Classical Music Articles

Grow as a Person in Order to Grow as a Musician

2010-07-16T22:28:00.001-07:00

I’ll like to share a list of things that will help you with your personal development. I think it will also help with our discipline and focus as musicians.

Read a book every day. Books are concentrated sources of wisdom. The more books you read, the more wisdom you expose yourself to. What are some books you can start reading to enrich yourself? Some books I’ve read and found useful are Think and Grow Rich, Who Moved My Cheese, 7 Habits, The Science of Getting Rich and Living the 80/20 Way. I’ve heard positive reviews for The Tipping Point, Outliers and The Difference Maker, so I’ll be checking them out soon.
Learn a new language. As a Singaporean Chinese, my main languages are English, Mandarin and Hokkien (a Chinese dialect). Out of interest, I took up language courses in the past few years such as Japanese and Bahasa Indonesian. I realized learning a language is a whole new skill altogether and the process of acquainting with a new language and culture is a totally a mind-opening experience.
Pick up a new hobby. Beyond just your usual favorite hobbies, is there something new you can pick up? Any new sport you can learn? Examples are fencing, golf, rock climbing, football, canoeing, or ice skating. Your new hobby can also be a recreational hobby. For example, pottery, Italian cooking, dancing, wine appreciation, web design, etc. Learning something new requires you to stretch yourself in different aspects, whether physically, mentally or emotionally.
Take up a new course. Is there any new course you can join? Courses are a great way to gain new knowledge and skills. It doesn’t have to be a long-term course – seminars or workshops serve their purpose too. I’ve been to a few workshops and they have helped me gain new insights which I had not considered before.
Create an inspirational room. Your environment sets the mood and tone for you. If you are living in an inspirational environment, you are going to be inspired every day. In the past, I didn’t like my room at all because I thought it was messy and dull. A few years ago, I decided this was the end of it – I started on a “Mega Room Revamp” project and overhauled my room. The end result? A room I totally relish being in and inspires me to be at my peak every day.
Overcome your fears. All of us have fears. Fear of uncertainty, fear of public speaking, fear of risk… All our fears keep us in the same position and prevent us from growing. Recognize that your fears reflect areas where you can grow. I always think of fears as the compass for growth. If I have a fear about something, it represents something I’ve yet to address, and addressing it helps me to grow.
Level up your skills. If you have played video games before especially RPGs, you’ll know the concept of leveling up – gaining experience so you can be better and stronger. As a blogger, I’m constantly leveling up my writing skills. As a speaker, I’m constantly leveling up my public engagement abilities. What skills can you level up?
Wake up early. Waking up early (say, 5-6am) has been acknowledged by many (Anthony Robbins, Robin Sharma, among other self-help gurus) to improve your productivity and your quality of life. I feel it’s because when you wake up early, your mindset is already set to continue the momentum and proactively live out the day. Seth recently wrote a waking up early series which you should check out to help cultivate this habit.
Have a weekly exercise routine. A better you starts with being in better physical shape. I personally make it a point to jog at least 3 times a week, at least 30 minutes each time. You may want to mix it up with jogging, gym lessons and swimming for variation.
Start your life handbook. A life handbook is an idea I started 3 years ago. Basically, it’s a book which contains the essentials on how you can live your life to the fullest, such as your purpose, your values and goals. Sort of like your manual for your life. I started my life handbook since 2007 and it’s been a crucial enabler in my progress.
Write a letter to your future self. What do you see yourself as 5 years from now? Will you be the same? Different? What kind of person will you be? Write a letter to your future self – 1 year from now will be a good start – and seal it. Make a date in your calendar to open it 1 year from now. Then start working to become the person you want to open that letter.
Get out of your comfort zone. Real growth comes with hard work and sweat. Being too comfortable doesn’t help us grow – it makes us stagnate. What is your comfort zone? Do you stay in most of the time? Do you keep to your own space when out with other people? Shake your routine up. Do something different. By exposing yourself to a new context, you’re literally growing as you learn to act in new circumstances.
Put someone up to a challenge. Competition is one of the best ways to grow. Set a challenge (weight loss, exercise, financial challenge, etc) and compete with an interested friend to see who achieves the target first. Through the process, both of you will gain more than if you were to set off on the target alone.
Identify your blind spots. Scientifically, blind spots refer to areas our eyes are not capable of seeing. In personal development terms, blind spots are things about ourselves we are unaware of. Discovering our blind spots help us discover our areas of improvement. One exercise I use to discover my blind spots is to identify all the things/events/people that trigger me in a day – trigger meaning making me feel annoyed/weird/affected. These represent my blind spots. It’s always fun to do the exercise because I discover new things about myself, even if I may already think I know my own blind spots (but then they wouldn’t be blind spots would they?). After that, I work on steps to address them.
Ask for feedback. As much as we try to improve, we will always have blind spots. Asking for feedback gives us an additional perspective. Some people to approach will be friends, family, colleagues, boss, or even acquaintances, since they will have no preset bias and can give their feedback objectively.
Stay focused with to-do lists. I start my day with a list of tasks I want to complete and this helps make me stay focused. In comparison, the days when I don’t do this end up being extremely unproductive. For example, part of my to-do list for today is to write a guest post at LifeHack.Org, and this is why I’m writing this now! Since my work requires me to use my computer all the time, I use Free Sticky Notes to manage my to-do lists. It’s really simple to use and it’s a freeware, so I recommend you check it out.
Set Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs). I’m a big fan of setting BHAGs. BHAGs stretch you beyond your normal capacity since they are big and audacious – you wouldn’t think of attempting them normally. What are BHAGs you can embark on, which you’ll feel absolutely on top of the world once you complete them? Set them and start working on them.
Acknowledge your flaws. Everyone has flaws. What’s most important is to understand them, acknowledge them, and address them. What do you think are your flaws? What are the flaws you can work on now? How do you want to address them?
Get into action. The best way to learn and improve is to take action. What is something you have been meaning to do? How can you take action on it immediately? Waiting doesn’t get anything done. Taking action gives you immediate results to learn from.
Learn from people who inspire you. Think about people you admire. People who inspire you. These people reflect certain qualities you want to have for yourself too. What are the qualities in them you want to have for yourself? How can you acquire these qualities?
Quit a bad habit. Are there any bad habits you can lose? Oversleeping? Not exercising? Being late? Slouching? Nail biting? Smoking? Here’s some help on how you can quit a bad habit.
Cultivate a new habit. Some good new habits to cultivate include reading books (#1), waking up early (#8), exercising (#9), reading a new personal development article a day (#40) and meditating. Is there any other new habit you can cultivate to improve yourself?
Avoid negative people. As Jim Rohn says, “You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with”. Wherever we go, there are bound to be negative people. Don’t spend too much of your time around them if you feel they drag you down.
Learn to deal with difficult people. There are times when there are difficult people you can’t avoid, such as at your workplace, or when the person is part of your inner circle of contacts. Learn how to deal with them. These people management skills will go a long way in working with people in the future.
Learn from your friends. Everyone has amazing qualities in them. It’s up to how we want to tap into them. With all the friends who surround you, they are going to have things you can learn from. Try thinking of a good friend right now. Think about just one quality they have which you want to adopt. How can you learn from them and adopt this skill for yourself? Speak to them if you need to – for sure, they will be more than happy to help!
Start a journal. Journaling is a great way to gain better self-awareness. It’s a self-reflection process. As you write, clarify your thought process and read what you wrote from a third person’s perspective, you gain more insights about yourself. Your journal can be private or an online blog. I use my personal development blog as a personal journal too and I’ve learned a lot about myself through the past year of blogging.
Start a blog about personal development. To help others grow, you need to first be walking the talk. There are expectations of you, both from yourself and from others, which you have to uphold. I run The Personal Excellence Blog, where I share my personal journey and insights on how to live a better life. Readers look toward my articles to improve themselves, which enforces to me that I need to keep improving, for myself and for the people I’m reaching out to.
Get a mentor or coach. There’s no faster way to improve than to have someone work with you on your goals. Many of my clients approach me to coach them in their goals and they achieve significantly more results than if they had worked alone.
Reduce the time you spend on chat programs. I realized having chat programs open at default result in a lot of wasted time. This time can be much better spent on other activities. The days when I don’t get on chat, I get a lot more done. I usually disable the auto start-up option in the chat programs and launch them when I do want to chat and really have the time for it.
Learn chess (or any strategy game). I found chess is a terrific game to learn strategy and hone your brainpower. Not only do you have fun, you also get to exercise your analytical skills. You can also learn strategy from other board games or computer games, such as Othello, Chinese Chess, WarCraft, and so on.
Stop watching TV. I’ve not been watching TV for pretty much 4 years and it’s been a very liberating experience. I realized most of the programs and advertisements on mainstream TV are usually of a lower consciousness and not very empowering. In return, the time I’ve freed up from not watching TV is now constructively used for other purposes, such as connecting with close friends, doing work I enjoy, exercising, etc.
Start a 30-day challenge. Set a goal and give yourself 30 days to achieve this. Your goal can be to stick with a new habit or something you’ve always wanted to do but have not. 30 days is just enough time to strategize, plan, get into action, review and nail the goal.
Meditate. Meditation helps to calm you and be more conscious. I also realized that during the nights when I meditate (before I sleep), I need lesser sleep. The clutter clearing process is very liberating.
Join Toastmasters (Learn public speaking). Interestingly, public speaking is the #1 fear in the world, with #2 being death. After I started public speaking as a personal development speaker/trainer, I’ve learned a lot about how to communicate better, present myself and engage people. Toastmasters is an international organization that trains people in public speaking. Check out the Toastmaster clubs nearest to you here.
Befriend top people in their fields. These people have achieved their results because they have the right attitudes, skill sets and know-how. How better to learn than from the people who have been there and done that? Gain new insights from them on how you can improve and achieve the same results for yourself.
Let go of the past. Is there any grievance or unhappiness from the past which you have been holding on? If so, it’s time to let it go. Holding on to them prevents you from moving on and becoming a better person. Break away from the past, forgive yourself, and move on. Just recently, I finally moved on from a past heartbreak of 5 years ago. The effect was liberating and very empowering, and I have never been happier.
Start a business venture. Is there anything you have an interest in? Why not turn it into a venture and make money while learning at the same time? Starting a new venture requires you to be learn business management skills, develop business acumen and have a competitive edge. The process of starting and developing my personal development business has equipped me with many skills, such as self-discipline, leadership, organization and management.
Show kindness to people around you. You can never be too kind to someone. In fact, most of us don’t show enough kindness to people around us. Being kind helps us to cultivate other qualities such as compassion, patience, and love. As you get back to your day after reading this article later on, start exuding more kindness to the people around you, and see how they react. Not only that, notice how you feel as you behave kindly to others. Chances are, you will feel even better than yourself.
Reach out to the people who hate you. If you ever stand for something, you are going to get haters. It’s easy to hate the people who hate us. It’s much more challenging to love them back. Being able to forgive, let go and show love to these people requires magnanimity and an open heart. Is there anyone who dislikes or hates you in your life? If so, reach out to them. Show them love. Seek a resolution and get closure on past grievances. Even if they refuses to reciprocate, love them all the same. It’s much more liberating than to hate them back.
Take a break. Have you been working too hard? Self-improvement is also about recognizing our need to take a break to walk the longer mile ahead. You can’t be driving a car if it has no petrol. Take some time off for yourself every week. Relax, rejuvenate and charge yourself up for what’s up ahead.
Read at least 1 personal development article a day. Some of my readers make it a point to read at least one personal development article every day, which I think is a great habit. There are many terrific personal development blogs out there, some of which you can check here.
Commit to your personal growth. I can be writing list articles with 10 ways, 25 ways, 42 ways or even 1,000 ways to improve yourself, but if you’ve no intention to commit to your personal growth, it doesn’t matter what I write. Nothing is going to get through. We are responsible for our personal growth – not anyone else. Not your mom, your dad, your friend, me or LifeHack. Make the decision to commit to your personal growth and embrace yourself to a life-long journey of growth and change. Kick off your growth by picking a few of the steps above and working on them. The results may not be immediate, but I promise you that as long as you keep to it, you’ll start seeing positive changes in yourself and your life.

