james blunt britains newest important brings talent back to the us music scene

James Blunt, Britain's Newest Important, Brings Talent Back to the U.S. Music SceneWriten by Mara Siegler

Like much of the country I am sick of todays media driven, image based, digitized and synthetically enhanced music. The so called artists who are studio packaged to marketing analyzed perfection complete with the synergistic packaging of cross promotional, cross sales compatibility. Reality television programs, perfumes, clothing lines, books, posters, and beauty products have overtaken and outweighed the importance of sound and soul. What is left is a sadly small handful of true talent, their existence almost an anomaly, a mere death rattle of the now mythical days when music meant something and talent was a factor.

Due to this down spiraling trend, I have ceased listening to the radio and stuck to exploring indie labels and lesser known bands through the internet and friends recommendations. Last week when a friend invited me to go with them to see Britains newest import, James Blunt, I arrived at Bowery Ballroom with little to no expectations except to hit up the bar.

With jack and coke in hand, I watched as Blunt took the stage. Young, attractive with piercing blue eyes and unshaven face, downplayed style with a green t-shirt and sneakers, I figured that the view would keep me entertained even if the music didnt. From the first song, I was transfixed. The sound was affected, high yet masculine, tender with an undeniable strength of both voice and meaning. His ballad like lyrics, a mix of poetic waxings on dawns and beauty, managed to avoid clich and instead invoke personal sensitivities with poignant delicacy. They resonated.

The entire concert maintained an awe I have not felt for a long time. The sight of true talent, raw and emotive, is such a rarity that it leaves the listener almost breathless. His piano playing paired to stunning perfection with his vocal falsetto during No Bravery, written in 1999 when he served as a soldier in Kosovo, almost produced a tear. The tucking of his guitar to the side during many of his songs came off as unrehearsed and a natural extension as he stood exposed, his voice raw and high with emotion. I bought the album the next day and have had it running on replay for two weeks now with no sign of getting sick of it.

In the U.K. Blunts debut Back to Bedlam has overtaken Coldplay selling 1.53 million albums and held the position of number one with the single Beautiful,: for several weeks. This is the first song that has been released in the U.S. and has deservedly won him an instant fan base. Songs such as Wise Man, So Long Jimmy, and Cry, are sure guarantees to keep him in the hearts of millions of adolescent girls and heartbroken lovers. I have personally experienced the spontaneous playing of the mental montage of ex-boyfriends while listening to Goodbye My Lover, and I am self-proclaimed die hard romantic cynic. My only complaint is the repeated reference to Dorian Gray in the chorus of Tears and Rain, which comes off as a strained attempt at literary intellectualism but manages only to conjure up a bad memory of the recent film League of Extraordinary Gentleman.

Blunts album was produced in L.A. by Tom Rothock and he is managed by the same person as Elton John which gives me a hope filled with a sincerity so lacking in the majority of todays music, that Blunt is able to maintain his genuineness and remain centered now that he has crossed continental borders.

Mara Siegler graduated with a degree in English Creative Writing and now lives in New York working as a freelance writer.

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visual kei as a music world vision

Visual Kei As a Music World VisionWriten by Mark Renton

Visual Kei appears to be frequently used in videos and grab audiences attentions. Visual Kei followers are characterised by a rather stunning, although freak appearance of a striking make-up and elaborate costumes, causing a shock effect.

To recall, for instance, Merlyn Manson, who is among few to follow the style in the US. The trend is popular among modern bands, irrespective of rumours, suggesting that the style suffered no popularity in the USA and Europe. The Visual Kei style is peculiar of the tradition to wear relevant make-up and clothing always and everywhere.

The style is credited to have started in Japan in late 80ies through early 90ies as a result of the gothic styles influence. The word visual originates from English; the kei word is what Japanese name for style. The X-Japan and the Buck-Tick are believed to pose as catalysts of the movement. Their followers, including Luna Sea, Melice Mizer, Glay, LArc~en~Ciel, Dir en grey, Pierro are engaged in encouraging boom of Visual Kei media culture.

Each band seeks to vary from a similar one through creating gorgeous and insane images. Though a vast majority of the musicians are male, bend members would often give a priority to make-up and clothing, considered as feminine, which has nothing to do with their sexual orientation, but a combination of visual gothic elements and Japanese cultural traditions. Which is why Japanese gigs often resemble fascinating theatre performances.

Notably, the ancient Japanese Kabuki theatre involved actors, among staff, to play womens parts. Thus, a j-rocker, wearing a lovely pink dress and having his hair styled into violet locks, wrapped around with numerous fillets should cause no astonishment.

Presently, Visual Kei remains as a diverse, ever growing music culture.

