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Free Books Music Articles- Elements of Classical Music -Original by Zack Fair

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:59:13 +0000

For the most part it can be distinguished by the type of instruments in the musical piece. Most modern forms of music only have a couple of instrumentations used in its creation, whereas classical music uses several types of instrumentation. Musicians of this type of music are extremely skilled in their chosen instrument because of the detailed compositions. The instruments used in classical music generally come from five or so different groups of instruments, including string instruments, woodwinds, brass instruments and percussion instruments. The use of these types of instruments generally makes up a symphonic orchestra. When the human voice is added to this ensemble of instrument, and opera is formed.The forms of classical music are numerous as and tend to be very well defined. The concerto is a musical work in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra. This form of music was established in the Baroque period and has continued to be a strong musical force today. The symphony is a musical composition and is usually for an orchestra. The opera is an art form in which singer and musicians work together to produce a work that combines text and musical. Another form is known as dance music and its specific use is to facilitate or accompany dancing. This form can either be a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. The suite form of music is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral pieces of music that are performed in a concert setting rather than as accompaniments. An etude is a short musical composition designed to provide practice in a particular technical skill in the performance of a solo instrument. A symphonic poem, also known as a tone poem, is a piece of orchestral music in one movement in which some extra-musical program provides a narrative or illustrative event. Classical music requires a strong knowledge of music and as well as skill in playing an instrument. Knowledge of music must include the familiarity of development, modulation, variation, musical phrases that are of differing lengths, counterpoint, polyphony as well as sophisticated harmony. The skill involved in playing an instrument requires the musician to be adept at sight reading, have the ability to coordinate with other players in the ensemble as well as experience in playing a composers music. The popularity of classical music has been debated for years. It has been said that it is strictly for upper-class citizens, and at the same time others have said that it is popular with the working class. All in all, the popularity depends on what one considers to be classical music. Certain staples of classical music are often used commercially. Movies and television often use standard clichéd pieces of classical music to convey certain emotions to their audiences. In order for the commercial use of classical music to be effective, it has to rely on the fact that anyone who listens to the music will recognize it and be emotionally drawn to it. Classical music has many forms that make up the genre, even though no specific form is implied in its description. The knowledge and skill of classical musicians makes these musicians sought after for orchestras or symphonies. The commercial use of certain classical pieces helps to keep the classical music alive and available to all classes of people.

Free Books Music Articles- A Quick Overview to Types of mp3 Players -Original by Robin Kumar

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:59:11 +0000

MP3 players are pocket-sized electronic devices that have the ability to not only store, but play music and other sound files. Although MP3 players are sophisticated devices and there are of many types, they can be placed into one of three broad categories. These categories include hard drive based players, micro hard drive based players, and flash based players. Hard drive based MP3 players are typically larger and heavier than their competitors due to the fact that they contain a large capacity hard drive inside. This however, may be one of its only weaknesses. These MP3 players provide the largest capacity, ten gigabytes or more, out of the different types of MP3 players. Due to the fact that ten gigabytes equates to roughly 2,900 MP3 files, most consumers buy these players because they accommodate their entire MP3 collection. Micro hard drive based MP3 players are similar to their big brothers, the hard drive based players, except that they are a bit smaller, both in physical size and internal storage capacity. These MP3 players hold up to six gigabytes of MP3 files, which equals roughly 1,700 songs. Still boasting a respectable capacity, these players have won over many consumers due to their light-weight, compact size. Additionally, both hard drive and micro hard drive based players commonly contain rechargeable batteries that can not be replaced for a new battery, but only recharged. If its small size and moderate capacity that you are in search of this type of player may be just right. Flash based MP3 players are ultra compact, low capacity players contain no moving parts and consequently, never skip. Another advantage of these players is that their size and lack of moving parts allow them to use minimal power, causing your batteries to last longer. Also, these players almost always use replaceable, disposable batteries, allowing you to put in a new battery if your player should die in the middle of use. However, flash based MP3 players commonly range in capacity from 32 megabytes (roughly 10 songs) to two gigabytes (roughly 570 songs) at most. Therefore, most consumers with a large music collection tend to shy away from this type of MP3 player while athletes can appreciate the sturdy nature of these devices. Some of the different types of MP3 players include additional features as well. A few of the hard drive players include a small screen that can display pictures and video that is stored on the internal drive. Other players allow for digital voice recording for future playback.

