Chad Criswell's Blog
Posted by Chad Criswell
One of the highest points in a high school band's life is when it is invited to perform in a major event in another country. In Fort Meyers, Florida the local school board nearly destroyed that once in a lifetime opportunity for the Fort Meyer's High School Band when it put the kybosh on their performance trip to London to lead off their New Year's Parade. Luckily, the parents and community had the final say when they raised over five hundred thousand dollars and effectively vetoed the school board's decision to cancel the trip on the grounds of terrorism and security concerns. To read the full article visit the BBC News Web Site or visit a more in depth article at The Independent.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Any professional musician can tell you that having a happy, excited audience is almost as important to the success of a performance as is the talent of the performer himself. A pumped up audience will pump up the excitement and atmosphere in the venue while a dead, bored audience will drag down the intensity of even the most seasoned performer. This simple fact is why most professional touring musicians will employ an opening warm-up act to get the crowd in the mood for the big show to come. These things are fine for loud, pop music style concerts, but even more subdued school music concerts benefit from an audience that is happy and that pays attention to good concert etiquette. In a recent article by Steve Aboroa, the significance of how much an impact concert manners and etiquette can play becomes quite apparent.
Posted by Chad Criswell
First performed in 1781, one of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's first operas, Idomeneo, was not really a "smash hit." In 2006 however, the performance of the opera in Berlin has become a flashpoint of censorship versus racial and religious harmony. Although not in the original version of Mozart's opera at one point in the story King Idomeneo enters holding the heads of several people, one of whom is suggested to be the head of the Islamic Prophet, Mohammed. For a period of time the opera company called off the performance amid concern of violence. Today it opens for the public, and as NPR news reported, tickets are fairly easy to come by.
Posted by Chad Criswell
If you are looking for some simple, traditional Christmas carols to play with your family or friends you will be rather limited unless you look really hard on the Internet. At MusicEdMagic you now have the opportunity to download PDF formatted music of many traditional carols in for all of the major instruments of a standard concert band. Have Uncle Bill pull out his old trumpet while you play along on the sax! Let cousin Sally play her flute while Grandpa Owen plays his old rusty trombone.
Whatever kind of makeshift ensemble you might put together this fun and easy Christmas sheet music will help you "Deck The Halls!"
For a listing of sources for free classical sheet music check out my article here on suite101!
Posted by Chad Criswell
I was playing some classical music in one of my classes the other day when one of my students made a comment that classical music is "sooooo boring!" Well, those of us that appreciate all forms of music realize that that statement simply isn't true and that there is plenty of very powerful and moving classical music out there to listen to. The simple fact is that a vast majority of people do not know about it or have any interest in discovering it for themselves.
To combat the idea that all classical music is made up of "fat ladies singing," I am writing a series of articles to introduce people to some of the more powerful and expressive pieces of classical literature, music that makes your blood start pumping and produces a high probability of getting goosebumps. The first of these articles is on my personal favorite, Ottorino Respighi's "Pine's Of Rome." Feel free to start a discussion about this topic and suggest your own favorite pieces of exciting classical literature.
Posted by Chad Criswell
The illegal downloading of music and other media ran rampant for many years until the RIAA and MPAA threw down the gauntlet and began taking legal action against the worst offenders. The tactics of the industry have been both hailed and condemned since one of the first lawsuits against Napster brought the lawsuits to the publics attention. There can be no doubt that they have the legal right to protect their interests, however the methods that they use to get to the offenders is a little troubling.
In a recent article on Wired.com the MPAA is said to have been able to kill a bill in the California legislature that would have made it illegal to pose as someone else for the purpose of obtaining information on that unsuspecting person. The MPAA and RIAA routinely pose online as illegal downloaders, using the information they obtain from other downloaders to prosecute them in court for copyright infringements. I have no problem with governmental authorities posing as someone else to catch a thief, but when a non-governmental entity does so it poses a bit of a quandry. Am I wrong to worry when an organization can be so powerful that it can kill a piece of very strongly supported and positive legislation solely to preserve a revenue stream?
