Making Music Magazine

Making Music

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BETTER LIVING THROUGH RECREATIONAL MUSIC MAKING®

StepS to PERfECT PRACTICE

3www.MakingMusicMag.com

LOVE NOTESDiscover how the love interests of master composers influenced their music.

TakiNg CarE Of BuSiNESSBands of co-workers compete at the Battle of the Corporate Bands.

ThE BryaN BrOThErSTwin brothers and tennis doubles champs make music off the courts.

Features

TurN iT dOwN How to select a practice amp.

6 LETTErS 44 COVErEd

8 ViBES 47 dESTiNaTiON

20 fOrTE 48 iN ThE SPOTLighT

37 TuNEd iN 52 harMONy

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Jan/Feb 10

Departments

COLuMNShannon Price on challenging yourself by trying a new instrument.

gETTiNg PhySiCaL Get into better shape—physically and musically.

ShEET MuSiCTips for selecting and buying sheet music.

PraCTiCE LikE a PrOMake the most our of your practice time with these nine easy steps.

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aCCOrdiON CrazEAn accordion orchestra that plays everything from ethnic music to rock ‘n’ roll classics.

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 20104

By ANTOINETTE fOLLETT

Making Musicjanuary/february 2009 | Vol. 6, Issue 1

edItor-In-ChIef Antoinette Follett [email protected]

edItor Cherie Yurco [email protected]

staff WrIters Jackie Saunders Meredith Laing Jason Borisoff Adam D’Arpino Patty Hodapp

art dIreCtor Lisa A. Mergler-Santoro

GraphIC Intern Ron Rabideau

photo CredIts Richard Mulye Chuck Wainwright

musIC Consultant Stephen Laifer

marketInG dIreCtor Honore Stockley [email protected]

Web/marketInG manaGer Richard Mulye [email protected]

adVertIsInG manaGer Krista Galster [email protected]

subsCrIptIon CoordInator Andrea Fragassi [email protected]

publIsher Bentley-Hall, Inc.120 Walton St., Ste. 300 Syracuse, NY 13202 315-422-4488 315-422-3837 fax www.MakingMusicMag.com

subscriptions–1 Year: USA: $30; Canada: $60; All Other Foreign: $105 US Funds Only. Circulation and subscriptions, phone: 315-422-4488 ext. 116. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to: Making Music; 221 Walton St., Ste. 200; Syracuse, NY 13202

Nationally distributed by Rider Circulation Services Phone: 323-344-1200. Online: www.gorcs.com

making music, Issn (1552-2946), is published six times annually. Making Music is a registered trademark of Bentley-Hall Publishing. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2009 Bentley-Hall, Inc.

The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission from the publisher. The views expressed in Making Music are those of their respective contributors and are not necessarily those of its publisher, editor, or staff. All advertising material is subject to publisher’s approval.

All materials intended for publication should be directed to Making Music; 120 Walton St., Ste. 300; Syracuse, NY 13202; fax: 315-422-3837 or e-mail: [email protected].

making music assumes no responsibility for loss or damage to unsolicited articles, photographs, or art.

n Having more energy and staying active are two of the many benefits of playing a musical instrument, so why not take advantage? If you think about it, there aren’t too many musicians who look like Meatloaf and there’s a good reason why.

This month, tennis doubles champions Bob and Mike Bryan are on the cover, sharing how they always make time for music, even when they are traveling the world for tournaments. These dy-namic twins bring along a keyboard and a guitar to jam in their hotel rooms. Both tennis and music are hobbies that can be continued well into the later years, and the Bryan Brothers are a great example of how music and exercise complement each other.

Just in time to kick off New Year’s resolutions, the article “Let’s Get Physical”, explains how maintain-ing an exercise regimen can actually help you to be a better musician and get the most out of music. If you hate the thought of entering a gym, try some-thing fun like walking with a friend, cross-country

skiing, taking a dance class, or whatever you like, as long as it gets your heart pumping.

One thing many Making Music readers write to us about is their desire to make more time for practice and to figure out the best way to capitalize on the precious practice time they do have. “Making Every Moment Count” provides nine helpful hints to more efficient practice. And if you want to challenge yourself even more, check Shannon Price’s article on “Musical Cousins” to find a new instrument that complements what you’re playing now.

Though the year is young, the deadline to register for Fortune Corporate Battle of the Bands (March 31) is just around the corner. Last fall, I co-judged the finals at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. “Taking Care of Business” highlights the stories of some of the competition finalists who work together by day and jam together by night. Why not gather up a group of musicians from your office and enter the 2010 competition?

Every New Year is a chance to set new goals with your instruments, so I hope you use the fresh year to take your music to new heights. Let me know what you would like to read about in Making Music this year by e-mailing me at [email protected].

On the COverBrothers Mike and Bob Bryan were encouraged to play music from an early age by their father who taught them classic rock songs. Their first love being tennis, the identical twins are winning tennis doubles tournaments when they aren’t jamming together in hotel rooms or in their music room.


BETTER LIVING THROUGH RECREATIONAL MUSIC MAKING®

StaccatorECrEaTiONaL MuSiC MakiNg iNSighT

A CAPPELLA n I decided to follow my latest whim to learn to play the violin. As a senior with time on my hands, I felt the need to put these hands to good use. When I inquired about lessons from a local music store, I mentioned that I was a senior. Would that matter? I was assured they had two 90-year-olds already taking lessons. Heck, I’m not that old yet, so I registered before I aged any further.

My hubby, Ken, accompanied me to my first lesson. As I looked around the waiting room, I noticed all the young parents with their children. No wonder my teacher walked by me three times before she realized the grey-haired lady was her new pupil. She was barely older than my grandson. A great deal of patience was required to get me through the first class.

I received my first piece: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star!” As it is one of the first nursery rhymes one teaches a toddler, I wondered if this was the start of my second childhood. Furthermore, the note at the bottom of the piece instructed: “At this point, it is important for the children to sing the Twinkle theme …” No way. It was bad enough Ken had to suffer what he called my “violent practices,” without having the further torture of my high-pitched voice and lack of singing ability.

The raptures I aim to obtain from playing more intricate classi-cal pieces are way in the future. My first goal is to be able to play anything that sounds something like a tune. Deep down, I yearn to play the haunting melody from the opening of Fiddler on the Roof. Naturally, my elderly state precludes me from actually clamoring onto the roof. However, I could become the fiddler in my house. My aspiration is to play for the pure pleasure of being able to transport myself to the level where I can experience the ecstasy of perform-ing some of those fine pieces, a goal worth working towards. Of course, it would be nice if my melodies wafted through the house and spread the joy that I hope to produce for the pleasure of my husband, children, and grandchildren.

In the meantime I have my hands full trying to master the instru-ment.

read penny heneke’s entire story at: www.makingmusicmag.com/staccato/heneke.html

COUNTING IN: harmonica

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ONE MINUTE PRACTICE TIPIf you need to work on your singing posture or holding your instrument or accessory, such as a cello bow or drum sticks, consider practicing in front of the mirror.

PLAy IT SAfEn Playing intensively for long periods can cause musicians to forget about body alignment, putting them at risk for back pain and other muscular-skeletal problems.

Think like an athlete and break long practice sessions down into a series of high intensity/challenging and low intensity/fun “workouts.”

Don’t assume that the longer you practice the more you are learning. In fact, you may get more out of woodshed-ding if you break one hour’s worth into 15 or 20 minute sessions spread throughout the week.

>> 5Length in centimeters of Hoh-ner’s smallest harmonica, “The Little Lady.”

Tempo, in beats per minute, of the world’s fastest harmonica player, Nicky Shane, when playing “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

>>1500>>1829Year the modern harmonica

was invented.

Number of competitors in the Asian Pacific Harmonica Festival, held last year in Hangzhou, China.


lettersThe Beat Goes Onn I found your magazine yesterday in my doctor’s office of all places! As someone who is active as a teacher and facilitator for recreational music mak-ing, I was delighted to see your publica-tion and will begin recommending it to the people I work with. I’m a percus-sionist and music educator, as well as an ethnomusicologist. I teach guided music improvisation through Music for People and facilitate two annual drumming retreats for women. I also do the fall WomenDrum retreat, which is going into its 13th year. Women from all walks of life attend. We’ve had women as young as age 13, and as old as 86, over the years. It’s the kind of thing your readership would certainly enjoy. Many thanks for putting out such a useful magazine.

Sally Childs-HeltonIndianapolis, Indiana

So Far, So Goodn I am enjoying Making Music so far and I’m only part way through the magazine. I direct a church handbell/chimes choir. At age 78, I loved read-ing about the intergenerational music groups.

Gloria J. BurkeTucson, Arizona

Easy on the Brainn I love the scales examples, tabs, and notations. I think this helps the brain relate the two styles. I enjoy this magazine best because every article keeps it simple. There is no overkill on technique, which so many music magazines do. The print is well spaced and easy to read.

Melinda MusePlano, Texas

New Beginningsn I am a very new subscriber who had never heard of your magazine until I attended the AARP Convention in Las Vegas this past week. I took a 30-minute guitar lesson and loved it!

George KennettAvenue, Maryland

Sharpen Those Skillsn Please keep up with the articles on be-ginner’s skills on the keyboard. I would especially love to learn to play chords and how to count.

Roslyn GoldFloral Park, New York

It’s All Grandn I always said that I wanted to just play music when I retired and I’ve been granted that blessing. I played piano from the age of four and fiddled around with guitar in my young years, but put it aside.

After I was 55, I started playing ham-mered dulcimer, then fiddle, then au-toharp, mandolin, mountain dulcimer, psaltery, bass, and a few other things. I just got back a 12-string guitar I gave away 10 years ago and I am playing that again. I’m on staff at two music stores teaching some of the above, and I teach from my home as well. I play out professionally, belong to dulcimer clubs, and compete nationally on autoharp. (Haven’t won yet, but I will eventu-ally!) I have a string band, Nine Pound Hammer, and I have also organized an all-woman group called the Pickin’ Chicks. I will celebrate my 65th birthday in a few weeks, and life is grand.

Mary-Jo “MJ” Ward Dayton, Ohio

We appreciate comments and suggestions. We encourage you to send them to us via our website (www.MakingMusicMag.com), by e-mailing [email protected], or by writing to: Making Music; 120 Walton Street, Ste. 300; Syracuse, NY 13202.


BY MEREDITH LAING

n The master composers left such a great legacy through music that it’s easy to forget that they had lives outside symphonies and sonatas. Not only are their love stories sweet, and sometimes scandalous, but they also give us insight into their celebrated music.

When Clara Schumann was widowed in 1856, she turned to close friend Jo-hannes Brahms for support. Although they always maintained that their re-lationship was purely platonic, gossip and speculation was endless.

Johannes and Clara spent the summer of 1858 in Göttingen with friends, and it was there that Johannes met and fell in love with the soprano singer Agathe von Siebold. The two stayed in touch past the summer through mutual friends, and Johannes planned to visit over the New Year holiday. When he arrived in Göttingen, he realized that he would be expected to propose. He did, but the 25-year-old Johannes later pan-icked and broke off the engagement.

He was tormented by his decision, writing to Agathe, “I love you! I must see you again! But I cannot be bound! Write and tell me if I should come again to enfold you in my arms, to kiss you, to tell you I love you!” She, how-ever, refused to see him, and Johannes turned to music to cope with his feel-ings. Between 1858 and 1860, he wrote three sets of songs for soprano voice for Agathe, and his 1864 Sextet in G major is based on the letters of her name: A G A H E (H being the German name for the note Bb). This was no coincidence; Johannes confided to a friend, “By this work, I have freed myself of my last love.”

Classical music’s most legendary couple met when 20-year-old Rob-ert moved into the Wieck home in 1830 to study piano with 11-year-old Clara’s father. Although Schumann aspired to be a concert pianist, he also found a talent for composing. One of his earliest pieces was Impromptus on a Theme by Clara Wieck, written in 1833.

Clara and Robert’s friendship blos-somed into romance, and in 1835, they first kissed on the steps outside of the Wieck home. Robert soon asked for Clara’s hand in marriage, but her father refused, breaking off all relations with his former student and sending his daughter, one of the most prominent pianists of the day, away on a concert tour. The two wrote to each other secretly and Robert continued to compose music inspired by Clara. Of his Fantasy in C major for Piano, he wrote to her, “I think the first movement is more impassioned than anything I have ever written—it is a deep lament for you.” Of his 1838 piano piece, Kreisleriana, he wrote, “You’ll smile when you discover yourself there.”

After an intense court battle, Robert and Clara finally married September 12, 1840. In the joyful year following their wedding, Robert had an out-pouring of creative energy, compos-ing more than 140 pieces.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart first fell in love, not with Constanze Weber, but with her sister Aloysia, whom he met in Mannheim in 1779, while travel-ing and searching for work. Aloysia, however, did not return his feelings and soon married someone else.

Two years later, Wolfgang and the Weber family both found themselves living in Vienna. Wolfgang moved into the Weber home as a boarder, claiming that he would only be there for one week or so. As it turned out, he became interested in Aloysia’s younger sister Constanze. Wolfgang stayed far past the one week, but when it became ap-parent that he was courting Constanze, he was kicked out immediately. Never-theless, he continued to pursue her, and the two were married in 1782.

After composing his Fantasy and Fugue that same year, Mozart wrote in a letter to his sister, “My dear Constanze is really the cause of this fugue’s coming into the world … As she has often heard me play fugues out of my head, she asked me if I had ever written any down, and when I said I had not, she scolded me roundly … and never ceased to entreat me until I wrote down a fugue for her.” Influ-enced by his “most beloved little wife,” fugues are seen in some of Mozart’s best known works, such as The Magic Flute and Symphony No. 41.

Johannes Brahms and Agathe von Siebold

Robert Schumann and Clara Wieck

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Constanze Weber

Tales of Love and Heartbreak from Historyís Great Composers


VibesMuSiC & hEaLTh NEwS

John Lennon wrote “Good Morning, Good Morning,” after hearing a Corn Flakes commercial.

❱❱ Pain-Free Pianon Fred Karpoff ’s story started like many others who take up their instrument with gusto—maybe too much gusto. He overdid it and injured himself to a point that his music career was threatened, but he was fortunate enough to get the help that he needed. Mentors like pianist Yoheved Kaplinsky, in

addition to the Alexander Technique and the Feldenkrais Method, helped him discover

ways to employ whole-body techniques and thereby improve his skills, while decreasing

the risk of injury.

Today, Karpoff performs on stages around the world and teaches piano at the Setnor School of Music at Syracuse

University, where he is committed to shar-ing the techniques that helped him return

to his music.