Free Books Music Articles- New York Broadway

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:59:11 +0000

After booking our discount flight tickets to New York we decided to plan for viewing some Broadway shows when we were there and were surprised at the choice of new and revival musicals. There’s a great choice of musical revivals. From the five-time Olivier Award-winning production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s, Sunday in the Park with George, showing at Studio 54 on 254 West 54th Street. This musical is presented by the Roundabout Theatre Company and chronicles the life of French impressionist painter Georges Seurat that won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1985. South Pacific is a revival of the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, which is about forbidden love on a South Pacific Island during World War II and shows at the Vivian Beaumont Theater on 150 West 65th Street. Then there’s A Chorus Line, at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre on 236 West 45th Street. The 1975 show won the Pulitzer Prize and the Tony Award for Best Musical telling the story of the Broadway gypsies who bare their souls and put their lives on the line when they audition for an unnamed Broadway musical. With the revival of the much-loved Broadway favorite Grease, this stars Max Crumm and Laura Osnes as thwarted teenage lovers Danny Zuko and Sandra Dee. On at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on 256 West 47th Street, Crumm and Osnes were selected for their roles after auditioning before a national audience on TV’s Grease: You’re the One That I Want! Over at the St. James Theatre on 246 West 44th Street, Gypsy stars Broadway legend Patti LuPone and shares the story of a stage mother with her daughters and the pursuit of stardom. For new musicals we have a varied choice from Young Frankenstein to The Little Mermaid. Young Frankenstein at the Hilton Theatre on 214 West 42nd Street is a new musical adapted from Mel Brooks’ 1974 film. Following the struggle of Frederick Frankenstein as he chooses between rejecting his mad grandfather’s work or seeing it through to its dangerous climax. Xanadu, based on the cult film and showing at the Helen Hayes Theatre 240 West 44th Street, follows three dreamers in Venice Beach as they attempt to open a roller disco night-club. Featuring original songs written for the film by the Electric Light Orchestra and Olivia Newton-John. Disney’s new musical The Little Mermaid, follows the mermaid Ariel on her quest to become human and find her prince. Showing at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on 205 West 46th Street, this is a stage adaptation of the animated film, The Little Mermaid features new songs as well as favorites such as “Part of Your World,” “Under the Sea” And “Kiss the Girl.” A new musical about the lives of those in the Washington Heights neighbourhood of Manhattan, In The Heights at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on 226 West 46th Street, makes its Broadway debut after a successful off-Broadway run. And lastly we have, Passing Strange at the Belasco Theatre on 111 West 44th Street, this was created by the New York City performance artist Stew, following a young bohemian as he travels the world to find himself. Well that’s a brief tour of the new and revival shows on New York’s Broadway at present, more details at www.travel05.co.uk

Free Books Music Articles- String of Pearls… -Original by William Dorich

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:59:10 +0000

As we grew up our mothers always passed along little pieces of advice, mine always told me to “be sure my underwear was clean, in case I was in an accident.” Like the ambulance driver or the attending nurse would really care, as I lay there covered in blood?But clever sayings, quips of advice and words of wisdom are part of all cultures, especially in my Eastern European background. As a child we listened with only one ear but as we grew up we found ourselves repeating those words by reusing them on our own children. How many of us today though that our parents were not the brightest bulbs in the chandelier and now realize how really smart they were?Marie True Evans, former Ms. Maryland reminds us that every ethnic group in the world has those pesky Proverbs and one of her favorite ones is Jewish… “To Love Mankind is Easy–to Love Man is Hard.” Of course we have all use the Greek one… “The Apple Does Not Fall Far From the Tree.” The Italians got in right when they use one of their old proverbs… “Listen at the keyhole and you’ll hear about yourself.” None of us appreciates nagging but the Spanish zero in on… “An ounce of Mother is worth a pound of clergy.”Two of the ones I seem to use frequently come from the ancient Chinese… “A journey begins with the first step” and, “One generation plants the tree; another gets the shade.” And how smart are the Germans who tell us… “The old forget, the young don’t know.”Some of the best humor comes to us as pearls of wisdom. Phyllis Diller reminds us… “Housework can’t kill you, but why take a chance?” Or, “I want my children to have all the things I couldn’t afford–then I want to move in with them.” One we often hear repeated in the media is a pearl of wisdom from Nancy Reagan… “A Woman is like a tea bag–you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.” My bookkeeper has the right idea… “If at first you don’t succeed, try another credit card.”

