning and critical thinking; and, • the creation of synergy, teamwork and cooperation.
To meet their sets of objectives, music teachers must use methods that would stimulate thinking, creativity, inquiry, and consensus. They should also provide clear instructions on how the process exactly works - ensuring that all students adhere to the rules.
Computer Simulation In this context, such specific and practical examination, procedural training and data interpretation skills in realistic situations through the use of highly realistic computerized dummies and multimedia are utilized and applied accordingly to further teach particular music lessons.
Advantages of computer simulation are the following:
• Students can portray realistic situations, provide immediate feedback and inquiry, and most of all, can make use of such learning and acquisition in real life experiences. • This also allows the learners to stay focused on such topic - eliminating irrelevant and unnecessary aspects.
Music educators must choose learning objectives that involve hands-on experience that can allow the students to have direct control and access to music technology. However, the faculty must be trained and equipped with such simulation skills so as to instruct the learners correspondingly and facilitate experiences and feedbacks accordingly.
Interactive Demonstrations and Games These strategies pave way to activities where learners can observe how they are being done and administered in preparation to practical application. These may involve competitions, participations, drills and feedbacks into the learning experience as a motivating factor and a ground for application of principles.
It is really beneficial to both music educators and students to integrate such demo and games in the learning process. These help boost their self-confidence and broaden their attention span - targeting questions and answers. Such techniques also actively involve learners, regenerate motivation, provide challenges and express oneself while creating a fun learning environment.
These may be just some of the many effective music teachers' resources and teaching strategies that are readily available online to help all music educators around the globe spread this message: Learning music is a rewarding and fun experience that can change and touch lives.
Be informed and get hooked with the most relevant and effective music teaching resources, visit this music teaching site now.
Earl Marsden started developing a passion for music at the early age of twelve. He first learned to play the guitar at thirteen, and from there he pursued the study other instruments including the violin, piano and flute. Currently, he devotes some of his spare time to writing articles about music teaching while managing his own music studio.

Online Doctorate in Music Education

As a professional music educator you strive to provide all your students with the best practical and theoretical program you can. Continuing your own education in music history and musicology will ensure you can do just that. You can continue to meet your professional obligations by receiving a doctorate online from any one of the many accredited universities that offer a doctorate of musical arts in music education.
As an online student you have the ability to decide where and when your best study times are. You can work towards your doctorate online confident that you will have at your disposal a faculty of professionals who are there to guide you every step of the way. Gain valuable knowledge and share your personal experiences with fellow online students in virtual classroom settings. Take advantage of a diverse faculty of experienced educators from around the world who are dedicated to the art and history of music.
If you are ready to take your professional and academic career to the next level then a doctorate online program of study is your first step in achieving those goals. You can use your doctorate as a portal to collaborating with other research specialists who share the same love and interest in the art of music education as you do. Rather than continuing to teach your students according to guidelines and methods established by others be part of an elite group of professionals who set the standards of how music education is delivered. Be recognized as an educator who is committed to their field of study that only a doctorate can provide.
Open the doors to new and exciting job opportunities in education and research by enrolling in a doctorate online course of study. The investment you make now in choosing one of the many accredited online universities that offers a doctorate of musical arts in music education will be one that will continue to pay personal and professional dividends throughout your life. It will certainly be one of the best investments you will ever make.
There is no higher academic achievement than a doctorate. Gain the respect and acknowledgment of music educators globally by being asked to speak at world symposiums or by contributing articles to leading music magazines. Use the knowledge and skills you acquire to share your love of music with future generations. Through furthering your research skills you will make a difference in how music education is delivered. Your online doctorate is a symbol that shows the world your commitment and passion within the field of music education. Join the global community of recognized scholar-practitioners and take your career to the next level.
Take a few minutes right now to investigate top accredited universities that offer doctorate online degrees and secure your future in a field that you have already proven your commitment to. Continue meeting your professional and personal obligations while you work towards achieving your academic goals. Online universities understand the challenges and pressures faced by the adult working student and have a faculty that is committed to helping you achieve your goals.v