Yes, I like Classical Music

2010-07-12T23:06:00.001-07:00

A few days ago I wrote a post about how we all are responsible to promote classical music and make it more popular between audiences. I had to take my own advice 2 days ago. I’m in Colombia with the Youth Orchestra of the Americas and we were going to play a concert for an audience that probably wouldn't pay anything to see us perform in a concert hall. So it was an outdoor concert, with a very high humidity percent. It was not very comfortable for the orchestra members since we got there at 3 30pm and the concert was not until 7 30pm. We tuned, and did the sound check but after that we were pretty much waiting for the concert to start. While we were waiting it started to rain. We were in a small hut and all of a sudden water started running under our feet. There was a few cello and bass cases in the floor, everybody was taking care of their instruments and helping each other.

Then, I started thinking …. we have to get through all this just to play some classical music to people that might not appreciate what we are doing? Well, in the post I wrote the other day: Are You Sure You Like Classical Music? I emphasize how we have to assist to concerts in order to promote classical music and become a better musician. It was our duty to perform that night and promote classical music. Of course at the end of the concert the orchestra played some Colombian music and popular hits. By doing this we give them something new and something they will definitely enjoy. So it is a win-win situation. The positive side was that all of the musicians were really close to each other so we get to talk and know everybody better. We did a lot of jokes and after everything… it was not that bad because we are like a family. We all in this tour for the same reasons, we get through the same things, we eat the same thing and sleep in the same hotels, we spend a month and a half together to share the same passion; the love for music.

We were not very happy with the waiting and weather conditions but it was so worth it, we played good music for people that deserves good music.Our job is done here… we can say we did it for classical music. I’m glad I wrote that post because it helped me realize the importance of doing everything necessary to promote classical music.

My Favorite Orchestral Soundtracks

2010-07-09T19:00:00.000-07:00

The following is a list of my favorite orchestral film music. My favorite film composer is James Horner so you'll see a lot of his music. You can also Buy Them. I hope you like it

Click Here to see the list!

Are You Sure You Like Classical Music?

2010-07-08T15:42:00.001-07:00

This question will sound awkward if directed to a classical musician. Your natural response would be; Of Course I play an orchestral instrument and I am in 3 different orchestras and a string quartet, how can you ask me that? Well, we sure like to play our instruments and practice until our fingers bleed, but, practicing your instrument 8 hours a day means that you like classical music?
I’ll tell you what! How do you feel if I ask you to go to a performance every weekend? I’m pretty sure a lot of musicians will say yes to that! That’s easy! Some of us will say yes but we might make it to a few concerts, and then we start getting lazy and miss the rest of the season. I asked if you are sure you like classical music because sometimes we just don’t go to concert for long periods of time, just because we are lazy. There is no other reason. We like to play our instruments and give concerts but we don’t go to them if we are not playing. Being a complete musician also consist in going to concert and support your colleges. Concerts will increase the amount of repertoire you’ve ever listen, will make you understand better the music you already know, they will help to understand better the style of the composer, and another million things musically speaking. And, by the way, you are supporting “your people”. You want them to listen to your music right? So there is no reason to miss a classical music concert ever again. I propose you to check the schedule of every ensemble around your community and mark it in your agenda. This way you will never forget another concert.
I was like that! I liked to play the violin in everything. I didn’t care with who or which ensemble, as long as I was playing I was happy, it feels good to play my instrument. I missed a lot of concerts because…. you know…. I was careless. I like huge symphonic sounds, I am a total geek of film music so I listen to soundtracks but played classical music. I know!! It sounds really bad! One summer after a music festival, I realize that going to concerts and listening to classical music a bit more will make me a better musician and will help my violin playing. I believe is worth it! Give it a try!

Go to the Blog Archive for more Posts!

How Important is Good Discipline and Smart Practicing

2010-07-05T22:39:00.001-07:00

Practice makes perfection! That is just a FACT! it is so true that when you work hard in anything that you do you are going to be successful. When you are practicing your instrument you are changing bad habits for good ones. That’s it! There you have the magic of good playing. The main purpose of practice is to sound good, we do it by repeating the same thing over and over. But here is the thing, we cannot repeat just for the sake of repeating, we have to repeat with conscience. We first figure out the problem and then work on it. Take the piece in a comfortable tempi and feel comfortable with it, know that your playing is as perfect as it could get even if it slow. Then speed up 5 clicks on your metronome and do the same thing. Repeat the process until you reach your desire tempi. Always keep in mind the basic things like your sound production, intonation, tempi, rhythm, dynamics, etc.