Article source: Visual Kei as a music world vision. Music Babylon is a site which gives you access to huge database of music lyrics, lively music forum and some articles about different aspects of single Music.

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chris botti to love again smooth jazz cd review

Chris Botti To Love Again Smooth Jazz CD ReviewWriten by Clyde Dennis

Chris Botti, trumpeter extraordinaire has done it again.

Following the hugely successful CD When I Fall In Love with his latest release, To Love Again.

The smooth jazz world super talent Botti has earned frequent comparisons to Miles Davis and Chet Baker and has seemingly found a successful formula for turning out superb CD's.

In the past in addition to touring with Sting, Botti has played sideman to Paul Simon, Natalie Merchant, Joni Mitchell, and dozens more.

Contributors on the To Love Again includes an amazing line up of music industry heavy hitters. Names like Sting, Michael Buble, Paula Cole, Gladys Knight, Jill Scott, Renee Olstead, Rosa Passos and Steven Tyler, with the London Session Orchestra conducted by Jeremy Lubbock, Billy Childs and Gil Goldstein. Plus a few others as well.

Overall To Love Again is an collection of jazz standards, mostly old school traditional music. My thoughts are if you like traditional music standards, this should be in your collection.

Chris Botti's rendition of the Billie Holiday classic Good Morning Heartache, with Jill Scott singing may be even better than the original rendition of the same song.

While this entire CD is outstanding the truly standout tunes and SmoothJazz247.com favorites are Embraceable You [track 1, What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life? - Featuring Sting [track 2, and Are You Lonesome Tonight? - Featuring Paul Buchanan [track 8. My SmoothLee Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in Stuck On REpeat is track 10, I'll Be Seeing You - Featuring Billy Childs. Very nice!

Release Notes:

Chris Botti originally released To Love Again on October 18, 2005 on the Sony record label.

CD track list follows:

1. Embraceable You
2. What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life? - Featuring Sting
3. My One And Only Love - Featuring Paula Cole
4. Let There Be Love - Featuring Michael Bubl
5. What's New?
6. Good Morning Heartache - Featuring Jill Scott
7. To Love Again
8. Are You Lonesome Tonight? - Featuring Paul Buchanan
9. Lover Man - Featuring Gladys Knight
10. I'll Be Seeing You - Featuring Billy Childs
11. Pennies From Heaven - Featuring Renee Olstead
12. Here's That Rainy Day - Featuring Rosa Passos
13. Smile - Featuring Steven Tyler

To listen to samples of each song on To Love Again by Chris Botti go to: Chris Botti CD - To Love Again Samples

Clyde Lee Dennis, a.k.a. SmoothLee is an AVID music fan, smooth jazz in particular, and in addition to writing CD Reviews for I Love Smooth Jazz.com can also be heard during his radio show which airs online daily at Smooth Jazz 24/7

ten commandments for good music practice

Ten Commandments for Good Music PracticeWriten by Arthur Haule

Reports are surfacing about a recent archeological discovery in the Middle East involving a heretofore unknown second ten commandments. The passage evidently immediately follows the reciting of the Commandments in the fifth chapter of the book of Deuteronomy.

The discovered text reportedly reads as follows:

And after Moses had presented the tablets with the commandments of the Lord to the Hebrew children he reached into his back pocket and pulled out two more tablets of stone. And he spake further.

And the Lord God has given me two more tablets of stone, on which he has written his precepts especially for those who would praise him with song, instructing them in the ways of proper practice.

And Moses read:

I. THOU SHALT HAVE A PLAN BEFORE THOU STARTEST PRACTICING.

II. THOU SHALT WARM UP THOROUGHLY BEFORE THOU STARTEST THINE EXERCISES.

III. THOU SHALT NOT ONLY PLAY THE EASY STUFF, BUT SHALT SPEND TIME ON THAT WHICH THOU NEEDEST TO IMPROVE.

IV. THOU SHALT TRULY LISTEN TO WHAT THOU PLAYEST, RATHER THAN SIMPLY PLAYING WITHOUT INTEREST.

V. THOU SHALT NOT EXPECT THINE PRACTICES TO BE PERFECT.

VI. THOU SHALT NOT CRITICIZE THYSELF OVERLY HARSHLY DURING THE PRACTICE, NOR TAKE THE NAME OF THINE INSTRUMENT OR THINE MUSIC TEACHER IN VAIN WHEN THINGS DON'T GO THE WAY YOU HOPED!