Posted by Chad Criswell
Everything else in our lives has moved online so it was only a matter of time until music instruction moved to cyberspace as well. Computer aided music instruction has been around for decades, going back to crude music theory tools played on Apple II computers. Recently though the technology that drives computers and the Internet has advanced enough that many people are staking a claim and trying to profit from their own versions of computer based/online music instruction.
- SmartMusic Studio by MakeMusic Inc.- MIDI based intelligent practice and accompaniment system. In use for several years in schools around the world, it is a very popular and useful tool.
- In The Chair - A new take on the computer based accompaniment system it does one better than SmartMusic by providing video and live audio clips rather than through MIDI.
- eJamming- A MIDI based service that allows instrumentalists to play with each other in real time via the Internet. Users must have a MIDI based instrument, standard acoustic instruments do not work.
- WorkshopLive-Online guitar instruction with videos. Of the guitar sites I have visited this is the most promising and professionally done.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Over the years more and more school districts have started to ban religious music as a part of musical instruction. While this hard line approach to the church versus state argument is not the predominating view in American schools, it is having a ripple effect even in the more right-wing areas of the country. The simple fear of litigation or outcry from atheistic or non-Christian parents has driven many school music, choir, band, and orchestra directors to simply avoid the confrontation alltogether and not program sacred music into their school music programs.
As a high school band director I subconsciously found myself programming increasingly large amounts of secular Christmas music into my "holiday," concerts. It was not until a very religious student of mine came in one day and handed me a copy of a document outlining why it is constitutionally okay to use sacred music in the schools that I realized just how lop-sided I had become. Although I had never been told by anyone that I could not use the sacred music in my holiday program I subconsciously avoided them and in turn I feel now that I was doing my students a disservice.
The simple truth about sacred versus secular music in the public schools is that it is perfectly legal and in many cases preferred to use sacred music to teach students about music. Without the sacred music of our past our repertoire would look and sound quite different today. I discovered a wonderful and very frank article on this subject in the Lansing State Journal yesterday and it started me thinking about this whole messed up topic. Music teachers need to get back to their roots and cast aside their fears. If programmed correctly, and not in a worship setting, sacred music has the right to return to all schools in the United States. Without sacred music we are casting aside a very important part of our musical heritage.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Following in the footsteps of the SmartMusic Studio Intelligent Accompaniment System by MakeMusic, "In The Chair," attempts to encourage students to practice while helping them learn their music at a faster pace. According to a recent news story from Wired Magazine, "In The Chair" received numerous positive reviews including being featured at the recent Web 2.0 Conference. But is the hype just a lot of hot air or does the application pose as a serious competitor to SmartMusic? I am currently testing the application and putting it through its paces. Look for an update here at Suite101 in the near future to see what I have discovered.
Posted by Chad Criswell
"The President's Own," United States Marine Band has created an interesting flash based information site for children to explore. The site covers the history of the Marine Band as well as of the White House itself. Interactive photographs and musical selections accompany the tour which allows a student to roam through the halls of the White House viewing famous artwork, photos of important events, and other interesting facts about our President's home.
To visit the Marine Band's Kid's Corner go to:
Posted by Chad Criswell
I am constantly looking for good online tools to help teach my students the concepts of music theory and how to help them play their instrument better. Today I found a VERY nice site called MusicTheory.net that has many different tutorials and mini-quiz generators to help students and adults learn a variety of different things. My personal favorite is their brass instrument fingering game. It shows you a note and using the cursor keys the same way you press the buttons on a brass instrument, you enter your response. You can even choose how hard or easy to make it so even a new beginner can make use of this and many more tools on this great music theory web site! Most of the tutorials and applets are built in Macromedia Flash so a current Flash player must be installed on your system to run them.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Over the centuries there have been occasions when two seemingly different parts of our lives have intermingled in astonishing ways. One of these strange marriages bound together politics and music during the days of the Russian revolution under the pen of Dmitri Shostokovich. Shostokovich's music was often ridiculed and demeaned by the Russian official media. Still, Shostokovich's works from this period are some of the most cherished by music lovers today.