Sometimes it is very hard to even think about opening your case. When we have to practice, all kind of human necessities show up. We have to go to the bathroom, we are hungry, tired, in pain, just about everything. Once we start everything turns smoother and sometimes you will feel like you want even more and more. But the truth is that if we don't practice we are not going to be better musicians. We have to follow a daily plan and a smart routine. If you want to become a great artist you have to work incredibly hard, but I’ll promise you that all your efforts are going to be worth it. Start by creating a routine for every day and some objectives. If you don't feel like practicing one day you are going to promise that you will force yourself to start with scales and keep going with the rest of your repertoire. No successful person is known by working when he/she feels like, they are all known by taking action at the moment. This is going to be intensive and well planned. I propose you start by setting up your long and short term goals.

This is a list of some of the things that I believe it could improve your practice time

Things to do before practice:

Eat well
Take a nap
Go to the bathroom
Drink something
Listen to a recording of what you are about to play
Read the biography of the composer
Make sure your instrument is ready to go!
Tell your family not to bother you
Remember what you worked on the day before
Prepare yourself for practicing (practice mode)

Things to do when you are practicing:

Focus!
Create daily objectives
Follow your objectives
Don't leave before you finish your objectives
Force yourself if you have to
Take breaks, they help your brain to think smarter and efficiently
Use metronome
Try different tempos
Remember the basics
Set your mind to be alert 100%

Things to do after you practice:

Look for inspiration to keep practicing
Go to concerts
Support a fellow musician
Listen to all different kinds of music
Study the score and the instrumental part without the recording
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Recent Posts
How Composers Write Music
How to enjoy a Classical Music Concert
4 Things a Classical Musician Will Have to Live With

4 Things a Classical Musician Will Have to Live With…

2010-07-02T15:32:00.001-07:00

Classical Music is an amazing genre and one of the more complex forms of art. But, we have to accept that is not one of the top “things to do” among the people. It is our job and duty to make this form of art grow and be part of everybody's life. The following is a list of things that we as classical musicians will have to deal with always.

We have to study and work harder or as hard as any other profession.

And this is very true. If we want to make it in to a symphony that is going to cost at least 5 hrs a day for some years. That is before classes, teaching, working and gigs. We will have to pay good teachers for lessons, assist to summer festivals, meet new musicians, try out for auditions and competitions, and a little bit of everything. It is as hard or harder that majoring in medicine. But, it is totally worth it! With our music we’ll touch people’s lives and change them for good. We will feel good after a good performance, competition, gig, masterclass, lesson, etc. because we’ve earn it. There is not a better feeling than winning a competition and get to play with a symphony orchestra behind you. All of our efforts are going to be paid sooner or later. We just have to keep to focus and keep working.

Sometimes people won’t appreciate what we do 100%

If you say you are a musician you are not going to impress many people by saying it, and this is of course because of their ignorance. They don't know what is to be a concert violinist or a classical guitarist. For them you will be as smart as their neighbor who can play 3 chords in his guitar. We have to let them know and explain them how hard we work, how expensive are music schools, how hard is to make it in to a symphony, how much you have to practice, and how happy being a musician makes you. This is not like being in a garage band, classical music is a serious business.

A classical musician will probably have a few jobs (in music)

To live out of music we might need to have 2 or more jobs. Playing at wedding on weekends its not going to pay all the bills. We might have to teach, play in orchestra, chamber music, popular music, compose, arrange, conduct, orchestrate, etc. So while you are at school don't be afraid of taking that conducting class, or complementary composition, it might be useful later.

It is likely that in our careers at some point we will reconsider being in the music business

There will be moments of frustration, doubt, and bad thoughts about being in the music business. After a bad audition, you might feel horrible. After a bad recital you might start thinking “ Is this really for me?” I am not successful. It happens to all of us….. but the truth is that if we really love music and that is the only thing you see yourself doing for the rest of your life, you don't have to be scared of anything. YOU ARE GOING TO BE SUCCESSFUL ! Don't forget it! This is definitely for you. When you love what you are doing you are going to be happy and successful, 2 things people need in order to have a good life.
The classical music world is very small, it happened to me before that when I meet a musician he/she is very likely to know someone I know somewhere else in earth. So I would say, have as many musician friends as you can, it will be a benefit for your career, and avoid confrontations because they can be harmful later in the future.

How do they do It ? Write Music!

2010-06-28T10:32:00.000-07:00

When you listen to the radio, go to the movies, watch a TV series, go to the symphony hall or just being annoyed by your neighbor's garage band, your are being surrounded by music that was made with a purpose. They might be noises or effects but the truth is that all of the above is music composed by someone. It might be to support some visuals in a movie or maybe it is going to be sang by a famous celebrity or a good symphony orchestra. Either way, the process of inspiration is the same for all of them.

The first thing a composer have to do is get involved in the project and get as much information as possible.

If he was commissioned to write a symphony he will have to study the symphony form and all the symphonies of the great masters. Know the symphonic instruments, and have a vast knowledge in orchestration. By doing this he will be deep enough in to the project to do the job prominently.
If the composer is assigned to write a song for a celebrity, he would then have to know the artist,know their style, know their previous albums and anything related to the artist.
A film composer will have to attend the shooting sessions, know the story extremely well, decide if he is going to use electronic effects, a symphony orchestra, a rock group, the use of ethnic instruments, an existing band, a choir, or just a piano.

The Compositional Process

When the composer have all the important details about the project and gather all the information he is ready to take the next step, the compositional process.

The composer think about melodic material that can be the essential base of the project
This melodies have to be short and sticky to the ear, this is the only way of making it popular
The melodies need the right character for whom is composed.
After the melodies are composed he would find an accompaniment and work hard to make this as unique as possible
He would then make some variations of the theme and/or transpose the theme in to other keys to change the color and mood.
After choosing the melody and accompaniment, the composer has to work with the details. What else would that piece of music need? Effects, electronics, acoustic instruments, synthesizer,etc.
With the right colors we are almost there. The composer check with his supervisor or boss for his approval.
At this point he will work on any necessary improvement of the piece and try to give it that special something for it to success.

Every composer have their own way of writing music. Even if they don't follow the list above step by step they will eventually cover all of them by the end of the compositional process.

How to enjoy a Classical Music Concert (20 steps)

2010-06-26T14:55:00.001-07:00

Be mentally prepared, its classical music
Know the story behind the piece or pieces, sometimes they are very interesting
Be aware that classical music in not only for old people or rich people, it is an amazing form of art for any kind of people.
Back when the music was composed, composers worked under extreme circumstances ( they didn't have computers) :)
When you get to the concert hall before the beginning of the concert read the program, know the musicians, the story behind the piece, the conductor, future performances, etc.
Feel the joy of being part of the classical music world, you are supporting people you have studied really hard to make it in to a symphony orchestra or a chamber group.
When the concertmaster comes out please applaud! He is the leader of the orchestra as well as the leader of first violin section. His job is not easy task! He has to be able to communicate music ideas well with his colleagues, have a strong leadership, and be a special musician since a lot of the orchestra problems musically and administrative are discussed with the concertmaster.
After the orchestra is tuned listen to the first melody or effect created by the composer
Listen to harmonies and how they accompany the melody
Who has the melody? Flute, oboe, violins, cellos?
If the piece have movements, are they repeating the same melodies again in other movements?
Does melodies represent a character according to the story behind it?
DONT applaud between movements
How big is the orchestra? Usually baroque and classical music are played by chamber orchestras with less than 40 member while the romantic music is played with over 80 member.
If there is a soloist, listen how he interacts with the orchestra members for example: A duo melody with the flute, or maybe he plays the melody and then the bassoon take it on.
Watch the conductor’s hair, some of them are really crazy
Listen to the percussion section, they have all kind of ethnical instruments
At intermission or at the end of the concert, go meet the musicians and the soloist
After watching closely all this details you will understand more what this is all about and you are more likely to find classical music as entertaining. This is why people say classical music is boring sometimes they don't know anything about it, is like looking at a modern painting, it is boring until you know what it is all about.
Symphonic music is one of the more complex genres, this is why sometimes is so hard to understand. It is not like a hip-hop that only uses 2 chords through all the song. We can also enjoy symphonic music in the movie theater, some orchestras also include in their season a pop concert or a Broadway highlights.This is a great start for someone that wants to get in to classical and symphonic music