VII. THOU SHALT PUT IN THE TIME THAT IS NECESSARY.

VIII. THOU SHALT NOT NEGLECT SPENDING SOME TIME TO HAVE FUN WITH YOUR INSTRUMENT DURING EVERY SINGLE PRACTICE.

IX. THOU SHALT RECORD THINE PROGRESS IN SOME SORT OF JOURNAL.

X. THOU SHALT PROPERLY PUT AWAY THINE INSTRUMENT, THINE SHEET MUSIC AND ALL THINE OTHER STUFF WHEN THINE PRACTICE TIME IS OVER.

IF THOU FOLLOWEST MINE INSTRUCTIONS THOU SHALT SING WITHOUT SCREECHING, PLAY WITHOUT SQUAWKING, AND SHALT CAUSE THINE NEIGHBORS TO TAP THEIR TOES WITH SMILES UPON THEIR FACES.

Some noted Biblical scholars have expressed doubt that this second set of commandments actually appeared in the original writings. But others have indicated that the Lord would undoubtedly have commanded musicians to practice before playing to Him. And they insinuated that the big, fluffy white clouds we see floating in the sky are actually giant cotton balls the Lord removes from His ears when practice time is over.

Arthur Haule studied violin in a traditional program for ten years. He participated in several orchestras and an opera company in the New York City area and founded a string quartet. He has taken part in several music festivals and even acted as a violin coach. He is currently webmaster of http://www.ViolinStudent.com Although Art learned violin in a tradtional setting, his daughter Adriana studied with a Suzuki Violin teacher. So Art has personal experience in both traditions. And you'll often hear him say, It Doesn't Matter How You Learned, All That Counts Is That You Play!

A fan of classical music, Art is dedicated to promoting the violin no matter what type of music is being played. If there is a melody there, Art probably listens to it.

Art Haule lives in Flower Mound, Texas with his wife Kathy and his daughter Adriana.

More Music Related Sites : http://www.learntoplaydrum.com/

burnlounge musics mlm

Burnlounge: Music's MLMWriten by Jerimi Walker

In a typical multi-level marketing or network marketing arrangement, individuals associate with a parent company as an independent contractor and are compensated based on their sales of products or service, as well as the sales achieved by those they bring into the business.

In a legitimate MLM company, commissions are earned only on sales of the companys products. No money may be earned from recruiting alone (sign-up fees). Some, less legitimate, companies produce revenues primarily by attracting new participants or selling them marketing services, as opposed to selling actual products. One must analyze the compensation plan to determine whether participants are paid from actual sales to customers and not from new-recruit bonuses or business support sales. - source (wikipedia on MLMs).

Initially, Burnlounge seems like a wonderful revolution in the music industry. Through my own internet surfing I have run across countless people with their own Burnlounge Stores and thought nothing of it!

In case you arent familiar with it, Burnlounge is a company that allows users to set up a digital music store. You sign up under one of three different levels for a set up fee along with monthly fees. At the bottom you get the chance to set up your own store within the site where people purchase digital music from you that you choose to carry, and you get a commission from these sales. At the top level, not only do you get this, but also the ability to recruit (and earn a bonus from recruiting) others to open their own burnlounge store. They themselves are also able to recruit in the typical MLM setup. You get bonuses from everyone signing up as well as a commission from both yours and their sales.

This is a legal pyramid/MLM. Unlike the common misconception that all pyramids are illegal, pyramid companies only become illegal when they break the FTCs rules. These rules are set up to make sure that the majority of profits come from the product and not the recruiting. Even calling them illegal at that point is misleading. It simply means the FTC can take action to shut them down. Looking at the digital music marketplace you will see that Apple selling mp3s for the same price as Burnlounge proposes barely breaks even, with a large market share. Burnlounge store owners can't compete with that large market share, and the immediate conclusion is that those who come in at the higher subscription levels stand to gain much of their profits from the recruitment of others.

This should be a red flag to anyone who has considered working with this company. Leaving the merits or lack thereof of MLM as a business model, you can see that Burnlounge is on the seedier side of such companies. They seem to be walking the line of FTC rules while using recruiting that appeals to a young and sometimes naive audience. Their banners say Wanna be in the Music Industry? when owning such a store is nothing of the sort.

There are many other resources for musicians to get their music out there, and for fans to feel a part of things. If you are looking to do that, ignore Burnlounge and keep looking.

Jerimi Ann Walker is the Director of Marketing and Promotions for UVTV, Underground Video Television. UVTV is a website and television show featuring exclusive live performances from touring underground artists as well as music videos from hardcore, metal, and rock acts. All videos aired on the show are also available at http://www.uvtv.info as well as archived episodes, music news, a blog featuring guest contributors from all areas of music, and an active forum community.

carolina beach music tunes to shag by

Carolina Beach Music: Tunes To Shag ByWriten by Stefan Smith

To anyone who did not grow up in the U.S. states of North or South Carolina, or perhaps Virginia or Georgia, Carolina beach music takes some explaining.