Eco-Music - Connections Between Music and Nature

"Music and Nature" was a one-hour radio program written by Philip Blackburn and produced by Minnesota Public Radio in 2005 that explored the connections between music and nature. In addition to a recording of the original program, the companion website offers interviews with artists, composers, scientists and researchers; streaming recordings of "environmentally friendly music"; a variety of links and resources; and a sampling of special features such as:
Name That Tune -- Try to identify which item in nature matches the sound
Shrouds of Air -- A survey wind music recorded out in the field
Music for Pets -- Compositions based on what dogs want to hear
Environmental Scores -- Conceptual and performable eco-scores
Thai Elephant Orchestra -- Musical elephants of Northern Thailand
Philip Blackburn composes, builds sound-sculptures, performs, and writes about things like Harry Partch, Vietnamese music, and the use of sound in public art. He is building a sound park, Bitter Jackass, in the foothills of the Maya Mountains in Belize. His aim is to fashion a place for the arts of listening and growing within a living art project. Living areas will be designed like gigantic musical instruments, with tunnels, reflective surfaces, parabolic walls and domes, acoustic focal points, anechoic chamber, echo spots -- a grand sonic architecture, expanding on the Ancient Maya art of acoustically-designed pyramids, staircases, and ball courts. The forest will have walking trails that lead to sculpture sites, plantings that become living art (such as a wind-powered organ made of living bamboo), fruit trees, edible and medicinal plants, viewing/listening areas, and other things.
Why call it Bitter Jackass? "Jackass Bitters is a common herb for curing malaria, diabetes, infections, intestinal parasites, with general antiviral and antibacterial properties," writes Blackburn. "The alternative is Xochipili, the Ancient Maya god of music, dance, plants and sex; but can you remember it?"

Eco-Music - Connections Between Music and Nature

"Music and Nature" was a one-hour radio program written by Philip Blackburn and produced by Minnesota Public Radio in 2005 that explored the connections between music and nature. In addition to a recording of the original program, the companion website offers interviews with artists, composers, scientists and researchers; streaming recordings of "environmentally friendly music"; a variety of links and resources; and a sampling of special features such as:
Name That Tune -- Try to identify which item in nature matches the sound
Shrouds of Air -- A survey wind music recorded out in the field
Music for Pets -- Compositions based on what dogs want to hear
Environmental Scores -- Conceptual and performable eco-scores
Thai Elephant Orchestra -- Musical elephants of Northern Thailand
Philip Blackburn composes, builds sound-sculptures, performs, and writes about things like Harry Partch, Vietnamese music, and the use of sound in public art. He is building a sound park, Bitter Jackass, in the foothills of the Maya Mountains in Belize. His aim is to fashion a place for the arts of listening and growing within a living art project. Living areas will be designed like gigantic musical instruments, with tunnels, reflective surfaces, parabolic walls and domes, acoustic focal points, anechoic chamber, echo spots -- a grand sonic architecture, expanding on the Ancient Maya art of acoustically-designed pyramids, staircases, and ball courts. The forest will have walking trails that lead to sculpture sites, plantings that become living art (such as a wind-powered organ made of living bamboo), fruit trees, edible and medicinal plants, viewing/listening areas, and other things.
Why call it Bitter Jackass? "Jackass Bitters is a common herb for curing malaria, diabetes, infections, intestinal parasites, with general antiviral and antibacterial properties," writes Blackburn. "The alternative is Xochipili, the Ancient Maya god of music, dance, plants and sex; but can you remember it?"

Music Therapy and Dementia

Dementia, characterized by severe impairment of the person's intellectual capacity, emotional disturbance and personality changes, is caused by a number of different reasons such as the loss of neurons in the brain due to head injury, metabolic disorders, or even due to a tumor in the brain.
The human brain has 2 hemispheres -- the left hemisphere and the right hemisphere. A large section of the person's brain is usually damaged in a patient suffering from dementia. While the language skills of a person are exclusively controlled by the left hemisphere of the brain, music is perceived by many different parts of the brain rather than just one particular part of the brain since the different elements of music such as rhythm, pitch, and melody are all processed differently by distinct parts of the human brain. Therefore, it is capable of reaching the remaining healthy sections of the patient's brain.
Music is received and processed by different brain stem cells and therefore, even severely demented people can respond to music. Music can be perceived and hence, used as a means of communication for people suffering from dementia, whose skills of comprehending or learning languages is severely impaired. When all other modes of communication fail to make any impact, music, with its non-verbal stimulant qualities, tends to penetrate the patient's mind and makes possible some amount of social, emotional or cognitive connection. Symptoms such as agitation and confusion among those people suffering from dementia can also be soothed out by the relaxing and soothing effects of music.
The degree of familiarity, the degree of liking of the patient for that particular music and the memories associated with the music or the significance that the music holds for the individual are certain factors which define the extent of positive impact or beneficial effects of the music therapy. While a familiar music can elicit positive responses such as tapping of fingers and feet to the tune, humming, rhythmic movement of body organs with the music, or a change of expression on the face, unfamiliar music fails to register itself in the brain in the first place. Therefore, we cannot find positive effects in the patient when unfamiliar music is played during the music therapy sessions. Similarly, familiar setting can help the patient relate more to the place, and makes him feel more reassured and comforted.
The music therapist must be very careful about the pitch and the volume of the music used for therapy because even these factors have a great impact on the patient. While a high pitch and high volume can cause anxiety and pressure to build up, a low pitch makes them feel more relaxed.