The Cincinnatti Symphony this season will be presenting a concert filled with Shostokovich's Symphony No. 7, "Leningrad," as well as several others by other noted revolutionary Russian composers such as Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 2. For an excellent article on the subject of Shostokovich and the music of this unique time period, including personal comments by the Symphony's conductor, Paavo Jarvi, visit this wonderful Cincinnati Post online article by Mary Ellyn Hutton.
Posted by Chad Criswell
I have never been a big fan of tutorial DVD's or self-help books to teach a person how to play an instrument. They never live up to thier promise and often leave students struggling with poor habits or incorrect ideas. Your local band or orchestra director is always the best place to learn to play a new instrument, but now that teacher has a great tool that will help you learn more, and learn faster while practicing at home. That tool is a piece of intelligent software for your computer called SmartMusic Studio.
SmartMusic by MakeMusic Technologies is a program that listens to the student play their instrument and shows them where they went wrong, visually, on the computer screen. Common problems such as rhythmic accuracy and playing the correct note are instantly visualized allowing the student to realize their mistake and correct it properly. Music can be slowed down or speeded up as necessary to allow the student to work at his or her own pace. An immense amount of music is available inside the software to go along with dozens of lesson books, solo albums, and popular songs. For more technical work SmartMusic also has access to hundreds of scales, arpeggios, and other technique builders for the student to practice.
The point of SmartMusic is not to replace a professional music teacher. The intent of SmartMusic is to provide constant feedback and reinforcement to the new student, helping him or her to excel on the new instrument. The best part about the program is that when properly used it actually seems to help encourage students to practice more often and to use that practice time more effectively. If you have not tried the SmartMusic Studio consider asking your local band director or music store for a demonstration. Try it at home and see exactly what it can do for you and you family of musicians!
Posted by Chad Criswell
Karl King was notably one of the most famous American composers and band directors of his time, second only to the immortal John Philip Sousa. King's hometown of Fort Dodge, Iowa is today dedicating a life size bronze statue of King in the middle of Karl King Memorial Park.
King's music, although not as well known as Sousa's, included timeless compositions that are still played today. One of his most famous compositions, Barnum and Bailey's Favorite, was written during his time as a euphonium player in the Barnum and Bailey Circus Band in 1913. Other compositions such as the Ragged Rozy, Iowa Corn Song, and The Big Cage are less well known but still pieces of classic Americana.
See a photo of the statue and more biographical data about King and his legacy by visiting the Karl King web site.
Posted by Chad Criswell
I went out and bought my tickets tonight for Blue Man Group's How To Be A Megastar Tour when it comes to Hilton Colleseum in Ames next month. Several years ago my wife and I attended a performance in Chicago at the Briar Street Theater and had an absolute ball. Sitting only two rows back from the action we were in what was considered to be the splatter section and provided with plastic ponchos to keep us from getting too messy. Now, at the Tour show my tickets are not as great, nearly at the back of the stadium, but I have to say that I am still looking forward to it with much anticipation.
Blue Man is more than just a sideshow act in my opinion. The music is addicting, the antics on stage are hilarious, and overall the concept for the show has always been refreshing. I had never been at a concert like it before and have eagerly awaited the opportunity to see it again. I'll let you know my opinion of the show after it rolls through central Iowa next month, but all indications are that this high intensity show will be every bit as fun as the more cramped confines of the Briar Street Theater. Will it be worth the hefty price tag? We'll wait and see.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Open source software has brought us many great products, some that have changed the way we use the Internet. For music lovers Songbird may be one such product. Songbird is essentially a web browser, built on the code of the popular Firefox browser, formerly called Netscape. Songbird is more than just a browser, however. Songbird has features that are specifically intended for music lovers. Any page that you visit while using Songbird will be scanned for audio files. When music is found on a page a window opens at the bottom of the browser window allowing you to download and play the music without leaving the page. If you regularly visit blog sites where music is reviewed Songbird can take the work out of searching for the links and save those links for you to access at any time.