How to Hear Colors in Music

2010-06-22T12:32:00.001-07:00

If you are a musician or if you are involved somehow in the music industry, chances are that you’ve heard more than once this expression “ …..and the orchestration was brilliant, those colors!!!….” Maybe this is the first time you hear about colors in music, either way I will try to give you a basic introduction on what is it when we talk about colors in music. Often, composers and orchestrators refer to colors in music when they are talking about a certain feeling or sensation in a specific piece of music. They use that expression to explain someone else what they did in that excerpt of music, how they worked on it, and why they did it that way. James Horner is a prominent film composer who recently scored the Avatar movie. I’ve seen a lot of his interviews and he always talk about how he combine colors to create a specific feeling or mood. Since the primary purpose of music in film is to serve the moving images, music colors have a very important role. The different combinations of musical instruments in a specific scene make it seem darker or more brilliant, sad or happy, it is just about how the composer combine the musical instruments to achieve the work of supporting the movie with music effectively. So, we can say that colors in music are based in how we combine the musical instruments.
Lets imagine we are orchestrators and we already know all the ranges of the instruments of a symphony orchestra (their highest notes and their lowest), we know how to balance the orchestra well in terms of which instruments sounds louder than the others naturally. We are going to orchestrate the music for the movie Cast Away, the main character is in an island and he just lost his best friend "Wilson” a volleyball that went away by accident at sea. He is crying and trying to reach the ball but it is moving away too fast, and the scene its 3 minutes long all about the main character trying to reach his best friend. We have to choose the right colors to support that scene, we suddenly think about something peaceful but sad not too much passion or hysterical attitude but with pain. We know that the oboe would be perfect as a melody carrier in its middle register because it has a warm sound. Next step is to compose a sad melody for the oboe that fits the scene (remember, middle register for warm quality) With the perfect accompaniment we could make that scene unforgettable . But what could be the accompaniment? As orchestrators we know that the brass family would be to loud for this scene and the woodwind family will sound too homogeneous to the solo oboe and the melody could be lost. The String Family could be our solution, they have a mellow sound, and played in a soft dynamic can let the oboe rise and sing above the entire section. But we need a deep sound to support the oboe since that scene definitely required it, we know that if we choose basses, cellos and violas in their lower register to create long harmonies could work.Violins in their higher register wouldn’t be very appropriate for this cue due to its brightness in their color, but maybe as unison with the viola section in a moderate register would create a richer sound.

So we can say that in this particular case the composer chose this 2 colors from the palette which is the symphony orchestra . That dark sound created by the lower strings its the first color and the oboe above the harmony the second color. Those 2 colors where chosen by the composer or orchestrator to support the scene effectively but a different composer could have picked another 2 colors or maybe add a third one. Maybe he could’ve had the solo trumpet as the melody and a combination of woodwinds and strings as the accompaniment. The cue will still be effective but it would evocate a different mood in the person. As you get more experience as a composer/orchestrator it will come to you naturally.Colors are sonorities, when we hear a flute in its high register and an oboe also in its high register we could tell them apart by their colors, the oboe will have a more nasal sound, that is their natural color while the flute sound is more sweet. Classical music composers like Maurice Ravel and Igor Stravinsky are better known by their tremendous orchestrations. They knew the orchestra so well that they developed an incredible sensibility to sounds and colors, they could practically create anything they had in their minds.

Introduction to Music Theory

2010-06-18T17:37:00.001-07:00

Lesson 1 - Staffs, Clefs and Ledger Lines

Lesson 2 - Note Duration

Lesson 3 - Measures and Time Signature

Lesson 4 - Rest Duration

Lesson 5 - Dots and Ties

Lesson 6 - Simple and Compound Meter

Lesson 7 - Odd Meter

Lesson 8 - Steps and Accidentals

Lesson 9 - The Major Scale (see also our Piano Scales chart )

Lesson 10 - The Minor Scales (see also our Piano Scales chart )

Lesson 11 - Introduction to Major Chords

Lesson 12 - An Introduction to Minor Chords

Lesson 13 - Scale Degrees

Lesson 14 - Key Signatures

Lesson 15 - An Introduction to Major Scales

Lesson 16 - Key Signature Calculation

Lesson 17 - Generic Intervals

Lesson 18 - Specific Intervals

Lesson 19 - Introduction Staff and Clefs

Lesson 20 - Writing Intervals

Lesson 21 - Interval Inversion

Lesson 22 - Introduction to Chords

Lesson 23 - Triad Inversion

Lesson 24 - Diatonic Triads

Lesson 25 - Roman Numeral Analysis

Lesson 26 - Voicing Chords

Lesson 27 - Analysis #1

Lesson 28 - Seventh Chords

Lesson 29 - Diatonic Seventh Chords

Lesson 30 - Seventh Chord Inversion

Lesson 31 - Composing with Minor Scales

Lesson 32 - Nonharmonic Tones

Lesson 33 - Phrases and Cadences

Lesson 34 - Circle Progressions

Lesson 35 - Common Chord Progressions

Lesson 36 - Triads in First Inversion

Lesson 37 - Triads in Second Inversion

Lesson 38 - Analysis #2

Lesson 39 - Building Neapolitan Chords

Lesson 40 - Using Neapolitan Chords

Lesson 41 - Analysis #3

Lesson 42 - Instrument Ranges

Lesson 43 - Introduction to the pentatonic scale

Lesson 44 - Introduction to Modes

Lesson 45 - Degrees of the scale

Lesson 46 - Introduction to Triads

Key Signatures Affects our Soul

2010-06-14T17:27:00.000-07:00

Do you feel like this?

from Christian Schubart's Ideen zu einer Aesthetik der Tonkunst (1806)

C Major
Completely Pure. Its character is: innocence, simplicity, children's talk.

C Minor
Declaration of love and at the same time the lament of unhappy love. All languishing, longing, sighing of the love-sick soul lies in this key.

Db Major
A leering key, degenerating into grief and rapture. It cannot laugh, but it can smile; it cannot howl, but it can at least grimace its crying.--Consequently only unusual characters and feelings can be brought out in this key.

C# Minor
Penitential lamentation, intimate conversation with God, the friend and help-meet of life; sighs of disappointed friendship and love lie in its radius.

D Major
The key of triumph, of Hallejuahs, of war-cries, of victory-rejoicing. Thus, the inviting symphonies, the marches, holiday songs and heaven-rejoicing choruses are set in this key.

D Minor
Melancholy womanliness, the spleen and humours brood.

Eb Major
The key of love, of devotion, of intimate conversation with God.

D# Minor
Feelings of the anxiety of the soul's deepest distress, of brooding despair, of blackest depresssion, of the most gloomy condition of the soul. Every fear, every hesitation of the shuddering heart, breathes out of horrible D# minor. If ghosts could speak, their speech would approximate this key.

E Major
Noisy shouts of joy, laughing pleasure and not yet complete, full delight lies in E Major.

E minor
Na�ve, womanly innocent declaration of love, lament without grumbling; sighs accompanied by few tears; this key speaks of the imminent hope of resolving in the pure happiness of C major.
F Major
Complaisance & Calm.

F Minor
Deep depression, funereal lament, groans of misery and longing for the grave.

F# Major
Triumph over difficulty, free sigh of relief utered when hurdles are surmounted; echo of a soul which has fiercely struggled and finally conquered lies in all uses of this key.

F# Minor
A gloomy key: it tugs at passion as a dog biting a dress. Resentment and discontent are its language.

G Major
Everything rustic, idyllic and lyrical, every calm and satisfied passion, every tender gratitude for true friendship and faithful love,--in a word every gentle and peaceful emotion of the heart is correctly expressed by this key.

G Minor
Discontent, uneasiness, worry about a failed scheme; bad-tempered gnashing of teeth; in a word: resentment and dislike.

Ab Major
Key of the grave. Death, grave, putrefaction, judgment, eternity lie in its radius.

Ab Minor
Grumbler, heart squeezed until it suffocates; wailing lament, difficult struggle; in a word, the color of this key is everything struggling with difficulty.