Subsidize Your Independent Music Career - How to Feed Your Career, Yourself, and Lose the Day Job

Musicians, Independent Artists ..... Please tell the truth; is your day job seriously getting in the way of your independent music career? Is having to get up early after a late show to travel into a hum-drum job that you could care less about really starting to annoy you? All because you must, as everyone else, pay your bills, and subsidize your music marketing efforts.
Being extremely annoying in one thing but think about the valuable time you're taking away from your music career advancement and music marketing & music promotion efforts. Think of all that you could be doing for your music career during the time you are working for the man. Things like marketing your MySpace site, putting the logistics together for a good tour, getting more shows, writing and sending out press to the music media, working on CD reviews, writing and arranging new songs, or just rehearsing and working on your live performance as much as possible. Not to mention the shows that you may have to turn down in order to work your regular job.
But you have no choice, you have to work the regular job because you're not rich and you have to pay your bills and help support your music career as well ... Right? Well in today's world of opportunities, there may be a way to minimize the time you spend on traveling to a job, working 4-8 hours a day, all to make money to pay bills.
What if I told you that there are quite a few ways that you could work from your own home for a few hours a week, and make the money you need for bills, subsidize your music career, and possibly then some. And you could utilize all that extra time marketing and promoting your career and your creative flavor? Well there is a way and it's not as difficult as you might think.
There are many legitimate ways that you can set up your own home business on the Internet and make the money you need. Better yet, your own home Internet business can be related to the music industry. Something you already know a lot about. I'm not talking about the thousands of "work at home" scams, or network-pyramid marketing, or any of that stuff. I'm talking about legitimate methods that with a little set-up time can put you on auto-pilot to making the money you need to subsidize your music career.
Once set-up, it's your very own business and you could maybe spend a few hours a week on it and rest of the time is yours to spend on your music career. Many independent artists have found that doing this relieves a tremendous amount of anxiety and frustration from their life, and has given them the freedom to work on their first love, and what is the most important thing to them in life ... Their Music Career Advancement.
There are numerous opportunities out there for people to work for themselves at home on the Internet. I'm talking about a real business of your own and not getting involved in any of the scam related business opportunities. It could be as simple as setting up a small music related website and learning how to drive traffic to it. You could be utilizing your band websites for this purpose by simply adding a few links to it. Although nothing in the way of creating an income generating is easy, it can be done. I advise my musicians and clients how to do this all the time and many artists have found that they can at least generate enough income to lose the day job and pursue their music career with peace of mind.

Ken Cavalier is a music business consultant, artist manager, speaker, and author. He is widely considered an expert in his field and his focus is the advancement of his musician's and artist's careers. Ken is also the founder of Allure Media Entertainment, an artist management & consulting firm in Philadelphia, PA. As a voting member of The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (The Grammy Association) and other distinguished music industry organizations, Ken has authored many informative guides on music promotion and music marketing. His widely popular Music Business Tip Sheet "The Unstoppable Indie" is published and distributed monthly to thousands of independent artists and bands. Ken is available for independent artist consultations on an hourly basis or on a short term management-consulting basis and he also provides music publicity copywriting services such as artist biographies, press releases, feature articles, music marketing plans, and other music industry related press for independent musicians.

How Did Music Evolve?

Is music just "auditory cheesecake" or can it provide deep insights into the workings of the brain and the evolution of language? From the New Zealand haka to raves and dancing birds, The Guardian's James Randerson investigates why music evolved, how it is linked to language, how it is understood by the brain and how it can be used to treat patients.
Scientists have learned that we are not the only species that can dance to a beat. Birds that engage in mimicry can be entrained to bob their heads in time with a beat, even as the beat changes. Since this musical awareness does not seem to occur spontaneously in the wild, scientists theorize that, in humans, it emerged through natural selection as a byproduct of another skill such as vocal imitation. In other words, perhaps music originated as a series of taking one capacity and using it for another purpose it wasn't originally designed for.
Whatever way it originated, musical grammar is processed in the same part of the brain as linguistic grammar. Expectation of what comes next in a musical sequence or in a sentence is a large part of what establishes meaning. Musicians play with our sense of expectation, sometimes satisfying it and sometimes surprising us, which engages our emotions. Across cultures, music is used in a way that promotes and sustains sociality, perhaps suggesting why it evolved. We use music to reinforce our sense of self and to help establish relationships within a group.
My own belief, which is the theme of my collection of stories on the Song of Fire website, is that music connects us with something essential that defines the universe. Musical patterns, rhythms and sequences infuse everything around us. In a fundamental way, we are music.