With award-winning filmmaker Richard Breyer, Karpoff produced a six-part DVD series and

workbook that demonstrate whole-body techniques that are central to his teaching and performing. Already, amateur and professional pianists across the globe are using the series, which was released earlier this year.

The series, 3-D Piano (3-dpiano.com), uses an innovative, interactive approach. In essence, the viewer joins Professor Karpoff in his studio and receives individual tutorials. “Our intention was to share a healthful, effective approach to the magic of music,” says Karpoff.

Music, the Miracle Workern Music is a valuable tool for stress reduction and assistance in healing, according to Dr. Barry Bittman, CEO of the Yamaha Music and Wellness Institute. Bittman recently spoke at Lincoln Center’s “Music and the Brain” symposium where he discussed how music is a great stress reducer for everyone—even people who don’t consider themselves musically inclined.

Bittman researches DNA-level altering stress biol-ogy for individuals. He says that responses are all different.

“Frankly, we were surprised, not only by the distinctly individualized nature of the human stress response, but also by the positive impact playing an instrument had at the molecular level,” says Bittman.

With more and more studies coming out every month about the power of music to heal and re-duce stress, this phenomenon will continue to be researched and discussed.


Music Makes for Happy Feetn An initiative called the “Fun Theory” by Volkswagen Swe-den and an ad agency in Stockholm, encouraged 66% more people to take the stairs in Stockholm’s Odenplan subway station than the escalator.

The stairs in the station were outfitted to look and sound like piano keys as people walked up and down them. Formerly lazy subway passengers, enchanted and intrigued by the piano stairs, began taking the once-avoided steps in droves. A dog even tried his paws on the ivory steps with his owner.

To see a video of this musical experiment, visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXh2n0aPyw.

❱❱ one SuPer Sing-a-LongMost people take voice lessons one on one with a teacher and a piano, but Sweet Adelines International, one of the world’s largest singing organizations for women, held a 10-minute “group” lesson in late October with 6,651 partici-pants, breaking the Guinness World Record for the largest singing lesson.

The record-setting event coincided with the 63rd annual International Convention and Competition held at the Som-met Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Sweet Adelines members are women who excel in singing barbershop harmony. Music Professional and past Sweet Adelines International Quartet Champion Peggy Gram led the lesson by demon-strating techniques for integrating the voice into the art form.

“It was inspiring to demonstrate our unique style of music to thousands of singers from around the globe. While obtaining the world record is terrific, what’s even more important is that it allowed us the opportunity to show how rewarding it is to sing barbershop harmony,” says Gram.

❱❱ a CeLLuLar SYMPHonYJust when you thought your phone could do it all, a musi-cian and a team of cell phone gurus programmed 1,000 Nokias to deliver 2,000 text messages in 40 seconds to mimic Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture.

Using 52 ringtones and 2,000 text messages, the end result sounds close to the original symphonic master-piece, complete with bass drums and cymbals crashing at the end.

First, a team of 15 cellphone network programmers, along with musician Jol Mulholland of New Zealand, found 1,000 cellphones, complete with their chargers and SIM cards. They then created a cataloguing system and arranged them on a vertical metal grid against a wall. Mulholland was in charge of the music portion and recorded some ringtones from professional musicians playing violin, cymbals, or horns.

In order for the messages to travel in the time they were intended, a network engineer from Vodafone chose a time between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. in Auckland, New Zealand, when the network was the least busy.

To see a video of Jol Mulholland and his cellphone sympho-ny, visit: www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3nSoEhY8SM.


Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti holds the world record for most curtain calls:

165

All that Jazzn A recently released documentary about jazz education and training for high school students, CHOPS, follows the lives of several music students from around the country as they prepare for and perform at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition and Festival.

The film was made to raise awareness and funds for high school music and arts programs. For music teachers who want their students to get revved up about jazz, a special education edition with lesson plans is available.

Duke Ellington—one of America’s greatest composers—and his music, are featured throughout the film, which chronicles aspiring jazz musicians on their journey to compete in what is called “the Superbowl of high school jazz band competitions.”

See a video clip of 1,000 jazz band hopefuls at the website: chopsthemovie.com/

❱❱ Put Your MuSiC WHere Your MoutH iSThe 10th annual Human Beatbox Battle was recently held at the Saint-Denis Hip-Hop Festival in a suburb of Paris, where French beatboxers from around the country showcased their musical mouths.

Performers were judged on stage presence as well as technical and musical ability.

Beatboxing is the art of mimicking musical instruments and beats with the human mouth. Modern vocal percussion or beatboxing is heard in American hip-hop music of the ’80s and ’90s, but the idea goes all the way back to those earliest jazz musicians and scat singers who made up words such as “doot,” “wawp,” “bapadoo,” and many others, imitating the sounds of common instruments in their music.

Going even further back, it is thought that French troubadours in the late 1400s and 1500s, known as traveling minstrels, would interchange short sharp notes with melodies, making it sound like a whole band was playing with them to give the music more depth.

Vibes



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Over 100 years of passion and innovation dedicated to one thing. Making your music better.Vandoren. One great performance after another. Call or write us for your free catalog. It’s yourgateway to a beautiful sound.

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Vibes

n A little good, old-fashioned sweat and heart-pumping action is good for your overall health, especially if you’re a musician. Anne Roos, 52, of South Lake Tahoe, California, is a Celtic harp player who has been performing at weddings and private functions for the past 25 years. A few years into her performing schedule, Roos hit a point where she felt she needed to start a regular, physical routine.

“Exercise was not something I had been doing all the time,” says Roos, who began to exercise more consistently about 18 years ago.

“There came a point I needed to lose some weight and get more physically active,” she says. “It’s hard to be heavier and perform-ing; it doesn’t feel good.”

Several aspects of her wedding business were difficult when Roos wasn’t active. Simple things like moving the harp and equipment around, playing several gigs in one day, and switching songs at the last minute for a fickle bride or groom, were physically exhausting. “When I play a wed-ding I can’t be exhausted; I have to sit down and put a smile on my face,” says Roos. “I need to be sharp and I think it’s harder to be that way when I am sedentary and not taking care of myself.”

Now, Roos goes to the gym three days a week, working on her upper body, lower

body, and core. She works with a personal trainer for weight lifting and takes two, two-hour karate classes each week to help with mental alertness and balance. Roos says that working with a trainer was espe-cially beneficial for her since she had been in a car accident and wanted to make sure her body and spine were properly aligned during exercises. “A lot of musicians suffer from back problems so a trainer can help by showing safe exercises,” says Roos.

Dr. William J. Dawson, a retired ortho-pedic surgeon and bassoon player from Glenview, Illinois, who sometimes plays with a New Horizons band, says there are many reasons why recreational musicians should have a regular exercise routine. “Exercise can help musicians preserve the skills they already have, help them

Let’s Get PhysicalBY JACKIE SAUNDERS

Stop Making Excuses, Get Off Your Couch, and See How Staying Active Actually Makes You a Better Musician


The Vandoren Difference

Over 100 years of passion and innovation dedicated to one thing. Making your music better.Vandoren. One great performance after another. Call or write us for your free catalog. It’s yourgateway to a beautiful sound.

U.S. importer • 818 W. Evergreen Ave., Chicago, IL 60642 • 888-707-4455 • [email protected] • www.dansr.com

continue to make music in their later years, and improve general health,” says Dawson, whose practice was affiliated with Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. “It is also beneficial to wind musicians for maintaining breathing capacity.”

While many people probably wouldn’t compare the physical prowess of a bas-soon or cello player with a track star or basketball player, musicians are athletes. “Some people may call musicians ‘small muscle’ athletes for their use of hands and upper extremities,” says Dawson. “It takes significant athletic competence to make music through repetitive move-ments for hours at a time.”

Just like with any new exercise program, it is important to consult your physi-cian and get a physical exam. Unless your physician is trained in exercise physiology or sports medicine, it is wise to consult a personal trainer who can tailor a program to suit your needs, says Dr. Dawson.

In case you still need some motiva-tion, here are some reasons to hit the treadmill or pick up some weights:

Longer Practice and Jam Sessions. Exercise helps with endurance. By building upon muscular, respiratory, and cardiopulmonary capabilities, your ability to play more and longer will also improve.

Improved Flexibility. “This is an area that is so often forgotten but as we age, our joints tend to get stiffer and muscles get tighter so we gradually lose some flexibility,” says Dawson. “It is very important to stretch before and after exercise to regain muscle tendon flexibility.”

Maintain a Healthy Weight. Sort of a no-brainer, but exercising burns calo-ries, builds muscle mass and tone, and makes you look and feel great. It also gives you a boost in energy so you can tackle a new difficult song you have been thinking about trying.

Robust Immune System. Getting knocked out with a bad cold or flu takes you away from valuable music time. Studies show a moderate exercise routine helps stave off illness. During moderate exercise immune cells cir-culate through the body more quickly and are better able to kill bacteria and viruses. Although the immune system returns to normal after an exercise ses-sion, regular physical activity seems to make these changes last longer.

Helps Clear the Mind. “There is some evidence that exercise helps maintain a better mental outlook and has a posi-tive effect on the brain,” says Dawson. It also helps ease feelings of stress and anxiety. A healthy physical romp can help you get your concentration back.

It’s fun! Going to the gym and running marathons certainly aren’t for everyone. Find something you enjoy doing. Try taking a dance class, riding a bike, swim-ming, walking—whatever makes you happy and gets your heart rate up.


Musical

Ho

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VibesHARPYou have a powerful influence over everyone you meet. Your soothing sounds are a source of comfort for others, but they also make it easy for you to get your way. Your sophistication, combined with self-confidence and a tendency to work alone, could cause others to see you as conceited. Prove them wrong by pairing up with other instruments: flute or violin will blend nicely and won’t overpower you.

LOW BRASSOthers depend on you constantly without even realizing it. You are generous and don’t ask for much in return—just be sure you’re not being taken for granted. You are the sturdy foundation of any ensemble you play with, and without that foundation, the group would crumble. This year, seek out new solo repertoire to feed your creativity and showcase your talent.

HIGH BRASSYou’ve never been the quiet type. You know what you want and aren’t afraid to go after it. Some may be put off by your outgoing nature, but that doesn’t bother you; you’re happy with your flashy, loud self. Your confidence makes you a natural leader, but be sure to lead by listening to others, as well, and be willing to adjust for the good of the group as a whole.

FLUTE, PICCOLO You are spirited and vivacious—the life of the party. You move at a fast pace. With your knack for lightening a mood, people are naturally attracted to you. Though your sound is light, airy, and flirtatious, there is actually a great amount of depth behind it. Try to slow down, so others can get to know and appreciate the more relaxed and expressive you as well.

ACOUSTIC GUITAR, UKE, BANJO, MANDOLINYou are free-spirited and don’t like to do things by the book. Whether you are improvising over a chord progression, or writing poetic lyrics to a song, you need the freedom to express yourself. You’ve already proven your artistry: now it’s time to perfect your technique to let that creativity shine through even more.

VIOLIN, VIOLAYou take music seriously, to the point of perfectionism. The polished sound you are known for requires precision. Violinists may come across as being elitist, while violists are quick to be defensive about their status and importance. This year, humble yourself by learning something new, such as fiddling techniques. Or, step outside of your comfort zone and become better acquainted with some nonstring players.



M

usical

Ho

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ACCORDIONYou are quirky, unique, and never afraid to be yourself, but you also have an appreciation for tradition. Your lack of inhibition makes you a natural entertainer, but you sometimes worry that you aren’t taken seriously enough. Try thinking outside of your typical repertoire and transcribing classical pieces or rock songs to fit your instrument. It will be a new challenge, and will show off your versatility.

PERCUSSIONYou are able to get people motivated and on track. Your energy and snappy personality are infectious. Consistent and reliable, others admire your ability to juggle many things at once while remaining level-headed. While your enthusiasm is great, be careful not to overpower others. Sometimes, a gentle nudge is just as effective in keeping everyone together as an in-your-face approach.

PIANO, KEYBOARD, ORGANYour strongest trait is your ability to adapt to situations. Comfortable with many styles of music and ensembles, you move in and out of any group with ease. At the same time, shifting around so much makes you sometimes wonder where you really belong. Try to find your own voice by putting together a permanent group—maybe a piano trio, with violin and cello.

STRING BASS, CELLO Sensitive and rational, you seem to get along with everyone. Your warm, mellow sound balances out more intense higher-pitched instruments, but can also blend beautifully with other low-range instruments. When you do get a moment in the spotlight, be confident in your abilities and don’t hold anything back. Remember, you deserve to be noticed!

SAX, CLARINET, OB0EYou are well rounded and easy going, yet ready to jazz things up on occasion. Sometimes subtle and mysterious, sometimes warm and inviting, you have a multifaceted personality. Your sound is pure, and others admire that, whether they’re following you in a solo or relying on you for tuning. This year, team up with fellow wind players in a small ensemble to explore the different tone colors you can produce.

ELECTRIC GUITAR, ELECTRIC BASSElectric guitarists are aggressive, bold, and edgy, and not afraid to voice an opinion. This year, try to explore your more sensitive side by stepping outside of the limelight for a change. Electric bassists are more gentle and sometimes shy. Don’t be afraid to show the real you by jumping on center stage every once in a while.

What does 2010 hold in store for you and your instrument?


n Have you ever noticed that people’s personality traits sometimes influence which instrument they gravitate towards? See if that holds true for you with this musical take on traditional astrological horoscopes, complete with words of wisdom for the coming year. Making Music predicts great things for you and your instrument in 2010!


Corporate life and rock music seems like an unlikely combo. But these days, being part of office culture doesn’t always mean swapping in a guitar case for a briefcase. Increasingly, the office is a place where talented musicians come together and start rock bands. Many companies are even encouraging employees to form bands, aware that making music helps workers bond and stay motivated, creative, and focused.

.

Taking Care of

Business

Strat 5 from Healthways of Nashville, Tennessee.

Slump from Oceanside Glasstile of Carlsbad, California.

Roland’s Stones from Chevron of Pascagoula, Mississippi.

The S.A.P.’s from Johnson & Johnson of Morristown, New Jersey

Aeroroot from Frontier Natural Products of

Norway, Iowa.


Taking Care of

Business

Breaking the SlumpOne group fresh off an appearance at the 2009 Battle of the Corporate Bands is Slump, a sextet of Oceanside Glasstile employees from Carlsbad, California. “We started the band almost as a joke,” says Johnny Marckx, 39, bassist and executive vice president at Oceanside. Slump initially played tongue-in-cheek parodies of classic rock songs at cus-tomer seminars, with lyrics adapted to relate to their products. For example, instead of “My Sharona,” they sang “My Corona,” due to the numerous recycled Corona bottles used in their glass tile.