A Major
This key includes declarations of innocent love, satisfaction with one's state of affairs; hope of seeing one's beloved again when parting; youthful cheerfulness and trust in God.
A minor
Pious womanliness and tenderness of character.

Bb Major
Cheerful love, clear conscience, hope aspiration for a better world.

Bb minor
A quaint creature, often dressed in the garment of night. It is somewhat surly and very seldom takes on a pleasant countenance. Mocking God and the world; discontented with itself and with everything; preparation for suicide sounds in this key.

B Major
Strongly coloured, announcing wild passions, composed from the most glaring coulors. Anger, rage, jealousy, fury, despair and every burden of the heart lies in its sphere.
B Minor
This is as it were the key of patience, of calm awaiting ones's fate and of submission to divine dispensation.

Translated by Rita Steblin in A History of Key Characteristics in the 18th and Early 19th Centuries. UMI Research Press (1983).

The History of the Bass (Humor)

2010-06-12T18:22:00.000-07:00

The History of the Bass - !!Funny!!
by Tony Levin

In the beginning there was a bass. It was a Fender, probably a Precision, but it could have been a Jazz - nobody knows. Anyway, it was very old ... definitely pre-C.B.S. And God looked down upon it and saw that it was good. He saw that it was very good in fact, and couldn't be improved on at all (though men would later try.) And so He let it be and He created a man to play the bass. And lo the man looked upon the bass, which was a beautiful 'sunburst' red, and he loved it. He played upon the open E string and the note rang through the earth and reverberated throughout the firmaments (thus reverb came to be.) And it was good. And God heard that it was good and He smiled at his handiwork. Then in the course of time, the man came to slap upon the bass. And lo it was funky. And God heard this funkiness and He said, "Go man, go." And it was good.
And more time passed, and, having little else to do, the man came to practice upon the bass. And lo, the man came to have upon him a great set of chops. And he did play faster and faster until the notes rippled like a breeze through the heavens. And God heard this sound which sounded something like the wind, which He had created earlier. It also sounded something like the movement of furniture, which He hadn't even created yet, and He was not so pleased. And He spoke to the man, saying "Don't do that!"
Now the man heard the voice of God, but he was so excited about his new ability that he slapped upon the bass a blizzard of funky notes. And the heavens shook with the sound, and the Angels ran about in confusion. (Some of the Angels started to dance, but that's another story.) And God heard this - how could He miss it - and lo He became Bugged. And He spoke to the man, and He said, "Listen man, if I wanted Jimi Hendrix I would have created the guitar. Stick to the bass parts."
And the man heard the voice of God, and he knew not to mess with it. But now he had upon him a passion for playing fast and high. The man took the frets off of the bass which God had created. And the man did slide his fingers upon the fretless fingerboard and play melodies high upon the neck. And, in his excitement, the man did forget the commandment of the Lord, and he played a frenzy of high melodies and blindingly fast licks. And the heavens rocked with the assault and the earth shook, rattled and rolled.
Now God's wrath was great. And His voice was thunder as He spoke to the man. And He said, "O.K. for you, pal. You have not heeded My word. Lo, I shall create a soprano saxophone and it shall play higher than you can even think of." "And from out of the chaos I shall bring forth the drums. And they shall play so many notes thine head shall ache, and I shall make you to always stand next to the drummer." "You think you're loud? I shall create a stack of Marshall guitar amps to make thine ears bleed. And I shall send down upon the earth other instruments, and lo, they shall all be able to play higher and faster than the bass."
"And for all the days of man, your curse shall be this; that all the other musicians shall look to you, the bass player, for the low notes. And if you play too high or fast all the other musicians shall say "Wow" but really they shall hate it. And they shall tell you you're ready for your solo career, and find other bass players for their bands. And for all your days if you want to play your fancy licks you shall have to sneak them in like a thief in the night." "And if you finally do get to play a solo, everyone shall leave the bandstand and go to the bar for a drink." And it was so.

Itzhak Perlman: The Truth Behind an Amazing Violinist

2010-06-11T18:51:00.001-07:00

On Nov. 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman, the violinist, came on 
stage to give a concert at Lincoln Center in New York City. 
If you have ever been to a Perlman concert, you know that 
getting on stage is no small achievement for him. He was 
stricken with polio as a child, and has braces on both legs
and walks with the aid of two crutches.

To see him walk across the stage one step at a time, painfully 
and slowly, is a sight. He walks painfully, yet majestically, 
until he reaches his chair.  Then he sits down, slowly, puts 
his crutches on the floor, undoes the clasps on his legs, 
tucks one foot back and extends the other foot forward. Then he 
bends down and picks up the violin, puts it under his chin, 
nods to the conductor and proceeds to play.

By now, the audience is used to this ritual. They sit quietly 
while he makes his way across the stage to his chair. They 
remain reverently silent while he undoes the clasps on his legs. 
They wait until he is ready to play. But this time, something 
went wrong. Just as he finished the first few bars, one of the 
strings on his violin broke. You could hear it snap - it went 
off like gunfire across the room. There was no mistaking what 
that sound meant. There was no mistaking what he had to do.

People who were there that night thought to themselves: 
"We figured that he would have to get up, put on the clasps 
again, pick up the crutches and limp his way off stage - to 
either find another violin or else find another string for 
this one... or wait for someone to bring him another."

But he didn't. Instead, he waited a moment, closed his eyes 
and then signaled the conductor to begin again. The orchestra 
began, and he played from where he had left off. And he played 
with such passion and such power and such purity as they had 
never heard before.

Of course, anyone knows that it is impossible to play a symphonic 
work with just three strings.  I know that; you know that. But 
that night Itzhak Perlman refused to know that. You could see 
him modulating, changing, recomposing the piece in his head.

At one point, it sounded like he was de-tuning the strings to 
get new sounds from them that they had never made before.

When he finished, there was an awesome silence in the room. 
And then people rose and cheered. There was an extraordinary 
outburst of applause from every corner of the auditorium. 
We were all on our feet, screaming and cheering, doing everything 
we could to show how much we appreciated what he had done.

He smiled, wiped the sweat from his brow, raised his bow to 
quiet us, and then he said, not boastfully, but in a quiet, 
pensive, reverent tone, "You know, sometimes it is the artist's 
task to find out how much music you can still make with what 
you have left."

What a powerful line that is. It has stayed in my mind ever 
since I heard it. And who knows? Perhaps that is the way of 
life - not just for an artist but for all of us. Here is a 
man who has prepared all his life to make music on a violin 
with four strings, who all of a sudden, in the middle of a
concert, finds himself with only three strings, and the music 
he made that night with just three strings was more beautiful, 
more sacred, more memorable, than any that he had ever made 
before, when he had four strings.

So, perhaps our task in this shaky, fast-changing, bewildering 
world in which we live, is to make music, at first with all 
that we have, and then, when that is no longer possible, 
to make music with what we have left.

How Unique are Classical Music Composers? (Humor)

2010-06-10T22:01:00.001-07:00

The Mozart Effect: Makes a child smarter and more mathematical along with a higher IQ
The Haydn Effect: Child is witty and quick on his feet, quite often bringing a grin to the faces of those around him. Despite this he exhibits remarkable humility.
The Bach Effect: Child memorizes Scripture and says his prayers every day; may overwhelm listeners with his speech.
The Handel Effect: Much like the Bach Effect; in addition, the child may exhibit dramatic behavior.
The Beethoven Effect: Child develops a superiority complex and is prone to violent tantrums; is a perfectionist.
The Liszt Effect: Child speaks rapidly and extravagantly, but never really says anything important
The Bruckner Effect: Child speaks very slowly and repeats himself frequently. Gains a reputation for profundity.
The Grieg Effect: This child is quirky yet cheery. May be prone toward Norwegian folklore.
The Wagner Effect: Child becomes a megalomaniac. Speaks for six hours at a stretch.
The Schoenberg Effect: Child never repeats a word until he has used all the other words in his vocabulary. Sometimes talk backwards or upside-down. Eventually people stop listening to him. Child blames them for their inability to understand him.
The Ives Effect: Child develops a remarkable ability to carry on several separate conversations at once.
The Stravinsky Effect: Child is prone to savage, guttural and profane outbursts that lead to fighting and pandemonium in preschool.
The Shostakovich Effect: Child only expresses themselves in parent-approved ways.
The Cage Effect: Childs says exactly nothing for 4 minutes and 33 seconds. Preferred by 9 out of 10 classroom teachers.
The Glass Effect: Child repeats one word over, and over, and over, and over....