The default interface for Songbird is, to put it bluntly, boring. It essentially looks like iTunes slapped on top of Firefox with a dull black and grey color scheme. The other included set of feathers is equally boring on the white side. Songbird also accepts extentions the way Firefox does but in my tests I could not get it to work. Tabbed browsing is also not included with Songbird although it appears there are plans to add it in future releases.
From all the hype about Songbird I was expecting to see a product that would enhance and empower my musical travels on the Internet. After testing it for a few days I can say that while the music searching capabilities and audio player functions are nice, they are not enough to make me switch to Songbird for my daily browsing. I have to wonder if it would not have been possible just to put these features into a standard extension for the existing Firefox browser and then be able to have the best of both worlds.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Any true music lover owes it to himself to make a pilgrimage to Austria at some point in his life. Among the many historical landmarks that can be found in Austria, one of the must see attractions is the simple, humble home of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Dubbed the Mozarteum, Mozart's birthplace is on the third floor of a simple Salzburg apartment building but the memorabilia found inside this historical site are much more intriguing. A recent "interpretation" by American artist Robert Wilson has altered the traditional setting and layout of the birthplace, and in some ways seems almost blasphemous. Regardless of the way the apartment is currently being presented the museum still houses pieces of history that only true lovers of music can appreciate.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Did you know that one of the nicknames of the current United States Copyright Law is actually the "Mickey Mouse Protection Act?" The nickname stems from the efforts to extend copyright protection farther and farther into the future to protect the intellectual property rights of copyright holders far past their death. The Disney company was one of the most vocal proponents of the law, including the bills congressional sponsor, Sonny Bono, who would have personally preferred that copyright last forever.
On one hand, copyright is a good thing and should be maintained for a reasonable amount of time to protect the financial integrity of the copyright's holder, but today copyright extends 75 years past the date of the author's death. To some people this seems excessive, but think of it from Disney's perspective. A huge, multi-billion dollar empire built around a very recognizable cartoon character. If Mickey Mouse passed into the public domain anyone could use his likeness in any way they see fit from the most mundane to the most controversial. Consider the idea of a children's icon such as Mickey being used in an advertisement for an exterminator or even being used as a sick part of an adult oriented movie. It is for these reasons that copyright holders are so vocal about trying to preserve their rights to their intellectual property in perpetuity.
For more information about copyright, including some great links to find out about copyright dates and penalties visit my article on Music Arranging and Copyright.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Here is a brief but useful list of sites that provide free classical sheet music for download to your computer:
Lots of music, but you can only download three free classical music scores before you have to pay $27.00 per year. Music scores are easily searchable, but the results listings are a bit hard to focus on.
http://www.sheetmusicarchive.net
A smaller selection of music, but all music is truly free (although limited to two downloads per day). Most of the major classical music composers are listed and easily navigated.
http://www.8notes.com/The best organized of the sites I have visited. Music is sorted by instrument first, but can also be searched via genre or composer. Includes more than just classical sheet music. Best of all the pieces include a visual display of the difficulty of the piece before you try to download it. GIF versions of most classical sheet music is free, PDF versions require a subscription.
Posted by Chad Criswell
I know I should be more kind and understanding of new and different ideas, but there is something about John Cage and his music that I just can't get around... I just don't get it. Maybe you will do better. At some point everyone should be exposed to Cage's music so feel free to check out my article on Cage and his music. It also contains links to full length recordings of some of Cage's compositions.
Posted by Chad Criswell
A simple seat belt violation for a Texas orchestra teacher steamrolled into her being arrested during school and thrown in a holding cell for three days while the police tried to find her paperwork. Not exactly the way most teachers would like to start the year off. I wonder if she got an apology?
To read the full story
href="http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa060902_jfh_teacherjailed.5e498fbd.html"> visit the WFAA website.