Since forming 10 years ago, Slump has expanded its repertoire and played gigs at trade shows and rock clubs around the country. Marckx feels that the mixed musical tastes of group members help keep the set lists interesting. “The range of styles goes from fun rock ‘n’ roll to reggae to funk,” he says. “We really mix it up.”

Slump’s varied set at the Battle of the Corporate Bands, which included funky covers of The White Stripes and The Black Eyed Peas, helped the group land third place. But for Marckx, the event was more about camaraderie than com-petition. “Everyone was very supportive of each other,” he says. “I feel like it was everyone getting to live their brief fan-tasy of being in the spotlight.”

In addition to letting employees “get the yeah, yeahs out,” Marckx feels that the band is an important tool for building friendship within the office. “Among bandmates there’s a respect and support that goes beyond what you find among peers in a normal work setting. Play-ing in a band creates a certain human appreciation,” he says. “Plus, it’s just a really fun hobby.”

Healthy Dose of RockWorking suit-and-tie jobs is usually viewed as an obstacle for musicians trying to pull a band together. But for employees of Healthways, a disease man-agement company based in Franklin, Tennessee, the office has been a musical blessing. “They give us a place to play right here and the office assists with ex-penses to get us to events,” says Director of Finance David Lakey, 55, who sings and plays guitar in corporate band Strat 5. “One day a week we get together for a couple hours to jam, polish, and have fun,” he says.

Lakey notes that Strat 5 has been an important stress reliever for him and his bandmates. “It’s a great way to get together and blow off steam,” he says. Also, because his bandmates bring a wide range of musical tastes to the group, Strat 5 has helped Lakey improve his musical chops and become well-versed in new genres. “To learn how to play country licks was a bit of a stretch for me,” he says. “But it’s been great because I’m building my skill set.”

For Healthways Reporting Manager Mark Paul, a guitarist and vocalist for the band who’s in his 50s, there are several parallels between being successful in a band and being successful in the office. “It’s a team effort, and you can always get better at working with a team,” says Paul. “You realize it’s not all about one person. That’s what makes music sound good, and that’s also what makes teams accomplish goals.”

Strat 5 formed in 2005 when the Health-ways’ CEO commissioned the group’s first performance at a company party. The gig was a success, and the band has since played at other corporate events and health summits, including the World

Health Conference in Washington, D.C., and at the 2009 Battle of the Corporate Bands, where they took first place.

Lakey found performing at the Rock Hall for the competition both exhila-rating and demanding. “I had to pull off into a corner and really make sure I was focused,” he says. “But when we hit the stage, we opened up on that first song and immediately felt comfortable, excited, and confident. There was a gell-ing that happened for us.”

Band on CampusFor corporate bands facing busy work schedules, getting everyone in the same room to rehearse can be a challenge. This is the case for The S.A.P.’s, a Skill-man, New Jersey, group comprised of self-described Johnson & Johnson “IT geeks.” “It’s very rare to have a practice where everybody’s there, so it ends up being two or three people at a time,” says Bob DeVoe, 47, who sings and plays bass for The S.A.P.’s.

The group tries to get together as much as they can, often reserving practice space on the Johnson & Johnson cam-pus, but when drummer Matt Meyer was deployed to Los Angeles a year ago, it forced The S.A.P.’s to find a creative solution to keep the band together. “We had Matt record his drums tracks and send them as MP3s,” says guitarist Dave Tsien, 45. “My iPod became known as ‘Virtual Matt.’”

Like Strat 5, The S.A.P.’s originally formed to perform one corporate gig—an awards banquet for the Johnson & Johnson IT department—and it kept rolling from there. “They asked us to help break the ice, so we called ourselves ‘The Icebreakers.’ We played ‘Hey Jude’ and pulled if off great,” says vocalist Kim Mulvaney, 47.

Since 2001, the Fortune Battle of the Corporate Bands has celebrated rock ‘n’ rollers with nine-to-fives, and brought the best of the best together to compete at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, every October.

BY ADAM D’ARPINO


With the partnership of international music products association NAMM, this event has been elevated in stature and further sup-ports the value of recreational music making, particularly in the workplace, where music fosters creativity, teamwork, discipline, com-mitment, and focus. And more importantly, this event is a benefit that helps to support education programs at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

For more information about the Fortune Battle of the Corporate Bands, visit the web-site: rockhall.com/fortunebattle.

Since The S.A.P.’s’ first performance, they’ve played various corporate gigs, including a three-hour perfor-mance at the Ben Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. “That was cool because they brought us over on our own bus,” says Mulvaney.

The S.A.P.’s placed second in the year’s Battle of the Corporate Bands, but for Mulvaney, just being on stage at the Rock Hall was a dream come true. “I don’t think I’ve gotten nervous performing since fourth grade summer music school, but it was really overwhelming,” she says. “I looked out off the stage and thought: holy mackerel, I’m standing on the stage at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and I’m singing. There were no words.”

In addition to letting the band members briefly live out their rock star dreams, playing with The S.A.P.’s has allowed them to take their minds off work, nurture their creative sides, and get to know one another in a less formal setting. “You get to explore a side of you that you don’t always get to pay attention to,” says DeVoe. “Having the opportunity to be in a band helps you to be more of a complete person.”

adam d’arpIno IS A GRAD STUDENT IN ARTS JOURNAL-ISM AT SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY. WHEN HE’S NOT WRITING FOR MAKING MUSIC, HE SPENDS HIS FREE TIME WRITING SONGS, PLAYING GUITAR, AND METICULOUSLY ORGANIZING HIS ITUNES.

Think your company band has what is takes to play at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? The Fortune Battle of the Corporate Bands is currently searching for talent to participate in their 10th annual competition to be held in Cleve-land October 1-2, 2010.

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Musical Theatre ShowtimeJuly 7, 8, 9, 12, 13 & 14, 2010A complete theatrical experi-ence for students aged 10 to 19

CASS-Amici String CampJuly 19 - 23, 2010An intense, fun program for students of all ages and levels

Adult Piano CampAugust 2 - 4, 2010Participants explore the many facets of piano playing in a supportive atmosphere. Clini-cians: Faina Bryanskaya, USA & Joseph Fridman, Edmonton

Improv CampAugust 3 - 6, 2010Students aged 8 to 12 create and perform skits

CASS RecitalAugust 4, 2010Pianists: Faina Bryanskaya, USA & Joseph Fridman, Edmonton

Music Theory WorkshopAugust 4, 2010

Piano Pedagogy WorkshopAugust 5 & 6, 2010Clinicians: Faina Bryanskaya & Joseph Fridman

Piano CampAugust 9 - 13, 2010For piano enthusiasts of all levels, aged 10 to adult

Jazz Connection August 9 - 13, 2010A workshop to explore improvisation, creativity and jazz styles for musicians aged 13 to adult

PlayWriting CampAugust 16 - 20, 2010Students, aged 8 to 12, create, rehearse and perform their own unique play in 5 days

Music, Drama, Movement and Art CampAugust 16 - 20, 2010A half-day introductory arts extra-vaganza for students aged 4 to 10

NEW!!! Choral & Collaborative Music Camp July 26 - 30, 2010Vocalists, pianists and stringplayers, aged 12 to adult, will enjoy an intense week of train-ing with an innovative approach to ensemble music.

january/february 201020

A ll aspiring electric guitarists know the feeling: you take one look at that big, beautiful Marshall stack at your local music shop, and suddenly you are transported to a massive arena, ripping a screaming rock guitar solo in front of 50,000 adoring fans. As romantic as all that seems, taking home one of those behemoths would most likely result in enraged neighbors and/or shattered windows.

Don’t Wake the Neighbors!

For those of us who have post-poned our rock ‘n’ roll lifestyles indefinitely, loud Marshall stacks and Mesa Boogies are simply not practical for woodshedding at home. At a fraction of the size and cost of their big brothers, practice amps are an important tool for both novice and seasoned players. While they aren’t loud enough to use in noisy bars and concert

arenas, these little guys work great for quiet home practice, jams, and sometimes even small coffee shop gigs.

There is an abundance of practice amps on the market designed to meet a wide variety of needs. Here are some basic things to take into consideration as you begin to nar-row down the choices.

ForteMUSIC HOW-TO’SForteMUSIC HOW-TO’S

by jason borisoff

Practice amps are a quieter, smaller, and less expensive alternative to loud, heavy gigging amps


Watt’s in a Practice Amp?The main difference between a practice amp and a larger, louder amp is wattage. Generally speaking, the more wattage an amp has, the more powerful and louder it is going to be. Practice amps can range from two watts to 25 watts of power, with guitar and keyboard amps averaging 10 watts to 15 watts. Bass amps require more power to produce low frequencies, and therefore will have more wattage, around 15 watts to 25 watts.

Since practice amps have less power than larger amps, they use smaller speakers. A single 10-inch speaker is about as big as they get, with smaller models sporting eight-inch and even five-inch speakers. In general, the larger or heavier the speaker, the more bass frequencies you will hear, especially at higher volumes.

More wattage and bigger speakers means louder and better tone, but it also means a bigger and heavier amp. Practice amps generally can range in weight from seven pounds to 25 pounds, and come in many shapes and sizes. If you plan on toting your amp around a lot, you may want to consider a smaller, lighter amp, for the sake of your back.

Tube or Solid State?Tube technology was the norm in amps up until the late ’60s and ’70s, when modern solid state technology came of age. Despite their higher cost, maintenance, and weight, many players still swear by tube amps for their warm, vintage sound and unique distortion. Solid state amps tend to be more rugged and affordable. Since they generally sound more tinny and sterile, when compared to tube amps, most solid state units feature onboard digital amp modeling and effects processors that allow you to dial in a wide variety of tones. Solid state amps almost always feature headphone jacks for silent practice, as well.

Which Amp Is for You?The correct amp is ultimately a personal choice. You should always try out the amp before buying it. Research a few different models that have features to suit your needs, then head down to your local music shop with your instrument to test the chemistry between it and the amplifier. Bringing along a trusted musician friend is always a good idea as a source of sound advice (no pun intended).

Don’t be afraid to put the amp through its paces. Make sure you can easily dial in a variety of tones that you are happy with. If the amp has on-board effects, try them all and decide which ones, if any, you would likely use.

Pick up the amp and walk around with it to gauge its portability. If possible, request a soundproof booth and find out how loud the amp gets before it starts distorting. Ruggedness is difficult to check in the store, as it is generally considered inappropriate to roughhouse the merchandise. Instead, buy from a store that has a good return policy. That way you can return the amp, not only if it is defective, but also if you are unhappy with its performance in the real world.

by jason borisoff

Fender Super Champ XD super Champ XD is an updated version of the popular fender Champ from the ’60s. This unit falls on the larger end of the practice amp spectrum. it has 15 watts of tube power, a single 10-inch speaker, and weighs 24 pounds. it also features on-board effects and a line output jack.

Peavey Max 158 Peavey Max 158 is a popular bass practice amp. it has 15 watts driving a heavy-duty eight-inch speaker, and weighs 20 pounds. Peavey’s pat-ented TransTube Technology emulates warm tube amp tones, and a three-band EQ allows more control over tone.

Roland Micro Cube

Micro Cube is a highly portable, lightweight, solid-state unit that runs on batteries. Weighing only seven pounds, it’s perfect for students and those on the go. it has two watts of power, a five-inch speaker, on-board amp modeling, and effects processors. it’s suitable for electric and acoustic guitar, keyboard, and vocals.


Band of BrothersTennis Doubles Champs anD iDenTiCal Twins mike anD bob bryan Combine a passion for musiC wiTh a love of The gameBY jackie SaunderS

Mike and Bob Bryan spend many hours in the practice room of the Camarillo, California, home, where they use music to unwind from tennis.


n Born two minutes apart, with Mike being the older of the two, the brothers do just about ev-erything together—that includes winning seven men’s doubles Grand Slam titles, a bronze medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, sharing the top doubles team spot on the Association of Ten-nis Professionals World Tour, and playing in a rock ‘n’ roll band.

The Bryan Brothers Band, featuring friend and vocalist David Baron, officially formed in 2008, but the two tennis champs have been playing music since their childhood. There was plenty of encouragement for both tennis and music from parents Wayne and Kathy, who owned a tennis club in Camarillo, California, and were both profes-sional tennis players. “My dad didn’t let us watch TV. He took it right out of the house. So when we got home from tennis, we had a lot of time to practice,” says Mike.

Wayne, who had played with a few members of the Beach Boys when they were all students at Haw-

thorne High School, taught his sons to play their instruments—Mike the drums and Bob the

keyboard. Musical education from Wayne consisted of learning hundreds of classic rock songs like “Johnny B. Goode,” “My Girl,” and “Louie Louie,” which Mike and Bob memorized without really understanding music theory. “My dad wanted us to have fun with music and build a passion for it,” says Mike. “He taught us how to play songs right off the bat, which was cool for us.”

Wayne played local street fairs, where he would call his sons up on stage, asking if

they wanted to play a kid’s song like “Jingle Bells.” “No,” Mike and Bob would reply, “We

want to play rock ‘n’ roll.”

This little music act planted the seed, which later grew to a lifelong dedication to music and the formation of the Bryan Brothers Band, despite the extreme time commitment they had already made to their professional tennis careers.

“Tennis is still number one right now and we de-vote most of our energy to doing that, but we have a music room in our house and we spend four to

five hours a day in there,” says Mike. “It really helps take our minds off the stress of tennis and is a great complement to our lives,”

In college at Stanford University, the brothers continued on track to a professional tennis career and also started filling in the gaps of their music education by learning more about reading music and theory.

Equipped with a better understand of music fun-damentals, the Bryan brothers continue to play music every day, and even bring their instruments on the road—40 weeks out of the year—when they compete in tennis tournaments. The instruments provide a respite from the physical side of tennis and bring a little bit of home abroad. Mike brings a travel guitar that he plays around with and Bob brings a little keyboard along, plus recording equip-ment to capture any song ideas that may arise from their regular jam sessions. “It’s fun to do it together,” says Mike. “We are our own little band. We can make pretty good music for just two guys.”

While the two-person band was working for the brothers, at a certain point, they realized they needed a vocalist and guitar player, which is where David Baron came in. The brothers met Baron at a tennis tournament, where Baron had a gig on the grounds. They invited him to come over and jam with them. Eventually, the trio ended up writing and recording four original songs for their album Let It Rip. The songs incorporate elements of the brothers’ lives, which includes a lot of court jargon. However, the themes are universal—subjects like love, perseverance, and taking chances.