Free Books Music Articles- Getting your Hands on Free Napster Music -Original by Hilary Mujikwa

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:58:59 +0000

Most people consider Napster to be the first of the music sharing sites on the entire internet. Well in the past they were a completely free service that was allowing people to trade and download from their extensive library of titles without paying a red cent. Well this caught the attention of many big names in the music industry and with that you can see that the rein came to an end with the idea of the free music. The artists and companies out there were completely unhappy about having their hard work sent out there for free.Well the end came with a complete switch in the way that Napster does things but people are still looking for ways to get free Napster music. This is not as easy as it once was. The simple fact of the matter is that Napster can no longer afford to give away music. They were hit hard by the lawsuit that put an end to their standard music sharing process. They had to regroup and find a way to get back to the profit and they ended up being just like the rest of the companies who are now charging a fee for the services that they provide.This is something that you have to deal with if you are looking for free Napster music. The fact is that you can get some of the music free but that is part of their free trial period only. You are required to sign up with Napster like you would with any other company. Then you have to be sure that you are taking part in the free trial period if you want to get some free Napster music. This is all part of the entire process by which you have to follow to get the music you are looking for.Most consider it to be a miracle that Napster was able to come back following the devastating loss that they suffered at the hands of some of the big music names. This is something that shows that they were dedicated to the process of getting digital music out there to the masses. Well this has come at a price and free Napster music is next to impossible to get your hands on anymore. However, you can see the idea of the getting some of the free music if you do it correctly.Every once in a while you can find a coupon code out there that will give you some free Napster music. These are few and far between for the most part but you can find them if you are diligent in your search.

Free Books Music Articles- Les Paul Guitars - What Makes Them Special? -Original by Ricky Sharples

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:58:51 +0000

The Gibson Les Paul guitar was conceived at the very beginning of electric guitar history and has held its place at the forefront of guitar technology ever since. The two key elements that make the Les Paul guitars special are the vision of Les Paul himself, an eminent guitarist and enthusiastic inventor and the fact that the Gibson guitar company has always held extremely high standards of excellence for its instruments. Les Paul is often credited with inventing the solid body electric guitar, and his involvement with the Gibson models was more or less just a happy accident. When he was a teenage performer he tried amplifying an ordinary acoustic guitar so that he could be heard by the audience. The feedback that resulted was finally eliminated by attaching the neck of an Epiphone guitar onto a block of wood. This was so strange looking that Les’ musical talents were not taken seriously so he attached wings to the side of the wood so that it resembled a conventional guitar shape.The moving force behind the financial and artistic success of the Les Paul guitar was the desire of the Gibson Guitar Corporation to market a solid body model electric guitar under the name of an established guitarist. By this time, the early 1950’s, Les Paul was the most popular electric guitar player of the time. It would be a great triumph for Gibson to snare the endorsement of this guitarist who had conceived and made his own electric guitar which had become the basis for a solid electric guitar sold by his friend, Leo Fender. Eventually, after recommending some changes to the appearance of the new Gibson guitar, Les Paul allowed it to be released under his name.There are a couple of design elements that stand out in the Les Paul range of guitars. The strings on a Les Paul guitar are mounted “hollow body style” on top of the guitar instead of passing through the body as is common with other brands of solid body guitars. This is merely a stylistic distinction, not affecting the sound of the guitar. The characteristic warm tone of the Les Paul guitars is due to the types of wood chosen by Gibson for these models. As we should expect from a guitar endorsed by the man whose own guitar design was nicknamed “the log”, Les Paul guitars are also heavier and thicker than other solid body guitars. Both Les Paul and the Gibson corporation were fans of starting with substance and piling on heaps of style, so most Les Paul model guitars feature flashy inlays on the neck and headstock.The Gibson Guitar Corporation has made many models under the Les Paul brand. Featuring names like Classic, Supreme, Standard, Studio Baritone, Studio, Goddess, Menace, New Century, Vixen, Special, Doublecuts and Melody Maker, each one has its own individual sound. Between 1969 and 1979 Gibson even marketed a range of Les Paul bass guitars. The Gibson Les Paul guitars have also been imitated by other companies such as Ibanez and Tokai. The legal wrangles surrounding these attempts at copying Les Paul guitars have only added to their collectibility.