Posted by Chad Criswell
In Boca Raton, Florida one middle school has taken the "Mozart Effect" to the next extreme. Instead of a ringing bell in between classes the school plays classical music for the entire four minutes of passing time. The music has had positive effects on the student body, but not everyone is convinced. To read the full story visit the full article on the News Channel 12 Web Site.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Maynard Ferguson was a marvel of trumpet playing prowess. I will admit that his style of playing was not everyone's forte, but as a man I was very impressed with both his personable nature and willingness to encourage our youth to pursue music as a career. When my local jazz band had the chance to open for Maynard he came out to meet with us before the concert, spoke with us for quite some time, and then to top it all off put on a hell of a concert for a packed house. The world will miss Maynard Ferguson, who passed away at the age of 78 on August 24th, 2006. For more information on the man and his legacy please visit the Ferguson web site located at www.maynardferguson.com.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Bernstein composed music both for stage and screen. His accomplishments and music are some of the most deeply ingrained parts of American musical history. For more information about Bernstein consider stopping by Bernstein's Big Break
Posted by Chad Criswell
As my final homage to the fun and entertainment that the family can experience in watching a Drum Corps International performance I want to help announce that ESPN2 will broadcast two hours of the 2006 World Championships this September.
From the DCI Web Site:
The two-hour program is scheduled to air on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2006, from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern time. Dates and times are subject to change. Additionally, the program will be rebroadcast later in the year as two one-hour specials. The first will be on Monday, Sept. 11, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. and on Monday, Sept. 18, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. Eastern time.
Posted by Chad Criswell
I have written several blog posts and articles this summer about one of my favorite genres of music. Recently Drum Corps International held the world championships in Madison, Wisconsin and once again the Cavaliers from Rosemont, Illinois returned to the top slot. Each year is filled with fevered competition from all of the corps, and this year was no different. For a complete run down of the finals and to find out when the television rebroadcast will be check out the DCI web site at www.dci.org.
Posted by Chad Criswell
If you are even the least bit interested in what the buzz is about Drum Corps International and the Summer Music Games, try to get to one of the dozens of theaters across the United States where DCI is going to simulcast the quarter finals of the world championship series live on August 10th. For a list of theaters visit the DCI web site.
Posted by Chad Criswell
The Virginia Arts Festival is an annual tradition celebrating its tenth year in existance. While the Festival has hosted major musicians before in 2006 they were able to pull in talent such as world renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma and The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra featuring trumpet player Wynton Marsalis. Other major performers included Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and The Tommy Dorsey Orchestra.
Next year's festival will run from April 17 to June 3, 2007. Patrons interested in more information should visit their web site at www.vafest.com
Posted by Chad Criswell
My great grandfather was a school teacher and superintendent of a very small rural community school in Iowa back in the early 1900's. Among the many artifacts I was given when my grandparent's died were a collection of old textbooks, most copyrighted in the first decade of the 1900's. Mixed in among the grammar and mathematics books was a pristine copy of a music history guide with information about many famous musicians that I had never seen in any other place. I will be using some of this new information as I continue to write articles for Suite101. Check back often to see the new tidbits that you may not have known about for some of your favorite composers. The first of such articles is an introduction to the childhood of composer and pianist Frederick Chopin. Please check it out!
Posted by Chad Criswell
In an apparent publicity stunt the Belgian based Beethoven Academie Orchestra attempted to raise money by "selling" itself on eBay recently. After being contacted by eBay officials and pointing out that auction contracts are binding they decided to take the listing down. To read the complete story go to: http://www.playbillarts.com/news/article/4850.html
Posted by Chad Criswell
If you ever listened to John Cage's compositions chances are good that you did not leave with a warm and fuzzy feeling. In fact, you may have finished the song wondering what the hell you had just been listening to. Cage and his contemporaries such as Philip Glass broke the mold of what people traditionally felt was considered to be music. If the American Heritage Dictionary defines music as: "The art of arranging sounds in time so as to produce a continuous, unified, and evocative composition, as through melody, harmony, rhythm, and timbre" then many of Cage's works would be treading a very fine line between music and noise.
To listen to a few of Cage's pieces please check out my article on this subject.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Tickets for this unique opportunity go on sale on July 14th. For a complete list of the dozens of theaters across the country that are hosting this live simulcast event go to the DCI web site.