All three members of the group contribute equally to the creative process. Mike says writing sessions involve a lot of “ping-ponging” ideas off one an-other. Although the Bryan Brothers Band is starting to play more gigs, like the Mercury Lounge in New York City, and the famous Viper Room in Holly-wood, Mike and Bob still appreciate how relaxing playing a musical instrument is.

“My brother and I are close,” says Bob. “It’s an ac-tivity that’s fun and I enjoy that bonding time. It’s fun getting lost in something besides tennis. I can play music all night and not be tired.”


There’s no denying that twins have a special bond. They can finish each other sentences, have a good idea what the other is thinking, and have been known to sense if something bad happens to their sibling, even if they are miles apart. Brothers Mike and Bob Bryan are no exception to the twin clichés and folklore.


Posters of music icons like The Doors and Dave Matthews Band, alongside tennis photos, t-shirts, and memorabilia, cover the walls in the brothers’ music room in their Medi-terranean-style villa in Camarillo, close to their childhood home. The room, filled with keyboards, drum kits, and mikes, is where the brothers spend hours winding down from tennis practice, by playing their instruments.

Music, like sports, requires a certain element of cohesion and harmony between players and the Bryan brothers’ wordless communication on the court demonstrates their uncanny ability to read what the other one will do. This type of unspoken mental connection helps their music too. “Just from being with Bob my whole life we have this great communication so I know what he’s thinking,” says Mike. “We need that on the court; reacting and anticipat-ing works the same for music.”

The connection between the sport of tennis and playing music is a strong one for the twins. Even though they find music the more relaxing of the two, both activities bring a lot excitement to their lives. “I think both of them give us that adrenaline rush,” says Bob of tennis and music. “When you’re in front of the crowd on the court or on stage you get a rush, which is a lot of fun. With both you hit a point where everything is clicking and you’re not having to think too much—it’s flowing and it’s just beautiful.”

Mike and Bob, 31, hope to continue their professional tennis careers as long as they are healthy and winning. Although tennis is one of those sports people can play into their twilight years, the level that the Bryan brothers compete at won’t be feasible forever. “We are so physi-cal on the court, pounding our bodies, so it takes hours in the music room to regenerate,” says Mike. “Tennis is physical and music is creative and relaxing, so we can do it forever. That’s the beauty of music for us—it’s a great thing to have in our lives.”

JaCkie SaunderS took tenniS leSSonS when She waS in elementarY School and Still made time for her piano practice, even though her Schedule waS packed.


Bob Bryan (above) takes a break from the keyboards

to play the congas.

Mike Bryan (right) keeps things light-hearted in

the music room.


Promoting the Rhythm of Music

Remo D. belli, founder and CEo of remo, inc., is staunch sup-porter of recreational music and its benefits. He says, “Music

is not only essential for its beauty; it is essential to human health.”

belli began playing drums professionally at age 16, and after serving in the navy during World War ii, moved to Holly-wood, California, where he performed with many leading musicians of the day. He was also co-owner of the shop Drum City and even gave drum lessons to Mae West and Little ricky.

belli’s relentless pursuit of excellence drove him and chemist sam Muchnick to develop an innovative synthetic drumhead made of DuPont Mylar, which became Weatherking. The material pro-vided uniform pitch, tone, consistency, endurance, and weather resistance, and eventually was adopted by every lead-ing drum manufacturer. This invention led to the founding of remo, inc.

Through the years, belli has been in-volved with many music-related non-profit organizations. in 1963, he founded the Percussive arts society with several like-minded musicians to promote per-cussion education, research, performance, and appreciation throughout the world. He’s also worked with the international association for jazz Education, the national association for Music Education, youth in the arts, and many other causes.

a passionate believer in the health benefits of drumming, belli’s remo recreational Music Center in north Hollywood promotes music education, health, and community through


Behind the NameplateReMo D. Belli

free drum circles, workshops, and concerts. Through his work with the american Music Therapy association, he established HealthrHyTHMs at remo in 2000 to promote and research therapeutic drumming.

belli’s dedication to music has been honored by many organizations. Most recently he was recognized by the smithsonian institute’s Lemelson Center for the study of invention and innovation at the national Museum of american History.


n “I’d tune to the numbers in a date; I’d tune to a piece of music I liked on the radio; I’d tune to bird songs and the landscape I was sitting in … “ —joni Mitchell.

not every guitarist is as esoteric, or as tal-ented, as Mitchell, who is as well-known for her alternative guitar tunings as for the beautiful, exotic ballads she wrote with them.

still, Mitchell’s quote highlights the spirit of exploration and the joie de vivre that comes with alternative tunings.

slide and blues guitarists will already be familiar with open tunings—in which a guitar’s strings are tuned to a major chord—but it’s worth all guitarists investigating at least a few of the more common alternates, if only to play the songs of Mitchell, neil young, stephen stills, john fahey, nick Drake, and other greats who have used them.

in the tunings shown, Making Music indi-cates the number of frets—or half-steps—you must tune each string down from its standard tuning note. Each fret on a guitar is a half-step, or semi-tone, apart (the first fret of the bottom E string on a standard tuned guitar is f, for instance). Therefore, there’s little chance you will break a string when retuning, and there should be no need to buy heavier gauge strings.

While open tuning is great for playing slide guitar, these alternative tunings can be used to reinvigorate familiar chord shapes and picking patterns, too.

remember, if you retune your guitar, you are entering a whole new world that may take a little time to get used to. but the investigation can be worth it.

or to paraphrase Da-vid Crosby, when you first tune that low E down to a D, you’ll be hooked, and “from that day on, you’re a lost soul.”

Forte

AlTeRnATive Tunings foR guiTAR

?DoesHow

Workit


E

B

G

D

AE

E

B

G

DA

D

D

BG

DA

D

EbBb

GbDb

AbEb

D

AG

DA

D

E

B

F#D

AE

DROPPED D TUNINGfrom standard tuning: 2 —0 — 0 — 0 — 0 — 0

used by: david Crosbya good tuning for rock as power chords can be fretted easily on the lower three strings. Play the low D and a open to accompany songs in the key of D.

DOUBLE DROPPED D TUNINGfrom standard tuning: 2 — 0 — 0 — 0 — 0 — 2

used by: neil younga cross between open G (DGDGbD) and Drop-ped D, you can use stan-dard chord shapes on the middle four strings and play open G blues licks with the top three strings.

SEMI-TONE TUNINGfrom standard tuning: 1 — 1 — 1 — 1 — 1 — 1

used by: jiMi HendrixPreferred for a number of reasons: to make bending strings easier, to accompany a saxophone, or to better suit a singer’s vocal range.

DAD GAD TUNINGfrom standard tuning: 2 — 0 — 0 — 0 — 2 — 2

used by: jiMMy Page/led ZePPelin Popularized by british folk pioneer Davey Graham, this is a good tuning for fingerstyle guitarists to explore interesting melodies accompanied by open strings.

LUTE TUNINGfrom standard tuning: 0 — 0 — 0 — 1 — 0 — 0

used by: joHn ren-bourn/Pentangleoften employed by clas-sical guitar composers, this is the tuning on which standard tuning is based. another good one for fingerstyle guitarists to explore.

2

3

4

5

6

1

2

3

45

6

STANDARD TUNING 1



1Have a goal.Structure your practice session around goals rather than a set time frame. Although you might have a

general idea of how much time you have available to practice, you need a more specific plan than “I’m going to practice until 6:00 p.m.” Instead, decide exactly what you want to accomplish and how you’ll go about it. If you continually set and meet goals, you’ll stay motivated and productive.

2Break it down.If there are several different issues to work out within one section of music, be sure to separate them. Pia-

nists and drummers, for example, can work on the right and left hands separately. String and guitar players can separate bowing or picking technique from left hand technique by bowing or picking open strings before adding in the notes. Similarly, wind players can break down a difficult passage by first tonguing a difficult rhythm on a single note. In the long run, things will come together more quickly and you won’t become frustrated, if you’re patient and avoid the temptation to tackle everything at once.

3Take it slow. When learning new music, always start well below the final tempo; half-speed is good as a general rule.

If you play through things too fast, too soon, you’ll ingrain bad habits into your muscle memory that will be difficult and time-consuming to unlearn. Use a metronome to keep your pace steady. Then, once you can play accurately at a slow tempo, gradually increase the speed, one metronome click at a time.

4Isolate issues.Too often, people want to simply play their music start to finish, but this is an extremely inefficient way

to practice. Really, it’s not necessary to play straight through your repertoire until a couple weeks prior to the performance. Until then, isolate very small sections. If you’re working on something like dynamics or phrasing, you might take a couple of measures at a time. If you’re working on intonation, you might take just two notes at a time. It may seem like a slower way to work, but you’re actually getting a lot more accom-plished than you would by playing larger chunks.

n Of course you love spending time with your instrument, but let’s face it: between work, errands, family, and friends, most of us don’t have schedules that allow us to practice for hours each day. But what if you could make more progress in less time? Interested? Here are some tips for practicing like a pro.

BY meredith laing

9Steps to Efficient Practicing

Forte


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5Repeat, repeat, repeat. Once you’ve isolated a tricky section of music, repetition is key. Clearly, the more times you play

something, the more likely it is to stick, so aim for perfec-tion every time. Think of it this way: let’s say you’ve played something incorrectly nine times, and then on the tenth time, you play it right. At that point, you might think, okay, I’ve got it, and move on to something else. But unfortu-nately, the problem will likely sneak back the next time you play, since your brain and muscles are still more used to the incorrect way. Instead, practice the section until you can repeat it at least 10 times correctly. That way, you won’t be starting from scratch again the next day.

6Make it harder than it is.If you use little tricks to make your music tempo-rarily more difficult to play, it will feel simple later

on. For example, if you’re having trouble keeping a passage of eighth notes steady and even, try altering the rhythm. Instead of playing straight eighths, change the rhythm to alternating dotted eighth notes and sixteenth notes. You’ll feel how much easier it is when you return to the straight rhythm. For fast moving notes, try working up to a speed a few notches above the final performance tempo. Then, when you bring it back down, it will feel nice and relaxed. If you usually read from sheet music, try memorizing dif-ficult sections. When you put the music back in front of you, you’ll find that you barely need it.

7Listen.It might seem obvious, but sometimes people forget one of the most important parts of music making:

listening. If you catch your mind wandering or shutting down, concentrate on visualizing exactly how you want each note to sound. Then, if that doesn’t match what you’re hearing, brainstorm what you can do to fix it. Mindless practicing is a waste of your time; always keep your mind and your ears active and engaged.

8Get a second opinion.Without a teacher, conductor, or someone else to give you feedback, you might have a hard time

critiquing yourself. In that case, you’re simply playing through your music without making significant progress. Try recording yourself. When you listen back, you’re guar-anteed to hear things that you didn’t notice before. Also, try practicing in front of a mirror to catch problems with your posture and set-up.

9Time it right.It’s a good idea to practice soon after a lesson or rehearsal, when any problems that need to be

worked out are still fresh in your mind. But at the same time, don’t try to practice after a stressful day or if you’re exhausted; you’ll just be miserable and unproductive. It’s much better to start fresh, when you’re relaxed and focused, than to worry about skipping a day or two.

Meredith Laing learned efficient practicing haBitS from her violinprofeSSor, jim krehBiel, whom She Studied with aS a muSic performance major at SYracuSe univerSitY.


clip ‘n’ save

n On a road trip, there may not always be a direct route from point A to point B. The same goes for music: it’s not as simple as starting at the beginning of a piece and playing straight through to the end. Sometimes the music instructs you to repeat entire sections, take alternate endings, or even end the piece right in the middle of the page.

When this happens, you may feel like you are in foreign territory, since musical di-rections are not printed in English, but use a combina-tion of symbols and Italian abbreviations. This guide will help you decode your musical roadmap, so you’ll never have to stop to ask for directions again!

Note: The examples shown are brief. In printed music these directions are used to avoid rewriting long sections of music.

D.C. al coda tells you to return to the beginning of the piece and continue until you see the coda sign: . Then, skip toward the end of the piece (or section) until you find another coda sign, which shows you where to start playing again. Coda means “tail,” and accordingly, is a small bit of additional music that ends the piece or section of the piece.

Play measures one through eight. Repeat measures one through four. Then, skip to the second coda sign and play the last four measures (nine through 12) of the piece.

D.S al fine tells you to return to the sign found earlier in the music. You then play until you come to the fine, which ends the piece.

Play measures one through eight, return to measure three, and end after measure four.

D.S. al coda tells you to return to the “sign and then (as you might be able to predict by now) play until you come to the coda sign. Then, skip down to the second coda sign at the end to finish the piece or section.

Play measures one through eight, then return to measure three. Play measures three and four, and then skip to the coda at measure nine. End by playing the four-measure coda.

ReRouted

Da capo means “from the be-ginning.” in music, this is ab-breviated D.C., and can be followed by al fine or al coda.

Dal signo means “from the sign,” and is abbreviated D.S. Like a da capo direction, it can be followed by either al fine or al coda.

D.C. al fine tells you to return to the beginning and play until you see the word fine. In Italian, fine means “end,” and indicates that the piece is finished.

Play measures one through eight, then return to the beginning, and end after measure four.

Forte


SAXOPHONE

HOw DO yOU PRAcTIcE?sharps & flats are quick and easy practice ideas for all instruments and playing levels. Do you have a tip, trick, or piece of advice (in 150 words or less) that you’d like to share with Making Music’s readers? We’d love to hear it! send us an e-mail at [email protected].

MOUNTAIN DULCIMER

gUITAR

gENERAL

sharpsandflats

n Practice adding an introduction or ending to a tune. Intros prepare listeners for what follows, establishing tempo and mood. To add one, play the last phrase of the song before starting the first measure of a tune. For a nice ending, play the last few measures of the tune twice.

Kerry Coates, Capitan, new Mexico

n Focus on what you need to work on. The natural urge is to avoid practicing the things that need to be worked on. Pinpoint a certain concept that needs work, and then (1) analyze it, (2) practice it over and over. Perhaps write in words on paper what your weaknesses are, and keep remind-ing yourself to try and improve on that area.

Jacob stickney, seattle, Washington

n Don’t run before you can walk. The secret to playing well quickly is to first play well s-l-o-w-l-y. If you can’t play that lick perfectly at 60 bpm, you have no business playing it at 200 bpm.