Free Books Music Articles- Mr. Mandolin -Original by Diane Sontag

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:58:44 +0000

What do the words “swing, bluegrass, latin, jazz and gypsy” have in common? They are all genres of music, and they have been combined into a contemporary music genre dubbed “dawg” music by its creator, mandolinist and composer David Grisman. When David was a teenager growing up in New Jersey, he discovered the mandolin and studied under folklorist Ralph Rinzler. He began his mandolin career in the style of Bill Monroe, the Father of Bluegrass Music. Grisman studied English at New York University in the early 1960s and took his mandolin with him to Greenwich Village, where the folk music culture of the early 1960s welcomed him warmly. In 1963 Grisman debuted as both a recording artist (Elektras Even Dozen Jug Band) and producer (Folkways Red Allen, Frank Wakefield and the Kentuckians). In 1966, while a member of the Kentuckians, Grisman also composed original tunes and played with bluegrass contemporaries such as Peter Rowan and Jerry Garcia, with whom he later joined to form the band Old and In The Way. In 1973, Jerry Garcia gave Grisman the nickname “Dawg.” Grisman began applying jazz musical techniques to his playing beginning in 1967. He was a prolific session musician at this time, and played many genres of music with musicians such as Bela Fleck, the Grateful Dead, Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt , Earl Scruggs, Dan Fogelberg, Maria Muldaur, John Sebastian and James Taylor.David met guitarist Tony Rice and the David Grisman Quintet formed in 1975 with bassist/ mandolinist Todd Phillips and violinist Darol Anger. The David Grisman Quintet headlined at the worlds largest jazz, folk, and bluegrass festivals for twenty-five years.In 1990, Grisman founded the Acoustic Disc label, which has released fifty-five compact discs, all produced or co-produced by David. Five of those have been nominated for Grammy Awards. David Grisman is a true music pioneer and has inspired a new genre of acoustic string instrumental music. He is a master of the mandolin and remains a talented composer, teacher, and record producer. Because of the success of Acoustic Disc, artist-owned independent music labels now have a talented mentor and business model to follow.

Free Books Music Articles- The Truth About Urban Fiction -Original by Maxine Thompson

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:58:44 +0000

When I first edited urban fiction, like most new endeavors, I stumbled into it. But as a former social worker, Ive always found it interesting how women of color cope in desperate situations. As I read different manuscripts, I recognized the voices that Id met over the years in my own life, in different foster homes or in my inner city case work.Although Id recently completed my nonfiction book, Heal thy Soul, 365 Days of Healing for Women of Color, to be published by Urban Books in November 2008, I want to address urban fiction. As a story editor of some of the best selling urban fiction writers out there today, I’ve learned a lot along the way about urban fiction. I can speak from both sides of the fence-both as a writer and as an editor.As urban writers, sometimes we get bad press. I’d like to clarify something. All urban writers are not street fiction writers. This genre is sometimes referred to as ghetto lit or street lit, or hip hop fiction. Some people say there’s too much drama, even in the women’s line of Urban fiction, and not enough literary literature. Well, as an editor, that depends on how you look at it. What is drama? I once read that drama is danger mixed with opportunity. To write about people of color who live in urban settings is going to be replete with danger. Just to think of some of the dangers these urban characters face, it starts the minute the characters get out of bed. Any day your could wind up homeless, a victim of violence, or foreclosed upon. So how do we create these elements in our stories? By showing the (limited or missed) opportunities we have to obtain the American Dream and the danger that is involved in trying to pursue it. For some people, they take the nine-to-five route. For others they go the route of crime. But all characters, in the pursuit of the American Dream of happiness, will go on a journey. This journey involves subtext. My definition of subtext is what is going on beneath the story. The dictionary’s definition is this: 1. The implicit meaning or theme of a literary text. 2. The underlying personality of a dramatic character as implied or indicated by a script or text and interpreted by an actor in performance. My story “Katrina Blues,” a novella, in anthology, Never Knew Love Like This Before, (published by Urban Books-Urban Soul in June 2007) deals with a cross section of society. The protagonist, Deni Richards, is a thirty-something Los Angeles attorney who winds up facing discrimination at a restaurant, racial profiling by the police department, and disparity of treatment on her job. Although she thinks she has achieved the American dream because she drives a Mercedes, is the most successful child in her family and owns her own condo in Santa Monica, California, by the end of the story, she learns some harsh truths about being an African American citizen in this country. She winds up getting an up-close and personal taste of reality when she opens her home to a displaced saxophonist, Coleman Blue and his family, after Hurricane Katrina. I find a lot of meaning about the American Dream when I read urban literature and it’s not always found on the surface of the story.