Think about it, without having to go to the trouble and expense of a massive road trip to Madison you can instead drive a few blocks to your local movie theater and get the full experience of the top seventeen drum corps in the world performing for you in air conditioned surround sound comfort! If you have never been to a Drum Corps event before consider this one as an option. As I have said in my other articles on Suite101, once you try it you'll be hooked!
Please visit my other drum corps related articles:
Posted by Chad Criswell
Over a year ago the Music Educator's National Conference (MENC) did a study to find out just how many people did (or did not) know the words to the Star Spangled Banner, the National Anthem of the United States. What they found disturbed them greatly to the point that now they are fanning out across the country to try to remedy the situation. Their efforts are to culminate on Flag Day in 2007 with a massive celebration in our nation's capital.
For more information about MENC and the National Anthem Project check out the National Anthem Project web site.
Posted by Chad Criswell
One of the things that has always angered me a bit as a band director is when I see students (or adults) being thrust into playing an instrument that is not right for them simply because "we have Uncle Ed's old trumpet in the attic." In reality the selection of an instrument for a beginning player should be based not only on what the student wants to play, but also on the physical characteristics of student himself.
For example, in general students with full lips will have great difficulty playing efficiently on a trumpet due to the very small size of the mouthpiece. Likewise, a student with very thin lips will not likely do well playing a large bore instrument such as the tuba. Other issues such as dental work (or future dental work such as braces) or physical conditions such as asthma can all limit the extent to which a student will be able to succeed.
Unfortuntely, more often than not I see parents forcing their child onto an instrument that their band directors have warned against. A few years later, maybe even less, the student will drop out of band out of frustration. Don't let this happen to your student. Listen to your local band director and trust in his or her judgement. You both have the same goal in mind, to see your student succeed. Making the correct choice from the very beginning is the best way to make that happen.
Posted by Chad Criswell
It's summertime, and all across the country community bands and other small ensembles are gearing up for performances in their town. Most of the time these performances are free, and in almost every case you are sure to have an enjoyable time. Check your local newspaper or call your local City Hall or Chamber of Commerce and see if they know of any scheduled performances in your area. You can always find events scattered around the Fourth of July, but chances are that there are many other opportunities as well. Better yet, dust off that old trombone or flute and join in. It's just like riding a bike. You never really forget how to play your instrument!
Posted by Chad Criswell
I am on a tear here the last two weeks with my musings about drum and bugle corps, marching band, and other similar subjects. I realize that for some of the regular readers of the Music Appreciation topic here at Suite101 that I might be heading in a direction that you are not too up to date on. Please trust me, just hop on and enjoy the ride!
By the way, in case you are wondering what I was talking about in the intro, many drum corps and marching bands use drum heads made from Kevlar (the stuff that is used in bullet proof vests) and the brass thing, well if you don't know that one then you should read some of my other articles.
Oh, and don't forget to vote in our new poll! Guess what the subject is!
Band Ten-Hut! Dismissed!
Posted by Chad Criswell
The original "Blast!" production ran for a long time on Broadway before the events of September 11th cut its attendance and forced it to close. This unique and entertaining production lives on today as a traveling group performing in a musical spectacle unlike any you have ever seen on stage before.
Ever since seeing "Blast!" I have hoped for a sequel. There have been rumors about that occuring for quite some time and now it appears that the rumors are true! The town of Owensburo, Kentucky will host the premiere performances of "Blast II: Music In Extreme," from June 22-24 before the ensemble packs up for a five month tour of Japan. What happens after that is anyone's guess, but I personally hope to see "Blast II: Music In Extreme," return to the USA after the Japanese tour closes. I only wish I could afford to make a road trip to see it before they leave!
For more information visit the Drum Corps International web site.
Posted by Chad Criswell
To the uninitiated it's just a marching band. But those who have actually gone to a Drum Corps International competition and seen some of the nation's world class drum corps perform will tell you that Drum Corps is NOT just marching band. What IS Drum Corps? Check out my article on the subject or visit the Drum Corps International web site to find out when and where the corps are performing near you this summer.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Recently Napster started advertising that you can listen to complete tracks for free. My first thought was, hey, wasn't that how they got into trouble in the first place? It turns out that this time it is legal and for people like me that love to listen but are very selective about what we buy, Napster's new marketing strategy may be a great new option for music lovers of all kinds.