Darryl Roberts, las vegas, nevada

n Practice with your eyes closed or in the dark. There is little better test of memory and accuracy. Practicing without sight heightens the other senses, allowing you to concentrate on listening to the sound and feeling your body’s actions.

laurie stras, southampton, england

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A Jolly Good BellowThis lively California accordion orchestra performs at the White House and international competitions.BY jackie SaunderS

n ºWhen the Mart in Music Center Accordion orchestra is preparing for a performance, l ike the Coupe Mondiale competition in new Zealand, it holds 7 a.m. practices on saturday mornings. students scurry to their seats with their accordions, like a game of musical chairs, hoping they aren’t the last one standing. “We make practices fun,” says sandy Martin, who founded the Martin Music Center with her husband, Randall, in 1981. “Whoever arrives last at practice has to bring doughnuts for the group on the next saturday.”

The Martin Music Center, located in Ful-lerton, California, is like a second home to the accordion and piano students who take lessons there, especially the ones who are lucky and talented enough to participate in the accordion orchestra, which has held its regular practices every Tuesday night at 8 p.m.

32


for the past 25 years. The center has been affectionately called “The Miracle on Orangethorpe Avenue,” because no matter how old a student is, he or she always seems to want to return.

“It’s a difficult group to get into and a difficult group to leave,” says Sandy Martin of the prestigious accordion orchestra. “All the kids have been here since they were really little; they don’t want to leave. We talk to each other about our problems, on Halloween we go trick or treating together, and we attend each others’ birthday and Christmas parties. It’s really a family group. It’s the sort of place you come back to if you’re home for a week visiting.”

Sandy and Randall Martin have a passion for the accordion. With three invitations to play at the White House, a Kennedy Center performance, and a trip to New Zealand for the Coupe Mondiale, a premier international accordion festival and com-petition, the Martin Music Center Accordion Orchestra is a top notch group. It features 18 players from ages 11 to their early 40s. “The philosophy of our group is to motivate and encour-age,” says Martin, whose husband is the director of the group. “Randy goes about teaching in a clinical way. He knows how he wants a piece played, and will spend a couple hours perfecting six measures, so he won’t have to go back and reteach it.”

Although the orchestra plays plenty of traditional and ethnic accordion fare like polkas, French waltzes, Italian tunes, and classical concertos, they also play crowd-pleasing American band and folk favorites like “Orange Blossom Special” and “The Trolley Song.” When the group performed in New Zealand in the 2009 Coupe Mondiale this past summer, they even played rock ‘n’ roll classics like “Johnny B. Goode,” “Twist and Shout,” and “Jailhouse Rock.”

“In New Zealand, they thought us Yanks were marvelous,” says Martin. “They couldn’t believe we played rock on the accordion.”

The thing that Martin says draws so many people to the accor-dion is the variety of sounds it can produce. All of the separate parts played in a traditional orchestra can be heard when the accordion orchestra plays. “I enjoy the diverseness of the in-strument,” says concertmistress Michele Damien, 34, who is an elementary school teacher. “People like to pigeonhole the accor-dion for ethnic polkas, but we can play so many types of pieces from traditional ethnic songs to rock n’ roll. There are a lot of different flavors and that’s what the accordion is about.”

Damien has been taking accordion lessons at Martin Music since age nine and joined the orchestra soon after she began. She met her husband Larry, also an orchestra member, through the matchmaking of Sandy, who had them play plenty of polka duets when they were in high school.

One of the highlights for the Damiens was when the group was first invited by President Clinton to the White House to perform at a Christmas party in 1993. Hillary asked that the group stay

later to play for the health care committee, including Senator Ted Kennedy and his family. The audience requested “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” three times.

In 1995, the Clintons asked the group to return and play for an informal Secret Service Christmas party. The group was such a hit playing in the East Room, that it became too crowded and the Secret Service had to break things up. “That was noisy,” says Martin. “It was a fun party. We played the Lion King theme, ‘I Just Can’t Wait to be King.’”

After the 9/11 attacks, White House security was so beefed up that, for the orchestra’s 2003 visit, the Bush administra-tion requested the group leave their accordions at home as a security measure.

“I remember the Secret Service asked, ‘Could you bring your choir instead?’” says Martin. “We didn’t really have one, but the group was so talented, I called my husband and said, ‘Our group isn’t playing, but we are going to sing instead.’ We only had eight weeks to put together a choral group, but orchestra members brought their musical abilities learned from the ac-cordion and they sounded great.”

Although the group has a talent for expanding musicianship on the accordion, the Martin Music Center Orchestra is really all about fun and being a second family to the students. The orchestra thrives on its diversity: they have three law students, an engineer, a math major, school athletes, and a teacher. “Even preparation leading up to the trips is so much fun,” says Damien. “The rehearsals and spending the time together brings us even closer.”

Another reason the group is so special to Martin is the dedica-tion the parents have to helping their children pursue a passion for music. “Seeing children take music lessons with a purpose and a goal in mind, like the orchestra, is just thrilling,” says Martin. “It’s been wonderful to create this unusual and excel-lent sound from the accordion—it’s been the love of our lives and the work of our lifetime.”

“In New Zealand, they thought us Yanks were marvelous,” says

Martin. “They couldn’t believe we played rock on the accordion.”


Recent top SelleRS

FOR PianO:Canon in D Major

by Johann Pachelbel, arranged by Robert Schultz,

Alfred Music Publishing

FOR GuitaR:Hey There Delilah

by Plain White T’s, Alfred Music Publishing

VOcal sOlO:The Sound of Music

by Rodgers and Hammerstein, Hal Leonard Corporation

ROck:100 Years

by Five for Fighting, Hal Leonard Corporation

POP:You Raise Me Up

by Josh Groban, Hal Leonard Corporation

cOuntRy:Love Storyby Taylor Swift,

Hal Leonard Corporation

chRistian:I Can Only Imagine

by Mercy Me, Hal Leonard Corporation

as reported on sheetmusicplus.com

Quick Tips

n Quality sheet music is important for any level of musician trying to add to their repertoire. Whether you’re a beginner or an expert, sheet music helps shape how you learn, perform, and understand a piece.

There’s currently more sheet music being printed than ever before, so whatever type of music you’re looking for, it’s probably out there. For more popular pieces, there are often dozens of arrangements. But with so many options, purchasing sheet music can be overwhelming. We enlisted the help of two experts, Keith Cerny, CEO of Sheet Music Plus, and Fabrizio Ferrari, president of Virtual Sheet Music, to help get some quick tips for finding the music.

Forte

BY adam d’arpino

5for choosing sheet music


“eaSy” OpTIOnS are Okay. If you’re new to reading music, you might find that some sheet music is outside of your skill level. Thankfully, for most instruments, there are easy versions of many pieces. An easy version allows begin-ners to learn simplified arrangements of well-known pieces of music. For piano, another popular way to learn pieces easily is by using a “fake book.” Fake books usually include only chord names and a notated melody. They were origi-nally created for professional musicians who wanted more freedom to interpret a piece or learn it quickly, but they have become popular for beginners looking for an easier way to play recognizable music.

knOW yOUr SkIll level. Many publishers and distrib-utors grade the difficulty of pieces and include a description of the criteria for their grading system. “[At sheetmusicplus.com] we have sheet music arranged on a multipoint scale to give customers a sense of how hard it would be to play,” says Keith Cerny. However, if you’re more comfortable simply looking at a piece of sheet music to decide if it’s at your skill level, most online retailers include a preview option, which allows customers to view the first page or two of a piece.

pUblISHerS Offer dIfferenT advanTageS. For more advanced musicians, the level of editing offered by a publisher can be very important. Some publishers offer “Urtext editions,” meaning the publishers have consulted a composer’s original manuscript in order to make sure their edition is as close to the original as possible. However, some musicians are willing to compromise absolute accuracy for convenience. “Some people prefer more heavily edited edi-tions so that all the fingerings are worked through for them,” says Cerny.

MUlTIMedIa paCkS Can add valUe. It’s now com-mon for publishers to offer CDs and DVDs with sheet music. “Music books for children and young adults often have DVDs, which might include play along tracks both with their part and without it. That’s a popular format for learners,” says Cerny. Even if you’re a more advanced player, a CD or DVD accompaniment is still a valuable learning tool, especially if you’re practicing alone but want the sensation of performing with other instruments.

COnSIder dIgITal OpTIOnS. Downloads of digital sheet music can save you time and shipping costs. Websites like virtualsheetmusic.com also offer self-published classical sheet music downloads with MP3 and MIDI accompaniments. These digital audio accompaniments work similarly to the CD and DVD accompaniments. “If you download one of our MP3 ac-companiment files, you get three versions: one with just piano accompaniment, one with a metronome, and another version with a metronome but 20% slower,” says Fabrizio Ferrari. Also, if you’re an iPhone or iPod Touch owner, virtualsheetmusic.com recently created an application that allows users to access sheet music on a phone.


Musical Cousins

guitar lap steel guitar, dobro, pedal steel, banjo, mandolin, or ukulele

saxophone clarinet, flute, oboe, or other woodwind instruments, or harmonica

trumpet french horn or tuba

trombone euphonium

violin cello, viola, or mandolin

electric bass upright bass, cello

piano organ, accordion, or xylophone

timpani steel drum

recorder ocarina or harmonica

n need a challenge? Do you feel like you are in a “rut” with your current musical instrument? Are looking for new musical ideas? Why not try another instrument that is musically “close” (like musical cousins) to the one you play now?

What motivated this idea is that the lead guitarist in my band, Walter, has started to learn to play the lap steel guitar. It’s close enough to guitar that he feels like he’s not in totally new instru-ment territory, but different enough that he’s really learning an entirely new skill set: different tunings and playing techniques, using a lap/pedal steel bar.

This has given Walter a fun song-learning boost. He’s relearning old songs using the new instrument and putting entirely new twists on those songs. He’s also learning new ones that are not guitar-featured songs (e.g., “Steel Guitar Rag,” “Hula Blues”). In searching around for resources to learn more about the lap steel guitar he encountered an entirely new set of lap, pedal, and dobro instrument virtuosos—Tom Morrell, Bob Bozman, Herb Remington, and others. They’ve definitely broadened Walter’s musical horizons, in addition to, as Walter puts it, “Broadening the opening of my mouth when my jaw drops open in response to their incredible playing!”

Trying a new instrument that’s similar to the one you currently play, is a way to energize/revitalize your musical experiences. Lessons are always available and you may open new brain pathways! Most of all, you can have fun and challenge yourself. Get together with friends and family form ensembles and you may also spark their interest in learning something new.

When you start a second instrument the groundwork for theory, ear learning, dynamics, etc. is already in place, so if the second instrument is closely related to the first you have a pretty good head start. Finger position, bowing technique, and/or breath control will carry over to your new musical adventure. Music is something you can do just for you, while sharing music opens gates of communication and the thrill of life in general. Playing music, or being a part of anything musical, can give you a new attitude and make your life better every day. Talk about dynamics!

So what’s next for Walter? He can play just about anything he sets out to learn; I think I’m going to suggest bagpipes!

Shannon PriCe coordinateS weekend warriorS recreational muSic programS at weSt muSic in coralville, iowa.

Try a New InstrumentBY Shannon price

When deciding on a new instrument look for those with similar tunings and/or finger positions. Listed here are some possible partner instruments.


Tuned In What’s in a Reissue?n so, you’ve always dreamed of owning a vintage stratocaster, like the one jimi Hendrix played at Woodstock, or an old Gibson Les Paul, like the one innovative guitarist jimmy Paige played in the ‘60s. Then, you take a look at the price tag of some of these instruments and realize that convincing your spouse to take out a second mortgage is out of the question. Even if you can shell out the big bucks for one of these relics, you would think twice about bringing it with you to a jam session.

Enter classic reissue guitars. fender and Gibson have been reproducing some of your favorite vintage in-struments since the early ‘80s, and now many others have followed suit. built to exact specifications of some of the most innovative and popular designs of the ’50s and ‘60s, they are a practical way to enjoy a piece of guitar history, without tapping into your home’s equity. if you are already a vintage ax col-lector, you can have that classic sound and feel at your gigs, while leaving your precious collectables safely at home.

Today there are many classic reissue guitars on the market, including fender’s ’57 stratocaster, a favor-ite among many guitar enthusiasts for its unique V-shaped neck. among Gibson’s reproductions is a ’61 sG, modeled after the popular Les Paul, in the first year of the enduring design’s production. Gretsch, producers of popular arch-top electrics in the ‘50s, offers many vintage reissues, among them Chet atkins models. Companies like rickenbacker, Danelectro, Harmony, and Kay are also producing classic reissues.

Even if your favorite year or model of instrument is not currently being reproduced, chances are it was at one time. as you begin to look for a used reissue, however, be sure to find a genuine prod-uct. The charm of these classic reissues is that they are built exactly to vintage specs by the original manufacturer. There are many inferior knockoffs circulating around the internet and in some shops, so before pulling out your wallet, contact the origi-nal manufacturer to be sure that you are getting everything you bargained for. as a general rule of thumb, if the price seems too good to be genuine, it probably isn’t.

gretsch❱❱ Check out that chrome Bigsby Tremelo tailpiece! In the hands of players like Eddie Duane, Brian Setzer, and of course, Mister Guitar himself, the great Chet Atkins, Gretsch guitars have come to represent the rockabilly branch of classic rock ‘n’ roll from the ’50s and beyond. These guitars are decked out with the artists’ personal modifications.

try tHis: 1957 Gretsch Chet atkins G6120W

gibson❱❱ A major design overhaul to the Les Paul, including a thinner, double cut-away body, a lower neck joint for easier access to higher frets, and a thinner neck resulted in the birth of the popu-lar SG in 1961. SG, which stands for “solid guitar,” remains one of the most enduring designs in electric guitar his-tory. Details include solid mahogany body, slim, tapered neck, trapezoid inlays, and two ’57 Classic pickups.

try tHis: 1961 Gibson sG reissue

fender❱❱ The ’57 Fender Stratocaster fea-tured a one-piece maple V-shaped neck that was abandoned the follow-ing year. Its reissue is an exact replica of this rare and highly sought-after instrument. Details include unique ’57/’62 pickups, three-way switching (five-way switch kit included), bev-eled pickup magnets, ashtray bridge cover, and single-ply pickguard. It is priced at a small fraction of what an original would sell for at an auction.

try tHis: 1957 fender stratocaster reissue

www.MakingMusicMag.com


Tuned In For more products visit www.MakingMusicMag.com/tunedin

Mac the Riff❱❱ Keep your hands on the neck, not on the mouse. Designed specifically for Macintosh audio programs like GarageBand, Logic, and MainStage, the Apogee GiO guitar interface offers hands-free access to re-cord functions and effect presets within the software. Color-coded buttons allow you to toggle through effects and amp simulators, while record function buttons let you navigate through your home studio project, all without touching the mouse. This sleek device is powered by USB and requires no separate power adapters.