More....
http://www.classicalmusicarticles.com/2010/05/how-to-keep-conductor-in-line.html

Chamber Music History

2010-06-07T09:42:00.001-07:00

Originally, chamber music referred to a type of classical music that was performed in a small space such as a house or a palace room. The number of instruments used were also few without a conductor to guide the musicians. Today, chamber music is performed very similarly in terms of the size of the venue and the number of instruments used. Typically, a chamber orchestra is composed of 40 or fewer musicians. Because of the limited number of instruments, each instrument plays an equally important role. Chamber music differs from a concerto or a symphony because it is performed by only one player per part.
Chamber music evolved from the French chanson, a vocal music comprising of four voices accompanied by a lute. In Italy, the chanson became known as canzona and evolved from its original form of vocal music into instrumental music often adapted for the organ.
During the 17th century, the canzona evolved into the chamber sonata performed on two violins plus a melody instrument (ex. cello) and harmony instrument (ex. harpsichord).
From the sonatas, specifically the trio sonatas, (ex. works by Arcangelo Corelli) evolved the string quartet which uses two violins, a cello and viola. Examples of string quartets are works by Franz Joseph Haydn.
In 1770, the harpsichord was replaced by the piano and the latter became a chamber music instrument. The piano trio (piano, cello and violin) then emerged evident in the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert.
In the late 19th century, the piano quartet (piano, cello, violin and viola) emerged with the works of such composers as Antonín Dvorák and Johannes Brahms. In 1842, Robert Schumann wrote a piano quintet (piano plus string quartet).
During the 20th century, chamber music took on new forms combining different instruments including the voice. Composers such as Béla Bartók (string quartet) and Anton von Webern contributed to this genre.

Petrucci Music Library- Free Classical Music Library

2010-06-05T12:18:00.000-07:00

The Petrucci Music Library is an internet-based collaborative music score library, and is currently the main project. You will find tens of thousands of scores composed by thousands of composers here, all available for free download.

Our goal is to create a virtual library containing all public domain music scores, as well as scores from composers who are willing to share their music with the world without charge. The Petrucci Music Library also encourages the exchange of musical ideas, both in the form of musical works and in their analysis. Feel free to post your analysis of a particular piece on the "discussion" pages, or join our forums for interactive discussion with the community.

Website:
http://imslp.org/wiki/

3 Ways to Find Classical Music

2010-06-04T11:28:00.001-07:00

Getting into classical music can be a challenging task, especially for those who are unfamiliar with Bach, Mozart, and even Beethoven. Luckily, thanks to the marvels of modern technology, something that was once time consuming and rather intimidating, is now as simple as pushing a button. These few, but simple tips, can open up an abundance of classical music for you to listen, examine, and enjoy.
Tip #1

Napster: My number one choice for finding music, I use Napster every day. You can find just about anything you want here - Bach, Mozart, Liszt, Beethoven, Handel, etc... You can search by artist, composer, title, and album. Napster also offers a classical music radio - a large list of randomly selected classical works. Napster has a free version from which to listen(www.free.napster.com), however the sound quality is less than CD quality, so some of the subtle nuances of the music is lost. The subscription service has several plans, but the lowest priced plan is just $5 a month.

Tip #2

iTunes: If I find a song or an album I really like on Napster, in most cases, I can buy it directly from iTunes and transfer it to my iPod or burn it to a CD to listen to in the car.

Tip #3 When you're out shopping at Wal-Mart, Target, K Mart, Best Buy, or any other major retailer, you can find great classical music compilation CDs. These CDs usually feature "Most Popular" works and "Greatest Works of All Time" spanning the many periods and styles of classical music. You're sure to find something you'll like on one of these albums, in which case you can begin searching for other works by the same composer.

Sibelius vs. Finale: How To Choose?

2010-06-01T19:01:00.001-07:00

I am constantly asked for guidance in choosing which of the two preeminent music prep software packages to adopt. There are other programs available, of course, but I would be leery of adopting upstarts, no matter how sexy the features, when there are veterans available. The race does not always go to the swift, since few users with careers built on software will want to master more every few years; neither do they want to abandon a body of work done in one format because it didn’t go the distance. Plus, unless one is musical hermit, one must deal with colleagues, and thus it pays to use what others use. So, from these tests alone, it boils down to Finale or Sibelius. Would that it were as simple a matter to distill it further. Space does not remotely permit an in-depth comparison at the moment, so let’s confine ourselves to the big picture.

This weekend one of my alma maters (San Diego State) played Notre Dame, a contest which, historically, would have seemed such a mismatch as to be impossible to schedule. However, the state university which has struggled throughout its history to become a big fish in successively bigger ponds going up against one of the great white sharks of college football history is a perfect allegory for Sibelius’s struggle to encroach on Finale’s turf. While the Aztecs ultimately lost, it wasn’t a blowout. Sibelius and Finale are like that. The latter has the longer history and hence the larger user base, but the former has the position of upstart and the mantle of innovator. So how does one choose?

One clue is that the documentation for Finale dwarfs that of Sibelius. All that extra verbiage exists to explain something, and is evidence of how Finale has survived on its “jack-of-all-trades-and-master-of-some” depth of features. It has always tried to be all things to all people, offering mixed blessings of power and flexibility purchased by a steep learning curve. Beyond its fledgling years, I have never worried about finishing a gig because Finale couldn’t do something. Plus, as I was a copyist before the first mouse came along, the good news was that Finale let me put symbols, as by hand, wherever I wanted. The bad news was it made me put the symbols, as by hand, wherever I wanted.

When Sibelius made its American debut at a NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) show some 10 years ago, and despite its unavailability for the Mac, I saw its potential and grilled its “people” for hours, Its approach was to do more of the thinking for the composer/copyist while limiting some of his options, while using a radically different code structure which sped up processing considerably. This gave it a reduced and simpler learning environment, making it attractive to newbies.

On the broadest levels, the struggle ever since has been each one pushing away from its comfortable extreme by incorporating features and approaches from the other in an attempt to grab market share, This has proven to be a net gain for all of us, as competition does wonders for the pace of development. If it weren’t for Sibelius, Finale wouldn’t have interactive score and part views within one file and, without Finale pointing the way, Sibelius wouldn’t have a scroll view giving more practical access to just the material desired.

If you insist on specifics, Sibelius’ strengths include a slightly more authentic and traditional look to its output, but you might have to remind yourself to notice. Its playback algorithms sound a bit more realistic. And its structure holds somewhat greater potential for my personal holy grail of a completely touch-typed score, a boon for both the visually-impaired as well as anyone who truly thirsts for speed and efficiency. However, the company’s history does not make me confident that it has the vision to pull it off anytime soon. Part of its power comes from placing graphic symbols by hanging them on notes (not just by absolute spacing within the bar,) which often requires the use of the old invisible “dummy note” routine.

Finale’s strengths are a much deeper set of features and, consequently, more ways to get things done. If you’re willing to do the requisite homework with FinaleScript, third-party macro programs (to automate tasks and manage details,) and Finale’s seemingly bottomless pit of skills, you can get it to do most of Sibelius’s tricks, and a lot more.

Ultimately, any solutions to the “Less Filling!/Tastes Great!” software debate really hinge on defining what kind of user you want to be. If you relate to your software as simply a toolbox to accomplish a finite set of gigs, you will probably want one that is smaller, less complicated, and requiring less time and learning to accomplish those so you can get on with life’s other pursuits. If so, Sibelius might be your cup of tea. On the other hand, if you look to your software as a source of personal and musical power, then you must decide whether you are the sort who would rather take the time and effort to become Superman rather than Batman (superheroes both, but hardly interchangeable.) If so, Finale may satisfy your craving for power.

Either way, you’re in for an adventure. Make your choice and dig in!