Even a southerner such as I, growing up in Alabama, did not realize that there was something called beach music that had little resemblance to, or connection with, the California sound of the Beach Boys or Jan and Dean.

Carolina beach music isn't about surfing or drag racing. It's about dancing at the pavilion in Myrtle Beach, shagging on the sand with your best girl, holding hands and watching the moon rise over Atlantic breakers as the harmonies of The Drifters, the Embers or the Tams drift over the dunes.

Now right now I must stop and explain to my English readers--that is, the possibly shocked citizens and residents of the United Kingdom--that "shagging" as used here does not mean what it you think it does. Here, the shag is the dance that you do to beach music. Shagging means to do the shag.

Carolina beach music goes back to the 1950s. The premier exponent of the style at that time was The Drifters. I've long known and liked the music of The Drifters--"Up On the Roof" is one of my all-time favorite songs--but I just considered it to be rock 'n' roll or perhaps r&b. It took moving to North Carolina to learn that some people considered it part of a separate genre.

Carolina beach music is gentle, sweet, romantic and innocent rock 'n' roll. It celebrates stealing kisses in the back row of the movie theater and couples sharing a blanket in the shade of the boardwalk.

It's no wonder that today, Myrtle Beach has clubs and entire theaters that exist just to showcase the top beach music acts, and that they do a booming business. Without doubt, many of the fans who flock there are recapturing a happy, uncomplicated youth spent cruising the strip and shagging (dance shagging) the night away. But Carolina beach music has a broad appeal, and it would not be surprising to see 20- and 30-somethings finding their way through the doors of those clubs, too.

Stefan Smith is a radio and music junkie who writes on these and other subjects for the Solid Gold Info Writers Consortium. Recently, he has written an extensive review of new software that anyone can use to capture music audio streams from Internet radio broadcasts and break them up into individual mp3 song files--a legal way to download virtually free music. Read the review at: http://www.solid-gold.info/radio2mp3.html

can you really learn to play a musical instrument from an online course

Can You Really Learn To Play a Musical Instrument From an Online Course?Writen by Duane Shinn

Out of the 250 million people in the United States, about 25 million of them play an instrument of some kind, or used to when they were in school and would like to pick up where they left off. Another 30 million or so sing in a church choir, a barbershop quartet, or at the very least, in the shower.

That means that there are over 50 million folks adults who would like to play their instrument or sing better than they do now. After all, everyone wants to improve his or her skills, no matter what the field.

Before the advent of the Internet, if adults wanted to learn to play a musical instrument, they had to schedule a lesson time with a teacher in a store or studio or if they were fortunate, in their own home with a teacher who would come each week for a lesson.

That meant doing it after work, driving to a store or studio, dealing with transportation, babysitting, illness, cancellations, and so on. Very few adults who started lessons that way continued very long, as it was a continual hassle.

But with the development of the World Wide Web, music teachers have gone online to offer lessons to adults in the comfort and convenience of their own homes. No scheduling problems, no transportation issues, no cancellations none of the problems inherent in traditional lessons.

Here are a few of the many courses available for adults online:

Jamorama Guitar Course

Stripped-Down Guitar Course

SlapBass Guitar Riffs

Guitar Made Easy

Acoustic Guitar Workshop

Screaming Fingers Guitar Course

One Weekend Guitar

Make Money Teaching Guitar

Learn Chords Fast

Instant Chord Finding Software Download

84 Piano Chords

Crash Course in Exciting Piano Playing on DVDs!

How To Play Piano By Ear

How To Dress Up Naked Music

How To Play Praise & Gospel Piano

How To Play Black Gospel Piano

How To Play Contemporary Urban Worship Piano

All The Chords In The Whole Wide World

How To Play Chord Piano...In Ten Days!

Learn To Play Electronic Keyboards

Singing Success!

Drum patterns online to download!

Your own Drum Machine online!

Learn to read music fast

Children Can Read Notes Easily!

Learn to Read Music in One Evening!

Even though this is a big list of music courses for adults now, it is growing at an exponential rate. The opportunity for learning music at your own pace online has never been greater, so take advantage of it and start improving your musical skills without delay!

Duane Shinn is the author of over 500 music educational materials for adults. A review of music courses online is at Great Music Courses Online!. Duane is the author of the popular free 101-week online e-mail newsletter titled Amazing Secrets Of Exciting Piano Chords & Sizzling Chord Progressions with over 58,600 current subscribers.