MSrP: $395

Award-Winning Keyboard❱❱ Yamaha’s S90 XS 88-key keyboard synthesizer has a concert grand sound and feel, yet is compact enough for convenient travel. Extensive computer music features include the ability to plug in a USB device or thumb drive and record your per-formances as audio data. A Performance Creator feature is fast and easy to use, allowing you to layer tracks and hear your creations played back. You can also plug in and record from a microphone or other electronic instrument. Controls are de-signed for intuitive operation, and some can be used in real-time to tweak the sound as you play. It’s no surprise S90 XS was chosen “best in show” at last summer’s NAMM show.

MSrP: $3,799

Liquid Smooth❱❱ The “T” Model from Liquid Metal Guitars has a smooth, solid aluminum body, a hard rock maple neck, and an ebony fretboard, and is protected with a new scratch-resistant clear coat. The guitar is built with a Black TUSQ XL nut from Graph Tech Guitar Labs, which is infused with Teflon for self-lubrication. This revolutionary technology brings out hidden harmonics in the tone and helps to keep strings in tune. Graph Tech’s String Saver saddles use Teflon, uniquely combined with other mate-rials, to spread the stress of vibration over a greater portion of the sting to reduce breakage and provide a clearer tone.

MSrP: $2,995


For more products visit www.MakingMusicMag.com/tunedin

Elevating Practice❱❱ Superscope Technologies has added Elevation music practice software to its line of technology for musicians. Elevation allows you to alter recorded music to make it easier to learn. Functions include changing tempos without affecting key, changing key without affecting tempo, setting loop points either by ear or by sight, recording with an accompaniment, EQ control, and turning down vocal tracks. Elevation accepts WAV, AIFF, MP3, and WMA file formats.

MSrP: $179

Facile Fingering❱❱ Piano Mate is an easy way for anyone to get started on the piano, or to connect the dots between reading melody lines and figuring out where they fall on a piano or keyboard. Piano Mate sits directly above the keys, but does not connect to the instrument, making it easy to use and remove. Flashing lights indicate which keys to press for left-hand, right-hand, or both-hand play. The tempo is adjustable and a built-in metronome helps you keep the beat. Piano Mate comes with a three-year warranty. Eight popular songs are preinstalled and three additional cartridges and songbooks are included.

MSrP: $249

Pocket-Sized Recording❱❱ Forging ahead with Tascam’s legendary PortaStudio concept is the DP-04 Digital PocketStudio. Record up to two simultaneous tracks of CD quality digital audio with the built-in stereo condenser microphone, or con-nect your own mike or instruments via two inputs. If you use up its four audio tracks, you can bounce them all down to one track and continue overdubbing layers. Mixing is intuitive with real knobs, and final mixes can be sent to your computer via USB port for file sharing and CD duplication.

MSrP: $279


n Analog recording has been a dying art for some time, replaced by the cheaper, easier, and more accessible system of digital recording. The functionality of a multi-million dollar analog studio of 30 years ago can be easily matched by a simple digital project studio consisting of a computer, software, software interface, and some microphones.

Even with all these incredible technological ad-vances, there is a warm feel associated with analog recordings that digital systems have a difficulty reproducing. Fortunately, the recording industry is hip to this problem, and has been hard at work creating a host of products geared towards adding that missing ingredient to digital recordings.

However, before you whip out your credit card for some new recording toys, take a minute to reflect on the following: The recording market is saturated with unbelievable products at unbelievable prices, but sometimes these deals actually are too good to be true. It is wise to do your homework before com-mitting to a purchase to be sure that you are getting the best balance between quality, affordability, and necessity with your particular recording goals in mind. Detailed here are a few products you might want to look into.

One of the easiest and most flexible ways to add warmth is right from your recording software. Most programs, like ProTools, Cubase, and Sonar, include built-in amp modeling, effects, and dynamic pro-cessing (like EQ and compressors) that are based on analog systems. If these features still don’t give you the sound you want, then you can research plug-ins that work directly with your recording software to give more warmth. The options are practically limitless. To the right are two popular plug-ins.

If you’re the type of person who isn’t convinced by software recreations of analog gear, then you may want to look to a preamp to alter the sound before it enters your computer. Preamps are an important piece of recording gear, especially for microphones, and it is crucial that you get the best you can afford. They boost the signals from the instruments, and they also often include an array of effects and dynamics features. Look at what’s available from companies like PreSonus and ART (Applied Research and Technology). There are a wide range of features and prices, including these two models.

by jason borisoff and michael masucci

Here are some ways of adding an analog vibe to digital recordings.

Tuned In



The AmpliTube is a one-stop shop for classic amp and stomp box sounds. It has 20,000 different amp configurations, and 32 stomp boxes and rack effects, all based on vintage and modern equipment. This is a very powerful tool for the home studio engineer. MSRP is $400.

This preamp is jam-packed with attributes and is relatively inexpensive and easy to use. As a microphone preamp, the V3 offers presets for most instruments and acts as a direct box for instruments that require direct plugging. Its tube provides quality “warmth” and feel, with significantly low noise, and it can be used with any digital multitrack recorder or computer. The standard features—clip LED, +48v phantom power, a +20dB switch, an analog VU meter, 12AX7a Tube, phase reverse, and phantom power for vocals—are great additions considering the affordability of the product. MSRP is $95.

This is an example of a software plug-in that is modeled after a historic piece of gear. This particular program reproduces a 1980s British Console Buss Compressor, with some added features to give the user more flexibility. MSRP starts at $200.

This preamp is in a higher cost bracket, but it performs at an incredibly high level and has a multitude of tools, effects, and quality features. The PreSonus has a Class A tube preamplifier (12AX7 vacuum tube). The VCA compressor offers gain, attack, threshold, and ratio controls. Three-band Parametric EQ gives universal control of all the frequencies within tracks so you can check the highs, mids, and lows of each recorded track, and then set it to get the sound you want. The 12AX7 tube preamplifier has a dual control gain and tube drive, which gives the user more range in finding sound. MSRP is $360.


january/february 201042 january/february 201042

n Reinhardt never learned to read music, but by the time he died at the age of 43, he was such an accomplished musician and composer that others have emu-lated his music for generations.

Gypsy jazz (or jazz Manouche) blends French Sinti (Gypsy) music with Ameri-can hot jazz. What quickly spread to become a worldwide phenomenon during the 1930s and 1940s, began when Reinhardt jammed with violin-ist Stéphane Grappelli in what would become La Quintette du Hot Club de France. The two, influenced by the jazz recordings of artists like Eddie Lang, Joe Venuti, Louis Armstrong, and Duke Ellington, molded their own style from the traditional music they had played from childhood.

The original gypsy jazz was played acoustically, without drums. A percus-sive rhythm called “la pompe” was played on acoustic guitar, accompany-ing solos were played on another guitar and violin. There was often a bass in the

lineup, and by the 1940s, bands also included drums and clarinet.

Most gypsy jazz guitarists play some version of the Selmer-Maccaferri model that Reinhardt himself played. It had a slightly arched top and back, a charac-teristically shaped soundhole, cutaway body, and distinctive sound.

Selmer no longer makes guitars, but many luthiers make similar models. The light steel strings are typically played forcefully with a heavy pick to yield a piercing sound that easily cuts through the rhythm section.

In the gypsy jazz tradition melodies are highly improvised. Reinhardt himself was said to never play a solo the same way twice.

Gypsy jazz has a distinctly dark and modal sound and has it’s own set of standards such as “Minor Swing” and “Melodie Au Crepuscule.” However, today’s ensembles often adapt other songs to the style.

ew musicians have been given credit for practically inventing a genre of music as much as guitarist Jean “Django” Reinhardt. That’s quite an accomplishment for a man who

grew up in gypsy encampments surrounding Paris and who, as a young man, lost the use of two fretting fingers when they were badly burned in a fire.

By cherie yurco

Accents


ResouRces:Learn to Play Django-Style Gypsy Jazz Guitar—These instructional DVDs by Paul Mehling teach gypsy jazz guitar basics. Lesson one, Rhythm, starts with basic four-to-the-bar comping and take you through a variety of accompaniment ideas. Les-son two covers soloing and improvisational leads.

Django Reinhardt: The De-finitive Collection—Authentic transcriptions in notes and TAB for 20 of Django Rein-hardt’s most famous songs, including “Ain’t Misbehavin’”; “Belleville”; “Daphne”; “Di-nah”; “Dinette”; “Djangol-ogy”; “Honeysuckle Rose,” and “Minor Swing.”

By cherie yurco


CoveredRESOURCES

The Jazz Singer’s Guidebook: A Course in Jazz Harmony and Scat Singing for the Serious Jazz Vocalistn This clear, step-by-step approach is designed to help singers improve their grasp of jazz harmony and gain more control of the music they sing. The Jazz Singer’s Guidebook covers the basics of accompanying yourself on piano, writing good lead sheets, music structure, improvisation, embellish-ments, melody variations, scat solos, and more. An included CD contains 41 examples from the book.

The jazz Singer’S guidebook: a CourSe in jazz harMony and SCaT Singing for The SeriouS jazz VoCaliST, by David Berkman, Sher Music, Petaluma, CA, 2009.

How to Make Your Band Sound Greatn For any band, learning to play together well is an essential skill that needs to be developed. There can be countless internal conflicts, as well as issues of sound, arrangement, and stage presence. Author, experienced pro-ducer, and engineer Bobby Owsinski covers it all using tips and tricks employed by top-bill stars from Billy Gibbons to Mick Taylor to Jackson Browne. This book will show you how to make your group tighter, and more dynamic, with improved recording sessions and live shows that are more exciting and memorable.

how To Make your band Sound greaT, by Bobby Owsinski, Hal Leonard Corporation, Milwaukee, WI, 2009.

The Early Years of the Les Paul Legacy: 1915-1963n The Early Years of the Les Paul Legacy: 1915-1963 docu-ments the formative years of the Renaissance music man. Les Paul was an early pioneer of multi-track recording and a prolific artist with a visionary approach that revo-lutionized the guitar. The book has full-color photos throughout. A second volume, The Modern Era of the Les Paul Legacy 1968-2009, is also available from Hal Leonard Corporation.

The early yearS of The leS Paul legaCy: 1915-1963, by Robb Lawrence, Hal Leonard Corporation, New York, NY, 2008.

Keyboard Presents: The Best of the ’80sn From the swelling synths of Depeche Mode to the dance-friendly grooves of Thomas Dol-by, much of the music of the 1980s is dominated by keyboard. This book contains an incredible array of Q&A interviews with the era’s most innovative artists, including Chick Corea, Kraftwerk, Howard Jones, Human League, Bruce Hornsby, Herbie Hancock, David Foster, and more, uncovering their sto-ries, secret formulas, gear, and production tricks.

keyboard PreSenTS: The beST of The ’80S, ed-iTed by Ernie Rideout, Stephen Fortner, and Michael Gallant, Backbeat Books, Milwaukee, WI, 2008.


Stuff Good Players Should Known This ser ies of books from Hal Leonard Corporation is designed to take playing from ordinary to extraordinary though all-encompassing book-CD combinations for vari-ous instruments. Included are tips on performing, recording, instruments, equipment, soloing, music theory, and more.

Stuff Good Piano Players Should Know presents styles such as rock, pop, jazz, blues, classical, and more, through demonstrations of authentic piano and keyboard parts appropriate to each genre. The ac-companying CD includes many of the book’s examples performed on a variety of piano/electric piano instru-ments. Some examples are recorded in a full band set-ting to hear how important concepts fit in with other instruments and ensembles.

The bass Stuff book covers acoustic and electric in-struments, and includes tips on grooves, fills, soloing, instrument care and maintenance, and more. Authen-tic demonstrations cover genres from rock to jazz to R&B to funk. An accompanying CD includes many examples from the book, performed both in solo bass format and in a full band setting.

Stuff Good Guitar Players Should Know contains more than 100 tips to improve your guitar playing. Subjects covered include riffs, fills, soloing, fingerpicking, the Nashville number system, transposing, guitar mainte-nance, and more. An included CD contains 56 tracks with more than 125 audio examples in genres from rock to blues to country, performed both on solo guitar and with a full band.

Also available from Hal Leonard are Stuff Good Synth Players Should Know and Stuff Good Drummers Should Know.

STuff good Piano PlayerS Should know, by Mark Harrison; STuff good baSS PlayerS Should know, by Glenn Letsch; Stuff Good Guitar Players Should Know, by Wolf Marshall, Hal Leonard Corporation, Milwaukee, WI, 2008.


The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Playing the Fiddlen You’re no idiot; you know there’s skill involved in learn-ing to play the fiddle. However, you also don’t want to go through the rigorous training of a classical violinist. This book and 90-minute DVD set will help you get started. It includes: helpful tips on selecting the right fiddle; step-by-step instructions on holding a fiddle and bow; illustrated fingerboard charts; 80 practice tunes; and an exploration of popular fiddle styles.

The CoMPleTe idioT’S guide To Playing The fiddle, by Ellery Klein, Penguin Group, New York, NY, 2008.

Classic Electrics: A Visual History of Great Guitarsn Since the 1930s electric guitars have been embed-ded in our culture as icons of jazz, blues, and rock ‘n’ roll music. This richly illus-trated guide is an explora-tion of the best solid-body and semi-acoustic guitars of the past. Guitar historian and author Walter Carter features 350-plus guitars through photos, descriptions, and specifications. The book’s small profile makes it an ideal and easily transportable gift for experts and novices alike.

ClaSSiC eleCTriCS: a ViSual hiSTory of greaT guiTarS, by Walter Carter, Jawbone, Berkeley, CA, 2008.

Mastering Music at Home: How to Master Your Recordings for CD and Web Distributionn Just a few years ago almost every audio recording session took place in a commercial studio with professional engi-neers and producers using specialized and costly equipment. Today, artists at all levels are working in their home and project studios, doing their own recording and production. The final step in producing a professional quality recording is mastering and Mastering Music at Home will show you how to do it.

MaSTering MuSiC aT hoMe: how To MaSTer your reCordingS for Cd and web diSTribuTion, by Mitch Gallagher, Thomson Course Technology, Boston, MA, 2008.