50 Tips to Become a Better Classical Musician

2010-05-31T18:54:00.001-07:00

Subscribe to blogs and news about your instrument.
Know who are the top players of your instrument (dead and alive).
Know all the major concertos.
Perform a solo recital at least every 2 months ( Gigs don’t count )
Learn about other musical genres ( Jazz, Blues, Rock, Country,etc.) and try to understand their musical forms, chord progressions, and after that try to arrange something for your instrument.
Learn improvisation .
Try to compose your own cadenzas.
Go to Music festivals.
Make friends with Concertmasters, Conductors, Composers,Arrangers, Manager of salsa groups, jazz musicians and any other music group around you.
Schedule an audition as a substitute at the nearest orchestra or popular group.
Always be on time.
Bring all your equipment: stands, music, extensions, plugs ,etc.
Dress accordingly to the occasion, if in doubt dress nice.
Try a different path in the music business other than performing: compose, arrange, conduct, work as a luthier, manage a symphony, etc.
Teach as much as you can: it would not only bring money but it will also remind you of the basics in your instrument, things you will need for the rest of your life as a performer.
Play every gig available no matter how much they pay, especially early in your career, you would be surprised how many contacts you will do: this will lead to future gigs!!
Always be making friends and tell them what you do: they will spread the word for you.
Have a facebook account and make groups and fan sites.
Same with twitter and other social networks.
Build your own website.
Participate in music forums.
Practice sight reading, is easier to do this with friends, read quartets, duos and trios often.
Practice you excerpts!: Wake up at 3am and play Don Juan or another difficult excerpt and play it without warming up or anything! Its an awesome feeling.
Play an audition to friends and teachers before the real thing .
Become a member of music societies, clubs and unions like the American Federation of Musicians.
Subscribe to Music Magazines.
Attend as many concert as you can, it will help you with your music interpretation, style, etc.
Know the score of the pieces you are playing: solo, chamber, orchestra,etc.
Try to build your own sheet music library.
Try to build a music library with cd’s and dvd’s.
Listen to the pieces you are working on (chamber,solo, orchestral, etc) at least once a day.
Know the composers of the pieces you are working on (style, period in time,life,etc.)
Practice at least 4 hours a day, 6 or more for competitions.
Learn Sibelius or Finale.
In moments of frustration call a friend and tell them how much you love music and how much you don't want to quit, explain to them how hard is the business of music and how hard you are willing to work.
You might want to learn german or italian.
Sharpen your skills of transposition.
Learn the basics of piano.
Study music and physics, the simple stuff
Listen to other music genres you are not interested and learn from them. Find something good about it.
Know the major works of Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, Brahms, Tchaikovsky and all the great masters.
Learn orchestration .
Classical Music for Dummies- Its a great source, I learned a lot of things i didn't know, cool book!
Practice your scales every day; this is key.
Don't waste your time in music theory class, learn all about harmony, counterpoint, instrumentation, etc. This helps understand the music better, it will be reflected in your playing of course!
Help organizing someone's recital or music event, one day you will need them and you will also have the experience as well.
Join your church music group.
Prepare your self for competitions (international or local)
Blog about classical music .
Wake up early for practice marathons with your friends.

Understanding Classical Music

2010-05-27T07:45:00.000-07:00

Understanding classical music is something most people think is far too lofty a goal, one best left for music scholars and academics in their ivory towers. It's the epitome of stuffiness; black ties and diamond earrings must be worn at all times.
This is not at all the case!
Classical music should be heard and appreciated by all people. Composers were and are real people who struggle with the same problems we all do, including paying bills, satisfying their clients, and just existing from one day to the next.
It's not necessary to understand composition techniques, orchestration principles, and the intricacies of arranging music to be awed by its beauty. Just let it wash over you and absorb the feelings!
The genius of Bach, the magnificence of Beethoven, the sheer beauty of Chopin, and the power of Prokofiev are all waiting to be discovered by you, no matter how much you know or don't know about music theory and history.
Do you turn away from a rainbow, bemoaning that you don't understand light refraction and color prism?
Of course not!
If you drive a car, do you understand fuel injection, and rack and pinion steering?
I think I've made my point.
However, some knowledge of Western art music helps understanding classical music even more. Why did Beethoven write his symphonies, why did Bach love the fugue, did Mozart really hate the flute?
But if you don't have time to pursue a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Music History, what can you do?
An easy and fun way to learn about anything is via an audio book.
Audio books are the educational tool for the 21st century.

You can listen anywhere you want to--in the car, in the doctor's waiting room, at a soccer game, lounging in bed--you name it. No more boring classrooms.
You can use odd bits of time that would otherwise be wasted.
You can listen to any part over again without having to raise your hand and ask a question in class.
Audio books are portable--no 10-ton text book to lug around, just a little MP3 player or Ipod.
Audio books are less expensive than a printed text. No trees have to die.
Audio books are private--just pop in an ear plug.
Audio books are entertaining. They come alive with fascinating narration, great music, and tantalizing sound effects.

Is scales practice really important?

2010-05-25T00:34:00.001-07:00

YES!

Love them or loathe them there's no getting away from them. Scales practice is important... but not only for the reasons you may think! Practicing scales helps us think in a certain key. When we are sight reading or just starting to learn a new piece it is much easier to focus on the notes (and get them correct) if we know the piece is in Ab major and everything that entails, instead of trying to remember Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db and either forgetting some of them or constantly repeating the flats or sharps in our heads - which is rather distracting! Scales practice also help us hear tonalities, that is hearing what key a piece of music is in. This helps internalize music later on and also helps with memorization. It is much easier to memorize a piece when we are aware of which key each section is in and where it is likely to move next. All scales are related in one way or another.
Scale practice does not directly make playing pieces better. Scales practice makes your scales better. Practicing pieces makes those pieces better. Having said that scales practice does improves playing and therefore it does help your pieces in the long run. And practicing scales can be fun - in a challenging kind of way.

Scales help the fluency of your playing, your sight reading, improvisation, composition and aural (listening abilities) as well as being useful for practicing techniques on your instrument. Scale practice helps you hear different keys and tonalities and identify patterns within music. Scales you know well also give you the opportunity to practice techniques without having to think about notes. E.g. Playing a scale you know very well staccato means you can work on your staccato technique without worrying about the notes or fingerings. You focus on your staccato. Playing a scale pianissimo enables you to concentrate on making every note sound evenly when playing very soft. Scales practice can be used for much more than just practicing scales!

How to Keep the Conductor in Line

2010-05-23T00:45:00.000-07:00

A Player's Guide for Keeping Conductors in Line

If there were a basic training manual for orchestra players, it might include ways to practice not only music, but one-upmanship. It seems as if many young players take pride in getting the conductor's goat. The following rules are intended as a guide to the development of habits that will irritate the conductor. (Variations and additional methods depend upon the imagination and skill of the player.)

Never be satisfied with the tuning note. Fussing about the pitch takes attention away from the podium and puts it on you, where it belongs.
When raising the music stand, be sure the top comes off and spills the music on the floor.
Complain about the temperature of the rehearsal room, the lighting, crowded space, or a draft. It's best to do this when the conductor is under pressure.
Look the other way just before cues.
Never have the proper mute, a spare set of strings, or extra reeds. Percussion players must never have all their equipment.
Ask for a re-audition or seating change. Ask often. Give the impression you're about to quit. Let the conductor know you're there as a personal favor.
Pluck the strings as if you are checking tuning at every opportunity, especially when the conductor is giving instructions. Brass players: drop mutes. Percussionists have a wide variety of dropable items, but cymbals are unquestionably the best because they roll around for several seconds.
Loudly blow water from the keys during pauses (Horn, oboe and clarinet players are trained to do this from birth).
Long after a passage has gone by, ask the conductor if your C# was in tune. This is especially effective if you had no C# or were not playing at the time. (If he catches you, pretend to be correcting a note in your part.)
At dramatic moments in the music (while the conductor is emoting) be busy marking your music so that the climaxes will sound empty and disappointing.
Wait until well into a rehearsal before letting the conductor know you don't have the music.
Look at your watch frequently. Shake it in disbelief occasionally.
Tell the conductor, "I can't find the beat." Conductors are always sensitive about their "stick technique", so challenge it frequently.
As the conductor if he has listened to the Bernstein recording of the piece. Imply that he could learn a thing or two from it. Also good: ask "Is this the first time you've conducted this piece?"
When rehearsing a difficult passage, screw up your face and shake your head indicating that you'll never be able to play it. Don't say anything: make him wonder.
If your articulation differs from that of others playing the same phrase, stick to your guns. Do not ask the conductor which is correct until backstage just before the concert.
Find an excuse to leave rehearsal about 15 minutes early so that others will become restless and start to pack up and fidget.
During applause, smile weakly or show no expression at all. Better yet, nonchalantly put away your instrument. Make the conductor feel he is keeping you from doing something really important.