Now, without even subscribing to the Napster service you can listen to any song in their millions of tracks for free in its entirety. I have always found the little thirty second preview from most of the music sites to be less than adequate. Especially when dealing with longer, classical pieces of music. With this new free play plan you can listen to any song up to five times before having to buy it. If you like the song enough to buy it it can be downloaded to your hard drive for just ninety nine cents.
For music lovers that have widely varying tastes or for people that simply don't know what they like this new option sounds like a great, and possibly long overdue, upgrade to the music download industry.
Posted by Chad Criswell
The complete news release is available at the PlaybillArts web site. Marsalis is the artistic director for Jazz at Lincoln Center and plans to return to the stage in early June. Marsalis is one of the most well known trumpet musicians in the world with over thirty albums, nine grammy awards, and a Pulitzer Prize for music to his credit.
Posted by Chad Criswell
My first two article has to do with the harpisichord and its evolution into the the modern piano. Future articles will cover various brass and woodwind families as well as their usage in various ensembles.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Clyde Hunt has created a site named bflatmusic.com that literally contains almost every book or reference you could want to help you learn to play the trumpet. He even includes a library of MP3 recordings of etudes from many of the major lesson books to help you learn and improve regardless of your ability level.
Posted by Chad Criswell
This revisionist story being reported by a Darwin, Australia researcher named Martin Jarvis. Jarvis believes that Bach's second wife, Anna Magdalena Bach, may have actually been the composer of some of J.S. Bach's most famous works including The Well Tempered Clavier! The complete story can be found here.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Before the iPod, or the radio, or the television, or even the phonograph music was still an important part of every functioning society on earth. From English laborers to an African tribesman, music has always been an extension of the community it was born in. Today, however, native folk music has all but died out as the people of the world have become more interconnected.
Luckily there were many people in the early 20th and late 19th centuries that felt compelled to find a way to preserve these last reminants of agriculturally based societies using at first pen and paper and later the newly invented wax cylinder phonograph.
Many of these amazing recordings are now being digitized and made available both online and for purchase in other media. Sites such as the Wax Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project at UC Santa Barbara are just one example of the old folk arts being made available to a new generation.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Wagner's Ring cycle was never intended to be performed as a single massive unit of music. In fact, Wagner's intention was to spread out the performance over several evenings in order to give the performers (and the listeners) time to recouperate after each segment.
The four operas of Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelungen) include Das Rheingold (The Rhinegold), Die Walküre (The Valkyrie), Siegfried and Götterdämmerung (Twilight of the Gods). Each opera builds upon the previous plot line building to a stunning heroic climax.
Like most of Wagner's compositions the Ring cycle is pure Romantic in its style with visions of epic battles, love, and chivalry in its finest. If you missed the BBC broadcast of the complete cycle try taking the individual operas out for a spin on your ipod. The cycle is Wagner at his finest and you shall not be dissapointed.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Before becoming a household name in American popular music, Leonard Bernstein made his high pressure debut as a conductor when he was told to stand in for the conductor of the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall on April 21, 1939. This first performance at the young age of 25 set in motion the wheels to propel him to the forefront of American music. In the coming years he went on to compose such well known classics as "West Side Story" in 1957 and "On The Town" in 1944.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Today, students of the Julliard School are some of the most promising young musicians in the United States. Notable actors such as Robin Williams and Christopher Reeve as well as other famous names such as former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan have all been students at the Julliard School.
Other notable students include names such as:
Yo-Yo Ma (cellist)
John Williams (composer)
Meredith Willson (composer)
Kevin Kline (actor)
Posted by Chad Criswell
Now it looks like Hollywood went out and remade what is perhaps the most famous Romantic era opera ever written, Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. The original opera is synonymous with Wagner and with Romanticism in general. Twentieth Century Fox remade the opera for the big screen. Sooner or later I will have to try to go see it, or maybe I'll just wait for it to come out on video...