Covered

Mastering the Tables of Time: Volume 1 Introducing the Standard Timetablen In this method book professional drummer David Stanoch combines the foundations of rhythm and trapset drumming by using a common system to assimilate the disciplines of timekeeping, coordina-tion, rudiments, polyrhythms, and musical phrasing. Mastering the Tables of Time is designed for all players, from beginner to advanced, interested in developing a musical foundation with crystal clear focus. The book was honored as #1 Method Book in the 2009 Modern Drummer Readers Poll.

MaSTering The TableS of TiMe: VoluMe 1 inTroduCing The STandard TiMeTable, by David Stanoch, Rhythmelodic Music, Minnetonka, MN, 2008.


Destination

n It’s difficult to find someone in Minneapolis, Minnesota, or the Twin cities area who has not been touched in some way by the MacPhail center for Music and few organizations have had a longer and more positive influence on their community. The center boasts a 102-year history and a student body of more than 8,200, aged from six weeks to senior citizens.

William S. MacPhail, an original mem-ber of the Minneapolis Symphony, first established the MacPhail School of Violin in 1907. Initial offerings included music history and harmony classes, but because of its popularity, classes quickly expanded and it was moved to a four-story facility and renamed the MacPhail School of Music and Dramatic Art.

Soon, the school began offering college degrees and its faculty grew to more than 100, serving a student body of 3,000. When William S. MacPhail died in 1966, his family gifted the college to the Uni-versity of Minnesota, where it became the MacPhail Center for the Performing Arts. During its tenure with the univer-

sity, the school established revolutionary programs for young children, including the nation’s first Suzuki program.

Eventually, the University of Minnesota decided to dissolve its relationships with programs that did not primarily serve college students, so MacPhail became an independent, nonprofit organization in 1994. Today MacPhail Center for Music remains a leader in music education with a faculty of teaching artists more than 170 strong, in more than 50 separate teaching locations, in addition to its main down-town Minneapolis facility. Instruction is offered on 35 different instruments and in styles from jazz to classical to world music.

In an effort to bring music to the entire Tw i n C i t i e s a n d G r e a t e r M i n n e -apolis community, MacPhail offers day and evening adult programs and brings music education to community partners, from day care centers and schools to retire-ment facilities. Other programs aimed at

enriching the community through mu-sic include small recitals, master classes, ticketed performances, music therapy, summer camps for adults and children, and jazz education.

Since 2004, adult programs have in-creased by 20% and welcomed visitors from around the country to master classes and camps. “No matter the age or artistic background, we all have music in us,” says Paul Babcock, MacPhail Center for Music president and chief operating officer. “As an adult it is never too late to start learn-ing music or come back to something you began as a child. The rewards are far greater than simply learning how to play. It stimulates new ways of thinking and approaching the world around us. It re-connects us socially. And it can be one of the most rewarding and energizing ways to take us away from the many demands of everyday life, inspiring a whole new energy and spirit.”

If you are visiting the Twin Cities area, you can phone the center (612-321-0100) to arrange a tour of its new state-of-the-art facility, which opened January 2008. The new building includes studio spaces, a music media lab, and the stunning An-tonello Hall (pictured above), known for its outstanding acoustics.



n Michael Rees, 48, senior account manager at Lake City Radio in Warsaw, Indiana, has been playing guitar since age 10. He grew up in Chicago, and later Indiana, and while in high school, he played in several bands and studied guitar with Scott Madden.

After graduation, Rees passed an audition and spent four years traveling the US as a guitarist with the 661st Air Force Band in Dayton, Ohio, performing for two years each with its rock band and its 16-piece stage band.

“Following my enlistment I considered several options, includ-ing moving to Nashville or attending Berklee College of Music. I also missed my family and friends, so I went home to Indiana to plan my next step,” explains Rees. “I chose radio because being an announcer allowed me to be around music.”

While attending Columbia School of Broadcasting, Rees per-formed in clubs throughout Northern Indiana with the Coupe De Ville band.

After graduating from Columbia, Rees worked for 10 years as a radio announcer, including seven years as the morning show host for WRSW AM and FM. Rees and his wife, Peggy, who is a singer and pianist, have performed locally as a duo. Today they are both members of Joe’s Garage, a talented group of musicians that plays an eclectic variety of music.

Rees also plays electric, acoustic, and bass guitar in a praise band at the First United Methodist Church in Warsaw, Indiana, where he also works with the youth praise team. He’s recorded numerous original songs over the years, and looks forward to recording and promoting his two most recent songs.

A proud member of the Kiwanis, Rees takes part in fundraising activities to benefit the local Boy Scouts, Girls Scouts, and Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis, among others.

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AMP: Fender Deluxe Hot Rod Deville. “It has a beauti-ful clean sound, but also has a solid lead sound, which I augment with a variety of effects pedals.”

Who are your musical influences? I grew up listening to The Allman Brothers Band, The Beat-les, Boston, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and all the classic rock artists of the time. In the ’80s, favorites included Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour, Tower of Power, John Mellencamp, and Bruce Springsteen. Stevie Ray Vaughan is a longtime favorite, and Christian rock has become a favorite in recent years. I learned a lot about music from two talented friends: keyboardists Terry Baker and Kent Garno.

Why do you continue to make music?Music is simply a joy! It is a God given talent; I love to play music that glorifies Him. And, making music is relaxing and fun.

hoW do you continue to learn?Through tablature in magazines, instructional videos, listening to innovative artists, and playing with good musicians, which is a constant learning process.

What benefits have you found to making music?It is a great stress reliever, and something my wife and I enjoy doing together. It is also a much-needed creative outlet.

hoW do you make time for music in your life?With a fun but demanding job, free time is precious, so I make sure to schedule time for music in the evenings and on the weekends.

What advice do you have for someone getting back into music later in life?If you are getting back into music, you still have a love and passion for it, and that’s the key. Whatever level you achieve, music is a pleasure and a blessing, so enjoy using your talents!

What is your best memory of making music?Recording a demo in Cincinnati with the Air Force Band, recording my own songs, playing gigs with my wife, jam-ming with my best friend in our band and receiving a standing ovation in a packed high school auditorium, and playing with the Air Force Band at a community 4th of July celebration in Richmond, Indiana. Nothing beats those special moments when the band is really clicking!

Guitar: Eric Clapton Signature Model Stratocaster with Lace Sensor pickups and mid-range boost.

“It always stays in tune and plays and sounds like butter … silky smooth.”

MicHAElREES


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challenged her to name tones for me—by ear. I made her stand so she could not see the piano key-

board. I made sure other classmates could not help her.I set up everything perfectly so I could expose herPerfect Pitch claims as a ridiculous joke.

With silent apprehension, I selected a tone to play.(She’ll never guess F� , I thought.)

I had barely touched the key. “F�,” she said. I was astonished.I played another tone. “C,” she announced, not stopping to think. Frantically, I played more tones, skipping here and

there all over the keyboard. But somehow she knew thepitch each time. She was AMAZING.

“Sing an E �,” I demanded, determined to mess herup. She sang a tone. I checked her on the keyboard—and she was right on!

Now I started to boil. I called out more tones, trying hard to make them increasingly difficult. But each note she sang perfectly on pitch.

I was totally boggled. “How in the world do you do it? ” I blurted.

“I don’t know,” she sighed. And that was all I could get out of her!

The dazzle of Perfect Pitch hit me like a ton ofbricks. I was dizzy with disbelief. Yet from then on, Iknew that Perfect Pitch was real.

#1 29Years

“How in the world do you do it?” I blurted. I was totallyboggled. (age 14, 9th grade)

��

��I couldn’t figure it out . . .“How does she DO it?” I kept asking myself. On theother hand, why can’t everyone recognize and singtones by ear?

Then it dawned on me. People call themselves musicians, yet they can’t tell a C from a C�? Or A majorfrom F major?! That’s as strange as a portrait painterwho can’t name the colors of paint on his palette. It allseemed so odd and contradictory.

Humiliated and puzzled, I went home to work onthis problem. At age 14, this was a hard nut to crack.

You can be sure I tried it out for myself. With a littlesweet-talking, I got my three brothers and two sistersto play piano tones for me—so I could try to namethem by ear. But it always turned into a messy guessinggame I just couldn’t win.

Day after day I tried to learn those freaking tones. I would hammer a note over and over to make it stickin my head. But hours later I would remember it a halfstep flat. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t recog-nize or remember any of the tones by ear. They allsounded the same after awhile; how were you supposedto know which was which—just by listening?

I would have done anything to have an ear likeLinda. But now I realized it was way beyond my reach.So after weeks of work, I finally gave up.

Then it happened . . .It was like a miracle . . . a twist of fate . . . like finding the lost Holy Grail . . .

Once I stopped straining my ear, I started to listenNATURALLY. Then the simple secret to Perfect Pitchjumped right into my lap.

Curiously, I began to notice faint “colors” within thetones. Not visual colors, but colors of pitch, colors of

My true story of Perfect Pitchby David-Lucas Burge

IT ALL STARTED when I was in ninth grade as a sort of teenage rivalry . . .I’d slave at the piano for five hours daily. Linda prac-

ticed far less.Yet somehow she always shined as the starperformer at our school. It was frustrating.

What does she have that I don’t? I’d wonder.Linda’s best friend, Sheryl, bragged on and on to me,

adding more fuel to my fire. “You could never be as good as Linda,” she would

taunt. “Linda’s got Perfect Pitch.”“What’s Perfect Pitch?” I asked.Sheryl gloated about Linda’s uncanny abilities: how

she could name exact notes and chords—all BY EAR;how she could sing any tone—from memory alone;how she could play songs—after just hearing them; the list went on and on . . .

My heart sank. Her EAR is the secret to her successI thought. How could I ever hope to compete with her?

But it bothered me. Did she really have Perfect Pitch?How could she know notes and chords just by hearingthem? It seemed impossible.

Finally I couldn’t stand it anymore. So one day Imarched right up to Linda and asked her point-blank if she had Perfect Pitch.

“Yes,” she nodded aloofly. But Perfect Pitch was too good to believe. I rudely

pressed, “Can I test you sometime?”“OK,” she replied.

Now she would eat her words . . .My plot was ingeniously simple . . .

When Linda least suspected, I walked right up and

40-Day Money Back Guarantee:You will experience Perfect Pitch for yourself——or you get a full refund!

�YES! Prove to me that I have Perfect Pitch! Send me ALL 8 CDs + handbook. I’ll listen to the first 5 CDs. I must notice immediate anddramatic advancements in 1) my ear, 2) my perfor-mance level, and 3) my enjoyment—or I’ll return thecourse for a full prompt refund, no questions asked. If I decide to continue my ear training, I’ll enjoy myremaining 3 CDs with advanced lessons. My FREE74-minute bonus CD on Relative Pitch is mine to keep(a $15 gift)—even if I return my course for a refund. I also get FREE: Perfect Pitch for Children (a $15 gift).

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_______________________________________________________INSTRUMENT(S) YOU PLAY (please include VOICE if applicable)

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PerfectPitch com/29years VIP Code: MAKING-125 ($70 off/2 free CDs)1200 E. Burlington Avenue, Fairfield, IA 52556

�

Oh, you must be wondering: whatever happened withLinda? I’ll have to backtrack . . .

Flashback to my senior year of high school. I was nearly 18. In these three-and-a-half years withPerfect Pitch, my piano teacher insisted I had made ten years of progress. And I had. But my youthful ambition wasn’t satisfied. I needed one more thing: to beat Linda. Now was my final chance.

The University of Delaware hosts a performingmusic festival eachspring, complete withjudges and awards. Tomy horror, they sched-uled me that year asthe grand finale.

The fated dayarrived. Linda gave herusual sterling perfor-mance. She would betough to match, letalone surpass. But myturn finally came, andI went for it.

Slinking to thestage, I sat down andplayed my heart outwith selections fromBeethoven, Chopin,and Ravel. Theapplause was over-whelming.

Afterwards, Iscoured the bulletinboard for our grades.Linda received an A.This was no surprise.

Then I saw thatI had scored an A+.

Sweet victory wasmusic to my ears, mineat last! —D.L.B.

Now it’s YOUR turn!For 29 years now, musicians around the globe have

proven the simple methods that David-Lucas Burgestumbled upon as a teenager (plus research at two lead-ing universities—see www.PerfectPitch.com/research).

Now you can hear it for yourself! It’s easy and fun—and guaranteed to work for YOU—regardless of yourinstrument, your playing style, or your current ability.

Order your own Perfect Pitch® Ear TrainingSuperCourse and listen to the first CD. We promiseyou will immediately hear the Perfect Pitch colors thatDavid-Lucas starts you on—or return the course for afull prompt refund (you’ve got our 29-year word on it).

You can even check out your progress at no risk. Youmust notice immediate and dramatic advancements in 1) your ear, 2) your playing and singing, and 3) yourenjoyment of music, or return your course for a fullprompt refund, no questions asked.

Imagine the talents that Perfect Pitch can open up in YOU to advance your playing, your singing, your owncreativity and confidence. Then again, how will you everknow unless you listen for yourself? There’s no risk.Order your course now and HEAR IT for YOURSELF!

sound. They had always been there. But this was thefirst time I had ever really “let go”—and listened—todiscover these subtle differences.

Soon—to my own disbelief—I too could name thetones by ear! It was simple. I could hear how F � soundsone way, while B � has a totally different sound—sort oflike “hearing” red and blue!

The realization struck me: THIS IS PERFECTPITCH! This is how Bach, Beethoven, and Mozartcould mentally heartheir masterpieces—and know tones,chords, and keys—all by ear!

It was almostchildish—I felt surethat anyone couldunlock their ownPerfect Pitch withthis simple secret of“Color Hearing.”

Bursting withexcitement, I told mybest friend, Ann (a flutist).

She laughed at me.“You have to be bornwith Perfect Pitch,”she asserted. “Youcan’t develop it.”

“You don’t under-stand how PerfectPitch works,” I coun-tered. I sat her downand showed her howto listen. Timidly, sheconfessed that shetoo could hear thepitch colors. Withthis jump start, Annsoon realized shealso had gained Perfect Pitch.

We became instant celebrities. Classmates loved tocall out tones for us to magically sing from thin air.They played chords for us to name by ear. They quizzedus on what key a song was in.

Everyone was fascinated with our “supernatural”powers, yet to Ann and me, it was just normal.

Way back then, I never dreamed I would later causesuch a stir in the academic world. But when I entered college and started to explain my discoveries, professorslaughed at me.

“You must be born with Perfect Pitch,” they’d say.“You can’t develop it!”