It is time that players reminded their conductors of the facts of life: just who do conductors think they are, anyway?
Donn Laurence Mills is the NSOA contributing editor. He holds music degrees from Northwestern University and Eastman School of Music. A conductor and music educator, he is also the American educational director for the Yamaha Foundation of Tokyo.

10 Famous Violinists (Alive) in the Classical Music World

2010-05-20T16:56:00.000-07:00

Itzhak Perlman
Israeli violin virtuoso, conductor, and master-instructor. He is widely considered as one of the preeminent violin virtuosi of the 20th century.

Perlman was born in Tel Aviv, in what was soon to be Israel, where he first became interested in the violin after hearing a classical music performance on the radio. He studied at the Academy of Music in Tel Aviv before moving to the United States to study at the Juilliard School with the great violin pedagogue, Ivan Galamian, and his assistant Dorothy DeLay.
Perlman contracted polio at the age of four. He made a good recovery, learning to walk with the use of crutches. Today, he generally uses crutches or an Amigo POV/Scooter for mobility and plays the violin while seated.

Joshua Bell
is an American Grammy Award-winning violinist.

Selected Discography

Angels & Demons Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, 2009

Joshua Bell, featured violinist
Music composed by Hans Zimmer

Antonio Vivaldi: The Four Seasons, Sony BMG Masterworks, 2008

Defiance OST, 2008

The Red Violin Concerto, Sony BMG Masterworks, 2007

Hilary Hahn
Hahn began playing the violin one month before her fourth birthday in the Suzuki Program of Baltimore's Peabody Conservatory She participated in a Suzuki class for a year. Between 1984 and 1989 Hahn studied in Baltimore under Klara Berkovich. In 1990, at ten, Hahn was admitted to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where she became a student of Jascha Brodsky. Hahn studied with Brodsky for seven years and learned the études of Kreutzer, Ševčík, Gaviniès, Rode, and the Paganini Caprices. She learned twenty-eight violin concertos, recital programs, and several other short pieces.

Janine Jansen
is a classical violinist born in January 7, 1978 in Soest in the Netherlands.
She has eschewed tradition by recording with only 5 solo strings rather than an orchestra, including her brother as cellist and father playing continuo. In live concerts, she has received standing ovations from enthusiastic audiences, such as in the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 2006 concert in Berlin's Waldbühne Amphitheater, with a full attendance of 25,000, and in Los Angeles at the Walt Disney Concert Hall with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra in 2008 to a sold out audience.

Sarah Chang

Chang has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the NHK Symphony Orchestra of Tokyo, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bayerische Rundfunk Orchestra, the Washington National Symphony Orchestra, the Oslo Philharmonic, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, the Melbourne Symphony, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Orchestre Philharmonique de Luxembourg, the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre National de France, the Honolulu Symphony, and the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra amongst others.

Viktoria Mullova

is a Russian violinist. She is best known for her performances and recordings of a number of violin concerti, compositions by J.S. Bach, and her innovative interpretations of popular and jazz compositions by Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, The Beatles, and others.

Maxim Vengerov

Born on 20 August 1974 in Novosibirsk, Russia, to a family with musical tradition. At the age of 5, he began studying the violin with Galina Tourkhaninova, and two years later – with Zakhar Bron. 1984 saw the 10-year-old Maxim go abroad for the first time; in Lublin, Poland, he won the 1st prize at International Karol Lipiński and Henryk Wieniawski Young Violin Player Competition (years later, he recalled, "I thought Poland was somewhere at the end of the world. One does not forget such trips; no wonder I always remember Poland very fondly…").

Julia Fischer

born in Munich, Germany.
Fischer began her studies before her fourth birthday, when she received her first violin lesson from Helge Thelen; a few months later she started studying the piano with her mother, Viera Fischer. Fischer said, "my mother's a pianist and I wanted to play the piano as well, but as my elder brother also played the piano, she thought it would be nice to have another instrument in the family. I agreed to try out the violin and stayed with it." She began her formal violin education at the Leopold Mozart Conservatory in Augsburg, under the tutelage of Lydia Dubrowskaya. At the age of nine Julia Fischer was admitted to the Munich Academy of Music, where she continues to work with Ana Chumachenco.

Anne Sophie Mutter

Mutter was born in Rheinfelden, Germany. She began playing the piano at age five, and shortly afterwards the violin, studying with Erna Honigberger, a pupil of Carl Flesch. Upon Honigberger's death, she continued her studies with Aida Stucki, at the Winterthur Conservatory.
After winning several prizes, she was exempted from school to dedicate herself to her art. When she was 13, conductor Herbert von Karajan invited her to play with the Berlin Philharmonic. In 1977, she made her debut at the Salzburg Festival and with the English Chamber Orchestra under Daniel Barenboim. At 15, Mutter made her first recording of the Mozart Third and Fifth violin concerti with von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic.

Midori Goto

is a Japanese American violinist. She made her debut at the age of 11 in a last minute change of programming during a concert by the New York Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta highlighting young performers. When she was 21, she formed the philanthropic group Midori and Friends to help bring music to children in New York City. She is internationally renowned as a performer. In 2007, she was selected as a UN Messenger of Peace.

Conductor's Role in Classical Music

2010-05-18T17:21:00.000-07:00

What is a conductor?:

A conductor is someone who leads and guides an orchestra or a group of singers in order to perform a piece to the best of their abilities. Conductors work in theater or stage plays, film or TV scores, lead orchestras and choirs that are either amateurs or pros.

What does a conductor do?:

The conductor makes sure that the music piece is interpreted properly by acting as the guide to the musicians or singers. He chooses and studies the music score, may make certain adjustments to it and relay his ideas to the performers so that when the music is played, there is unity and harmony. He schedules rehearsals, plans the orchestra's repertoire and attends to other matters concerning the group he leads.

Basics of conducting

Conducting Patterns

James Horner (film composer) conducting music for the Avatar movie.

John Williams (Film Composer)

Music review: Three 'conductors' save the day for Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra

What Music Conductors and Directors do!

Strong Female Conductors

Perfect Pitch: Can we develop it?

2010-05-14T17:08:00.000-07:00

Perfect Pitch is the ability to hear a music note and identify it right away. It is also someone that can hear harmonies, clusters and any given sound and be able to write it down for multiple purposes. The majority of the musicians are Relative Pitch, this is when someone can recognize a given note for example "A" and find his or her way around the other notes using intervals.

-Musicians who are used to "playing by ear" are masters of the Relative Pitch.

- Many arrangers, orchestrators and composers have Perfect Pitch, they can hear the score in their heads, this will help them organize their ideas without any problem, they know how it would sound like.

We know that we can develop Relative Pitch with some training, but the question is:

Can we develop Perfect Pitch?

Some people say you have to be born with this gift......
Other say that you either have it, or not......
I have never heard you can develop it other than the courses they sell online,

but will they work? Have anyone tried it?

Post your answers!!

Perfect Pitch vs. Relative Pitch

This are some common abilities of a PERFECT PITCH person.

Identify by name individual pitches (e.g. A, B, C♯) played on various instruments

Name the key of a given piece of tonal music just by listening (without reference to an external tone)

Identify and name all the tones of a given chord or other tonal mass

Sing a given pitch without an external reference

Name the pitches of common everyday noises such as car horns

Identify the numerical value in hertz of a given note.

On the other hand this are some common abilities of a RELATIVE PITCH person.

the distance of a musical note from a set point of reference, e.g. "three octaves above middle C"

a musician's ability to identify the intervals between given tones, regardless of their relation to concert pitch (A = 440 Hz)

the skill used by singers to correctly sing a melody, following musical notation, by pitching each note in the melody according to its distance from the previous note. Alternatively, the same skill which allows someone to hear a melody for the first time and name the notes relative to some known starting pitch.

developed through intense training, practicing hearing differences between major, minor, diminished, and augmented intervals

Check if you have Perfect Pitch:

http://perfectpitchtest.com/