Free Books Music Articles- The Best Cheap Electric Guitars -Original by Ricky Sharples

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:58:41 +0000

You want to play electric guitar but you have a limited budget. Your first electric guitar needs to be cheap so you need to get some idea which is the best brand to buy. If you do not buy a good quality electric guitar your guitar playing learning curve is going to be that much more steep, and you are going to feel like a prize dumbbell telling people that your playing would be much better if your guitar was not such a pile of junk.Let us set some ground rules. Do not buy a cheap guitar online unless the vendor is in your local area. Also, when we talk about cheap guitars we should be talking cheap brands, not old guitars of dubious quality and unknown condition. If there is a music shop or two somewhere close to where you live, they should be able to cater to your needs. There are a lot of deep mysteries connected with guitar playing but finding a cheap guitar is not one of them.To start with, there are big brand name guitars that you may not be able to afford, and indeed it would be silly to pay a fortune for your first electric guitar, but there are copies of these famous guitars which you CAN afford. Amongst these copies of the big name guitars made by various guitar makers, are good and bad quality guitars, and you need to be familiar with the better quality makers of cheap guitars. Any guitar factory in Outer Mongolia can churn out realistic looking electric guitars but they may not be able to hold together for longer than five minutes. So, let us first look at a few big name guitars. Fender, Gibson, Washburn. You recognize those names, right? Squier, Ibanez, Yamaha, Crafter. Do you recognize those names? They make cheap electric guitars some of which are copies of more expensive models. The basic difference between cheap guitars and expensive guitars is quality of materials. The reason you need to be aware of which cheaper brands to buy is that you do not want to go too far into the realms of cheap and nasty. Without wanting to influence you unduly, I think you could do a lot worse than buying a Squier Stratocaster for a first electric guitar. It is made by Fender, the makers of the original Strat.Another thing you need to consider is the type of music you want to play. Once you start looking around at guitars you need to be aware of the sound. Right from the first day as a guitar player you should be listening to yourself making a sound that you are happy with. One really cool thing you should be taking with you when you go looking to buy a cheap electric guitar is a guitar player. Even if it is one of the neighbors who bought a guitar years ago and never did anything with it, it is better than nothing. And then there’s the color. Your neighbor may be able to give you some advice on the construction of electric guitars or the benefits of this or that pickup, but only YOU can decide what color you want. When Mark Knopfler decided to buy his first guitar he knew he wanted a red one. It is an important consideration. You will not feel comfortable posing in front of the mirror with the wrong color guitar!You will not be posing in front of the mirror? Oh . . . okay.

Free Books Music Articles- How to Self-Publish Your Own Book -Original by William Dorich

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 02:58:37 +0000

With current technology and the changes taking place in the publishing industry, it has become more confusing to first-time authors as to how to go about, or whether to even attempt, becoming published. In major publishing houses, the average length of time between the signing of a contract and the release date is usually 14 months. At the end of that time, the publisher can decide not to publish your book for any reason. Dont be misled about how much money authors are making in royalty based publishing contracts. A 10% royalty may sound good but that is not what the author actually receives. The unspoken truth is that the customer “returns” of purchased books across the country average 25% each year. In most cases these books are soiled and cannot be resold. This return policy is deducted from an authors royalties, reducing their 10% to about 7% very quickly.If you are fortunate to have a manuscript accepted by a major publisher you might also be given an advance on your royalties. However, advances are at an all time low and very little is spent on publicity. Some publishing contracts require authors to pay for publicity out of their advance. By the time the publisher is ready to print, if they feel you have not created enough interest in your book, they can decide not to publish the title. Under these circumstances if you keep the advance they end up owning the rights, prohibiting you to negotiate another publishing contract. Agents and publishers will mostly entertain established writersthis places most new authors in a “Catch-22″ of not being able to find a publisher without an agent or an agent without a publisher. It is unfortunate, in our field, to need to mention that there have been some agents who have accepted up-front fees from first-time authors and not followed through in presenting manuscripts to their publishing contacts.