I would listen politely. Then I’d reveal the simplesecret—so they could hear it for themselves.

You’d be surprised how fast they changed their tune!In college, my so-called “perfect ear” allowed me to

skip over two required music theory courses. PerfectPitch made everything easier—my ability to perform,compose, arrange, transpose, improvise, and evensight-read (because—without looking at the key-board—you know you’re playing the correct tones).

And because my ears were open, music soundedricher. I learned that music is truly a HEARING art.

The #1World Best-Selling Ear Training Method for 29Years

HEAR IT FOR YOURSELF! Save $70 + get 2 Free Bonus CDs! A Limited Time Offer!

� Name any note or chord — by EAR! � Sing any desired pitch at will� You’ll hear it for yourself — immediately. � Copy music straight off a CD � Play by ear — instead

of searching by hand � Identify keys of songs just by listening � Compose music in your head � Perform with confidence � Enjoy richer music appreciation � Open a new door to your talents . . .

David-Lucas Burge

For 29 years, we’ve received letters from musicians in 120 countries:

� “Wow! It really worked. I feel like a new musician. I amvery proud I could achieve something of this caliber.” J.M.,

percussion � “Someone played a D major chord and I recog-nized it straight away. S.C., bass � “Thanks...I developed a fullPerfect Pitch in just two weeks! It just happened like a miracle.”

B.B., guitar/piano � “It is wonderful. I can truly hear the differences in the color of the tones.” D.P., student � “I heard

the differences on the initial playing, which did in fact surpriseme. It is a breakthrough.” J.H., student � “It’s so simple it’s

ridiculous. M.P., guitar � “I’m able to play things I hear in myhead. Before, I could barely do it.” J.W., keyboards � “I hear asong on the radio and I know what they’re doing. My improvi-sations have improved. I feel more in control.” I.B., bass guitar� “It feels like I’m singing and playing MY notes instead ofsomebody else’s—like music is more ‘my own.’ L.H., voice/

guitar � “What a boost for children’s musical education! R.P.,music teacher � “I can identify tones and keys just by hearing

them and sing tones at will. When I hear music now it hasmuch more definition, form and substance. I don’t just

passively listen anymore, but actively listen to detail.” M.U., bass � “Although I was skeptical at first, I am now awed.” R.H., sax

� “It’s like hearing in a whole new dimension.” L.S., guitar � “I started crying and laughing all at the same time. J.S.,

music educator � “I wish I could have had this 30 years ago!”R.B., voice � “This is absolutely what I had been searching for.”

D.F., piano � “Mr. Burge—you’ve changed my life!” T.B., student � “Learn it or be left behind.” P.S., student . . .

Join musicians around the worldwho have already discovered the secrets to Perfect Pitch.

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Outside USA & Canada call: 641-472-3100

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Perfect PitchThey laughed whenI said they could have

Perfect Pitch. . . until I showed them the simple secret

——and they heard it for themselves!

Get $70 off + 2 Bonus CDs.Use VIP code:

MAKING-125

challenged her to name tones for me—by ear. I made her stand so she could not see the piano key-

board. I made sure other classmates could not help her.I set up everything perfectly so I could expose herPerfect Pitch claims as a ridiculous joke.

With silent apprehension, I selected a tone to play.(She’ll never guess F� , I thought.)

I had barely touched the key. “F�,” she said. I was astonished.I played another tone. “C,” she announced, not stopping to think. Frantically, I played more tones, skipping here and

there all over the keyboard. But somehow she knew thepitch each time. She was AMAZING.

“Sing an E �,” I demanded, determined to mess herup. She sang a tone. I checked her on the keyboard—and she was right on!

Now I started to boil. I called out more tones, trying hard to make them increasingly difficult. But each note she sang perfectly on pitch.

I was totally boggled. “How in the world do you do it? ” I blurted.

“I don’t know,” she sighed. And that was all I could get out of her!

The dazzle of Perfect Pitch hit me like a ton ofbricks. I was dizzy with disbelief. Yet from then on, Iknew that Perfect Pitch was real.

#1 29Years

“How in the world do you do it?” I blurted. I was totallyboggled. (age 14, 9th grade)

��

��I couldn’t figure it out . . .“How does she DO it?” I kept asking myself. On theother hand, why can’t everyone recognize and singtones by ear?

Then it dawned on me. People call themselves musicians, yet they can’t tell a C from a C�? Or A majorfrom F major?! That’s as strange as a portrait painterwho can’t name the colors of paint on his palette. It allseemed so odd and contradictory.

Humiliated and puzzled, I went home to work onthis problem. At age 14, this was a hard nut to crack.

You can be sure I tried it out for myself. With a littlesweet-talking, I got my three brothers and two sistersto play piano tones for me—so I could try to namethem by ear. But it always turned into a messy guessinggame I just couldn’t win.

Day after day I tried to learn those freaking tones. I would hammer a note over and over to make it stickin my head. But hours later I would remember it a halfstep flat. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t recog-nize or remember any of the tones by ear. They allsounded the same after awhile; how were you supposedto know which was which—just by listening?

I would have done anything to have an ear likeLinda. But now I realized it was way beyond my reach.So after weeks of work, I finally gave up.

Then it happened . . .It was like a miracle . . . a twist of fate . . . like finding the lost Holy Grail . . .

Once I stopped straining my ear, I started to listenNATURALLY. Then the simple secret to Perfect Pitchjumped right into my lap.

Curiously, I began to notice faint “colors” within thetones. Not visual colors, but colors of pitch, colors of

My true story of Perfect Pitchby David-Lucas Burge

IT ALL STARTED when I was in ninth grade as a sort of teenage rivalry . . .I’d slave at the piano for five hours daily. Linda prac-

ticed far less.Yet somehow she always shined as the starperformer at our school. It was frustrating.

What does she have that I don’t? I’d wonder.Linda’s best friend, Sheryl, bragged on and on to me,

adding more fuel to my fire. “You could never be as good as Linda,” she would

taunt. “Linda’s got Perfect Pitch.”“What’s Perfect Pitch?” I asked.Sheryl gloated about Linda’s uncanny abilities: how

she could name exact notes and chords—all BY EAR;how she could sing any tone—from memory alone;how she could play songs—after just hearing them; the list went on and on . . .

My heart sank. Her EAR is the secret to her successI thought. How could I ever hope to compete with her?

But it bothered me. Did she really have Perfect Pitch?How could she know notes and chords just by hearingthem? It seemed impossible.

Finally I couldn’t stand it anymore. So one day Imarched right up to Linda and asked her point-blank if she had Perfect Pitch.

“Yes,” she nodded aloofly. But Perfect Pitch was too good to believe. I rudely

pressed, “Can I test you sometime?”“OK,” she replied.

Now she would eat her words . . .My plot was ingeniously simple . . .

When Linda least suspected, I walked right up and

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Oh, you must be wondering: whatever happened withLinda? I’ll have to backtrack . . .

Flashback to my senior year of high school. I was nearly 18. In these three-and-a-half years withPerfect Pitch, my piano teacher insisted I had made ten years of progress. And I had. But my youthful ambition wasn’t satisfied. I needed one more thing: to beat Linda. Now was my final chance.

The University of Delaware hosts a performingmusic festival eachspring, complete withjudges and awards. Tomy horror, they sched-uled me that year asthe grand finale.

The fated dayarrived. Linda gave herusual sterling perfor-mance. She would betough to match, letalone surpass. But myturn finally came, andI went for it.

Slinking to thestage, I sat down andplayed my heart outwith selections fromBeethoven, Chopin,and Ravel. Theapplause was over-whelming.

Afterwards, Iscoured the bulletinboard for our grades.Linda received an A.This was no surprise.

Then I saw thatI had scored an A+.

Sweet victory wasmusic to my ears, mineat last! —D.L.B.

Now it’s YOUR turn!For 29 years now, musicians around the globe have

proven the simple methods that David-Lucas Burgestumbled upon as a teenager (plus research at two lead-ing universities—see www.PerfectPitch.com/research).

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Order your own Perfect Pitch® Ear TrainingSuperCourse and listen to the first CD. We promiseyou will immediately hear the Perfect Pitch colors thatDavid-Lucas starts you on—or return the course for afull prompt refund (you’ve got our 29-year word on it).

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sound. They had always been there. But this was thefirst time I had ever really “let go”—and listened—todiscover these subtle differences.

Soon—to my own disbelief—I too could name thetones by ear! It was simple. I could hear how F � soundsone way, while B � has a totally different sound—sort oflike “hearing” red and blue!

The realization struck me: THIS IS PERFECTPITCH! This is how Bach, Beethoven, and Mozartcould mentally heartheir masterpieces—and know tones,chords, and keys—all by ear!

It was almostchildish—I felt surethat anyone couldunlock their ownPerfect Pitch withthis simple secret of“Color Hearing.”

Bursting withexcitement, I told mybest friend, Ann (a flutist).

She laughed at me.“You have to be bornwith Perfect Pitch,”she asserted. “Youcan’t develop it.”

“You don’t under-stand how PerfectPitch works,” I coun-tered. I sat her downand showed her howto listen. Timidly, sheconfessed that shetoo could hear thepitch colors. Withthis jump start, Annsoon realized shealso had gained Perfect Pitch.

We became instant celebrities. Classmates loved tocall out tones for us to magically sing from thin air.They played chords for us to name by ear. They quizzedus on what key a song was in.

Everyone was fascinated with our “supernatural”powers, yet to Ann and me, it was just normal.

Way back then, I never dreamed I would later causesuch a stir in the academic world. But when I entered college and started to explain my discoveries, professorslaughed at me.

“You must be born with Perfect Pitch,” they’d say.“You can’t develop it!”

I would listen politely. Then I’d reveal the simplesecret—so they could hear it for themselves.

You’d be surprised how fast they changed their tune!In college, my so-called “perfect ear” allowed me to

skip over two required music theory courses. PerfectPitch made everything easier—my ability to perform,compose, arrange, transpose, improvise, and evensight-read (because—without looking at the key-board—you know you’re playing the correct tones).

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David-Lucas Burge

For 29 years, we’ve received letters from musicians in 120 countries:

� “Wow! It really worked. I feel like a new musician. I amvery proud I could achieve something of this caliber.” J.M.,

percussion � “Someone played a D major chord and I recog-nized it straight away. S.C., bass � “Thanks...I developed a fullPerfect Pitch in just two weeks! It just happened like a miracle.”

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the differences on the initial playing, which did in fact surpriseme. It is a breakthrough.” J.H., student � “It’s so simple it’s

ridiculous. M.P., guitar � “I’m able to play things I hear in myhead. Before, I could barely do it.” J.W., keyboards � “I hear asong on the radio and I know what they’re doing. My improvi-sations have improved. I feel more in control.” I.B., bass guitar� “It feels like I’m singing and playing MY notes instead ofsomebody else’s—like music is more ‘my own.’ L.H., voice/

guitar � “What a boost for children’s musical education! R.P.,music teacher � “I can identify tones and keys just by hearing

them and sing tones at will. When I hear music now it hasmuch more definition, form and substance. I don’t just

passively listen anymore, but actively listen to detail.” M.U., bass � “Although I was skeptical at first, I am now awed.” R.H., sax

� “It’s like hearing in a whole new dimension.” L.S., guitar � “I started crying and laughing all at the same time. J.S.,

music educator � “I wish I could have had this 30 years ago!”R.B., voice � “This is absolutely what I had been searching for.”

D.F., piano � “Mr. Burge—you’ve changed my life!” T.B., student � “Learn it or be left behind.” P.S., student . . .

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QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

What are your musical resolutions for 2010?

What music making experience are you most proud of?Send your comments to [email protected]

n I want to find more time to practice my cello, and to attend more concerts (though I may have to clone myself). I have little time to practice and am a complete beginner, but when I sit and practice the rest of the world goes away and I love those times.

I also want to learn music theory so I can understand more when I go to lectures and master classes, like the one at N.E.C. with Alfred Brendel that I attended a few weeks ago. I would love to be able to look at a score and hear the notes in my head, instead of having to find some sort of instrument to play them.

I also want to find the money to have more lessons and to attend the Sum-merKeys music camp again this sum-mer. There I played the cello, listened to others, took classes, played duets with a chamber partner, from 7 a.m. until bedtime. That was more than great.

Leslie A. Miller Boston, Massachusetts

n I started out on alto sax only because my band would not allow males to play clarinet. I’ve always had a deep love for the sound of the clarinet, and if I wasn’t working full-time and keeping a household intact, I would love to be able to afford to take jazz lessons so I can become some what like Benny Goodman. Next year, I hope to find some of his solo pieces written out, and eventually, locate a jazz band in need of a clarinetist. Hopefully I can also get over my fear of playing in front of people.

Drakie Jordan Atlanta, Georgia

n For the past year, Ecos De Puerto Rico, an 11-person cuatro (Puerto Rican folk guitar) group, has been playing together. This November, we presented our first concert of traditional music from Puerto Rico and Latin America. It was totally sold out three weeks before the event and the reception that our music got from the public was over-whelming. We’ve also been invited by the San Antonio Opera to play in the theater lobby prior to a benefit concert by José Feliciano.

Our goals, wishes, and hopes for next year are to continue bringing the island’s traditional music to a larger community through out the US.

Luis Torres San Antonio, Texas

n As a “newbie” to playing music, I can’t help but have many resolutions. I started playing bass with some friends a little over two years ago and it has grown into a Friday night ritual. I believe we can be called a band at this point. While I wish I had a better understanding of music theory and that all my scales and modes were memorized, I would really like to play a gig this year. I feel at my best when I have someone to play for.

My most memorable and favorite mo-ments have been when our practice sessions transitioned into impromptu parties. I find no better satisfaction than when I hear a boisterous “whoo-hoo!” at the end of a song. So while I feel there is so much to learn about music, my only real resolution is to keep playing!

Scott Aldrich Spring Hill, Florida


n This has been a watershed year for me musically. After too many years of playing solo, I’ve returned to making music with as many new people as I can meet. Your magazine is partly responsible for the resurgence in my musical energy.

The year 2010 will see me even more fully engaged with the amateur music scene here in Portland, one of the best cities in the US for seeing, hearing, and being immersed in a plethora of musi-cal choices.

John BrookshierPortland, Oregon

n My musical resolution for 2010 is to have the classical saxophone quartet I started six weeks ago perform at least six times. My target audience is the retire-ment communities where we feel we can make a contribution to the lives of others. And my personal goal is to per-form the Creston Saxophone Sonata in the summer student recital at the music school where I am studying.

Louis Sinoff Natick, Massachusetts

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