Posted by Chad Criswell
Many musicians get their first taste of stardom in a school musical or school play. I love giving my students this opportunity, and every year I look forward to the beginning of our musical rehearsals, that is until a few weeks before opening night when nothing is ready and the kids still don't know their lines.
Tonight marks the two week deadline before our school musical opens. I honestly have to say I was impressed with the work the kids did so far. I heard singing tonight unlike any I have heard in a school musical for a long time (at least at the high school level). If this is an indication of things to come I will be very pleased when we open in two weeks.
Being in a school musical or play is so much more than just singing or performing in front of an audience. The fun and camaraderie that comes from the rehearsals and performances is what the students will always remember. Four years after the fact my students still talk about the night I accidentally hit a sound effects button during the final scene of "Annie Get Your Gun!" When the gunshot sound went off our ever comical Buffalo Bill thought for a moment, grabbed at his chest and did one of the funniest slapstick death routines ever seen on our stage leaving the audience and the cast in stitches. To this day all other school musicals are judged by that one event.
In a perfect world everyone would get to have this kind of experience performing in a school or community musical. Until that perfect world comes around please try to get out and see your local school play or musical this spring. It isn't Broadway, but to the actors on stage it is just a good.
Posted by Chad Criswell
Our local UPN affiliate started running South Park reruns a few weeks ago. One night I found myself watching an episode called "Quituplets 2000." The title has absolutely nothing to do with music, but contained in the episode was little Kenny (a character that dies in every episode) studying how to "Sing Like Bocelli." In the process he taught himself how to sing the song "Con Te Partiro." Kenny's poor rendition of the song was replayed over and over again throughout the episode, but strangely the song stuck in my head enough to go to iTunes and listen to the real music (as sung by Bocelli of course). I liked it so much I bought the track. A cartoon can't do it justice. Check out Bocelli's Lyrics Page on ABMUSICA for more information about the song.
Posted by Chad Criswell
One of my college professors once said that when rehearsing a band I needed to always try to find at least one great moment every day. Maybe it would be just one chord that was perfectly in tune, or a melody line that everyone played with exactly the right articulations. It could even be something as simple as one person finally getting the hang of a certain fingering pattern.
Everyone can benefit from this. Whether in a band rehearsal, at work, or at home with the kids. Find at least one positive thing each day and hold on to it. When it happens make sure that everyone knows it! Allow the experiences to help you become a more positive person. In return you will start to find that that you have become a happier, more productive person. I've been there, and it works great for me!
Posted by Chad Criswell
I have become a big fan of this free weekly podcast. This podcast focuses on music technology with an obvious slant toward music educators. They also have segments on music history and music appreciation as well. A great little show with 57 episodes so far. Check it out!
Posted by Chad Criswell
I admit it, I am notorious for putting things off until the last minute. This time, however, I am trying to get ahead of the game. In case you don't know, I am a high school band director. As a part of my classroom lessons I decided to program a piece of music by Percy Aldridge Grainger, a fairly well known Austrailian born composer who lived in the United States as a naturalized citizen for most of his life. I felt it best for me and for my students if I reacquainted myself with Grainger, his history, and his music, and the result is a fairly complete biography of this legend of American music history. As a result I decided to share this research with all of you here on Suite101.
Posted by Chad Criswell
The past several days our local PBS stations have been holding their annual "Festival," fundraising drive. As I was flipping around I noticed a concert in Las Vegas by Andrea Bocelli. Even though I do not consider myself much of an opera afficianado I still found myself drawn in. An hour later I was still watching and honestly considered making a donation just to get the free DVD of the performance.
Bocelli is an incredibly talented and versatile vocalist, and like other notable musicians such as Beethoven, his physical impairments have not diminished his abilities (Bocelli was blinded in a soccer accident during his youth, Beethoven become deaf later in life). He has performed with other notables such as Luciano Pavarotti and Jose Carreras.
Posted by Chad Criswell
I am a high school band director by trade, and as such I get exposed to many different kinds of music. I enjoy learning about and writing about all of them, but I want to try to produce something that is of benefit to you as a Suite101 reader. Please reply to this article and tell me what you want to see here!